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I stare down at my lap and nod. After I told her what I found out about him, Laney was devastated. It wasn’t as surprising that he sacrificed me to the devil himself, but they didn’t have the strained relationship that he and I did, so the knowledge of what he did was a hard hit for her. She’s seen him a couple times over the last few days, but it’s mainly because she’s negotiating a deal. See, Delaney got early access to her trust fund when she graduated—a thank you present for not being such a fuck-up. I, however, still have to wait until I turn twenty-one, unless her plan works and she gets him to give it to me.
“You sure you don’t want to come with me?”
I raise a single brow. “And spend over an hour with the father who knows I almost died and still hasn’t asked if I’m okay? The father who set up me to be raped and tortured by my own uncle? No thanks, I’ll pass.”
My mom came to Asher’s the day I was discharged. She apologized profusely for all the wrongdoing she indirectly played a part in, but it’s going to be hard to come back from that. Her offer to divorce my dad if that’s what I want is still something I’m considering—especially since he hasn’t sent so much as a card.
Asher comes out, looking like the sexy millionaire he is. “We just have to wait for your babysitter to get here.”
My eyes roll as I stand up to hug him. There are two things that Asher and Delaney have stood together on. One, Easton is out of my life for good, and two, I’m not allowed to be alone. I can’t exactly say I blame them, but thanks to Easton’s cover-up, everyone still thinks the overdose was accidental.
“Oh, good. That’ll give me more time to seduce Colby,” I tease.
Asher smirks. “Not Colby.”
The elevator doors open behind me, and I turn around to see Lennon step out. My stomach churns, knowing we haven’t been alone together since before everything happened. Hell, she’s barely said a word to me since she stormed into the hospital and quite literally tried to smack sense into me.
“On second thought, lunch with dear old Dad doesn’t sound so bad.”
While Asher and Delaney chuckle, Lennon levels me with a look. “Sit your ass down.”
I close my eyes and take a deep breath. “Well, my life was good while it lasted. Love life was a little short, but it is what it is.”
My boyfriend presses a kiss to my lips and my sister hugs me before they both head out, leaving me alone with my best friend, and the one girl who isn’t too blinded to see the truth. Well, this should be fun.
HOURS PASS AND I’M scrolling through my phone, looking at all the headlines Asher told me not to read. I can see why. Each one of them is cruel, making us both out to be monsters.
Asher Hawthorne: Closet Pervert, Borderline Pedophile.
Former Star Quarterback Throws Life Away For Drug Addict.
How a Night of Partying and Drugs Led to Asher Hawthorne Nearly Killing His Underage Girlfriend.
I throw my head back and groan. Lennon glances up at me from where she’s been sitting silently since she got here.
“Stop Googling,” she tells me.
I sigh. “I can’t. It’s obnoxious how they twist the truth. Some of these are even blatant lies. It’s like they take one small piece of information and run with it.”
She flips the page on the magazine. “That’s the media for you.”
Don’t get me wrong, I love Lennon to death, but this dismissive attitude to everything I say is getting on my last damn nerve. This argument needs to be had, and until we force it out into the open, our friendship is going to continue to feel strained.
I get up from my spot on the couch and rip the magazine from her lap, throwing it across the room. She looks at me with no emotion whatsoever.
“I was reading that.”
“Oops?”
She grabs another one from her purse and as soon as she opens it, I do it again. I know her well enough to be able to see her restraint starting to slip, but she’s not quite there yet. Finally, when I do the same thing with her phone, making sure it hits the couch and not the floor, she snaps.
“Fucking stop, Tess!”
“No,” I push back. “Not until you talk to me.”
She rolls her eyes and gets up to walk away. “I’m not doing this.”
“Fine, then leave!” I point to the elevator. “There’s the door! Just go!”
