Page 7

“Aww, did you hear that? The little princess wants to go to class. What’s the point? When you marry Ryan, you won’t need an education to spread your legs and push out his heir,” Sienna spits, glaring at me with such hatred that I just can’t understand.

I don’t bother arguing with her, as she’s right. When I marry Ryan, I won’t be able to have a job, or even a hobby. My role will consist of pleasing my husband in any way he desires, before giving birth to as many heirs as he needs me to have.

Knowing that’s going to be my future, but also theirs, makes it less of a criticism than they imagine. “Won’t that be expected of you too…if you ever find a husband?”

Well, I probably shouldn’t have poked the mean girls by pointing out that they aren’t Betrothed, but I couldn’t help myself.

Tillie reaches down and grabs hold of my strawberry-blonde curls, pulling hard enough for my scalp to sting as she yanks my head back until I have no choice but to meet her fierce gaze. She looks furious, and I regret opening my big mouth.

“Who the fuck do you think you are, bitch? I am a Langford, one of the richest families on campus. I haven’t selected my husband yet because I don’t want to. Daddy wants to take his time finding me the perfect match. Not that it’s any of your fucking business,” she snarls.

Sienna takes a step closer, popping her hip as she scowls at me. “For your information, I already have a man; we’re just waiting for the right time to make it public.”

Both girls toss their hair in an impressively synchronised move, as they look down their noses at me. “Okay,” I say through gritted teeth, not wanting to make this situation worse. It’s news to me that Sienna is dating someone, but I don’t care enough to follow her life. “Can I just get up and go to class, please?”

Tillie lets out an evil chuckle that sounds suspiciously like a snort. “You’ll have to beg better than that if you want to be a good whore for Ryan.”

I roll my eyes as I let out a huff. “I have no intention of being Ryan’s whore. Since I am to be his wife, I won’t need to beg.”

“You’ll need to beg him to touch you, as I’m sure his dick doesn’t even twitch looking at you,” Sienna snarls.

I can’t deny their words don’t cut deep. Of course, I’m worried that Ryan doesn’t find me attractive, that I’m too plain and boring to turn him on. But I don’t have a lot of choice in the matter. I was raised to be this way, and I never got a say in it.

When Ryan became my Betrothed, he knew I had to remain a virgin until we’re married. He also knew all the rules imposed on me by my father, including how I had to dress and behave. He knew exactly what he was getting into when he signed the marriage contract, but that doesn’t mean I’m not worried that his eye might stray elsewhere.

I don’t even have the words to form a response, so I just sit there waiting for whatever the girls plan to do next, hoping I can find a way out of this before things get any worse. I feel a shadow descend over me, and for just a fraction of a second, I hope it’s someone coming to my aid, but as soon as my skin tingles, I lose the last bit of optimism I was clinging to.

I don’t even need to look up to know that the person standing over me is Lawson Radley. My skin prickles every time he’s near, and though I choose not to read too much into why my body responds to him being close, I’m certain this isn’t the reprieve I’m hoping for—far from it.

“What’s going on here?” he asks, sounding almost bored.

“We’re just showing this trashy whore where her true place is…kneeling at the feet of people who are better than her,” Tillie announces proudly.

I can’t help the scoff that slips free, and it’s quickly replaced by a yelp when Tillie once again grabs a fistful of my hair and drags my head back until I’m forced to look at him. Lawson wears a bored expression, but there’s a flash of something I can’t quite identify in his dark silver gaze, and he continues to stare at me as the tension between us grows.

“You are not better than me,” I tell Tillie once I manage to drag my gaze away from him long enough to look at her.

Before I have the chance to brace myself, Sienna’s perfectly manicured hand makes contact with my cheek, and the sound of the slap reverberates around the courtyard, followed by oohs and ahhs from the spectators.

My cheek stings, and I’m sure it’s turning an awful shade of red, but I don’t give her the satisfaction of lifting my palm to soothe the pain. I simply keep my gaze on them, biting my lip hard enough to stop any tears that are threatening to fall.

I’m frozen as Sienna pulls her hand back to hit me again, and I close my eyes as I brace for the impact…but it never comes. My eyes fly open to find Lawson grabbing Sienna’s arm, glaring at her as his grip becomes tight enough to pull a yelp from Sienna’s lips.

“In terms of ranking, she is better than you, so never hit her again,” Lawson tells Sienna, dropping her wrist just as quickly.

As he crosses his arms in front of his chest, I can’t help but stare at the way his biceps bulge beneath his T-shirt, as it pulls tight over his perfectly defined abs. He’s so hot, and I’m kinda glad he’s such a terrible person, as he’d be pretty unstoppable if he was a nice guy and gorgeous.

Lawson takes a step closer to me, that cocky smirk of his growing as he catches me ogling him for just a bit too long. “I have to admit, you look good on your knees.”

He doesn’t even try to hide the innuendo, and I can’t help but roll my eyes at his very obvious comment. “I’m sitting on the floor; it’s hardly the same,” I scoff, waving him away as I reach over to gather the things that have fallen from my bag.

Tillie places her pink heel over my notebook, stopping me in my tracks, and I’m forced to stare at my tormentors once more, wondering what on Earth they get out of this. They’ve already humiliated me in front of everyone watching; what more do they want?

“You look like you’re at the perfect height for what I’m thinking about.” Lawson nods towards his crotch, just in case there was any confusion as to what he was talking about—there wasn’t!

Tillie reaches over and places her ridiculously long pink nails on Lawson’s arm, and he freezes beneath her touch. “Lawson, you can do so much better than this piece of trash.” She deliberately makes her voice sound sickly sweet, and it’s like nails on a chalkboard.

Lawson shudders, but not from her offer, more out of repulsion. He grabs hold of her hand and pushes her away so forcefully that Tillie wobbles on her high heels, and Sienna has to reach out to help stabilise her.