Page 52 of The Secrets of a Sin

“I have a boyfriend.” I mutter the lie before I can stop it from entering the air between us. At first, she looks as if she doesn’t believe it, but then something flickers, and she scowls.

“Who?” She asks sharply, observing me closely.

Shit.

Gulping, I try to come up with something quick before she realizes I'm bluffing. “You wouldn’t know him. he lives back in my hometown.”

Her eyes squint, and her head lifts slightly. “Yeah? And what’s his name?”

“Andy.” I ramble off. “We’ve been dating for about two years now.”

“Huh.” She takes a step back and away from me, creating a large gap between us now. “Never heard you talk about him before.”

“I just get sad talking about him because I never get to see him.”

Christ, this lie is getting worse and worse by the minute.

Annalise remains silent and skeptical, so taking the time to glance around at something other than her, I clash eyes with something, or I should say someone who causes my whole body to ignite like no other.

Arsen.

Standing in the center of the hallway, he’s peering down at Verity, who appears more than thrilled to be speaking with him as the bright grin on her face shows.

What the hell is he doing here and why is Verity talking to him?

I can immediately feel my blood boil as I watch their interaction closely. I hate that my first reaction is to feel jealous, but something about Verity standing in front of him with red-painted lips and starving eyes doesn’t sit right with me. She was standing too close to him for my liking, and he didn’t seem to mind her attention by the way his lips moved in conversation.

What could they possibly be talking about anyway?

He can barely stand speaking with me, so how is it possible that he’s talking with someone he doesn’t know? I want to stomp over there and press myself up against his side. I want to make it known that he is mine, even if he isn’t. I wanted to be the only girl at St. Catherine’s that can capture his attention. I was selfish in that aspect, but I didn’t care.

As if he can sense someone watching him, his eyes lift, maneuver over to mine, and they instantly darken. Verity could be as good as gone because I have his full attention now. His gaze greedily takes me in as if it’s his first time seeing me, and I swear my heart flutters in my chest. It’s as if we are the only two people in the hallway. We don’t care that our eyes are desperate for one another or that we completely blocked out the people we were speaking to. It’s just us two in this moment, and I gradually let my jealousy sink into the back of my head. The way he’s looking at me right now reassures me.

“Like what you see, huh?” Annalise interrupts angrily, causing my eyes to flick to hers. “Arsen Hale. Doesn’t seem like you’d be his type.”

Taken back, I frown. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Men like him are looking for girls like Verity. Pretty and easy.” She answers, her eyes locked on both of them. “And by their close interaction, it won't be long until she sinks those claws into him as she does with every other guy she meets.”

My nostrils flare without warning, and I can feel every muscle in my body tighten in rage. Even if I still feel Arsen’s piercing stare on me, I know I’d never be able to compete with a girl like Verity. Soon, I’d be irrelevant once again while Verity sneakily slithered her way into the spot I once occupied in Arsen’s treacherous hold. Thinking about how it may happen made my heart ache in the worst possible way, but it was nothing compared to the outrage that consumed me.

“Men are pigs, little mouse.” Annalise scoffs. I peer up from staring at nothing and notice a fury in her eyes that causes my breath to seize. Her once lust-filled gaze was now replaced with burning hatred as her teeth grit sharply in her mouth. “They only desire us because we have something they want to corrupt. And what man doesn’t want a taste of something they haven’t had before? It’s in their nature to chase. To lie and beg until we finally give in. But once we’re old news and are longer fulfilling their disgusting needs, they dispose of us like trash.” She spits, glancing over at Arsen with a hateful gleam in her eyes. “Men never have and will never respect us.” Moving her eyes back to me, she drinks me in before opening her mouth again. “So maybe it’s about time you try something new before that pretty little heart of yours gets ruined.”

She brushes past me, leaving her statement lingering in the air for me to consider. It doesn’t take a genius to understand what she was implying I should do. It is obvious. Drop the ‘fake’ boyfriend and see if you like women. Or more specifically, her.

What I expected to happen, didn’t, and what I least expected to happen, did. I was all worried for the wrong reasons, and now I had bigger issues to deal with. Not only were things going to continue to be awkward between Annalise and me, but now whenever I see her, I’ll always wonder if she’s imagining us together. Or will she use my weakness against me and push and push until I finally break? I had no clue what to think or feel other than the confusion and anger that still lingered after catching Arsen with Verity. Everything in my life was becoming more complicated, and truthfully, it was as thrilling as it was harmful to my recovery. Fixing myself was placed on the back burner and slowly being forgotten as my compulsion grew destructive and perhaps even worse than before.

It’s as if two different parts of myself are fighting over what to do. The virtuous side knew that in order to leave this place, I needed to stay clean. Stay focused. But the malevolent side wanted to indulge. It knew what my body craved and required, even if it was destructive to my health.

And I knew only one was going to win, but which one? Only God knows.

Still standing in the hallway, late as shit to class and only a few feet away from the man who’s burning me alive with his stare, I attempt to escape past Verity and Arsen, but I should’ve known better.

“I need to talk to you.” Arsen quickly snatches my arm just as I’m about to walk past them and halts my fleeing. I keep my cool and act like nothing’s bothering me at all, but the second my eyes connect with Verity’s instead of Arsen, I about lose it.

“Little mouse.” She grins, sashaying her hips as she circles around Arsen and stops beside him. He doesn’t seem to notice her closeness because he’s too busy eyeing me and holding me hostage. “I was keeping your friend here some company while you and Annalise… chatted.” she smirks. “It was a pleasure to meet you, Arsen.” Her palm lands on the arm that’s holding me, and I have to mentally refrain myself from ripping her hand off him.

He doesn’t bother to respond, which puts me somewhat at ease, but my jaw is still tight, and my cheeks flushed. I’m still livid. Before she scurries down the hallway, her stare meets mine, and something strange passes between us as if she knows something, and a wicked chill immediately jets down my spine.

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