Page 8 of Spin the Damn Bottle

Mr. Bone stutters, “W—well, in that case…"

"How about you start with an apology?" Jason suggests. “Nadia has been relentlessly bullied since the beginning of the school year by multiple students, and the administration’s indifference is unacceptable. My fatherwillhear of this.”

Oh, this is rich, coming from him, the source of literally all my problems. I'm stunned he can say that with a straight face.

The teacher is quick to blurt, "Iamsorry for the confusion, Mr. Alden. Of course…"

"To her," Jason clarifies, throwing his arm across my chair.

I'm going to hell for enjoying Jason torturing the headmaster as much as I am, but I'm relishing the ride down to my doom.

"Certainly." Mr. Bone clears his throat, and forces his gaze to me. "My apologies, Ms. Reyes. I was operating under erroneous assumptions."

By that, he means that he thought Jason still wanted to fuck me over. I would swat his arm away from me, if his protection weren't the reason why this meeting did a one-eighty.

He's reestablished the status quo. Staying at Cross and Roses is still my best option again. For now.

"There will be no need for detention,” the principal sputters, changing his tune completely.

“Investigating how the attack occurred might be an appropriate action, don't you think?”

Mr. Bone thinks whatever Jason tells him to think. "Of course, of course.” He bobs his head up and down repetitively. If I opened his heart, I'd find a clockwork mechanism and strings tied to Jason's fingertips. “We take the safety of our students quite seriously."

So long as the legacies demand it, at least.

This place is seriously messed up.

“Glad to hear it." Jason stands, and I get to my feet too. "With that in mind, you'll arrange Nadia's move to my building by the end of the day.”

I stare at him openmouthed. He can't mean that. I’ve never so much as stepped inside the modern glass mansion in front of the lake, and now he wants me to live there?

I don’t even know who’s more dangerous; him, his friends, his wannabe-wife, Yuki, or the psycho who tried to set me on fire.

"Wait a second…" I start to say.

Jason's hand, still around the back of my chair, moves to my neck. He digs his fingers into my tight muscles with a purpose.

I don't let his attempt at controlling me deter me. "I can't move into Glass. Everyone in that building hates me."

"Dramatic, much?" He rolls his eyes. "You know the guys love you." By the guys, he must mean his friends, and I know no such thing. At best, they think me entertaining and like to rile me up. "I'm quite fond of you myself."

I don't bother to state the obvious: whoever wants to hurt me is probably in that building. It must be someone powerful, to have had access to my door keys and somehow made it inside the dorm and out without any guard or cameras catching them. "I'm not a legacy."

"I am." Jace is smooth as ever. "And you're mine."

It's the worst idea I've ever heard, and I'm certain it will incense whoever's after me.

"I don't want…"

"Your safety is more important than your desires, Nadia. Every inch of that building is recorded, no one can enter your room without a specific key card with a unique access code, and we have a security detail superior to the rest of Cross and Roses."

My jaw's still tight, but he makes a decent case. I guess I could try.

Except… "I'm not moving in with you."

"Of course not." He smirks, suspecting what I know: he's already won. My safety is more important than whatever other concerns I might have, and I’m not certain I’d feel safe back in the dorms after what happened in November. "You'll be across the hall."

The headmaster is just as flabbergasted as I am. “The board will not approve. The school bylaws are rather strict; the lake house is reserved to a number of students considered at risk because of their family's standing—including Ms. Reyes would defeat its purpose." That's the closest thing to a protest that’s crossed his lips since Jason entered the room.