“Well, it’s not like you use your real name anyway,” Reid reminds me, and I sigh.
I did have a few new pieces that might go down well at the auction in Silvercrest, they might even win Elena over a little. But they would be a public declaration, and I needed to gauge how that would go down right about now.
“Fine, are we done now?” I’m impatient, I needed to talk to Lena about what was going on between us.
Reid laughs before hanging up, leaving me to make my way over to the music rooms. As I pass through the courtyard, I can’t help but overhear the whispers about the party on Friday. A group of kids in the year below are sitting on the benches chatting, and I hide my grin as their words reach my ears.
“Did you hear? Sam James isn’t in today. I drove past his house on the way to school, and there’s a for sale sign outside,” a small girl with brown hair says in hushed tones.
A boy with a shaved head and a skateboard asks, “What do you think happened? Do you think it's true that Elena Montgomery did something to him?”
“I mean, someone said she was at the party covered in blood. But that doesn’t make sense,” someone else chimes in, and my lips twitch. The rumor mill was always filled with twisted truths.
“Class president Elena? No way, she doesn’t even kill spiders.” A fourth voice laughs.
The first girl chimes back in, voice determined as though she’d just solved some giant mystery. “Someone is just spreading rumors, bet it’s that Serena girl. Heard her slagging her off in the hallway this morning. Quinn almost punched her.”
The others tut and make shocked noises, but I can tell that they’re loving the drama.
I open the door to the music room, ignoring Elena’s frown as I take a seat and wait for her to finish playing the awful piece she’s practicing. She turns her back to me and carries on for another fifteen minutes before I finally get a chance to talk.
“Hey Princess, it looks like your reputation is intact,” I call out as she places her violin back in its case. “Heard people speculating about Sam and apparently you’re too soft to have done what you did.”
She gives me a look. “People believe what they want to.”
I stand and take three big steps towards her as she gathers up her sheet music. “And you’re happy to have them underestimate you?”
Lena looks up as we stand inches away from each other, green eyes weary. “The greatest threat is the one you don’t see coming, Tristan.”
She doesn’t look like she’s slept in a few days, and I wonder if the guilt over Sam was the reason for that, or if it was something else playing on her mind.
I run a hand through my hair and groan, “We’re back to using my full name today then.”
Lena tries to turn away, but I can already see that her cheeks are turning a delicious shade of pink. Am I finally ruffling her feathers? “We’re not talking about it, remember?”
I place a hand on her waist and turn her back towards me. “No, I remember you saying that and running away.”
“I didn’t run away…” she counters, lifting her chin defiantly.
“Yeah. You did.” I chuckle as I tuck a stand of blonde hair behind her ear. “Maybe you should add the track team to your long list of extracurricular activities.”
“Why are you here?” She rolls her eyes, but doesn’t move away from me, my hand still on her waist.
“To talk,” I murmur softly as I lean in closer to her.
“You need to leave.” Her words are firm, but I don’t miss the way her body closes the gap between us as she melts into me. She’s been fighting me every step of the way because she doesn’t know how to let go, and she wants to. Badly.
“You need to give in.” My lips brush against hers with every word I whisper, but I don’t kiss her. Not yet. I just need to hold out a little longer. It’s killing me, as I resist taking what’s mine, but I need her to give me a sign.
I don’t have to wait long. Her hand grasps the back of my neck as she crashes her mouth against mine, and I almost grin. That’s all I needed. My free hand cups her cheek as I deepen our kiss, and it’s everything. It’s hate, love, anger, frustration, lust, and it feels like when I watch her dance, but it tastes so much sweeter.
She pushes us backwards until I stumble into a chair, but that doesn’t slow us as she climbs onto my lap. I don’t know what it is about kissing me that brings out Lena’s more commanding side, but I wasn’t going to complain. Her hands cup my face, while my hands roam down her body and over her legs. Part of it is helping her stay on my lap, the other part is feeling her bare skin against mine as I slide one of my hands under her skirt. The tips of my fingers just skim against her damp cotton panties when the bell to mark the end of lunch rings, bringing her out of her lust-filled trance. Once again, she jumps off me like she’s been burned.
Her chest is heaving as her breathing is all over the place, her lips swollen, and her cheeks are still pink, and yet she was still the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen.
“You know, you’re starting to hurt my feelings,” I call as she grabs her backpack and flees the music room.
Chapter Thirteen
Elena
I run again, my mother’s words ringing in my ears, “Fuck Tristan Radcliff. There is nothing you can do, that The Society cannot fix.” I’m pretty sure they won’t be able to fix my broken
