What will happen when I go back to Verona Falls and must face Ledger again? I really don't think I can. Even if the dean gets rid of him, people will probably hear about what happened and talk. My reputation will be trashed, and, if my family hears about this, I'm going to be in so much trouble.
I groan under my breath and bury my face into the crook of my arm. Why did I do it? I just wanted to live a little and have a normal life before I got married off, and now I might have ruined everything.
Father might refuse to find me a husband. A part of me wonders if that would be a good thing, but the way I’ve always envisioned my future has been that I’d become someone’s wife. If I wasn’t, what would become of me? Would Father simply let me stay at our compound? A spinster daughter, living there forever? I doubt it. Will I be disowned if I don't marry and be left to support myself?
The thought makes me spiral.Could Isupport myself?On paper, I’ll have a degree, but I don’t have a lot of skills. Most of the things I’ve been taught at Verona Falls have circled around how to be that perfect wife—but that is probably ruined now.
Despite not wanting to be in an arranged marriage, I have always dreamed of having a family of my own one day. I’d love to have a whole gang of kids and a husband who genuinely loves me for me, not for who my family are.
I have reason to worry. Things haven't been great for my family for a while, and everyone is on high alert and stressed. It shows whenever I have gone back home over the last few years. There are always turf wars when you’re as high up in this game as my family, but in recent years things have escalated to a frightening point.
One of my cousins, who lives in a satellite compound, was taken and tortured two years ago. He didn't give them the information they needed, so the rival gang killed him. His body was dumped back outside the compound, with a note attached to it, via a knife through his heart. I’d overheard my father tell Mom that the note was a proverb from the Bible.
Such are the paths of all who go after ill-gotten gain; it takes away the life of those who get it.
My father’s greed has brought us wealth beyond imagination but also a life that resembles a prison. Some days, I imagine my mother leaving my father and moving back to America. She won’t, though. She’s too frightened to ever leave him.
From directly behind me, someone snorts a single snore.
The sound jars me out of my endless internalmonologuing and slams me back into awareness of the room. I freeze.
What the fuck?
The rush of air that follows the sound, brushing over my neck, makes my blood run cold. I’m scared to turn around, but I know I must.
Who is in bed with me? My first, and stupid, thought goes to a ghost, but I know I’m being ridiculous.
Jack. It must be Jack. It’s the only thing that makes sense. A rush of fear and excitement at what this could mean hits me at the same time.
Did he let himself into this room to sleep next to me? Does it mean he's changed his mind about what he said when he turned me down? Sucking in a deep breath, I brace myself and slowly turn my head to look behind me.
What. The. Hell?
My eyes widen. It's the handsome guy with curly hair, the man who seems like one of those guys who is all fun and games, until something snaps, and then he turns dangerous. He was at Vani’s party. What was his name? I search my brain as I stare at him in confusion.
Ace, I suddenly recall.
Why the fuck is Ace in my bed?
Did hetouchme? I carry out a fast, full body check, but no, my clothes are on, nothing feels different, and anyway, he’s fast asleep. His pretty lips are parted as soft rushes of breath blow in and out.
After what happened with Ledger, panic hits me hard and fast.
With a gasped cry, I use both my hands and feet to shove him. He falls right off the bed, landing on the floor with a dullthunk.
“Fuck me,” he groans. “That’s not a fun way to wake up.”
I bolt off the bed and rush for the door, but a strong arm grabs me around the waist and pulls me back against solid muscle, lifting me off my feet.
God, he moved fast. Ace might not be built quite as big as Jack, but who is? The man is still solid goddamn muscle, though, and even though I kick against him, I can’t get him to let up his grip.
“Let me go,” I yelp.
“Jesus, Camile, calm down.” He huffs a laugh against my neck.
He thinks this is funny?
God, he must be a sociopath or something.
