“I know.” He dragged a hand through his damp hair. “Seeing you with him?—”
“With Owen?” I laughed bitterly. “Owen, who’s actually nice to me? Who doesn’t humiliate me in front of everyone?”
He pulled his hand through his damp hair. “That’s not?—”
“What, Knox? Whatisn’tit?” I moved toward him, my pulse pounding with each step. “Because you just made sure everyone at this party knows exactly what you think of me.”
“You don’t understand…”
“Then explain it!” The words exploded out of me. “Explain why you hate me so much! Because last I checked,Ididn’t steal anyone’s money.Ididn’t destroy our families. I was just trying to survive freshman year when everything fell apart!”
He swallowed hard and for a second I thought he’d actually be vulnerable, raw. But then the mask slammed back into place.
“Your dad destroyed my family,” he said, softer now. “Maybe you didn’t make the decisions, but you’re still a Thorne. I can’tforget that just because your tits are hanging out in a too small bikini.”
“Fuck you,” I whispered.
“Right back at you.”
His sneer had tears springing back in the corners of my eyes, but I somehow kept them at bay.
He turned to leave and I should have let him. I should have stayed exactly where I was.
But I couldn’t. I was too angry. Too hurt.
“You’re a coward.”
He stopped and turned back slowly. “What did you say?”
“You heard me.” I crossed my arms, steeling myself. “You’re terrified of feeling something real, so you destroy it first. It’s pathetic.”
He closed the distance in three strides, suddenly right there, close enough that I could smell chlorine and beer covering up his normal scent.
“You don’t know anything about me. Not anymore.”
“Keep telling yourself that.” My heart hammered but I didn’t back down. “I know you’re miserable. I know you blame everyone else for it. And I know that no matter how cruel you are to me, it won’t change what happened or how you feel.”
“Stop talking, little girl.”
“No.” My voice shook, but I continued. “I know you. And I know that you’re standing here right now because you can’t stay away. Even when you hate yourself for it.”
We stood there, breathing hard, just staring. His eyes dropped to my mouth, and I wet my lips.
Then he stepped back, clenching his hands into fists.
“You’re delusional, Thorne. I don’t think about you at all.” He looked me up and down, showing nothing but contempt. “Tonight just proved that charity cases shouldn’t show up where they don’t belong.”
I stood there and watched him walk away after getting the last word. He hurt me, cut me deep, but I knew I was right about him. Even though I wished I wasn’t.
I blink,the memory fading as fluorescent lights come back into focus.
That night was the first time Knox really showed me his pattern. Draw close, then destroy…make me feel seen, then make me feel worthless.
And like an idiot, I kept falling for it.
I roll onto my side, ignoring the pain in my ribs, and stare at the blank wall.
Some patterns, it seems, never break.
