Page 2 of Wicked Games (Silvercrest U #1)

KILLIAN

Throwing the door to my room open, I stalk inside. My cousins and best friends, Jace and Jax, follow me, their footsteps heavy against the gleaming wood floors.

“Babe,” my girlfriend, Natalie, says in her familiar whine as she slips through the open door before one of the twins can close it.

Heaving a sigh, I throw myself onto the ornamental settee in the center of the room.

Jace and Jax sit on the couch, the only piece of furniture in here that’s actually comfortable outside of my bed, as Natalie scurries into the room in a blur of designer clothes and enough expensive perfume to make a pack-a-day smoker choke.

Her ridiculously high heels click against the floor as she comes to a stop in front of me, her hands on her hips and her lip out in a pout.

“Where were you?” She blinks at me with big eyes, the way she does when she wants something.

“At a meeting,” I answer curtly. I’m not in the mood to deal with whatever drama she’s about to drop on me, especially not after what I learned earlier today.

“At the house?” She glances at the twins.

I nod.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” she asks, shifting her attention back to me. “I’ve been waiting forever .” Her lip comes out in another fake pout.

“Waiting for me?” I arch one eyebrow at her.

She nods demurely.

“Why?”

“Because you didn’t answer my texts. I was worried about you.

” She adjusts the designer bag on her arm.

It’s one of the half dozen I’ve given her in the three months we’ve been together, but since handbags are low on my list of things I care about, I have no clue when or why I gave her that particular one.

“So worried you came to my room to wait for me.” I speak slowly enough that her brow furrows, like she knows I’m getting at something but hasn’t quite figured out what.

“Yes.”

“Then why weren’t you outside my door?” Lifting one leg, I toss it across the settee and lean against the arm.

The thing is ridiculously impractical and way too small for my six-foot-three frame, but it’s exactly what you’d expect to find in the dorm room of an elite private college where opulence is revered and traditions are a way of life.

“What?” Her voice takes on a slight wobble that tells me she knows exactly what I mean.

“If you were waiting for me, why weren’t you in front of my door when I got here?” I rest my arm across the back of the settee.

“Oh, that .” She laughs, the sound shrill and as fake as her earlier pouting. “William let me hang out in his room since I didn’t know how long you’d be.”

“Did he now?”

William lives across from me, and the only reason I don’t get my ass up and beat his face bloody is that I know nothing happened.

William is a first-year initiate of the Rebels, the same frat Jace, Jax, and me are members of, and disrespecting me by touching my girlfriend would be more than enough reason to end not only him but also his pending membership.

The Rebels are the most powerful fraternity on campus, and like all of the Four Corners Houses, a Rebels membership is a golden ticket into some of the most exclusive and powerful circles in the world.

No one, not even William, is dumb enough to risk their chances at being part of our legacy for anything, not even a round ass or a pair of perky tits.

“Yeah.” She nods, her glossy dark hair bouncing around her head in the perfect beach waves that are her signature look. “He was just being nice.”

“Why were you looking for me?” I ask, my tone still clipped.

“I wanted to see you.” Her expression goes from innocent to seductive. “I thought maybe we could spend some time together,” she purrs. “You’ve been so stressed out lately, and I want to help make it better.”

“Maybe later,” I say dismissively, not interested in what she’s offering.

Usually, losing myself in a willing body is the best way to get my head in order when I’m stressed or dealing with shit, but I have zero interest in her, or anyone, at the moment.

A flicker of anger breaks through her careful facade, but it’s gone a second later as she resumes her earlier pouting. “Are you sure? I got some new lingerie…” She lets that hang in the air.

I don’t miss the way her gaze flicks to the twins, or the flare of heat in them.

“You should go.” I point to the door. I’m used to people checking out my cousins wherever we go, but right now is not the time for her to be eye fucking them in front of me. “We have business we need to take care of.”

