Page 48

Corey

WHEN COREY GETS HOME FROM HIS UNANNOUNCED VISIT TO PENNY’S house, he goes straight to the basement.

Julian is in the screening room, where he’s been living since Grandpa Charles announced the new hierarchy. He sits in the middle of five rows of theater seats, slumped back as if he’s asleep. But his eyes are open.

Corey sits next to him, but Julian doesn’t move a muscle. On the screen, Daniel Kaluuya’s face is large and terrified as he’s forced into the Sunken Place.

“Did you need something?” Julian asks, his voice distant.

“You have to talk to me eventually.”

“Is that the law?”

“Julian,” Corey says. “I want to fix this.”

“Fix what? This is working out great for you.”

Corey wants to scream, but he holds himself back, because that will make Julian shut down. And after what Penny told him, Corey needs answers.

“Penny met Grandpa,” he says, keeping his voice even. “I guess he was hostile.”

Julian snickers. “Can you blame him?”

“Did you say something to him? About me spending time with Penny?” Corey suspected it the moment Penny said she’d had a run-in with Grandpa Charles. His grandpa isn’t exactly plugged into the community, so he must’ve heard the rumors from their family. And Julian may not leave the house, but he spends a lot of time on social media.

“Not at first,” Julian says. “Though I did save a photo of you and Alonso at the drag show. Those vests, man. I couldn’t resist.”

Julian sounds different. He’s always been sarcastic, but there’s distance in the way he talks to Corey now. Like they barely know each other.

“That was a fluke,” Corey says. “We happened to be there on the same night.”

“Uh-huh. What about IHOP?”

Corey has to laugh. “Are you stalking me now?”

“Did you really think you could sneak around like this without getting noticed? Idlewood is a small town. And someone’s gotta keep an eye on the heir.” Julian shrugs. “Guess that’s my job now.”

Corey’s insides coil, as if someone sent a blast of cold air through his veins. He walks in front of Julian, knocking his knees out of the way and blocking his view of the screen. They lock eyes, and it’s nothing but ice.

“We’re concerned,” Julian says. “Why would you befriend a De Luca? It makes no sense.”

“I hate Alonso as much as you do.” But even as Corey says it, the words ring hollow.

Julian examines Corey like he’s a piece of taxidermy in a museum. “What are you three planning?”

Corey almost tells him the truth. Why shouldn’t he? Julian is his closest friend, and he wants to break the curse, too. But if Julian was telling their grandfather all the details of Corey’s social outings, there’s no way he would keep the truth to himself. And what if they get Alonso’s magic sealed, and Corey’s one chance to break the curse is gone forever?

Instead, Corey looks away as he leans on the next row of seats. “Penny is losing a parent, just like we did. And Alonso and I have been doing time at the café for breaking a laptop while we were fighting. That’s all there is to it.”

A sardonic smile stretches across Julian’s face. Without saying a word, he leans over to keep watching the movie, even though Corey hasn’t moved out of the way.

“I know you hate me,” Corey says, “but I’m not the person you should be angry with. That’s Grandpa.”

Julian stares at the screen, which reflects in miniature in his eyes. “I think you always wanted this. You were jealous. You’re a much better liar than I ever gave you credit for.”

As much as Corey wants to deny it, he can still hear the things Dylan said to him the other night at her house. About how Corey is selfish, how he sabotages others without even realizing it. Is Julian right? Did Corey subconsciously orchestrate all of this?

No. Maybe Corey spread some rumors about Alonso, but he never wanted to hurt Julian—and he has never wanted to be CEO.

Corey tears the remote from Julian’s hands and pushes the power button. The screen goes black, leaving behind a faint glow that casts the room in tones of gray.

“This family is the most important thing in the world to me,” Corey says. “I know that’s true for you, too. We’re on the same team.”

Julian’s asshole facade wavers. For a moment, Corey can see the old Julian—the one who would never accuse Corey of conspiring against him, who would’ve listened to Corey’s words and heard the truth in them. They’re on a precipice. And for a second, Corey believes they’re going to be okay.

Julian lets silence fill the space between them. Then he says, “We were.”

Past tense.

Grief makes Corey’s vision go blurry. With tears? With anger? He can’t tell. But Julian’s words draw a permanent line between them. After Grandpa broke the news about Corey being the heir, Corey foolishly thought they could come back from that, but he was wrong. They never will. So Corey will do what he does best.

He’ll pretend he doesn’t care.

“Right,” Corey says. “See you at dinner.”

“Tell Warren I’m not hungry,” Julian says, but Corey is already walking out.