Once we’re finally together, we’ll both be able to finally drop the pretenses. I’ll be able to be myself around her, and she’ll be free to be herself completely. There will be no need for her to act as the good little daughter, she won’t need to complete a degree she hates, because she’ll always have me to fall back on.
And I can’t wait.
I’ll always be there for her. I’ll always be whatever she needs, no questions asked.
I can’t wait to hold her in my arms, to be with her, cherish her, love her, fuck her, do fuckinganythingfor her.
I can’t wait for her to finally be wholly and completely mine.
SIXTEEN
GRACIE
My entire body trembles as I empty last night’s dinner into the toilet, unable to take my eyes off the bracelet attached to my wrist.
It’s a beautiful piece of jewelry, I’ll give him that. It’s a delicate silver chain with small diamonds attached. Only, when I looked closer, they weren’t only diamonds.
The asshole got me a bracelet with tiny purple skulls on it.
And yes, it’s pretty, but that doesn’t mean it’s welcomed.
He was… he was in my fucking dorm room.
While I was sleeping.
I was blissfully unaware that someone had broken in, watched me sleep, attached a bracelet to my wrist and did God knows what else.
Jesus, I’ve been so stupid. I should have put a stop to this entire thing from the very beginning, but I didn’t. I didn’t do a damn thing about it other than telling Freya what happened at the beginning and ignoring him when he texted me. I had so many opportunities to do something about it, report it to someone, tell someone what was happening, fuckinganything, but I didn’t.
Instead, I avoided everyone I care about and shut down.
But not anymore.
Him breaking into my safe space is him taking things too fucking far.
I know it’s insane, but I can’t help feel a little grateful that him giving me the bracelet is all he did. At least, that’s the only thing I’m aware of. It could have been so much worse, he could done something far more nefarious, and I wouldn’t have been in the position to fight back. I would have been his for the taking and I wouldn’t have been able to do a damn thing about it.
But still, the fact that I’m grateful that heonlybroke in here and watched me is seriously fucked up. Am I really so messed up that I feel that way? What the hell is wrong with me? And what the hell is wrong with him that he thinks it’s okay to do that?
I knew he was crazy, but I didn’t realize he was this goddamn certifiably unhinged.
Does this really surprise you? He followed you, watched you through the balcony window, approached you in the parking lot and?—
Nope. I amnotgoing there right now.
I need to do something.
But what?
I don’t particularly want to report it to the college or the police because it’ll become a public spectacle and Cole and my parents will lose their shit, but what the hell else am I supposed to do about it?
I can’t go directly to Cole about it because he’ll no doubt go full onscorched earth, find the guy and murder him.
I suppose I could go to one of the other guys, but there’s always the risk of one of them telling Cole anyways.
Still, I think it’s probably my only option right now if I don’t want it to become a goddamn media fiasco or a murder investigation.
I can’t go to Logan, since he won’t be able to hold himself back from doing something stupid. His temper is like a hair trigger and that’s not what I need right now. He’s clearly the most unhinged one of the four of them and I really don’t want to end up finding out what he gets up to in his free time because I’ve always had the feeling he gets up to some fucked up things.
