“Wait one minute, and then follow me out,” he instructs before striding across the room and leaving without a backward glance.
I use the time to fix my makeup and brush my hair, and then I leave, checking the hallway both ways to ensure no one is around, smiling to myself as I slip into class late, making up an excuse.
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
The next few days pass by without incident, and we settle into a familiar routine. Living with the Barrons’ is okay. I have my own gorgeous room, which Elizabeth, Charlie’s mom, had professionally remodeled especially for me.
She’s super excited about the wedding, already planning a lavish reception, and it’s all she wants to talk about at the dinner table each night. I usually walk away with a pain in my face from all the forced smiling and fake gushing. Charlie is pleased I’m indulging her, but I feel mean because I’m lying to her. I don’t have the heart to explain it’s all for nothing, because I’ve got to maintain this charade.
Charlie drives me to and from school and he is attentive and considerate—the picture-perfect boyfriend—at all times. We still sit at the elite table at school, but Trent is ignoring us so it’s not as much of a headache. Chad has been filling me in on the gossip I missed, and Drew spends most lunchtimes silent and introspective.
I’m worried about him, but every time I inquire, he tells me he’s fine. I want to go over to the house to talk to him, but I’m eager to steer clear of the place too. “Can you drive me to ballet after school?” I whisper to Drew at lunchtime. “I need to speak to you.”
“Sure. Maybe we can grab something to eat beforehand.”
“Perfect.” I kiss his cheek. “I’ll wait for you at your car.”
“I don’t see why I can’t come,” Charlie pouts when school ends and I break the news that I’m riding with my brother.
“I want time alone with my twin, and you can’t shadow me everywhere,” I say, closing my locker and stuffing my books in my bag.
“Your father only relented on the bodyguard and the driver because I assured him I’d keep you safe,” he says, taking my hand as we walk toward the exit.
I roll my eyes. “My brother is hardly a threat.”
Charlie opens the door, and I step outside, pulling the collar of my coat up to ward off the icy-cold wind. We escaped the snow in Connecticut, but it looks like it’s followed us here. The forecast for the weekend predicts snow, and I’m preparing for a cold one.
“I don’t enjoy being away from you,” he says, reeling me into his arms at the top of the steps.
Electricity crackles in the air, and my body has a mind of its own as I whip my head around, looking down at the two guys watching us from the curb.
Kai locks eyes with me, holding my gaze captive, and I suck in a sharp breath. I swear he gets hotter every time I see him. My fingers twitch with a craving to touch him, longing to run my fingers through his silky-soft hair, to examine every inch of his inked skin. The fiery depths of his eyes confirm a similar hunger, but there’s a dark promise in his gaze too.
I shiver as I recall how he fucked me possessively against the wall in the janitor’s closet just before lunch. Every day, he finds some opportunity to steal me away, and our pairing is always wild and frantic. Sneaking around is so risky, and we shouldn’t be doing it, but I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t getting off on the forbidden nature of our relationship.
But Charlie has been growing more brazen. Hauling me into his lap and kissing me any chance he gets. I know he’s doing it to test Kaiden, and I hate it, but we’ve got to stick to the plan.
I’m staring at Kai, and I know I shouldn’t be, but it hurts to wrench my gaze away. Sawyer gives me a subtle cautionary nod as Charlie jerks my face back to his. His eyes blaze with indignation. “You aremy fiancée,” he hisses. “And you just eye-fucked him for everyone to see.”
“I’m sorry,” I murmur, stretching up and pulling his mouth down to mine, hoping Kai can forgive me. “I’m trying.”
“Well, try harder,” he barks, ripping his mouth from mine. “Unless you want him to wind up dead.”
“I don’t know how long I can do this,” I admit to Drew, as we pick at our food in the diner a half hour later. “I feel like a cheating slut every time I let Charlie kiss me. And I know he’s kissing me in public to piss Kai off, and it’s working.”
“Kai needs to get over himself,” Drew says in a monotone voice.
“Would you feel that way if I was Jane and you had to watch another guy mauling me?”
He pushes his plate away. “That was a low blow.”
“I know, but I’ve noticed how harsh you’ve been to Kai. Is that because of me or some other reason?”
He sighs, leaning back in the booth and staring at the ceiling. “I’m still pissed that he concealed his identity from me.”
“Hey.” I prod him in the chest. “I was the one sleeping with him. If I can forgive him, you can too.”
Drew lowers his eyes to mine. “He was my best friend for years, and I’d often wondered where he was. What he was up to.”
