Page 10 of Safe (King’s Heart #1)

Grant

I hear the slam of the locker room door and let out the breath I was holding, praying that I scared him enough to just go away.

Why did he have to come here?

I was doing such a good job of being the cocky asshole that everyone knows.

Of keeping everything from before hidden.

The sickness.

The cause.

No one knows that about me here. I was homeschooled before, so coming here was a clean slate. I made a new person. Someone who didn’t have to deal with what I had. I put it all behind me.

And I need it to stay that way, because I don’t think I could handle it if anyone found out.

I finish my shower, trudging to my locker and putting a clean pair of clothes on before exiting the locker room, taking the short walk across campus to my dorm room.

Not a lot of students get to live on campus. They have this building for “special circumstances.” And I needed to get out of that house.

Uncle Nate didn’t really care about me leaving. Not anymore. We’d passed that point.

So he made some calls and donated some money, then the opportunity was graciously presented to me.

Must be nice, huh? Having a trust fund and last name that opens whatever door you want? Getting anything your heart desires?

It is. Most of the time.

But even the people with the most gilded lives—money, popularity, power, immunity—can have the nastiest shit you’ve ever seen below the surface.

Sure, I lost my parents. That’s obviously bad—even though they were never really around that much to begin with. But that pain has dulled over the years, becoming an ever present ache that doesn’t incapacitate me anymore. It’s a part of my life.

What remains is something else.

Something worse. A mass that must be kept away from prying eyes at all costs.

Everyone can see that Landon is a nice guy.

The kind that smiles all the time and asks how your day is.

And in another world, he’d probably be instant friends with everybody at school.

I could see that the first day he was here, when Javi was excitedly chatting and showing him around like we were all going to be best friends.

Landon didn’t necessarily do anything.

But I don’t care.

He will be a casualty of my persona.

I pull my keycard out of my duffle and scan it to go into the dorm building, doing the same when I reach my door on the second floor.

I push it open and drop all of my stuff at the door, taking a moment to look around. It’s new, like the rest of campus, but basic. Four gray walls. Two twin XL beds opposite each other, both with a sliding closet on each side. And a bathroom with a shower and toilet.

The space isn’t as nice as where I was before, but it’s safe.

I’m by myself. The other bed hasn’t been filled since I started living on campus last year.

And I like it that way. Despite how many people I’m constantly surrounded by, I just want to be alone.

To curl up in a fucking ball and cry or whine or hurt or anything else that I hide throughout the day.

I throw myself face down on the bed, and for some annoying reason, Landon’s stupid fucking face appears in my mind’s eye. That surprised-as-fuck look he had after he caught me fucking Trevor.

And then, he looked sort of confused and disgusted, both expressions melding into something new that I couldn’t name.

I wasn’t sure how to take that. But, I knew what I felt every time his eyes landed on my dick.

Fire.

Pure and unbridled—right underneath my skin.

At first it pissed me off. I don’t want to be attracted to him. I don’t want to feel anything about him except for hatred and annoyance.

But now, I think it’s not a big deal. It’s biological. In fact, I could even fuck him if I wanted and still make him go away.

I lift my head and slam it into the mattress, getting rid of the idea. It’s stupid as fuck. And unnecessary. I have plenty of other options at school.

My phone buzzes with a text, and I groan. I’m exhausted and this is my time away from people, but when I pull it out and see it’s Javi, I make an exception for him. The only person who I consider to be an actual friend.

When I told him that I wanted Landon gone, he was a little confused. I could tell in the slight pull of his brow, but he still nodded and went along with me.

Javi

Trevor is already telling everyone that Landon walked in on you guys fucking in the locker room.

Me

He has such a big fucking mouth.

Javi

What do you expect? He does this every time you guys hook up.

Why do you keep going back?

Me

Idk. It’s easy. He takes dick well.

Javi

You’re such an asshole lol. So, what was Landon’s reaction?

Me

Shock, I think. But not shocked enough to not take a few peeks at my dick…

It buzzes a few more times, but I ignore it, tossing it onto the side table and glancing at the empty bed on the far wall before my nightmares take me under.