I snorted. “Afraid I’ll leave you stranded in some other country?”
“You would.”
“California it is.” I couldn’t care less where we went as long as we got this project over with quickly and efficiently.
Lexi nibbled her bottom lip as she twisted a lock of hair around her finger. “Uh, California... That’s still so far away.”
And then it hit me, and a laugh burst out. “You can’t afford to go ten miles from here, let alone across the country.”
She dropped her hair and folded her arms across her chest. “It’s an unforeseen expense, but I’ll manage.”
Lexi admitted she was on scholarship, and a school like Stonewall didn’t consider those factors when creating the curriculum. Most students who attended could easily afford dozens of yearly trips across the world.
A wicked smile pulled my mouth apart, and I lazily reclined in my seat. “Don’t worry, sweetheart. I’ll pay your half and let you work it off. How does cleaning my toilet, doing my laundry, and polishing my shoes sound?” I winked. “Maybe I’ll let you clean my car, too.”
She gripped the edges of her computer so hard her knuckles turned white. “I would rather sell my soul than do anything for a Davenport.”
I gave a casual shrug. “Suit yourself. Maybe we skip the trip and just flunk.”
The color drained from her face, and her whole body drooped as if an invisible weight pushed on her shoulders. “I can’t fail this class. I’ll lose my scholarship.”
“Not my problem.” I couldn’t fail either. My stepfather would disown me if I screwed up, but Lexi didn’t need to know that.
A storm of emotions whipped through her expression, finally settling on determination. My threat hadn’t cracked her defenses. It might have fortified them instead.
“You screw with me, Killian, and I’ll screw with you.” Lexi leaned forward. “You pretend to be this rich, perfect Davenport heir, but I know where you really came from. You grew up in the same shitty town as me, had the same struggles as I did, and experienced the constant threat of being evicted or going hungry.”
Her words cut me to the bone. In an instant, I was back to the time in my life when I wore second-hand clothes, worried if the electricity or water would be disconnected when I got home, went to bed hungry some nights, and hid in my closet as my father screamed at my mom. And hit her.
My closest friends knew I hadn’t come from money, but everyone else accepted me simply because of my new last name. They had no idea I’d curled up in the corners of a crumbling house to hide from my alcoholic father.
“I still have pictures of us when we were kids, Killian.” The smile that curved those luscious lips sent ice through my veins. “I’ll make sure everyone knows who you are under that expensive disguise.”
We didn’t speak for the rest of class as my rage built, prodding the monster I kept chained up. If we weren’t surrounded by a crowd, I would’ve let Lexi know she’d fucked with the wrong guy.
She’d find out soon enough.
Once Professor Kennedy dismissed us, Lexi bolted from the room as if she sensed the darkness coiling around me. I trailed her, ignoring Axel and everyone else, keeping my target in my crosshairs. When we approached a small alcove, I snatched her arm, slamming her against the wall and pinning her with my body.
A shrill screech burst out of her, but I slapped my palm over her mouth before she could release a full scream.
“You really think you can come into my town—into my school—and threaten me?” I leaned forward, crowding her space. “I will ruin you, Lexi Vega.”
She licked my hand, and I dropped it out of revulsion. “And you think you can bully me because of your name?” Angry tears welled in her eyes, but she stopped them from brimming over.
A sharp pang slashed at my chest, the place where my heart used to reside. There was a time when Lexi would have come to me for a shoulder to cry on.
Instead, I was the one hurting her now.
“I will do what I have to,” she continued without noticing the cracks in my anger or the sadness bleeding through. “Iwillgraduate from Stonewall, become a doctor, and save as many people as possible. Not evenyouwill stand in my way.”
The fire in her eyes had me in a chokehold. It was a far cry from the vapid debutantes and heiresses I’d been around for the past five years.
My lungs constricted, unable to suck in a full breath. No other girl had dragged out so many reactions from me, so many damn emotions. I’d fucking missed her.
And I hated it.
Hated her even more.
