Page 15

Chapter Fifteen

Jolie

The right side of my bed is empty when my alarm goes off. I’m not surprised nor disappointed—Boston didn’t strike me as a stage five clinger.

I shower and dress for the day before I apply my makeup.

When your makeup is on, your mask is on. Don’t let your walls down for anyone other than us.

What the fuck? Why does the voice in my head sound familiar?

I put on the finishing touches and deem my mask complete, walls up. There is no hiding the bite mark Boston left on my neck though. If he wanted to mark me, he definitely succeeded.

By the time I head downstairs, the house is empty. Usually, Brennan is making coffee and Petra is organising the guys’ breakfast, but there is no sign of anyone. I don’t dwell on it. Instead, I take an apple from the fruit bowl. Beside it is a note, and my palms go sweaty picking it up.

Jolie, I had a meeting. See you after school.

Brennan

The bile rises in my throat, the slip of cardboard too familiar for my liking. I race to Brennan’s car and speed all the way to school; Jimmie will be there, and I need to talk to him ASAP.

Pulling into the student parking, I notice the guys’ cars are already here. Looking up over the large hedge fencing, I see Laughn’s tattooed arm hanging over the rail.

I quickly exit the car and speed walk into the school. It’s hard to not draw attention when I live with Boston—there are now eyes on me wherever I go.

Lucky for me, Jimmie is leaning against my locker. His smile drops to a frown when he notices me storming in his direction.

“What’s wro—” His question is cut short as I grab him by the arm and drag him towards the girl’s bathroom, pushing him inside. His eyes are as wide as saucers. “What’s going on?”

“Can I trust you?” I snap. It comes out harsher than I expected.

“Of course you can... Are they hurting you?” His eyes move to my neck.

“Oh, that,” I say, moving to each of the toilet stalls, checking to see if anyone is listening in. When I’m happy we are alone, I turn back to him.

“No, I had sex with Boston last night.” I smile.

“You thot!” he jokes. “Then what’s wrong?”

“I need someone to help me figure something out, but we can’t do it here. My life is a mess and somehow the Gods are involved. I can feel it in my gut.”

“Then was sleeping with their ringleader a good idea?”

I shrug nonchalantly. I hadn’t really thought about it, too concerned with winning Boston’s bet, if I’m being honest with myself.

“It really doesn’t matter. I don’t do feelings, but if the Gods are involved, I may do something stupid.”

“Okay, let’s get through the day and we can meet up after school. It’s probably smarter to go to my place.”

I nod, and we both exit the girls’ bathroom.

Whispers start within seconds.

“I thought he was gay.”

“I thought she was screwing the Gods.”

“Looks like you just got laid in the girls’ bathroom by a senior. Your popularity just skyrocketed.” I laugh at his wide-eyed expression.

High school kids are stupid—they really don’t have anything better to do than spread rumours and gossip.

“I’m glad my first time was with you,” he says, followed by a nervous laugh.

“You’re a virgin,” I gasp.

It’s not that it’s a bad thing, but we live in the 21st century; or maybe it’s because I didn’t value my virginity and so don’t expect anyone else to either.

“I know, it’s hard to believe because there is a huge line of people wanting to sleep with me,” he laughs, running his hand through his hair, trying to ease his embarrassment.

“Well, I think you’re amazing.”

At the sound of the first bell, we fall in line, walking towards my form room.

“Yet you sleep with guys like Boston who leave marks like that.”

“So? If you want to lose your virginity, I would be happy to help.” A blush creeps up to Jimmie’s cheeks and his innocence shines through.

“Y... you’re serious?” he stammers, cheeks growing a deeper shade of crimson.

“As a heart attack. Just say the word and I will make it happen.”

“I prefer guys, but I’ll think about it,” he says. I grab his hand and give it a squeeze.

Someone coughs from behind us, and I turn to see Davis staring at me.

“What will he be thinking about?” Davis asks with a raised brow.

Davis first appears like the quiet type, but the more I observe him, the more I see it’s all a ruse. He likes to watch and stalk his prey, pouncing while his victim is unaware.

Jimmie hurries off with the excuse he doesn’t want to be late to class. But honestly, the look Davis gave him didn’t really leave him with any other options. When the Gods so much as breathe in your direction, you scurry away as fast as you can.

“Nothing,” I snap, as we walk into our form class.

Davis looks over and smirks at me. “You’re lying,” he returns, reaching out to grab my wrist.

I snatch it away before he can get a good grip. “It’s not lying when I don’t want to tell you.” I turn my back on him and find an empty seat towards the back of the room.

Davis sits down beside me, lifting my hair and flipping it over my shoulder. His jaw tenses, and I realise he is staring at the bite mark on my neck.

“Want to leave a matching one on the other side?” I never think before I speak—probably since I don’t much care what people think of me.

“Don’t say things you don’t mean,” he grumbles.

“Read my lips, Davis. You’re hot, I have no issue with my sexuality, and I never say anything that I don’t mean.”

His brows pinch together and a darkness flashes across his face. It seems like he is trying to dissect me, piece by piece, layer by layer, until confusion settles on his features and he lashes out.

“Stop being a whore.”

My body moves before I realise. The crack rings through my ears and my hand aches from the harsh contact with his face. His arm flies out and grabs my throat, a murderous glint in his eyes. Oh, Davis, if you only knew all your secrets just poured out of your soul. The darkness all the others wear on their skin, that he keeps buried just under the surface, is out for the world to see. It makes me smile.

