I want to ignore him but know that won’t work. The Viking doesn’t alter his plans for other people. He’s a goddamned rock. Which I wholeheartedly resent.
“Let go,” I say in a low voice, my tone conceding nothing. “I have to close the door to take the chain off.”
After a beat, he removes his hand and steps back.
Letting him inside is a bad idea, girl.
I glance down and tighten my bathrobe.
This is such bullshit. I’m not even dressed.
After an exasperated sigh, I open the door. Nodding at the couch, I give him a “do not mess with me” look. “Sit there while I get dressed and up to speed.”
As I pull out my phone, the Viking takes a seat. He sits back with his arms folded over his massive chest, looking too big for the small room.
When I listen to my dad’s voicemail, I’m not surprised to hear he’s arranged for Erik Sorensen to escort me back and forth to campus. Sorensen wouldn’t have lied about something I could check out so easily. Iamshocked when my dad instructs me to move in with him.
Walking to my bedroom, I call my dad. I go straight to voicemail, which isn’t unusual. He’s probably on trauma call, and even if he’s not operating, he’ll be rounding on patients for hours. I might not get a call back until late afternoon.
Shutting the bedroom door, I swipe the icon to call my mom.
“Hello, Ary.”
“Hey. What’s going on?”
“You listened to your dad’s message, right? We want you to come home for the semester.”
“We’ve been over this,” I say tightly. “I’m not abandoning my squad, Mom. I told you that. If the team decides not to compete, fine. But I’m not deserting them.”
“These are special circumstances. It’s not a suggestion from your family… which honestly should be enough. Your stubbornness is—”
“Mom.” My tone is clipped and after that one word, I gnash my teeth together. I am not opening myself up for another round of gaslighting and manipulation. We need to stick to the point.
“Look, your dad is worried about your being there. This is abouta serial killer. If the other girls are too stupid to leave, you shouldn’t follow their lead. Aren’t you the captain? They should listen to you, not the reverse.”
My silence causes her to huff out a sigh.
“Listen, you’d better compromise. Your little dance scholarship doesn’t cover everything, and Dad is this close to pulling you out of Granthorpe. You're just wasting time there anyway. You can do that at home for a semester while working on a transfer to BU.”
She can’t see my mutinous expression, and I don’t clue her in. One word from her could tip Dad over, and I amnotwilling to move back in with them. Even the thought makes me shudder.
“If you insist on remaining there,” Mom continues, “you’d better take Mr. Sullivan’s nephew’s help and be grateful for it. I’m sure a championship football player has better things to do than babysit you.”
“You guys want me tolivewith a guy you’ve never met?”
“We know enough about him. His uncle says he’s an honorable young man. Casanova only grabs lone girls. If Erik Sorensen is with you on campus, Casanova won’t try to take you.”
“You don’t know what you’re asking. Erik Sorensen is the biggest prick imaginable. He’s violent.”
“Violent toward women?”
“Probably.” I think about his big palm smacking my ass.
A mix of heat and anger comes rushing back. I won’t be railroaded into staying with him, not even temporarily.
“Don’t make things up,” she says. “For someone who claims she hates drama, you certainly like to exaggerate.”
Un-fucking-believable. Unlike my manipulative mother, I don’t twist the truth. She’s the liar, not me.
