“Hit a nerve there, did I?” Asher tilts his head with a condescending glint in his eyes. “You may have worked your way up in this academy,but in my world, you are still just a desperate old man, trying to hold onto his youth through fucking barely legal teens,” He steps toe to toe with our teacher. “I always plan on my inevitable fall, but unfortunately for you, you aren’t important enough to be anywhere near me when it happens,”
Mr. Chapman works his jaw side to side, and I feel my hand tapping on my thigh. Asher must notice too because he grabs my hand and holds it tight within his own and my heart melts. He notices so much about me. I don’t think anyone in my life has made me feel seen the way he does.
Mr. Chapman finally looks my way. “That paper you handed in,” He nods down to the papers in my hand. “Much better. You passed. Well done,” He says short and snappy. “Now get the fuck out of my classroom,”
Asher turns us and pulls me towards the door, not giving our teacher another second of attention.
“Ruella,” His voice calls to me from behind. I peer over my shoulder as Asher keeps walking us out. “Remember my warning,” His eyes bore into mine before flicking to Asher’s back. Then he opens his laptop and starts to type. Dismissing me as though he hasn’t a care in the world, but the tension in his shoulders tell a different story.
Jeez that was intense.
He may be trying to warn me about Asher and him pulling down my grades, but what he doesn’t know is that I couldn’t give a flying fuck about this academy. I only have to scrape by until graduation and even if I can’t keep the grades up and ultimately get kicked out, I only have to wait a few months for Asher to be done. That is, if he wants me to after everything comes out.
***
Okay, so lacrosse isa lotbetter than I thought it was going to be. The outfit, the helmet, the brutality.The man. I may have had no clue what was going on, but by the cheering from our side of the field, I assumed Asher’s team won. Then when he ran over to me and kissed me stupid in front of the whole academy, wearing a smile that very rarely graces his face, I knew they had.
I yawn and stretch my arms above my head, all while keeping my eyes closed. The usual heavy arm that lays across my stomach isn’t there and I immediately groan. Asher had to leave for an away game early this morning, so that means no orgasms to start my day off right. We have been living in a little bubble of bliss and I know it will pop soon, so I am enjoying every single second before it does. I finally allow the light in and come face to face with a handwritten note, my stomach flutters as I recognise the handwriting.
My heart skips a beat as I grin to myself, pulling the note to my chest, the once empty void full of something warm and exciting. I jump out of bed and decide to take out some of the built-up energy in the gym, try and keep my brain off Asher for as long as I can. The poor man has only been gone a couple hours and I want him beside me already. I need to get a handle on this growing obsession. It won’t last right? Just the honeymoon phase of the relationship.
I text Piper, Deena and Corden to meet for lunch after a brutal session. With the boy’s all away Max is the one watching over Piper. I amfriendly and say hello but with the way he keeps avoiding my eye contact tells me Asher might have gotten to him. We part ways after spending way too long chatting, I pull my phone from my pocket and check how long I have left of my day. 2:30pm. That’s fine, I will have enough time to get showered and shaved for whatever Asher has planned to take out on my body. I have noticed that he is feral after a game or training, more so than usual. My core jolts with the thought of what my night beholds before our group meeting in the morning to go over everything we have separately been working on this week. I am lost in my head when I collide with a body and just catch myself before falling flat on my arse.
“Sorr…” I go to say before spotting who it is I ran into. “Not sorry,”
Darcy must not have noticed it was me either because her apologetic expression shuts down immediately.
I go to walk around her, not interested in anything she has to say, but she grabs a hold of my arm and stops me. Not hard, but I still pull back.
“Can I talk to you for a minute,” Her voice is soft and unlike hers as she glances around the corridor to make sure we are alone.
I would usually tell her to go fuck herself, but there is something different.
I cross my hands over my chest and wait, nodding for her to speak.
She clears her throat, pulling the pink cashmere sleeves over her manicured fingers.
“Listen,” She sighs. “I want to apologise for everything,”
My eyes bulge. “Apologise,” I ask sceptically.
“Yeah,” She moves us closer into an alcove behind a pedestal with a statue of a head from some old guy no one knows, or cares about. “You don’t know anything about me with being new this year, and I am not saying this for sympathy. But my family are a little hard to handle. My parents are in some deep shit and the merger with Asher’s father is reallyimportant. It wasn’t my choice to push the relationship with Asher. My father said he would cut me off if I didn’thelp the family,” She chuckles to herself. “I don’t even like Asher other than for his looks,”
I scrunch up my face in disgust as she holds her hands up. “No offense, but you get a completely different man to what I got. Pretty much what everyone else gets as well. Everyone other than his close circle, which you slipped into like you always belonged there in the first place,” She slumps defeated.
She sighs again. “I am under so much pressure from my parents to make this work, but then you came along and messed it all up. I was angry that he looked at you different, jealous of his attention on you and damn right bitter that you were getting what you wanted while I lost not only the man I love, but my future,”
“You love him?” I ask with a wince. I can’t help but feel sorry for her.
She shakes her head. “No, Not Asher,”
“Oh,” My brows furrow but I don’t push for anything.
She takes a step back. “Sorry again, I won’t be in your way anymore. And I know you don’t owe me anything, but please will you ask Asher not to tell my father about Dimitri. He has already been punished enough,” I have no idea who she is talking about, but due to the tears pooling in her eyes, they must be important.
“I think we both know that Asher does what he wants, no matter who tells him otherwise,”
“I think we both know that rule doesn’t apply to you Ruella,” A sad smile lifts one side of her mouth.