Before I get a chance to speak, Davis is thrown away from me, the chair beside me, crashing to the floor. Laughn stands beside him, looking down at Davis with a smirk on his handsome face.

“Watch your mouth,” Laughn demands, and Davis laughs. Of course, he has an issue with him calling me a whore, nothing to do with the hand wrapped around my neck.

“The fuck I will. If she ruins what we have worked for all these years, I will end her myself.”

Laughn completely loses it. He moves like a feral beast, and Davis doesn’t stand a chance.

We garner a crowd—even the teacher is watching. I’m sure they realise intervening isn’t a smart idea. However, I don’t want to see Davis hurt. He might hate me right now, but he has a reason, one I want to know about. Launching myself onto Laughn’s back seems like a good solution.

“Baby,” he growls. “Please walk away.”

“Not unless you make me.”

He swears under his breath, and we exit the room, leaving a bleeding Davis on the floor.

Boston, Case, and Marlow fly past us, but Laughn keeps moving, and I cling to him like a spider monkey in heat. He takes us outside to his car. Anger still radiating from his body, he turns and bends enough that I can slide straight off his back and onto the hood of his car.

“Are you okay?” I ask. His back is to me, but I see him nod. Laughn may look like he jumped straight out of your nightmares, but he’s struggling with something. They all are. “Just tell me what’s going on. Everyone is acting so weird. Hot and then cold. It’s making my head spin.”

He turns back fast, a predator ready to pounce on his prey.

“Baby, I wish I could tell you,” he says, stepping between my legs and pulling me into his body. “There is so much going on. I... why him? I thought we...”

“Laughn, I don’t conform to what people expect. I learned a long time ago that life is too short to waste on what ifs. What happened between me and Boston... does it mean anything? No.”

“He marked you,” he whispers, running his fingers along the bite.

“Did you want to mark me too?”

Laughn’s head whips to the opposite side of my body, long fingers pulling my school blouse aside. His head darts down and his teeth dig into a spot on my shoulder, just above my clavicle. I hiss at the initial pain as he sucks my skin, but I tilt my neck, allowing him to continue to put his own mark on my body. The trickle of blood rolling down my chest causes goosebumps to line my arms.

He’s the first to break contact and by then I’m panting from the heat pooling between my legs.

“Every time I mark you, everyone will know it was me.” Laughn cleans up the blood with his fingers before sliding them into his mouth.

I’m transfixed by his actions. The sexual tension between us is off the charts and has me wanting to drag him out of school and have my wicked way with him.

When the bell rings to indicate form class is over, we both head back inside. Laughn links our fingers and pulls me into the office to get our late slips for skipping. Once we have the papers, we walk hand in hand to the gym for assembly. Kids scramble to move out of Laughn’s way—everyone except the four guys watching us approach.

None of them say anything as Laughn takes his seat, furthest from Davis. I’m pulled onto Laughn’s lap, and he wraps his tattooed arms around my waist. I melt into his chest, resting my head on his right shoulder, my hair cutting off the view of the other guys. Case sits closest to us, his hand resting on my knee. He doesn’t move it up; it just rests there as the principal addresses the students.

“When are you going to let me defile you?” Laughn whispers in my ear as I stare towards the front of the room.

A small smile tilts my lips.

“I want to leave a road map on your body, so every time you look in the mirror, you will remember where I have been,” he continues, and I squeeze my thighs together, ready to ask if he wants to ditch school.

“Fuck, Laughn. She isn’t one of your whores whose pussy you can just wreck with your cock. Maybe let her see that thing before she agrees to anything,” Case snaps, a mixture of jealousy and annoyance lacing his tone.

“Jealous of my cock now?” Laughn teases.

“Case Chambers, care to share what you are talking about with your entire cohort?” the principal sharply questions.

“Sure,” Case answers and stands up with a smirk. The principal looks just as shocked as half of the students, who are all now glancing our way. “Laughn wants to defile the new girl, so I was telling him that before he does, he should show it to her. Honestly, sir, if you think his face is fucked up, you should see his cock.”

The principal looks as mad as a cut snake, the vein in his neck protruding, and I’m waiting for steam to pour from his nostrils. Case pushes past us and storms out the emergency exit, setting off the alarms on the door. Everybody is directed to leave the gym and head to their first class.

“I’m going to find Case,” I announce to no one in particular. Boston gives me his nod of approval—not that I needed it.

I wander outside and spot Case lighting a cigarette, right beside a No Smoking sign. Seeing him in his uniform is so different to seeing him in his ripped jean shorts, loose singlet shirts, and chunky rings. He really is the poster boy for a 90s grunge band.

“So...” I say as I approach, and he hands me a pack of smokes. I take them and look into his green eyes, reaching up to tuck his fringe behind his ear.

“So,” he repeats.

“Care to share what the hell happened in there?”

He leans back against the building, blowing smoke in my direction. “We just found something we lost a long time ago, and I’m not sure how I feel about it.”

Case flicks his smoke to the ground, and I stomp on it. “You all have your knickers in a twist because you found something you lost? It must have been something pretty fucking special to have you all acting this wound up.”

Case snorts, pulling me to his body. “You have no idea. Special doesn’t even begin to explain it.”

I run my finger over the tattoo on his jawbone. I want to ask why he has the word “checkmate” tattooed on his face, but decide it’s better to leave it for another day.