BAD WICKED TWISTED: A Briarcrest Academy Box Set (98 page)

“I won’t share you with Blair, even if it is pretend.” I inhaled a sharp breath. “I’ve been running from relationships for two years, Sebastian, and I’m ready to stop. I didn’t even realize it until now but—I want something more. I’m ready.”

He stiffened and took a step back from me. “Don’t make me choose between you and her, because she’s my career.”

“You don’t need her to make it big, Sebastian. Make other movies.”

“This one will make me a star.” He paced around the room. “My brother gave up his music for me. He quit his band and raised me, and I—I want to make him proud, V. I don’t expect you to get it. Apparently, you’re an heiress.”

I threw up my hands. “You live in the Hollywood Hills. Isn’t that making it?”

“I want more, V. I always have. Maybe it’s because I started with nothing.” He rubbed a hand through his hair, straightening it where I’d mussed it.

“Are you sleeping with her?”

He crossed his arms. “This feels like an interrogation. You don’t own me, V.”

He didn’t answer me. Which meant
yes
.

I wiped at my lips. Trying to scrub him off me.

His chest heaved, an uncertain expression on his face. “Look, I don’t want to fight with you. I just want to have fun.”

He wanted to get laid.

I gave him nothing but silence as I buttoned my dress.

He sighed. “I’m trying to give you honesty here.”

“Well, it hurts,” I whispered.

A mask fell over his face, distance building in his eyes as he stared at me. Regret and perhaps even sadness flashed over his face. “Shit. I never want to be part of your pain, V.”

More knocks. More whining. This time I twirled around and opened the door.

Spider bounded in with Mila and Blair right behind him.

“Cover your eyes, girls, they’re naked,” he exclaimed and then laughed at our expressions. “What’s up with the weird faces? Wait, were you two shagging? For reals?”

“No,” we both snapped.

Sebastian slipped on his jacket and nodded his head toward the door. All businesslike. “What did we miss out there?”

Spider smirked. “Ah. You missed dessert and Blair’s scintillating conversation; Harry had to leave, it’s past his old-man bedtime; and most everyone in the room took pics of you carrying V around like some kind of modern day Rhett Butler. I predict a full-color spread in the
Hollywood Insider
tomorrow.”

Sebastian groaned.

“You and I had a deal, and you’re ruining it with this girl,” Blair bit out. “No one crosses me, Sebastian.”

“Chill out with the drama. I had a panic attack, and he was helping me,” I said to her. “That was it.”

She gaped at me like I was an idiot. “Reporters spin what they want, and him leaving me for some upstart is huge. Hello, Brad and Jennifer? Demi and Ashton?”

Please
. No way was she that big.

Spider swatted her on the butt. “Come on, Blondie, I’m sure there will be more pic opportunities for you and Sebastian later. Let’s get you to the club where you can shake that arse.”

She sent Spider a cutting look and took Sebastian’s arm. “You ready? I’m sick of this place and your friends.”

Sebastian exhaled heavily, his eyes on me. Of course, he’d chosen her—we barely knew each other.

He looked at Mila. “You mind making sure V gets home?”

“I drove here. I can drive home,” I snapped.

He tried to argue, but I ignored him until he gave up.

They walked out the door. Beautiful stars going out to follow their dreams.

Once, I’d been a star, too, with my music, but I’d allowed the darkness to swallow me up.

Phil swept into the room and tossed my violin case at my feet. “You’re fired,” he snarled and showed me the door.

I gasped and ran to the case and opened it, running my hands over the strings, checking for injury. I let out a sigh. Thankfully, everything seemed fine.

My heart was another story.

“I’d helped my brother Leo find his one true love, but I’d never told a girl I loved her. Not even Emma.”

—Sebastian Tate

THAT NIGHT I arrived home from the club around two. Grouchy and tired, all I wanted was to crash in my bed. But as soon as I walked in the door, I got energized and put Monster on her leash and headed out for a walk.

I was going to V’s to check on her. That was all. No kissing. No messing around.

Spider claimed I was
off my trolley
when it came to her, and maybe he was right. Sure, I’d had plenty of pretty girls in my life, but this morning when she shared that she’d lost her parents, my gut recognized there was more than just lust between us. Something deeper connected us, a natural instinct.

I came to a halt at the bottom of her drive. Judging by her dark house, she was already asleep. Disappointed, I paced around on the street, debating if I should wake her. I fingered my phone. I could call her. But what if she was still angry? What if she never played for me again? What is she was still upset from Harry? I wanted to see her; I didn’t want to see her. It was fucking ridiculous.

As if Monster knew my thoughts, she tugged me up V’s drive. I came to a halt at the big front door and stood there, shifting from one foot to the other.

Just then an overhead light flicked on.
Shit
.

Without thinking too hard about it, I knocked on the door gently. More than likely, the light was from a motion sensor and she was in bed.

I got nothing but silence.

Didn’t I deserve it?
I’d gone too far with her at the restaurant. Again.

A light in one of the front rooms clicked on.
She was up
.

I knocked harder this time. “V, it’s Sebastian. I just wanna talk,” I said, resting my hand against the door.

That was a lie. I wanted to do way more than that. I wanted her under me, calling my name while I pounded into her. I wanted her straddling me, riding me—I sucked in a sharp breath.

I pressed my forehead against the door. “I know you’re in there. Your lights are on.”

Soft footsteps approached the door. “Go away, Sebastian. It—it’s late and you shouldn’t be here,” she said, and I heard the hurt there, in the halting way the words came out.

