AllFreeNovel
Share Us
My survival instinct kicks in. I want to spin on my heel and sprint away, finally putting to good use the running tips from PE class, but his vicious glare glues me to the spot. And even worse—the worst thing, really—is that his anger shoots heat down to my toes. My skin crackles with electricity. The licks of steely fire in his eyes match the red-hot flames stoking inside me.
“What does she want, Luci?” Dinu asks, a deep smirk on his face. His turquoise eyes sparkle with malignant mischief.
Lucian stiffens at the question. The nickname.
“Shut the fuck up, Dinu, and mind your own business,” he growls.
In stark contrast to the flashing meanness in his glare, Lucian employs a deceptively soothing tone of voice when he says nonchalantly, “Now I know there was a request in there somewhere. I suggest you rephrase and ask me…nicely.”
That last word barely cloaks his icy rage, beneath the guise of calm. The hairs on my nape prick up, my lizard brain finally dousing my temper. My mind scrambles to catch up to the danger of the situation. He’s in the wrong, but he can’t appear weak in front of this pack of jackals.
Lowering my head in deference, I ask, “I was wondering when we can work on the essay?”
There I did it. I lowered myself to satisfy his ego in front of his men and to get his cooperation.
“On thewhat?” he sneers. “You must have me confused with someone else.”
A few snickers bubble up behind him.
My face flushes with a blast of fury. One debasement is enough. Two is pushing it. I open my mouth to answer when an angry feminine voice comes up behind me.
“What the fuck is going on here?”
My head whips around.
Standing right behind me is Roxie, flanked by Aurora and Luminita, two of the meanest bitches I know.
My stomach drops. I just stepped in a heaping pile. There’s no getting out of this without stinking.
“I-I was asking about when we’ll meet,” I stutter, impressed that I strung a full sentence together. “To work on the essay.”
Roxie bumps my shoulder, shoving me out of the way, and saunters over to Lucian. She scoots up on the tabletop and drapes an arm around his waist. His abdomen clenches in response, but otherwise he remains stock-still. He doesn’t move an inch. Not toward her. Not away from her. By doing nothing, he declares a united front.
My stomach does somersaults. Disillusionment flutters through my chest. Stupid me, for having imagined there was anything between us.Mutual respect, my ass.
Roxie nuzzles against the underside of his stiff jaw. His teeth clench, but he still doesn’t move a muscle.
Roxie flicks a hand my way. “Write it yourself, Lupu girl.” Her eyes narrow on me. Tone hard, she warns, “Do it and go away. No one wants you here.”
My head buzzes like a swarm of hornets. I feel and see everything at once: the clatter of silverware on the white porcelain plates, the grease swimming in the sauce on my plate, the blazing heat from the fluorescent lights above. The gray plastic tray I’m holding suddenly feels like a fifty-pound weight. My arm muscles tremble with the effort to keep it aloft.
Roxie must think we have a project to dotogetherso I blurt out, “I was just asking when we were going to meet for tutoring.”
The snickering around me breaks off. A blast of tension plasters me like a gummy, wet blanket.
Uh-oh.
Roxie stops nuzzling Lucian’s throat and turns sharply toward me. “Stop embarrassing yourself with your pretend tutoring. Lucian’s way above your fucking pay grade. Crawl back into the gutter you slithered out of, Lupu bitch.”
She plants a sloppy kiss on Lucian’s perfect full lips.
My stomach cramps with disgust. Too much. It’s too much. Before I tear Roxie off him, I turn on my heel. Taking a wobbly step forward, I use my elbows to push through the wall of mean girls.
Abruptly, a hard shove to my back propels me forward. My feet slip under me. The crowd parts. I crash headlong to the floor. The tray smashes against my chest, plastering me with sticky spaghetti, sauce, and meatballs. Hot food scalds my skin through my white blouse and splashes onto my face.
My gaping mouth pulsates with pain. Blood drips onto the sticky linoleum floor. My gaze skitters to the side and I see a glimmer of white.
A pearly curved chip of a tooth rocks gently next to a floating dust bunny.
