Page 68 of King

My sister and I glance at each other as Vincent makes his way back down the hall. She smiles when I make a face as I grab my backpack before heading down the stairs.

Damien is waiting at the bottom of the staircase, Nancy and Eric by his side. He’s making Nancy giggle but Eric looks at him with suspicion in his eyes.

“What are you doing?” I ask.

“You have a date with Damien King!” Nancy squeals. “Why didn’t you say so?”

Is that what he told them? Is this a date?

“I thought we shouldn’t hide our plans.” Damien lends out a hand, a dapper smile on his face. “Shall we?” I roll my eyes and take it, a spark flowing through my skin. Damien smiles, “You look amazing. Good enough to eat.”

Who is this guy?

“Have her back by midnight,” Eric says. “No later.”

Damien smirks, eyeing me in my dress. “Something like that.” He leads me out of the house and into his Lambo. There’s a bottle of bourbon in my seat when he opens the door. I pick it up to sit down and when he gets in on the other side, he smirks, “Figure you prefer scotch to sunflowers.”

He’s right. I’m not a bouquet-getting kind of girl at all. And I’m going to need this with where we're headed. We take off through the gate and I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t loving the roar of his engine as we cruise through the streets.

Is this what dating Damien King is like? From a beast into a beautiful prince? Charming and chivalrous? It seems way too good to be true. And I know better. This isn’t a date. The next thing that comes out of his mouth confirms that.

“Isaac deals for favours, not money.” He keeps his eyes on the road. “MDMA for an A in Economics. World-class blow for a world-class blowie.” He puts his tongue to the side of his cheek pushing out the skin until it looks like a cock.

I grimace. “Isaac deals? Is that what you want me to do?”

“I’ll let Isaac fill you in on the rest.” He turns down a road and a familiar feeling comes to my chest. I’m not sure if it’s fear, regret or both but I’m not too thrilled about picking up where I left off on my drug-dealing career. Damien notices my apprehension. “It’s not that shit you find in The Grove. Isaac is clean.”

“Did you tell him about —”

“No.”

“I don’t know, Damien.”

“The first step to power is money. And I’m willing to get you that, and so much more. All you have to do is trust me."

A snort comes from my nose, "Yeah, okay." As if anyone in this town can trust Damien King.

"I mean it." His hand comes to my lap, pulling at the fabric of the dress he bought. "You can trust me."

He glances over and the look in his eye almost has me. "We'll see."

Twenty

When we arrive at Isaac’s, it takes me a minute to digest the property.

Damien’s place is much more grandiose but this house looks like a piece of art from a design magazine. It’s modern. Stone and wood with mismatched roofs. A bridge leads to the front door with a sleek koi pond on each side, some students leaning and smoking against it.

Big, square windows reveal glimpses of what’s in store. The party looks to be in full swing and once inside, it’s clear Isaac didn't take any shortcuts. Bubbles and fog greet us, and there’s even a DJ playing the hottest electro from the second-floor balcony. He overlooks the foyer attached to the ginormous living area, fist-pumping to the beat.

Damien takes my backpack, his arm coming to the small of my back. Most eyes turn to him as he leads me through the room. He doesn’t look much different in his usual black attire but I realize our leather jackets almost match. Lea's eyes land on us, her jaw opening like a garage door. She's sitting on a boxy yellow sofa in a gold fringe dress, a golden headband to match her nails.

Georgina's beside her in a red crop top and a skirt that looks more like a tutu. I’m surprised to see Lea after what happened at school. Especially at a party. But the glossiness in her eyes and the champagne bottle in her hand tells me exactly what she’s doing here.

Damien leads me to a group of guys, each in their expensive versions of sweaters and jeans. One gives Damien his glass with amber liquid which he passes to me. It feels like I’m getting indoctrinated into the ERA Supreme life.

That’s probably why Lea’s approaching us like a raging bull, bottle in her hand. Georgina tries to hold her back but Lea breaks loose. "What are you doing here?” she demands, the tip of the champagne bottle in my face.

“Damien invited me.”

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