“Yes,” I smirked.
Ethan hesitated. “What do you need from me?”
He wasn’t as dumb as he looked. “I need you to back me up with the principle and then keep your mouth shut. Do you think you can do that?”
“Yes. Anything.” He nodded eagerly.
“Then follow me.”
I didn’t decide to ruin Lucas Rowen all at once. It’d been brewing for a while. Part of me knew it was wrong, but the other part of me didn’t give a shit.
We passed his classroom, heading to the office without slowing. I didn’t need to see him. I already had what I needed: timing, a witness, and the truth—reshapedjustenough to be condemning.
As we walked, a memory surfaced uninvited.
Not of Lucas but of Adrian. My stepbrother.
Older. Smarter. And full of shit.
I’ll find a way to come back.
You’ll be fine.
You’re strong.
Lucas will still be here for you.
All of it was complete bullshit.
He just wanted to escape the aftermath, leaving me with Ben, a man devastated by grief. A man who mistook cruelty forpreparation and discipline for love. I learned quickly that I was on my own—nobody gave a shit—and all their reassurances were just a waste of breath.
Rationally, I knew Adrian had only been fifteen at the time and didn’t have much choice in the matter. But what really pissed me off was that, in all this time, he’d only visited a few times, barely acknowledging me when he did. I’d been a stupid eight-year-old girl who idealized him. I should have known as a step-sibling, he didn’t really give a damn.
Adrian had graduated from MIT and had an important position at NASA. I guess he just grew too busy with his life to care about what I was dealing with.
I wish he’d become less attractive, but if anything, he’d grown more so. Slim and built like a dancer with muscles that a computer nerd shouldn’t have.
Lucas, on the other hand, hadn’t left town, but he might as well have. After Adrian was gone, it didn’t take him long to forget about me.
I became invisible.
He quit coming around, not interested in the plight of a child. Only caring about himself and which girl he could lure into the bed of his truck.
What was about to happen washisfault, really. And his dumb luck that Adrian was out of my reach for now.
Principal Morales’s office smelled faintly of lemon cleaner and old books. The walls were glass, but the blinds were half-drawn, giving the illusion of privacy.
I sat when she gestured. Ethan stood until she told him to take the chair beside me.
“What can I help you with?” Morales asked, folding her hands on the desk.
I took a shaky breath. “I didn’t want to come in.” I looked down at my hands. “But after today, I don’t think ignoring it is the right choice.”
Her gaze sharpened. “Ignoring what?”
“Mr. Rowen,” I looked up, making eye contact. “His conduct toward me.”
Principal Morales’s eyebrow went up. “Explain.”
