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“Roni is upset over Terri, and she’s taking it out on me,” I speak to Charlotte. “I don’t want to be mean to her, but it’s getting out of hand.”
“She put a lock on your door.”
“That was over something else.” I glance over at Bryce, who’s pretending a public freak out on his phone is more interesting than the real thing. “Charlotte, Roni is hurting over Terri.”
“So, I should gift him back?”
“I know you don’t talk to her, but could you cut me some slack?”
Bryce answers for her. “Charlotte won’t give him back to Roni because Roni isn’t us. Terri had no business being with her. Terri is old money with a name. Roni is new money. Trashy money earned by mass-producing crap. That money doesn’t endure.”
Why the fuck is he butting in? “Our father earns money,” I argue his twisted logic.
“Daddy doesn’t have to work,” Charlotte speaks softly, “And neither do you.”
He fucking told her. I stare at Bryce, but his eyes stay fixed on his phone. I want to walk over there and kick him off that bed.
“I’m asking you to be nice, Charlotte. I know you can do it. Dump him.”
Charlotte laughs. “Is that your advice? The advice you have never taken. I’m sorry her feelings are hurt, but she should do what I did. Find someone else.” Charlotte gets up from her desk and opens the door. “I’m sorry about your friend. But if you want to be kind to her, you’ll tell her to find someone with less class.”
“You’re being a bitch.”
“Aren’t we all?”
I hurry out of the room and hesitate in front of the door to mine. I should just stay in my mother’s apartment. I could tell Howland to tell Dr. Rawlins that I have to stay there. He can call the admins and tell them I need my own space. Or I could stay with him in that huge house. Never. Why am I even thinking that?
I head down the stairs to the basement, hoping no one is hanging out in the abandoned bathroom. It’s disgusting having to sleep in a john, but I can lock the door, and no one can bother me. Well, that respite ends abruptly before I can open the door. Bryce steps behind me as I put the hidden key in the lock.
“I always wondered what was in there,” he says.
“Go away,” I snap.
But he doesn’t. Bryce pushes me forward into the room, and I tumble to the floor as the door slams behind us. Before I can get off my hands and knees, he’s on me, grabbing my hips from behind. I try to fight him off, but his grip tightens as he pins me down on the ground. He lies on top of my back as he fumbles with his pants.
“You made me look like a fool,” he hisses.
My head flies up off the ground. “A fool? You’ve been using me all along, and now you complain?”
I twist underneath him, freeing my arm and driving my elbow into his side. Bryce gasps, letting me go, but he catches my ankle in his hard grip before I can dart away. Bryce dodges my savage kicks aimed at his gut, but I land a few. He grabs my other ankle and yanks me back toward him.
I lash out, slapping any part of his body I can reach. I slap his face hard, and his head snaps back. I freeze as he eyes me, grunting in gulps of air and seething hate. His face twists, and I’m terrified. I’ve never seen him lose restraint.
He grabs me by the shoulders and shakes me viciously. “You made me look like a dumb asshole. Do you know what they’re saying about me? I’m whipped. My head is so far up your ass that I can’t see you for the bitch you are.”
“Stop!” I shout, “You’re no innocent. You’ve used me. I never used you. I only used the club. You don’t have to worry about the things I do behind your back. I’m not like you. I have to fight.”
Bryce freezes as he eyes me, and his lips thin into a thin line. He’s looking for that control he’s lost. He’s debating whether he should even listen to reason. We’re on the edge looking down, and maybe I just want to fall.
“I gave you all I had left,” I whisper hoarsely. “Remember that night. I felt tight, didn’t I? You had to push hard to get inside me. I gave it to you, and now you’re saying I made you a fool.”
“You’re lying,” he says, “You bragged about being a slut.”
“I did a lot of nasty things, but I’m not going to get pregnant.” My chest rises and falls, and I can barely tell him. “Not by you. I wouldn’t have allowed you to touch me if I wasn’t on the pill.”
His grip loosens as Bryce rises up, his knees towering over me while his thighs straddle my hips. “I should hate you.” His hands move down my sides, stopping at my waist.
My body responds to his hands on me, ignoring what’s right. I wish I had the will to tell him to go away and mean it. I watch his fingers unzip my jeans, and I flush, knowing what he’s going to feel when he slips his finger into me. My eyes flutter as he strokes my slit, and I reach out, gripping his wrist, stopping him.
