I grindto a halt when I step into the bathroom, finding an ambush awaiting me. Nicole has rallied the troops, and five of them stand in front of me, dying to spill my blood. The door snicks shut behind me as one of her minions stands guard with her back against the only exit.
“How cliché,” I drawl, narrowing my eyes at my enemy. “Though it’s nothing less than I expect from you.”
“You think you’re so clever,” Nicole hisses, stepping forward, putting her face all up in mine. “I know it was you who blocked us from the party on Saturday, and you’ll pay for that.”
I am wishing I had let her attend now. Perhaps she might have caught a stray bullet if she’d been present.
An ugly sneer creeps over her mouth. “I know you want him.” She takes out her cell phone. “I see the way you look at him like a little fawning puppy.” Titters ring out, and I clench my jaw, trying to keep my cool. “He will never want you because you wouldn’t have a clue what to do with a man like Leonardo Messina.” She thrusts her phone in my face, and all the blood leaches from my skin as I stare at the photo.
Leo is asleep in bed, slightly on his side, providing a good view of his upper front torso. He is clearly naked, save for a sheet pooled very low at his waist. From the angle the photo was taken, I glimpse the top of his bare ass cheek, and my cheeks flush in a combination of disgust, heartache, and jealousy.
“I will admit I was pretty taken with Mateo at first sight.” Nicole prattles on while I try to wrench my gaze from the photo.
Irrespective of the circumstances, it’s a beautiful picture.
Leo looks so fucking gorgeous with his tousled brown hair falling over his strong brow, long lashes fanning his cheeks, and his impressive broad chest. Dark hair covers his chest, trailing a path down his stomach and below, dipping underneath the sheet. I hate that bitch knows a side of him I will never get to experience. The unfairness of it all slaps me in the face again, and I’m destroyed on the inside. Pain presses down on my chest, making breathing difficult.
“Your brother took my anal virginity, introducing me to a whole new level of pleasure.” She winks, and her cronies cackle like the malicious bitches they are. “But Leo.” She whistles under her breath. “Leo takes the cake.” She shoves her face in mine. “He filled every hole, and we fucked nonstop all night. He couldn’t get enough of me. He pounded into me over and over and over again,” she sneers, relishing the pain I’m unable to hide in my eyes. “His big cock felt incredible sliding in and out of me, and I know he’ll be back for more. What he said outside? That was all for show. He’s already been blowing up my phone, looking for a repeat performance.”
She prods me in the chest. “You’re a pathetic little princess who wouldn’t have a clue what to do with a cock.” More laughter rings out as my hands ball into fists at my side. “Why the fuck would he ever want you when he could have me? When I know his body intimately and all the ways he loves to be touched? I can still hear the sounds he made as my hands and my lips roamed every part of that sinful body.” She licks her lips, and I’m two seconds from detonation. “I felt him between my legs for days after, and I could hardly walk straight.” Her tinkling laughter grates on the last of my patience, and I’m like a kettle about to blow its top.
She plants her hands on her hips. “He doesn’t want you. He never will, so who’s the winner now, huh? I’ll be the one bouncing on his giant cock later. I’ll be the one whose finger he slides a ring on. I’ll be the one having his babies.Me.” She pushes her chest into mine. “Not you. Loser.”
The gates open as a wave of red-hot anger sweeps over every part of me, and I react without thinking. Wrapping my hands around her neck, I push her toward the vanity unit, shoving her back into the edge of the counter. Her eyes shimmer with mirth, and none of her friends do anything, which is weird. But I’m too lost to my anger to consider it. The more she smirks at me, the tighter I press my hands around her neck, and in this moment, I honestly think I could squeeze all the life from her body.
That thought snaps me out of my murderous haze, and I let her go, stumbling back, staring in horror at the obvious finger marks around her neck. She jerks her head, and I’m yanked back by my hair and then let go. I slam to the ground on my back, groaning when pain shuttles up my spine. Her four friends round on me then, kicking and punching me, careful not to touch my face. I try to fight them off, but it’s four against one, and I can’t beat those odds.
Zoning out, I squeeze my eyes shut to hold back my tears, biting on the inside of my cheek to stop myself from crying. Abruptly, they stop, and I curl into a ball, pain wracking my body all over.
“Do it,” Nicole says, and her words are followed by a low thud and a piercing scream. “You fucking bitch!” Nicole hisses at her friend. “Did you have to do it so hard?” She winches as I force my eyes to open. “I think you’ve broken it,” she snaps, bringing her fingers to her nose, crying out in pain.
“That will get her expelled for sure,” her bestie, Novah Raimond, says. “Stop bitching and whining. Your nose will heal.”
“You better fucking hope it does,” she barks.
The door opens as I struggle to pull myself upright. Pain spreads across my chest, cascading throughout my body, and a hiss escapes my lips.
Nicole presses her foot to my chest, pushing me back down on the floor and stepping on me. “Fucking bitch.” She spits in my face. “You should know I always win.” She crouches down over me, gloating. “I’m guessing your parents will go apeshit when you get expelled, and I bet you are grounded until graduation. It couldn’t happen to a more deserving bitch.” She slaps me across the face before straightening up. She looks like a mess. Her nose is swollen, and blood drips down over her lips and onto her chin. “We’re off to the principal’s office to show her what went down. Daddy makes a huge donation every year, and she’ll believe what I have to say.”
She waves a phone in my face, pressing a button to play the recording. The sound has been turned off so the principal can’t hear her taunting me. To Mrs. Peters, it will look like I’m at fault because I made the first aggressive move. Predictably, they switched it off before my attack, so she can say her friends retaliated out of protection for her. Either way, she expects to come out of this as the victim.
What a fucking joke.
I want to tell her she’s delusional. That she has no clue what she has done, but she’ll learn that lesson soon enough. I guess there is no end to her stupidity. She knows who my family is. Who my father is. And doesn’t she realize if I was to be expelled she wouldn’t see Leo anymore?
My phone rings in my bag, and I suspect it’s Leo, wondering where the fuck I am. I thought I heard it ringing during the assault, but I can’t be sure.
The girls leave, their laughter ringing in my ears, long after they are gone. I hiccup and a sob travels up my throat as I haul myself to my knees. I cry out in pain as I stand, attempting to straighten up, doubling over as my ribs protest the motion. If they haven’t broken them, they are at least badly bruised. Bending down to pick up my bag sends more pain crunching through my ribs, and my tears flow in earnest. I shuffle out of the door as I extract my phone with trembling fingers. Leo’s name flashes on the screen, and I have never been more grateful to see it.
“Natalia! Thank fuck,” he says when I answer. “Where are you?”
“Leo,” I croak in between sobs.
“What’s happened? Are you okay?” Rising panic lingers at the back of his cool tone.
“No,” I cry. “I need you. I’m outside the bathroom beside the library. Over in the west wing.”
“Hold tight. I’m coming to get you.”
