“Fuck. Really? I hadn’t noticed,” he sneered sarcastically.
“Go to them.”And drown in the pool, thank you.
“Tell me something, White. Why do you always seem to want to kick me in the balls when you talk to me?”
“Because apparently, I know how to express my emotions well.” My exclamation cracked him up.
“June, you’re here too,” Marvin greeted me, passing next to me.
“Yeah, here she is with a nice ponytail, too, today.” James pulled my hair, completely enraging me. I punched his chest, but I must’ve barely made a dent, because he looked at his chest, amused.
“Come on, you can do better than that.”
“You know that well, since I almost broke your nose, right?”
“Always so aggressive.”
He took a step, enough to tower over me with his height.
“I’m asking you again, White. Why aren’t you in a swimsuit?”
I felt that intimate feeling again, like everything around us disappeared. I’d felt it when he tried to put his hands up my skirt.
Even though, given how he moved his fingers, it seemed like he was looking for something.
Unless . . .No, June, you’re paranoid.
“Are you here because you ran out of girls to torture, James?”
My eyes drifted over the tall, tatted guy with Sammy.
“Or guys,” I added.
James came close to me and craned his neck to align his head with mine.
“Maybe you’re my favorite prey, did you ever think of that?”
And he had no problem telling me that so casually. I wondered where he’d learned to seduce people like that. And while I was struggling to rack my brain about why he chased me under these circumstances, James turned around, leaving me without a word. How did the other girls act so confident and disinterested when it came to him? Nobody seemed to care if James kissed one girl and then another. But maybe they already knew that the biggest mistake with someone like him was to feel self-important. Because he was damn good at making them believe it, not by deceiving or lying to them, but by piquing the most secret and narcissistic parts inside. He fawned over people and they did it in kind, taking his precious affection because that was everything others wanted from him. Because deep down everyone wanted to feel special.
I made my way through the house, where the lights were dim and the alcohol kept flowing. I stood in the kitchen to find Tiffany and maybe drink a glass of water, but I ended up bumping into the troll at the bridge.
“Look who’s all alone.”
Connell was a good-looking guy, too, with a sporty, athletic body, a square jaw, and deep-set eyes. But when he opened his mouth he made my stomach turn.
“Remember me?”
He was talking to me like I was an idiot.
“What do you want, Corbell?”
“To hear you say my name right, White. That’s what I want.”
“Oh, okay. Sorry, Corbell.”
I tried to deadpan it, but inside I was gloating. I caught Will’s gaze as he leaned his shoulder against the doorjamb.
He seemed to be keeping a close eye on me.
