Plopping down, I blow out a long breath. The doll stares at me, and I stare at it. I’ve never known silence to be so thick or so…charged.
The door flies open, and my insufferable stepbrother barges in, barely sparing a glance at the doll. “Where did you go after classes finished?”
“I met up with my friends.”
He snorts. “You don’t have friends.”
“Is it so difficult to believe things are different here?”
As always, he sucks out the oxygen in the air when he peruses my room. I try not to stare, but keeping my eyes off his broad back is impossible, especially when he looks out the window at the trees beyond before spinning around and pinning me with his dark, blazing eyes.
“I waited for you.”
“You told me to take the bus.”
His jaw clenches, and with his next step, the floorboards creak beneath the sheer force of his weight. I still don’t know what he wants when he used to ignore my existence. Is he suffering the ill effects of the intense heat, too, or is he unnerved because I’m no longer a wallflower? The rules have changed, and he’s unsure of where I fit on his board.
At least, with the contempt in his gaze, he seems himself, unlike yesterday when I locked him out. I still don’t trust that he won’t flip.
“What are you doing in here?” I ask as he approaches me, one slow step at a time.
His muscles ripple while his eyes dare me to challenge him. Instead of answering, he hovers over me, his hair falling over his brow. He slides his hands into his pockets, as if to hold himself back. And then he says in a low but threatening tone, “I’mdriving you home tomorrow, so I expect you to wait for me after class.”
“And what if I don’t?” I ask, out of sheer curiosity. Some morbid and unwelcome part of me hopes to push him that little bit further.
“You don’t want me to embarrass you in front of your new friends, right?” His lips tilt in a sinful smirk, the kind of smirk that makes my breath catch and my nipples harden. “I wouldn’t mind taking your precious Aron down a notch or two.”
I rise to my feet, my nails digging into my palms. “Stay away from my friends.”
“Little sister,” he drawls, sliding his hand out of his pocket to pull a strand of my hair. “Why so tense?” The humor in his voice is undeniable. I stand my ground, refusing to be the one to look away first. He won’t win this time, and I refuse to let him intimidate me anymore.
“Why do you hate me so much?” I ask.
He visibly tenses as the humor dulls in his eyes, replaced by raw fury. For the first time, I’m scared of Dominic and the darkness in his eyes. It chills me to the bone.
“You know why,” he sneers, his voice deadly calm. “You’re the reason my dad is gone.”
“I didn’t have anything to do with it. The crash wasn’t my fault?—”
Dominic is in my face so fast I fall back onto the bed. He grabs me by my top and hauls me off the mattress until I feel his hot breath against my lips. “Save your lies for someone who believes you.” His head cocks to the side, and he says, “Like your mom.” Then he drops me and storms out, leaving me to tremble on the bed with my heart thundering and my thoughts whirling.
SEVEN
CAMRYN
“I can’t believewe’re skipping school for this.” Brittany sounds delighted as she enters my house, her ponytail swaying.
I caught a lift in Gwen’s car, and we drove here as soon as our first class ended. It was the only time we could have the house to ourselves. Mom is at work, and Dominic is in class. I don’t trust that asshole not to barge into my room to interrupt us. There’s no chance he would stay away if I brought friends home for the first time. No, he’d insist on inserting himself and ruining the night with a look of satisfaction on his smug face. Because the fuckerwouldenjoy every minute of watching me squirm like a fish on a hook.
“I can’t believe we convinced Lily to come along,” Aron teases, his arm wrapped around her shoulder as they walk up the drive.
“Someone has to keep an eye on you all,” she replies with an eye roll.
Benny walks past me with a soft chuckle. Aron and Lily enter, and I walk in behind them and close the door.
Ahead of us, Gwen makes a beeline for the kitchen with the box in her arms, putting it on the table while I remove the vase of fresh flowers.
I’m more nervous than I should be, my clogged throat making breathing difficult. There’s no logical reason to be this anxious. Lily said it herself: ghosts don’t exist.
