“You let him fuck you, didn’t you? I was supposed to be your first because I love you.”
I gasp. He knows. Of course he never stopped stalking me, watching me. Did he see us? My stomach turns. I’ve been so careless, so lost in my happiness with Victor.
“I wanted you to know I love you. My dad never said those words to me, and it really hurts.”
I blink repeatedly. This is not love, but I probably shouldn’t say it, so as not to set him off.
Charlie’s eyes move and he’s staring somewhere behind me, deep in thought. What’s he going to do to me?
“Charlie, I’ll have your money. I promise.” My voice brings him back to me. He studies me for a long moment while small droplets of sweat appear on my forehead.
“When you say my name, it sounds perfect, actually. Why haven’t you given up, Firefly? There’s no way to get the money with your campus job.”
Ohmigod. He infiltrated my life so completely. I didn’t comprehend how big of a threat he truly is.
“I have a way, just please wait. I’ll pay you.”
I don’t care if I have to beg.
He raises his eyebrows. “You can’t get the money unless…” He pauses and his eyes darken, the crazy wheels in his head spinning out of control. “But you broke the rules by spreading your legs for that jerk.”
I fight the urge to talk back to him, to defend myself, remembering Abi’s words. The best course of action is to not engage.
“So the terms of our deal change because of yourindiscretion. Here are your choices.”
He tilts his head and flashes me an evil grin. My stomach drops.
“If you walk away from that fucker, I won’t hurt him. If you don’t do so right away, well, I’ll hurt him. Either way, you still have to pay back the money in fifty-one days, but who’s counting.”
My jaw drops. Charlie walks to the bathroom door. As he opens it, he throws parting words over his shoulder. “And don’t do anything stupid, Firefly.”
The door closes behind him and I dash to lock it. I lean my back against it and slouch to the cold tile.
I intertwine my fingers to stop the shaking. Every choice has a price. I have to decide between my desire to protect Victor and the others, and my fear of abandoning those I love. I promised Victor I wouldn’t run away, that I wouldn’t abandon him. But I can’t let him get hurt because of me.
My heart aches in my chest.
A loud knock on the bathroom door rattles me.
“Just a moment,” I say with a shaky voice, remembering why I came to the bathroom in the first place.
I jump to my feet and scrub my face, washing away any traces of Charlie. After finishing my business, I walk out of the bathroom, dazed. I apologize to the frowning girl standing there waiting.
I manage only two steps before my body collides with a hard chest.
Frozen. I’m rooted to the spot—my legs are not obeying me. I’m gulping down air, trying desperately to get my breathing back to normal.
“Tia, what happened?”
Although I can’t move, relief floods me.Victor.
“Talk to me, Tia. And breathe.”
My legs are gooey. My knees are about to give up. My body begins to drop to the floor, but Victor slides his arm around my waist and lifts me up. He carries me to the car while people part to make way for him. He gently places me on the hood of the car.
My thoughts are scattered, but I manage to tell Victor about my meeting with Charlie. The Bull reacts, ready to charge. Thank goodness Abi and Alek approach. I only repeat the highlights of the story since Alek doesn’t know how close I’ve gotten to Victor.
This is Charlie’s closest encounter since I went to the party with him. Despite how terrifying it is that he is everywhere, lurking around every corner, I’m relieved it didn’t get as physical this time. But what about the next time?
