Page 96 of Obsession

“Really?” I drawl, my anger curling around me. “You don’t know shit about what I’ve got.”

The next step he takes puts him directly in my face and he looks down at me, his eyes glinting, his cheese puff breath hot on my face.

“I know you still have feelings for me. If you didn’t, you wouldn’t have done all the things you have for me.” He grins.

My eyes tighten in fury as I fully understand what he’s insinuating.

“You son of a bitch.”

I thrust my hands at his chest, and he grabs them, slamming me into the locker. All the breath leaves my body at his rough handling of me, and I feel enraged, more than scared.

“Be grateful I’m giving you another chance.” He spits defiantly. “Considering the reputation you have at this place, you don’t have much chance of ever landing a plus one. Nobody wants to date a slut.”

I push at him again with all the force I can muster.

“You mean the false reputation that I got because of you and Ashley? You have some fucking balls coming to me and asking me for a date just because you want to attend the exhibition. In fact, you have some nerve talking to me at all.”

“Nobody forced you to get down on your knees in front of me.” He slams his hand on the locker right next to my head, making me flinch. “You’re lucky that wasn’t a full-blown sex tape. Everyone would have seen that birthmark on your ass.”

Even as my body starts to shake in a combination of anger and fear, I refuse to give him the satisfaction. “You must be on crack if you think you can just stroll up to me and get me to take you to that exhibition. Why don’t you spend the evening with Ashley or buy your way into the event like you always do?”

Ricky’s eyes turn into slits once he realizes that he’s not going to get his way, and his voice lowers a decibel. “You don’t know how easy it would be for me to ruin your life, Megan. You don’t understand the kinds of connections I have. I still have the video. All I have to do is edit it and circulate it online. In a matter of hours, your reputation, your scholarship, this exhibition, and anything else that matters to you will disappear.”

My face pales at his threat. I’ve never seen Ricky so venomous.

“So, you had better do what I’m fucking saying or?—“

“Or what?” Comes a dark, familiar voice I wasn’t expecting.

My eyes widen in recognition just as Ricky is tossed a few feet away from me with such casual ease that I’m left staring blankly at the man in front of me.

“Mr. Middleton?”

My boss steps in front of me, studying my shocked expression. As always, his is like a cold, impregnable fortress.

But his eyes.

His eyes are blazing hot.

I’ve never seen him look crueler.

“Are you hurt?” he asks, his hand reaching out to caress my cheek, and I shake my head, feeling both frightened and so completely safe.

“Then what’s my name?”

“Hunter,” I answer softly, and he seems pleased by my response.

Ricky is groaning on the floor as he tries to stand up, and suddenly, Hunter’s attention goes toward him. It’s as if I’m no longer there.

“Why don’t you repeat what you just said to her?” Hunter asks, using a voice he typically reserves for people he’s angry with.

Ricky stumbles to his feet, and his face has a twisted expression on it. He glares at my protector.

“What the fuck is your problem, dude?”

Hunter tucks his hands in his pockets, and I can’t see his expression because his back is towards me.

“What exactly do you think a boy like you can do to Megan?”

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