This time, though, I didn’t wait around begging the heavens to open up and bless me with strength to ignore what I just saw, I found it within, hidden somewhere between all the pain I’d endured with this man. I scratched and scraped at what was left, brought it forward and sucked on it with a deep inhale. In the seconds it took me to reach the revolving main doors, I was smiling. I’d conquered one simple thing to being a woman. Surviving.
****
WHEN I ARRIVED AT SCHOOLon Monday, rain pelted the school grounds. Like my emotions, dark gray clouds hovered in the sky above, almost like a warning that something was coming. Whatever it was, maybe I wasn’t ready for it.
“Levana?” I turned at the sound of Saint’s voice. He offered me one of his gorgeous smiles and when I didn’t return it, he frowned. “What’s wrong? You haven’t returned any of my texts.”
“So, you go away for more than a week without a word, and just expect me to say ‘hi, Saint, welcome back’ with a big smile,” I snapped, not bothering to mention the woman in his apartment.
“I had to go home, some family emergency—”
“And I suppose they don’t have phones in England, right,” I scoffed then shaking my head, I took a step back. “Look, Saint, I get it, we’ll never be anything more than occasional fuck buddies. Someone to pass the time with, now and then. But, treat me with a little bit of respect, I deserve that much, don’t you think.” I turned and walked into my English class, not caring if I angered him or not.
Sometimes, it’s better to walk away than let your soul cry for something it could never have.
Chapter 35 - Saint
Iwas in a foul moodtoday. Whether it was from my need to fuck or the aggravating girl I couldn’t rid my thoughts of, I knew something had to give just so that I could find a little peace. If I didn’t, I was likely to hurt someone or myself perhaps. As if in agreement, my muscles screamed for me to stop punishing them. After the last class, and the dark frustration rolling through me, I decided to use the school gym.
I hadn’t seen Levana in almost two weeks, and she was right, I should’ve told her where I was going. My younger cousin, who’d married an abusive twit, needed rescuing for the second time. She only ever listened to me, and the reason why I brought her back here with me. Maybe because of my guarded nature, I hadn’t divulged the reason for the rushed trip to Levana. But, there was only so much I could be open about.
Shaking my head, I glared at the punching bag that I’d literally tore off its hook, now lying on the black mat. Not bothering to pick it up, I debated using the gym shower or wait until I got home. The creeping sweat down my back decided for me. Ten minutes and a quick shower later, I tossed my gym bag in the boot and slid behind the wheel of my Porsche.
As if fate was enjoying kicking my arse, I sped down the road only to spot a very wet Levana and Davien, huddling together at the bus stop.
What the fuck?
Remembering Dean’s comment about Davien dating Levana, my mood further plummeted. I braked with a resounding squeal of rubber, reversed, stopped, and rolled down a window. “What are you two doing here?” I asked, keeping a rigid hold on my emotions.
“Mom’s got engine trouble. We’re waiting for the bus,” Davien explained while Levana, with her hands at her sides, scrunched her skirt, her eyes on the floor as though she were avoiding my gaze.
While her shirt wasn’t usually transparent, now that it was wet, I could make out the curve of her breasts and the way the material clung to her hard nipples. Even if a part of me wanted to just drive off and leave them, it didn’t sit well with me that Davien had the same delicious view I did. A low growl rumbled in my chest but didn’t make its way to the curse sitting on my tongue.
Instead, I offered, “care for a ride?”
My words were directed at Levana, but Davien answered, “thanks, Mr S.”
