One of the maids came in and poured William a cup of coffee while I wolfed down the egg white and veggie omelet the chef had made for me. When she left to get him his breakfast, he slid a car key fob across the table toward me. “What’s this for?”
William smiled at me over his coffee cup. “Consider it another notch in the win column for today.”
I glanced down at the emblem on the fob. “I didn’t know you had a Jeep. Is there another garage around this place that I missed?”
It was a fair question since the six-car garage was packed with vehicles, but William laughed and shook his head. “No, but I figured you could park on the driveway.”
“You’re letting me drive it?” Picking up the fob, I clenched it in my fist. I’d gotten my driver’s license a little more than a year ago, but only because my foster parents needed my help with toting the other kids around sometimes. I hadn’t been behind the wheel since I’d moved to Black Mountain, but it wasn’t a problem since the only place I’d really gone by myself over the past two months was the rink. There was no reason to leave—not when my new home had a workout room, pool, hot tub, home theater, putting green, full-time chef, and even a fucking bowling alley in the basement. And Coach Clark had arranged for one of the guys who lived nearby, Chuck, to pick me up after the first week of club hockey when he found me waiting around for the Whitney’s chauffeur an hour after everyone else had left the rink. It turned out that Eleanor had decided she didn’t want to drive herself to the spa that day, so the driver had been running way behind since it was all the way on the other side of town. I didn’t mind catching rides from Chuck, but access to a vehicle would be a serious improvement since Black Mountain didn’t have many public transportation options.
“That’s why I got the Jeep.” He set his coffee cup down and tapped his fingers against the gleaming surface of the wood table. “The dealership took longer to get the model I wanted. I bought the vehicle more than a month ago, but they didn’t deliver it until last night. You shouldn’t have been without a car this long, but I didn’t feel as though any of mine were a good fit for you.”
Damn straight, they weren’t. The cheapest vehicle he owned was an S-class Mercedes that came with a low six-figure price tag. I hadn’t gotten to know William all that well in the time I’d lived under his roof, but I’d quickly figured out two things: he was obsessed with hockey and cars. I sure as fuck wasn’t going to judge him for his passions since I’d gained a lot because of them. “Thank you doesn’t seem like enough. Not with everything you’ve done for me.”
The maid returned and placed a plate with eggs Benedict in front of him. He waited until she stepped back to wave off my gratitude. “Things are bound to get hectic with your schedule between school, practices, and games. The Jeep will make everyone’s lives easier, not just yours.”
“I’m sure it will,” I agreed, not about to argue with William and risk him changing his mind. Driving myself to school sounded a hell of a lot better than hitching a ride with Chuck. I didn’t have much control over my life for the past four years. I’d been forced to depend on strangers for everything from the roof over my head to the food in my belly. It might sound strange to others since William was lending me the Jeep, but being able to drive myself places gave me some of that control back.
William tapped the face of his Patek Philippe watch. “You’d better get going, or you’ll be late. It’s my understanding that your guidance counselor arranged for someone to show you where each of your classes are before the first bell.”
Shit. I’d forgotten I needed to be there early today since I’d already gotten a tour of the school when we’d gone in to meet with the guidance counselor about my schedule. “Thanks for the reminder.”
“You’re welcome.”
I finished my glass of orange juice and headed up to my room to grab my stuff. It still felt weird to leave my dirty dishes on the table, but I had already been reminded many times that the staff was there to take care of shit like that for me. After changing out of the athletic shorts and T-shirt I’d worn to bed, I stared at myself in the mirror in the bathroom I had all to myself—another luxury I’d quickly grown used to after sharing with other people in every foster home I’d lived in. The preppy-looking guy—dressed in khaki pants and a white polo with the BMA crest stitched on the left side in red—staring back at me seemed like a stranger. The only time I usually dressed up was for hockey games, and that was because it had been a team requirement. I was much more comfortable in casual clothes, but the school had a dress code. At least it would allow me to blend in a little; being the new guy as a senior was bound to make me stand out like a sore thumb. Especially since I didn’t come from money like everyone else.
Shaking off my broody thoughts, I grabbed my backpack and jogged down the stairs and out the door. When I spotted the shiny, firecracker red Jeep Wrangler Unlimited parked out front, I stopped dead in my tracks. “Holy fuck.”
When William had mentioned getting the vehicle from the dealership, I hadn’t been expecting it to be the newest model available. I probably should have, though. The Jeep came with all the bells and whistles, and as I climbed inside, I let out a long whistle. It was a damn shame I didn’t have time to take the top off since the weather was great, but I promised myself that I’d take care of that task after practice. I was looking forward to driving to school tomorrow without the hard top or doors.
Rolling down the driver’s and passenger side windows, my grin was fucking huge as I turned onto the street in front of the house. The window blew around me, and the fifteen-minute drive was fantastic. I felt freer than I had in a long time. Even my first day at a new school couldn’t touch the high I had when I got there. After pulling into the parking lot and finding an open spot, I scanned the groups of kids hanging out in front of the school. I hadn’t expected it to be so crowded this early, but a ton of people were already here.
Most of the clusters were girls, and they sure as fuck made the most of their uniforms. Skirts were hiked up past where the rules allowed, and shirts had several buttons undone at the top and the bottom tied off above their belly buttons. My guess was they’d cover up more before heading into the school since their clothes clearly violated the dress code with the way they were now.
The guys hanging out were much more casual, leaning against the building or circled around a car here and there in the parking lot. They didn’t pay me much attention as I strode from my spot to the front entrance, but I attracted a lot of stares from the girls. It was flattering as fuck, but the last thing I needed was some pampered princess distracting me from my goal. Being a notch in some rich girl’s bedpost because she wanted a walk on the wild side with a guy from the wrong side of the tracks wasn't worth risking my hockey career.
3
Emmeline
“Thanks for the ride.” I flashed our chauffeur, Edwin, a grin over my shoulder after climbing out of the passenger seat of the Bentley. It would have driven my mother up the wall to know that I didn’t ride in the back, but she was never up to see me off to school, so there was little chance of her finding out. There were only so many ways for me to rebel against her, and I enjoyed the small wins where I could find them.