Again, I was used to very few people speaking to me like that, and by very few, I meant only one. And that fucker was responsible for giving me life, among other things.
“Skim thru the books and then meet me in the library at five today. We can go over the topic you chose.”
She remained silent.
“I’ll see you at five, princess.” I turned to head to my next class.
To my back, I heard her say, “Don’t call me princess!”
I glanced over my shoulder and simply grinned. I wasn’t giving up the nickname. She might as well get the hell used to it.
Chapter Three
Then
Robert
I sighed as I inserted the key into the doorknob, not knowing what to expect on the other side once I entered. It’d been a long two weeks, and because of it, I was behind on my classes. Thankfully, it was still early enough in the semester that I hadn’t missed too much between family bullshit and business bullshit.
Stepping over the threshold of my apartment that was just off campus, I glanced around. The brown leather couch to the left, in the living room, remained undisturbed.It’s dark, I noted as I flicked on the lights.And it’s quiet. Too quiet.
I shook my head and grunted, placing my books and school supplies on the floor next to the wooden coatrack, and moved down the long hallway. Entering the guest bedroom, I found my brother, Jason, a lump in the middle of the waterbed.
Angrily, I turned on the lights in the room and charged over to the bed, shaking it. The mattress rippled and waved due to the pressure. Jason grunted and attempted to turn over on his side.
“Wake up!” I growled.
“Wh-what?” he questioned, groggily, his eyes opening to slits. “Why’s it so fucking bright in here?”
“Maybe because it’s one o’clock in the fucking afternoon.” And just to drive my point home, I pulled open the long, dark curtains my mother had begged me to don the windows with so Jason could sleep more comfortably. I snorted at the way she coddled her youngest son.
“Wake up!” I demanded.
“Ah, come on, Rob. Can’t I get a little sleep?”
“Sleep is all you’ve been doing since we arrived in California last night. I only brought you back with me to keep you out of trouble. I missed two weeks worth of classes for you—”
“No, that wasn’t for me,” Jason retorted, finally sitting up. “You did it for Father.”
“I did it for both of you.” Two weeks ago I’d gotten a call from Jason, who had been taken to the police station after his ex-girlfriend called them, fearing for her safety. They were out at a nightclub, Jason had been drinking, per usual, and he wasn’t a nice drunk. Add to that, Townsend Industries was going through some difficult times due to the ongoing energy crisis, and I was needed back home. Being the oldest, I was used to cleaning up Jason’s messes. I was also expected to take the reins at Townsend Industries at some point, which meant that my father expected me to be heavily involved in the business, no matter what was going on in my life.
“You need to head down and register for classes.”
“No fucking way I’m going to Stanford,” Jason insisted, pointing a shaky finger at me.
I frowned as he tossed his legs over the side of the bed and tried to stand, but plopped back down onto the bed. He was either still drunk from the night before or severely hungover. Which one, I couldn’t tell.
“You need to get your shit together. We discussed this three days ago in Father’s office. There’s no way Stanford would take you right now. There’s a local community college we’ve registered you at. Even though their semester started, Father bought your way in. You take a few classes, get high enough grades, and maybe another school will accept you as a transfer.” That was the plan, though it was likely a long shot.
“I ain’t going to school,” Jason defiantly protested, finally rising to his feet on his third try. He was younger than me by two years and only an inch shorter than my six-foot-three frame, but his descent into excessive drinking was already taking its toll. His normally lean frame was growing a potbelly while his limbs were wiry.
“That’s the fucking deal. There is no way you’re going to be living with me and sleeping all day and drinking all night. Get your fucking clothes on, drink a cup of coffee to sober up, and then go down to the admissions office to the community college to register for classes, or so help me—”
“So help you what? You gonna kick my ass, Rob?”
“Don’t fucking tempt me,” I growled.
“What if I don’t want to take classes?”
