Page 56 of Trapped With You

C H A P T E R1 2

Ride or Die

Ella

The Present

12:48 a.m.

The atmosphere was pure frost by the time we reached the sixth floor of Balthazar Building, yet the tension brewing between my ex-boyfriend and me kept my insides hot like an inferno.

Having been a cheerleader throughout my high school tenure, I was in good shape and still active now that I was in university. But goddamn, my leg muscles were starting to ache from climbing six flights of stairs in heeled boots.

Meanwhile, Cade barely broke a sweat. Playing hockey and his gangster side hustle kept him plenty fit.

Vance Remington had two heirs—two mob princes—who weren’t afraid to get their hands dirty in the streets of Montardor. Over the last three years, Cade earned himself a reputation for being afixer. Roughing patrons, collecting debts, and thoroughly helping run his adoptive father’s underworld dealings. He walked around with a lethal edge and no one dared to mess with him.

Except for me, of course. I was the only one allowed to tease Cade and he’d loved it.

I padded further into the dormitories, feeling Cade’s presence lurking not too far behind. He was ruminating. And I too was still digesting everything he’d said in the tunnels.

“I always dream of you, sweetheart. Ever since the first moment I saw you.”

“I always want to kiss you, Ella. That’s what I dream about most. Kissing you and never, ever coming up for air.”

Those words lowered a little bit of my resolve to stay away from him…Not to mention, Cade’s dirty talk.

Good Lord, have mercy on me.

I was a woman who got off on praise and degradation. He knew it very well. Never failed to give me what I wanted.

“Careful,princess. Once I redden your ass into my favourite shade of red, I’ll fuck the disrespectfulness out of you in no time.”

“Ask me like a good girl and I might consider givingyouthe opportunity to suck my dick. I remember how much you loved getting your face fucked, Ella.”

To top it off? The crazy motherfucker actually got my name inked on the inside of his bottom lip. It was the sexiest thing ever. After my initial shock wore off, my thong dampened at the thought of his inked lips, wrapped around my clit, sucking me to orgasm.

Dammit.It was getting increasingly difficult to ignore the attraction between us. It had never left since the moment we met.

And now my suspicions were confirmed. Cade only came to Initiation Night with one sole purpose: to win me back. He wasn’t a fan of this tradition, but he’d do just about anything—including partaking in a trivial competition—if it meant being close to me once more.

I wouldn’t be surprised if Cade planned for us to get paired together.

“Based on the riddle, we’re looking for a picture.” Cade’s deep voice yanked me out of my thoughts.

On the bright side, we were laying the elephant in the room—the conversation from the tunnels—to rest. “Yeah. Maybe the next dare is hidden behind an old photo frame.”

Decades ago, Balthazar Building housed dormitories for students who lived on campus. There were rumours that ghosts lingered in the dominion. Some students claimed to hear voices, eventually making them go mad, climb up the bell tower to reach the belfry...

And jump to their inevitable demise.

Too many dead students. Too much scandal. It forced St. Victoria to shut down this area. Since then, no student had stayed here. Though Principal Hill did say that the building was now strictly used for private faculty meetings.

The sixth floor had a musty smell. There was obviously a lack of proper ventilation.

Cade and I stood in the middle of a hallway, flanked by various doors on either side that led to separate lodgings.

“The picture is probably in one of these rooms.” I walked to a closed door. When I tested the doorknob, it wouldn’t budge.