Page 72 of The Secrets of a Sin

No one makes a sound as we all stare with wide eyes.

“Starting tomorrow, I will be the new Principal at St. Catherine’s.”

* * *

I still couldn’t believe the news. Even after a full day of school, I was still in utter shock. Not only was Welch fired, but quiet, demure Sister Mary was going to be our new Principal. It wasn't that I thought she would be a bad disciplinarian, I just never could see her as anything other than a teacher. I’m sure most of the girls thought the same, too.

Now at midnight, I wait patiently beside the entrance doors for Arsen to arrive. And this time, I wasn't dreading our encounter or even annoyed with my desire to see him. Because now, I craved his presence more than I ever thought was possible. I desired his rage, his possessiveness over me, and the indisputable courage that he carried within himself. I felt almost incomplete without him near and even weak, as if he owned half of my heart already. It was beyond foolish of me to let someone so clearly erratic and unstable into my life, but I was never known for making the right decisions anyway. In fact, I always made the worst. But something about Arsen made me feel like I made the perfect choice, regardless of how wrong it truly was.

As I stood there waiting, a new sensation tingled throughout my body as the anticipation to see him reached an all-time high. I missed him like crazy, and it has been less than twelve hours since our last encounter.

Was I delusional going from one strong emotion to another in a matter of days? I mean, how could we possibly go from loathing one another to being completely enamored?

It was absurd, even to me, but the answer was as simple as it was irrational. Hatred was just another form of passion. In our case, it was instant. Like a painful papercut, it happened so quickly. We couldn’t avoid it from happening in the first place. Driven by the unwanted lust we had towards one another, we disguised our desires with hurtful words and constant denial. My body may have betrayed me and succumbed to his touch in the beginning, but my mind, soul, and heart knew this was wrong. It could be possibly detrimental to me, but even the worst ideas can turn into something unexpected.

And they had.

Suddenly, a tap on the door startles me, and my gaze focuses on the dark shadow that stands beyond the glass. Thump, thump. My heart has a mind of its own as it batters speedily against my chest. My eyes immediately scale down the length of him, taking in his tall frame and remembering all the sinful acts he committed on my body. Chills shot through me, a tenacious force that vibrated my insides until the only sensation that was left to feel was raw hunger. With a grin, I steadily open the doors, waiting for my dark angel to come to me.

Dressed in a black sweatshirt with the hood covering his head, he appears more playful and ominous as his features are clouded in darkness. I could make out a smile and his pearly white teeth, but everything else was hidden.

“Missed me?” He stalks towards me, pressing his hard chest against mine until I can feel the erratic beats of his heart. My eyes peer up into his, noticing a calmness in them that I’ve never noticed before. Almost like he’s relaxed around me.

“What do you think?” I question while rising onto my toes and circling my hands around his neck. His body instantly melts into mine as I press myself further into him.

“I think I need inside you before I can concentrate on anything else tonight.” He leans down, coating his minty breath over my face until I’m greedily inhaling his scent. I was becoming a distraction for Arsen, a horrible interference in what he should be concentrating on and doing, but I couldn’t deny him. I was as obsessed as I was addicted. An unhealthy combination that provided more disarray on my already unstable mental health, but I feared losing him would be just as harrowing as staying with him.

“Welch was fired this morning.” I announce, causing his brows to lower.

“Why?” He asks, searching my eyes for answers, but I remain collected.

“There was a leaked photo of her sent around the school.”

He grimaces and reaches around my waist to yank me closer to his chest.

“Somethings going on, Arsen.” I sigh while shaking my head. “First Phoebe, then Mr. Rossi, and now Principal Welch? It can’t all be a coincidence.”

He leers down at me, void of any emotions with a straight line across his mouth. “Those girls.” He mutters in a low voice. “Do we know anything about them? Their fucking stories or why they’re here?”

Letting out a breath of air, I nod slowly. “I know what they told me, but who knows if they were actually telling the truth.”

His face immediately contorts into anger as his eyes fill with black clouds. “What do you mean what they told you? Are you friends with them?”

Was I?

I thought I was in the beginning when they weren’t trying to seduce me and be all strange and creepy. But I knew if I admitted that to Arsen, he would only fall further into vengeance and fury, and I was afraid I might never be able to pull him out of.

“I hung out with them a couple of times, but they were only trying to be nice and include me into their group.” I indicate, but he clearly wasn’t going to let this go anytime soon.

“Nice.” He scoffs in a growl. “From now on, stay away from those fucking girls until we know they didn’t have anything to do with Phoebe’s death.”

I couldn’t argue with him there. I didn’t want to bump into any of the three of them at all, but I knew that was highly unlikely, so instead, I tried to appease him. “I will.”

The sudden urge to taste his lips strikes me hard, so rising onto my toes again, I place my mouth onto the bottom of the now overgrown hair on his chin and kiss him softly. There was something awfully primal and sensuous about a man having a beard. He wasn’t anything like the boys who greedily stole my innocence for their gain. He wasn’t even in the same ballpark as those teenage pricks. He was in a league entirely of his own, and I was somehow fortunate enough to catch his eye.

As I drag my lips slowly away from his chin, Arsen takes matters into his own hands and reaches for the back of my thighs. “God, I fucking missed you.” His exasperated groan surprises me as he lifts me into his arms, and my legs circle around his waist. "Who would have thought… A man like me admitting he misses the girl who continually drives him insane, on purpose.” Squeezing the exposed flesh of my thighs, I sigh in contentment, loving the way his hands ignite my body.

“Tell me again how you missed me.” I beg, yanking at the hood that covers his head and revealing his signature messy hair.

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