“He’s one of them.”
“Oh damn. Looks like you won’t be getting lucky with him.” She sucks in a sharp breath, “Or maybe you will and it will be some awesome hate sex!”
“What?” I laugh. “Maybe it’s you who needs to get laid, girl.”
“Yeah, that too. Battery operated toys aren’t doing it for me anymore.”
I snort and shake my head in disbelief. I don’t make it much further before I see Julien walk around a corner. Why is he lurking everywhere? Does he not have anything better to do with his time?
“Leah, I gotta go.” I don’t give her a chance to answer before hanging up. My phone rings in my hand and I silence it, wishing I hadn’t turned the ringer up in the dorm. I was secretly hoping dad would call, and I didn’t want to miss it. Now I realize how stupid that was. If he even cared, he would have found time tobring me. Or hell, checked in on me since arriving. Campus isn’t that far from home. I assume James has been back for hours now and told him he safely dropped me off.
I turn on my heel, hoping he hasn’t seen me, and duck behind a building, my back pressed flat against the cool stone as I wait and listen. Please, just go away.I don’t want to deal with him right now. Once was enough, and I’m hoping I won’t have to see him again since he’s in his third year here. Seeing any student shouldn't scare me. Not yet anyway. I thought I’d make some headway by introducing myself and showing them I’m nice and not the monster they’ve somehow imagined me to be, but clearly that didn’t work.
I take a deep breath and turn my head to peek around the corner when hands slam down on the stone wall on either side of my face. I yelp and slam my head back, my hair getting caught in the rough siding as I take in a shuddering breath. Fuck, that hurt. A headache worms its way through my skull and I hold in my groan of pain as I stare wide-eyed at him. This god-forsaken school must teach ninja skills! I flatten my back to make myself as flush with the wall as possible, but it doesn’t matter. Julien collars his hand around my throat and I bring my hands up, holding tight to his wrist. I can’t help the sudden rush of heat that blooms in my belly. I try to stand a little taller, hoping to get him to loosen his hold on me. It’s not tight, I can breathe no problem, but it is dominating. I know I’m not leaving until he deems it so. My breathing is erratic as he slowly rubs his thumb up and down over my fluttering pulse. He hums as he runs his nose along my jaw, inhaling me as he goes.
Oh Jesus, Joseph, and Mary.
“W-what do you want, Julien?” I stammer, my breath coming out in shallow pants. I’ve never been so scared and turned on in my life. He adds pressure to his hand against my throat and my back arches away from the wall at the contact. I can still breathe,but there’s no way out of his grip. Not without leaving some serious marks and getting scraped to hell from the stone at my back. He has me pinned, and from the look in his eyes, he knows it. I bite my lip to suppress the moan that wants to escape as I get a whiff of him. He smells so good. Masculine and clean with a touch of citrus.
“Stay thefuckaway from me, Princess.” His deep voice is rough in my ear.
I release the hold on his wrist and press my hands against his solid chest to push. He doesn’t even register that I’ve touched him and presses himself flush against me instead. His strong form molding to my soft curves. The hard plains of his body under his jeans and shirt are difficult to ignore. How much time does one have to spend at the gym to get as ripped as he feels? I would be on my ass in five seconds flat if pitted against him in a fight. I push my hips up toward him, trying to buck him off. He groans, then covers it with a deep, menacing growl. My eyes flutter closed, a thrill that I’ve made him lose his complete and utter cool courses through me, if only for a moment. Then I snap them open again and narrow on him, remembering how he’s treated me since meeting me. “I’m not the one who keeps finding you, asshole.”
If I didn’t know any better, I could swear his lips twitch in amusement before he presses his groin against me one last time and pulls away. Even without glancing down, I can feel his hardness. Is he hard because this type of torment turns him on, or is he hard because I did that to him? I try not to let my mind dwell on that little tidbit, though. I cross my arms over my chest and stare at him as he backs away, his eyes firmly trained on me.
Pointebreak is going to be harder than I thought. Not only do I have to survive these crazy classes, I’ve made an enemy my first day and he will stop at nothing to destroy me.