That’s a lie, but it’s the only way to get her to leave me alone without more pouting. Natalie knows that business is what keeps her in handbags and expensive gifts, so she never pushes back when I use that as an excuse to dismiss her.

She gives me a flirty little smile, but I can see in her eyes that she’s pissed off. “I’ll see you later?”

“Later.” I keep my answer vague.

“Tonight?” she asks hopefully.

I shake my head. I’m not going to be in the mood to see her, or anyone outside of the twins, tonight.

“Tomorrow?” she presses.

“Maybe. I’ll text you later.”

“Okay.” She looks between me and the twins, her smile faltering. “I’ll talk to you then.”

I upnod her. She stares at me for a few more seconds, like she’s waiting for me to say something, then spins on her heel with a huff and stalks out of my room, her high heels clicking obnoxiously in her wake.

“Dude,” Jace says as soon as the door closes behind her. “You need to cut her loose. Like, yesterday.”

Jax nods in agreement.

They might be identical, even down to the matching black shirts and dark jeans they’re wearing, but I can tell them apart with a single glance. Their differences are subtle, especially when they wear the same hairstyle, but they’re there if you know what to look for.

“Yeah.” I lean back against the settee and let out a disgruntled sigh. “I know. But it’s easier to just keep her on the hook than deal with the fallout.”

Jax shoots me a dubious look. “Are you sure about that? It’s not like she’s the only field to plow here.”

I snort-laugh. “Trust me when I say I’m not keeping her around for the sex.”

“That bad?” Jace asks, casually flipping out the blade of his butterfly knife in a blur of glinting metal as he rolls it over his knuckles in a complicated pattern that would leave my hand shredded if I tried it.

I shrug. “Mid, at best.”

“So why the fuck are you still with her?” Jax asks.

The twins might be like brothers to me, but we don’t really talk about personal stuff. I’ve been waiting for one of them to start this conversation for months.

“Like I said, it’s easier than dealing with the fallout of breaking up with her.”

They exchange a look.

“Our families have been trying to get us together for years,” I remind them. “Remember how hard my dad leaned on me over the summer? I’ll never hear the end of it if I dump her.”

“So you’re putting up with Gold Digger Barbie because your dad wants you to?” Jace expertly flips the blade around his hand in another blur of gleaming silver and the soft click of metal on metal.

“Essentially.” I roll my neck to try and get some of the lingering tension out. “And having a girlfriend keeps the rest of the social climbers away. Stick with the devil you know and all that.”

Jax leans back and crosses his arms over his chest. “Speaking of social climbers, when is little Fefe showing up?”

“Who the fuck knows,” I grumble, my bad mood intensifying.

“I still can’t believe they’re making you room with him.” Jace shakes his head and absently tosses his knife in the air. “Or why,” he adds as he catches it in his other hand and starts flipping it around his knuckles as easily as he did with his dominant hand.

“It’s school policy,” I grumble. “I had no idea having to room with your stepbrother after his family kicks it is in the rules, but apparently it is.”

“Can’t you just ask your dad to tell them to fuck off with their rules?” Jace asked. “It’s not like we don’t have any pull around here. Use your status as a founding legacy and get rid of him.”

“I tried, but Jasmine convinced him this is a good thing.” I can’t keep the bitterness out of my voice.

“And you know how he is. He’s all about protecting our image, so he’s parroting her bullshit about it bringing us closer together when he really just doesn’t want to show any family division or weakness. ”

Jace snorts out a laugh. “The only thing this arrangement will bring you closer to is a felony.”

“Mood,” I agree.

A soft knock draws my attention from the twins. Heaving a sigh, I slide my gaze to the large wooden door. “Who is it?”

“It’s me,” a muffled voice says from the other side.

I let my head fall back against the back of the settee. “Of fucking course he shows up now.”

“Are you going to let me in?”

“It’s unlocked.”

The door swings open and Felix steps inside.

“Did you forget how to open a door?” I ask as he shifts the duffle bag on his shoulder and closes the door behind him.

