Page 165 of Ruthless Court
“Don’t answer tonight.”
Lila nods. “Agreed. Make him sweat.”
“That isn’t why,” Noor says. “She needs to decide whether she wants to enter his world.”
I glance around our room.
Books stacked on the windowsill.
Postcards above Noor’s desk.
Lila’s mystery novel open facedown on her pillow.
The radiator clanking inside the wall.
This is my world.
Quiet, imperfect, mine.
Kane’s world is lights, cameras, bodies packed into stands, and thousands of people waiting to turn one look into a story.
I fought hard to leave that behind.
Then he kissed me, and for several dangerous seconds, it felt like being seen instead of dragged backward.
My phone vibrates once more.
I flip it over.
Kane: Bring the Twizzlers. They seem to improve your personality.
A laugh escapes me before I can stop it.
Lila points.
“That face. You’re done.”
“I am not done.”
Noor gives me a sympathetic look.
“You’re in trouble.”
I stare at Kane’s messages.
The tickets.
The invitation.
The fact that he knew exactly what would make me hesitate and asked anyway.
“No,” I say quietly.
Then I type:
Me: I’ll consider it.
His answer appears almost immediately.
