Page 21 of When You Stayed
She turned around in front of me, forcing her curls to bounce near my chin.
“Then help me put it in a ponytail. I’m not good at it yet, and Mom didn’t have time to do it for me this morning.”
I had no reason not to help her. If I didn’t, then her hair would be in myway and distract me the entire class period. So, I gathered the thick strands into my fist, and when she held out her purple hair tie to me, I wrapped it around her hair and made sure it held. But even as I tried to hold my breath, the smell hit me when she ran her hand down her hair.
Roses.
Royce Quinn smelled like roses in the strangest, sweetest, most infuriating sort of way.
“What the fuck, Ford?” Royce seethed, lifting her chin so it was angled over her shoulder. My chin was at the crown of her head, but my fingers were still tucked inside her pocket, against her ass. For some reason I hadn’t pulled them out yet.
I rasped against her hair. “You can’t be here.”
She tried to step away, but I kept her in place. “Yes, I can. My dad is the president of this club, and I can be anywhere I want. I told you I was going to show up, and you responded by telling me to basically go for it.”
That’s right, she had warned me she’d be around more, but I didn’t think she was being serious.
“Unfortunately, due to yet another one of your fucking messes, you can’t be here. It’s actually imperative that you’re not.”
She yanked out of my hold and spun around. Her eyes were wide, cheeks flushed, and her hands…those landed on my chest. Accidently, by the way she glanced down and removed them.
“What the hell does that mean—” she started, but my hand shot out, grabbing hers so that I was pulling her away. The fewer people who saw her here, the better, and if I could get her out of the club before her father noticed, then I might avoid a huge scene.
“Ford, what the fuck?” she snapped as she stumbled behind me. We were outside, in the back, under a full moon and a clear night sky. There were lights strung up from the back patio to the fire pit, illuminating the grass and paved path. Beyond the yard were parked motorcycles, and past that was the abandoned cabin. I continued walking toward the old apartment yard. The fence was in rough shape, but it was still functional.
Once we were behind the gate, I released her and immediatelywanted to go back in and get her a jacket. Her shirt dipped enough that most of her chest was exposed to the cold air.
“If your dad came out and saw you in there, you know exactly what would happen.”
She tucked her arms over her chest. “That was a long time ago. I’m an adult now, he wouldn’t react that way.”
“Really? I’m so tempted to let you test that theory, but unlike you, I do actually care about this club and if people get needlessly hurt because of it.”
I wasn’t present for it, because I would have done something if I was, but I heard about it. She was seventeen, hanging out in the club, and one of the prospects who was hoping to become a member didn’t realize who she was. They groped her, became aggressive, and Killian practically killed him. My dad had stopped him barely in time…a few more punches to the face and the man would have died. It could have had disastrous repercussions that even our paid police couldn’t save him from. Royce was scared enough that I assumed she wouldn’t return, but here she fucking was.
Did she even see how they looked at her?
Did she even care that she might be putting herself in harm’s way again?
“It’s been a while, but—” Her voice was soft, her lips pouty and too plump. I watched her mouth move and pulled myself together.
“You nearly got someone killed the last time you were here.”
Her hand shot out as if to hold an invisible reason for her presence. “I told you I was coming around, you said I could?—”
“I didn’t honestly think you’d be stupid enough to show up!”
“I’m not stupid, Ford. I’m desperate.” Her eyes shuttered as anger seemed to steal her tone and features. A small part of me felt guilty.
That part of me was tucked back behind my heart, buried in a proverbial drawer that I had sealed shut.
“Not my problem, Royce. I honestly don’t give a fuck if you get your dream job. People get passed over for their dreams every single day. You’ll survive. Maybe it’s time you joined the real world and started acting like a grown-up. While we’re at it, let’s have a little chatabout that viral video of you that’s making the club members get all up in a frenzy about the Wolf’s daughter.”
Her face paled, then her brows furrowed as if she were trying to work something out. “What are you talking about?”
Her hesitation nearly gave me pause, but I ignored it. “Did you happen to engage in a video ad for an underwear company?”
“What…yeah, like a year ago, why?”