“I figured I’d be polite and ask to come in,” he says, his expression completely blank. “Don’t worry. They gave me a key, so that’s the last time you’ll have to inconvenience yourself by shouting across the room.”

“You’ve been here for less than ten seconds, and you’re already pissing me off.” I shift so I’m sitting on the settee with both feet planted on the floor and my forearms on my thighs. “Trust me when I say today is not the day.”

“Noted.” He looks around my room, his eyes landing on the empty bed across from mine.

The dorms at Silvercrest range from basic to palatial, depending on the building you’re assigned to and which group you belong to.

Jace, Jax, and I, along with all the other junior members of the frat, live in Hamilton House.

The senior members live in Rebel House, which is a huge Victorian mansion on the outskirts of our corner of the campus.

I can’t fucking wait until next year when it’s our turn to move in.

Each room in the dorm is set up to house two members with beds across from each other, desks against the far wall, some shelving, a huge wooden wardrobe on each side of the room, and a private bathroom.

In the middle of the space is a common sitting area with a ridiculous settee, a comfortable couch, and a coffee table.

The dorm itself is a self-contained living space with meeting and study rooms, two gyms, a pool, a dining hall, multiple media rooms, several communal spaces and lounges, on-site laundry, and a cleaning service. The only time we have to leave is to go to class.

Everyone in the building might be members, but there’s a hierarchy of membership, and our family name puts me, Jax, and Jace at the top of the list.

Our great-grandfathers were founding members of the frat back when the school was established, and our grandfathers and fathers were all high-ranking members when they were at Silvercrest. This gives us founding legacy status and affords us special perks like not having to share our rooms if we don’t want to.

It also guarantees us a room in Rebel House in our last year at school while the other senior legacies have to earn a place in the main house.

The twins are roommates because that’s what they prefer, but I’ve taken advantage of my position for the last three years and lived alone.

Until today.

“Are you waiting for an engraved invitation?” I ask Felix, my irritation at his very presence in my room clear in my voice. “Get your ass in here and stop hovering like a creep.”

He slides his gaze back to mine. “I see you still have that sunny disposition you’re known for.”

Anger flows through me like a living thing, raising my hackles until my entire body is taut, like a snake coiled and ready to strike its prey.

Felix has been here for less than a minute, and I already want to rip him in half.

How the fuck am I supposed to spend the rest of the year as his roommate and not kill him?

Felix walks over to the empty bed and tosses his duffle bag on it like he doesn’t have a care in the world.

My stepbrother is one of the most annoying people I’ve ever met, and he’s also one of the fakest.

He might have fooled our parents and professors and everyone else into believing he’s as perfect as he pretends to be, but I’ve seen the real him under his carefully curated facade.

Everything from his preppy-boy wardrobe to his overly polite manners is as fake as a three-dollar bill. So is the mask of indifference he always wears.

Felix might be a master at hiding his emotions and pretending he doesn’t have any, but I know it’s only a matter of time before his persona cracks and his true nature comes out for everyone to see.

Without meaning to, I rake my gaze over his frame, taking in his loose sweats and baggy hoodie.

His hair is a mess, and he’s wearing mismatched socks and slides.

I can’t remember the last time I’ve seen him dressed down like this.

It makes him look more like a typical student and less like the buttoned-up Poindexter I’m used to.

“Let’s go,” Jax says, tearing my attention away from my stepbrother. “We’ve got business to take care of.”

“Yeah.” I stand and toss Felix a flat look. “Don’t even think about touching my stuff, or I’ll end you.”

He blinks at me, his face the picture of innocence. “How will you know if I think about it? Are you clairvoyant? Quick, what number am I thinking about?”

“Watch it, you little?—”

Jax grabs my arm and tugs me toward the door. “Ignore him. We don’t have time to dispose of a body right now.”

I let Jax pull me out of the room.

Felix’s beaming smile is the last thing I see before Jace slams the door closed.