I stroked my hand across the door. “Let me see you at least before I go.”

Nothing.

“Please.”

“Where’s Blair?” she asked.

“She went home.” She’d been trashed and after a lot of coaxing from me, I’d gotten her in a limo and dropped her off. She lived a few streets over so it wasn’t uncommon for us to ride together to events where we wanted to be seen together.

“Have you slept with her?”

I closed my eyes and swore under my breath. “One time, before I even moved to LA. It was a hook-up, plain and simple. I haven’t touched her since.” I paused. “It’s crazy, but I haven’t been with anyone since I saw you play your violin.”

Silence on the other side.

“Look,” I sighed. “I’ve been alone for a long time, and a girlfriend isn’t part of my vocabulary, and if you don’t want to have a casual relationship with me, I get that, you’re at a different place than me. But for whatever it’s worth, I’m glad I was there when you had your panic attack, so I could be the one to take care of you—shit, I don’t know what all that even means—just let me see your face.” I’d had more to drink than I realized. I was rambling all over the place.

She opened the door, and I sucked in a breath at how pretty she looked with her long black hair spilling around her shoulders. Some of it was in her face, and I reached out and tucked it behind her ear.

“Hey, Violin Girl.”

“Hey, Blond Guy.”

“You look better.” I fiddled with my jacket, feeling shy for one of the few times in my life. “I was worried about you.”

She stood there, fidgeting in her black dress.

“I didn’t wake you?” I asked.

“No, I was up having some tea.” Her eyes darted back over her shoulder.

I nodded. “I know this is kinda spur of the moment, but let’s get out of town this weekend. Just friends. Spider and Mila, too. We can wear sunglasses and pretend to be tourists, maybe drive to Napa—”

“I can’t go anywhere this weekend. Something unexpected has come up.”

Disappointment ran over me, but I nodded. I shouldn’t have suggested it anyway. “Okay.”

We stood there uncomfortably and I touched her forehead. “You’ve got this little frown right there, and it’s killing me to think you’re mad at me. Can we move forward, forget about Blair?”

She let out a weighty sigh and flicked a glance over her shoulder.
Again.
“Can we talk tomorrow? I’m busy right now.”

At two in the morning?

My gut twisted. “Why? Is someone here?” I cocked my head. Listening.

“No,” she said, but her eyes avoided mine.

“No? You’re acting weird. You sure you’re good? Don’t need me to check any closets or look under your bed?” I eyed her foyer but didn’t notice anything out of the ordinary.

Rustling came from inside her house, and I snapped, adrenaline driving me as I brushed past her. She shoved back at me, and I stumbled backwards, my hand catching on a porch post.

Her chest rose rapidly. “I don’t like this side of you, Sebastian. Now,
please leave
.” Two spots of color blazed on her cheeks.

Fury swarmed in me like angry wasps. Who was she protecting?

“Is Spider in there?” I bit out. He’d suddenly up and left the nightclub we’d been at. I’d tried to call and text him, but he’d never answered. Neither had Mila.

She lifted her chin. “Why? I don’t own you and you don’t own me. Isn’t that right?”

Then I saw it …

A set of leather luggage and a pair of men’s loafers parked next to a pair of girly heels and a purse.

I paced around her porch, fists clenched. “Who’s in there with you, V?”

Just then an auburn-haired dude waltzed up behind her and settled his hands on her shoulders, all easy like. But his gaze was hard as nails as he raked over me and obviously found me lacking if the curl of his lip was anything to go by.

“Violet?” He said her name gently, his voice sandpaper on my brain. His hands smoothed down her arms to lean into her, his nose right in her neck. “You said to hang back, but I’m not so sure, sweetheart.” His lips snarled as he considered me. “Your friend giving you trouble?”

I wanted to give
him
trouble. I shoved a hand through my hair, pulling on it at the end, trying to ground myself.

She shook her head, her eyes still on my face. “No, he’s fine.”

He didn’t seem convinced as he eyed me with disdain. I sized him up, too. Wearing dress slacks and a cream-colored fisherman’s sweater, he looked like a Ralph Lauren ad. Everything I wasn’t. I flexed my biceps, itching to reach in, pluck him out of the house and put my fist in his face.

And it
was
insane. Because she wasn’t my girlfriend, yet here I was, losing my shit.

“Geoff?” I bit out.

He nodded, brown eyes burning with a banked anger. “And you must be the infamous rock star next door. I’ve heard about you.” He smirked and glanced at V. She looked back at him, and it was a look I wasn’t part of. It said
I know you.

“Look at
me
, V,” I said and she raised her eyes to mine.

“Are you—are you with him?” I asked, part of my brain not wanting to process what was obvious.

She didn’t speak.

“It’s not a hard question,” I muttered.

Geoff crossed his arms. “Explain it to him, Violet,” he said, leaning against the jamb of the door.

She licked her lips. “We’re friends,” she said.

“Who used to be lovers,” Geoff said slyly. “In fact, at one point, she was almost my
wife
.”

Coldness hit me at my core, and I had to suck in some air.
She’d been engaged to this uptight asshole?

“You went from him to me?” I shook my head and barked out a laugh. “Perfect, just perfect. It’s like my ex all over again.”

V opened her mouth and then closed it, her eyes shifting from me to him. She settled on him. “Geoff, will you give me a minute?”

“Sure. I’ll go find us a movie while you take care of
this
.” He sent me a smirk. “Call out if you need help.” He walked back into her house.