FIVE
JULIEN
Ican’t believe she has the audacity to show her face atmyschool. Riley Whittier has no clue what she’s in for and I’ll take pleasure in making her life at Pointebreak hell. She should have stayed as far from me as possible. Does my little lamb know this might as well be a slaughterhouse? Pointebreak isn’t for the faint of heart, and last I knew, she was a dainty flower. Based on the casual way she’s been walking around, she has absolutely no idea what’s in store for her.
Rule number one of Pointebreak is never be alone. Ava clearly hasn’t explained the rules to her. She can’t die while under the administration's care, but that doesn’t mean someone can’t fuck with her for fun. I pace back and forth like a caged animal in my room, fuming. Her being here threw a wrench into my plans. I live in a house at the edge of campus with Zander and Wesley—courtesy of Alec Azarian, my dad. It’s been in our family for generations, but sat empty prior to me moving me. I've always received the best, and this is no exception. He wanted me to come to Pointebreak. He told me the contacts I made here would set me up for life. Along with the education they offer, I knew it was the best option for me. Plus, a traditional education has never suited me. Not when I’m an Azarian. As soon as I hadmy acceptance letter in hand, the house renovations started, so it would be ready for me to move in.
Tension strains my muscles as I tug at the back of my neck, trying to ease some of the pressure. I roll my shoulders and grit when I look up at Zander, who knocks on the door frame and meets his gaze. I clench my jaw, waiting for him to say something, anything, but he stares, waiting for me to talk first. He always has been good in our torture classes. Others sing like canaries, but he has this crazy ability to keep silent. The man hardly ever breaks. I gotta give him credit for it. He cracks the knuckles on his hand and blows out a breath.
“What?” I bark, unable to contain my frustration.
“Everything’s set for the bonfire and students should be here within the hour,” he replies, casually crossing his arms over his chest as he leans on the frame. I know there’s so much more he wants to say, but Zander has always been a man of few words.
He’s waiting.
Watching.
He always watches.
Dad started the bonfire when he attended Pointebreak, and I brought it back at the house instead of a random part of the woods. That’s how I became friends with Wesley and Zander. I needed help, and they were willing. It didn’t take long to figure out we meshed well together. Our strengths enhance one another. What one person lacks, the others make up for it. It’s why we own this school. We aren’t lacking people who want to get into our good graces. And each of us are working on building an empire together. Fuck everyone else. We’re doing it our own way. My dad is the only one who can appreciate our plans. Wes and Zan’s fathers have already made their opinion of me known and they can get bent as far as I’m concerned.
We hire a crew of ten guys to come and get everything set for tonight, along with playing bar keep and DJ. It’s a good sidegig for them, and we pay well. For security, we hire fourth-year students who want to earn a bit of cash. We vet those guys, but so far it’s worked out well. Pointebreak doesn’t host events, but we sure as hell do. And when you get this many powerful families in one location, shit is bound to go down. A few times a year, Wes, Zan, and I host a party. The bonfire and Halloween, everyone’s invited to. Enemies, or allies, it doesn’t matter. Since there are some classes that include all grades, it’s an easy way to get to know your opponents and hopefully get some helpful information to use as dirt at a later time. The other parties are for each of our birthdays, but that’s by invitation only. I don’t need some asshole with a point to prove to mess with us at our own house during those.
Students don’t talk about the school outside of these walls—there’s an unwritten rule about it. Someone tried once…he’s six feet under. Or maybe they never found his body, I’m not sure. Those who don’t understand would shut Pointebreak down. Because students and alumni are so tight-lipped about what happens here, we don’t take kindly to outsiders.
Riley Whittier is definitely an outsider.
For many students, tonight will significantly impact their future prospects and their ability to achieve their aspirations after graduation. People either fall in with the right crowd and make the right connections, or they’re fucked the rest of their time here. Just ask our fathers.
Alec Azarian, Mikhail Fedorov, and Christos Bastian are the OG bastards at Pointebreak. They changed, molded, and shaped this academy into what it is today. The pamphlet talks about how it was a school for underprivileged students forging for a better life but that’s some major bullshit to sell it to the public. The walls of this house hold a lot of secrets, and so do the academy grounds.
