Beyond nauseous and unable to mask my scowl, I stormed off in the opposite direction, needing to put as much distance between my hands and his throat as possible.
Body trembling, I tried to step around a group of older girls who were blocking the entire corridor as they yapped.
Trying to be calm, I stood in front of them like a dummy waiting for them to move, before giving up on being polite and shoving my way through them.
When you’re walking through hell and all that jazz.
“Uh, excuse me! You can’t just barge your way through us,” one of them called out, catching ahold of my arm when I tried to get past. “Who the hell do you think you are, baby first year?”
“Your worst fucking nightmare if you don’t let go,” I spat, swinging around to glare at the dark-haired girl. “Seriously,” I warned when she didn’t let go of my arm. “You have five seconds to take your hand off me or I’ll cut your fingers off.”
“What a bitch,” one of them muttered, taking a safe step back from me, while the one still holding me seemed to ponder whether I was serious or not.
“Oh, you have no fucking idea how serious I am,” I told her, stepping closer.
“Let it go, Bella. She’s not worth it.”
“Yeah, Bells, let’s just leave.”
“Five, four, three, two, one—”
“In future, ask nicely when you want someone to move out of your way,” the girl they called Bella sneered, while still havingthe good sense to remove her hand before I finished counting. “I’m a fourth year, you know, which makes me your superior around here.”
“In future, don’t block the entire corridor,” I shot back, unwilling to give an inch. “And, bitch, I wouldn’t care if you were Mother Teresa herself.”
“Fieryandbitchy.” She arched a finely plucked brow, looking strangely impressed. “I think I could use a little firecracker like you in our gang.” She turned back to her posse and said, “What do you think, girls?”
The girls around her immediately agreed like a flock of obedient sheep.
“What do you say, little firecracker?” She turned back to smile at me. “Fancy a spot at the big girl’s table?”
“I think you should go to hell,” I deadpanned.
Her eyes narrowed in outrage. “Excuse me?”
“And maybe get a hearing test,” I added before storming off, flipping them the bird when one of the sheep shouted the wordbitchafter me.
I managed to find the first-year locker area without asking for directions, but just before I reached my locker zone, I was hauled inside an emergency exit stairwell by a boy donning Tommen’s number-ten rugby jersey.
“Finally,” my boyfriend growled when the emergency door slammed shut, cloaking us in darkness. “I’ve been waiting here all morning for you.”
Instantly bombarded by a sudden flood of emotion, I lunged for him, needing his touch more than I needed air.
“Hugh,” I breathed, climbing his body like a drainpipe to seal my mouth to his.
With his lips on mine and his hands gripping the fleshy part of my thighs, he walked forward until my back hit the wall. Themove caused the growing ache between my thighs to intensify, and I greedily tightened my arms and legs around him.
“Just so you know, I would gladly kiss you in front of everyone.” His lips moved against mine as he spoke. “This shitty stairwell is for your benefit—should I say the curly-haired demon’s benefit?”
“You know it upsets your sister when she sees us together.”
“I don’t give two shits if seeing us together upsets my sister,” he argued back, lips trailing up my neck. “I care that my sister reacts in a way that upsetsmygirlfriend.” Everything inside of me clenched tight when he called me that. “Anyway, I wanted to wish you luck on your first day before the bus leaves,” he continued to say, while his hips gyrated against mine in a way I was certain could make me unravel. “I have an away game in Clonamore.”
“Skip it,” I begged, shivering when his tongue collided with mine. “Stay here with me instead.”
“I would if I could,” he whispered, kissing me with more love and affection than I’d ever been given from another human being. “But I’m already on Cap’s shitlist for missing preseason conditioning…fuck, Liz!”
“It’s D-day, Hugh.” Smiling against his neck, I continued to trace my tongue over his fluttering pulse. “You smell so good.” Closing my lips around him, I sucked and stroked his flesh with my lips and tongue. “Mm.”
