“No.” I couldn’t believe Leo hadn’t told me. “Do you have any idea who it could be?”
“Not really. My brother is a bit of a player, so my first guess was a woman scorned. But, who knows? As you’ve already gathered, he’s fairly adept at pissing people off.”
She had a point. He’d come after Tristin in public twice before changing tactics. I wouldn’t be surprised at all to discover he’d made a few other enemies along the way.
Still, the timing felt a little too convenient. Maybe Hadley, the girl who had been drugged, had gone after him. Or one of her sorority sisters. I wouldn’t blame them.
“Well, I should get going. Are you still up for a girls’ night at Petra’s?” We’d discussed it at the football game before everything went to hell but had never made definitive plans.
Violet dipped her head and began twisting the cap of her highlighter. “I don’t think that’s such a great idea. I think I need to, um, take a step back.”
“From me?”
She nodded before seeming to force herself to lift her head. “I’m sorry. It’s just, this has all gotten even more complicated. And with Bodie now facing jail time for what he did, I don’t want it to look like I’m taking sides.”
Huh. First Tristin. Now Violet. I was going to have to start wearing a protective mask, if rejection continued to slap me across the face.
But if she needed space, I could give it to her. I understood the need to withdraw better than most. I’d done it for eight years, after all. And she was right about our budding friendship being complicated—it had been from the beginning.
“Okay. I get it.” I pushed up from the desk I was leaning against. “You should still go to study group, though. I don’t mind skipping it. I prefer studying alone.”
Violet chewed on her bottom lip, a sure sign of her uncertainty. “Are you sure?”
“Absolutely.”
“Thanks for being so understanding.”
Not knowing what else to say on the topic, I reached for my bag and started down the stairs. “See you around?”
She nodded, and I walked away, wondering if I’d been wrong about Violet all along.
I left French, my last class of the day, mad at myself for the seventy-two I’d gotten on last week’s exam. I’d already known I spent too much time that weekend obsessing over what happened at the football party and not enough time cramming. So, the grade wasn’t exactly a surprise. But it meant that I seriously needed step up my studying game in that class.
My thoughts were so wrapped up in how to improve my grade, I almost missed the tall figure moving toward me on the sidewalk. Tristin.
And he wasn’t alone. A blonde girl was sidled up next to him, chattering away.
My heart stuttered, and I experienced the outrageous urge to dart behind a tree until they passed. But there was no reason for me to hide. I was merely walking down the sidewalk. I wasn’t doing anything wrong.
As they drew closer, I recalled meeting the girl at the party my first night in Moss Harbor. She’d asked me if I’d just gotten out of juvie too, like it was a foregone conclusion.
The compulsion to stalk up to her and claw her eyes out was strong. But I kept my instincts under control long enough to really see Tristin. As usual, his back was straight and his stride rigid. He wasn’t looking at the blonde, and he definitely wasn’t talking to her. He was just...walking. And she looked more than a little desperate as she attempted to catch his attention.
I felt a split second of satisfaction before even that slipped away. Because the girl didn’t matter. He could be surrounded by a hundred pretty blondes, and that wouldn’t change anything. It wouldn’t change the fact that he didn’t want me.
I forced my gaze straight ahead, gripping the straps of my backpack so tightly, I was sure my palms would show the marks. The mere sight of Tristin after eight long days shouldn’t be twisting me up inside. Shouldn’t make me ecstatic and devastated. Hopeful and resigned.
But it was doing all of that and more.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw him approaching. I’d almost made it. Just a few more seconds and he’d be past me, and I could breathe again.
Except, I wasn’t as strong as I’d thought.
Like I was that damn penny drawn to a Sharpe magnet again, my head turned of its own accord, and our gazes locked. Whatever hope had been building inside of me was instantly dashed. Though his aquamarine eyes weren’t as cold as the last time I’d seen him, they lacked any sign of warmth. I barely even saw recognition in them.
One beat, two beats, and he looked away. He kept walking, like his heavy boots weren’t trampling the pieces of my heart scattered across the sidewalk.
I kept my head held high and pace even until I turned the corner and disappeared behind Carlson Hall. Then, I broke into a sprint, needing to get to my bike before I broke down.
My hands were shaking as I unlocked the chain and hopped on the seat. I immediately began riding and had to swipe at a tear with my sleeve. Damn it. I couldn’t do this right now. I had to get away.
I was so focused on riding as far away from Tristin as possible, I almost didn’t see the dark SUV coming as I pulled onto the road. Screeching to a halt, I waited for it to pass, my pulse screaming at me.
But it didn’t pass. The driver slammed on his breaks and rolled down the window, scowling at me. “Thea, get in the fucking car.”
Chapter Six
Thea
I stared in disbelief as Leo parked in the middle of the road and lowered the back seats in his Range Rover before opening the hatch and walking toward me. Cars were piling up behind him, and one honked, but he didn’t seem to notice.
“What the hell are you doing?” I hissed.
He reached for my handlebars, as though he was going to steal the cruiser out from under me. “I’m putting your bike in the back while you get in the front.”
“You’re creating a traffic jam.”
He didn’t so much as blink. “Then, you’d better start moving.”
“Leo...”
“Thea...” He wasn’t budging.
Well, shit. Leo was probably the least stubborn one in the family, but it seemed that he still had his moments.
“Fine.” I quickly dismounted and relinquished the bike before settling into the front seat of his SUV. A couple more people honked, and through the rearview mirror, I saw Leo give his audience a nonchalant wave.
Once we were finally moving, I waited for him to speak. But he said nothing as he kept his eyes on the road and turned out of the university in the opposite direction of the house.
“Where are we going?”
“To dinner.”
I glanced at the clock on the dashboard to make sure I hadn’t somehow lost a few hours without realizing it. Nope. “It’s only three.”
“I don’t care. I’m hungry.”
He said this without looking at me still, his tone one I’d only heard him use with Tristin. It didn’t suggest anger, exactly. More frustration mixed with exasperation.
“Is something wrong?”
I watched as his hands tightened on the steering wheel, then loosened and tightened once more. “I can’t believe you’re asking me that.”