Wyatt shoves his shoulder, “Don’t you fucking start that shit again.”
“I don’t mean our endgame— that’s a given. There’s no chance we’d ever choose anyone else,” he corrects. “What I’m saying is, what if Elise never planned for Ariah to actually take power? What if, once Ariah got it, Elise plans to kill her and take control for herself?”
Fuck.Have we been missing a vital piece?
“No, it’s something else. She was about to say make sure she never marries any of you,” Owen explains, pacing the room while he twirls his knife. “Maybe it was Vivian. Maybe Madeline and Vivian were working together behind Elise’s back.”
That theory held weight.
“In which case, they’re both dead. So, no more shadow within a shadow government,” Wyatt adds, chuckling a little to himself at his joke.
As the guys make their way to the door, I take one last look at Madeline’s dead body and hope her and Vivian’s death is really the end of people trying to kill Ariah, but my gut tells me I’m far from right.
57
ARIAH
“You’re scaring ‘em, girl,” Shay says as we walk to Civics.
I snort, perusing the hallway, and once again, my classmates don’t know what to make of me. They’ve looked on in a combination of fear, awe, and contempt over the last few days since word spread about Miss Taylor not only being fired but having to leave Edgewood. Sam and what’s left of her clones are the only ones daring enough to taunt me. I wonder if they’d continue to do that if they knew I was also the reason Vivian was killed.
“Earth to Riri,” Shay says, tapping my shoulder.
“Huh?” I reply, knowing I missed everything she’s just said.
She sighs, her brows furrowing. “Lawd gal, you’re always in your head. I said are you ready for your date with Wes tonight?”
Ready is subjective. I have possible outfits selected, but am I ready? I’m not sure.
“I don’t know,” I answer honestly.
We stop at her locker. “What is it? Do you still hate him?”
I think over the last few months, our text conversations, the many times he’s stopped by just to watch TV or play with the twins. He’s done nothing but try. “No,” I say confidently. “I don’t honestly believe I ever hated him, but even my annoyance and anger toward him has simmered.”
Shay nods, not voicing an opinion, just encouraging me to continue.
“Wes has spent the last few months apologizing without pushing. And after the New Year’s Eve party, he’s worked even harder to show that he made a mistake, but he’s more than his past behaviors,” I explain.
Shay closes her locker before she finally speaks. “So, what has you feeling hesitant? I can see apprehension all over your face.”
Of course she’d see that, but can I tell her what has me the most in knots? I look at my best friend. She’s never judged me. Clearing my throat, I shake off my nerves and blurt, “I want him to treat me like a slut. I fucking loved when he did it that night, and I spend a shit ton of time thinking about it.”
The smile that grows on Shay’s face has me turning fifty shades of red. “Bitch, so let him do it. Be his dirty slut. Liking to be degraded in the bedroom isn’t a bad thing. Shit, when Brendan.” She pauses. “Nope, never mind, this isn’t about me. Just let him do all the things. Fucking embrace the dirty, nasty freak in you. None of it is wrong. You’re both consenting.”
Inhaling, I joke, “So I won’t lose my progressive woman card?”
She rolls her eyes, “Progressive women respect a woman’s right to choose. That means if youchooseto be dominated in and out of the bedroom, that’s your motherfucking right.”
“Agreed,” I state, grabbing her hand and dragging her to class. “Oh, don’t think I didn’t notice how you glazed over you and Brendan. We’ll discuss later.”
“Whatever bitch. Just remember we’re going shopping this weekend to find something for the party at LWU.”
I mutter my protests, and Shay laughs as we take our seats.
* * *
“What isit with you guys and freaking blindfolds?” I quip, holding Wes’s hand as we travel down the hallway of his house.
