Page 105 of Brutal Game

“You may not mean to be, but before he met you, that boy had one focus, and one focus only—winning. Since he’s met you, he’s been distracted. Sure, he’s playing fine, but I can sense him and his game slipping. Do you really want that for him?”

“You’re so full of it,” I snapped. “Who’s really manipulating whom, here?”

He chuckled. “Smart. You’re a smart girl. With a bright future ahead of you. Please don’t let your brother’s vendetta against me turn me away from that. All I wanted for Asher was for him to get everything he ever wanted. I still want that for him. I hope he gets the help he needs, Aviva. Are you getting it for him?”

I drew myself up to my full height. No wonder why Jack didn’t believe me. Joshua Jensen was a smooth talker, able to twist the story and make you forget what was true in the face of his easy lies. If I didn’t know better, I’d think he was actually concerned about my brother.

“You mean the help he needs because you assaulted him?”

He shook his head. “I wish you hadn’t fallen for his lies, Aviva.”

Joshua Jensen had a tell. There was a smugness in his stare, a smirk on his face. It could be misinterpreted as compassion, but I knew better. This was a man who’d taken advantage of his authority and power to take advantage of the boys who looked up to him. I’d been studying sexual narcissism for my deviant psych project: so often, sexual narcissists didn’t groom, manipulate, or sexually assault their victims because they’d wanted them. They hurt them because theycould.

“Do you believe your own lies,Coach?” I asked. “Have you convinced yourself you’re a good man?”

That was the difference between him and Jack. Jack didn’t pretend to be a good man. He knew who he was, and he accepted it. He’d never denied hurting me, never gaslit me. He was honest, and that honesty meant a lot to me, especially right now when I was faced with such an extreme liar. Jack, for all his flaws, was guided by his emotions, not his greed for power and dominance. He didn’t want to make me feel small, the way the coach made my brother feel small.

It didn’t matter. There would be no Jack and me after this. I ignored the pain of the realization even as it tore through me.

“If you’ll excuse me, I owe Jack a dance.”

Coach Jensen’s hand flew out, gripping my bare upper arm. “Careful, Aviva. At the end of the day, I have his loyalty, you don’t. You won’t want to get on Jack’s bad side.”

Except I already had. And would again, after this.

I pulled away. “You ever touch me again, and I’ll scream my fucking head off.”

He shook his head, that smirk in place. “And they’llthink you’re just like your brother. A liar. And we both know Jackhatesliars.”

I stormed past him, but he called after me, “Tell Asher I say hi,” and the sinister taunt chilled me as I pulled the door open and re-entered the building.

I headed down the hallway to the bathroom, determined to wash the tears and my anger off my face. As I turned the corner, I almost bumped right into Jack.

“Whoa,” he said. “Where are you going in such a rush, little fury?”

I shut my eyes, determined to hide my tears. “Not now, Jack.”

Then he was closer, his hand tilting my chin up. “Have you been crying?”

I wrenched away from him. “No.”

“Aviva, baby, look at me.” He lowered his voice, stroking my face. “Tell me what’s going on. Tell me what’s wrong, and I’ll fix it.”

Willing away my tears with a deep breath, I opened my eyes and looked at him, really looked at him. Hoped he saw me.

“You can’t fix it, Jack, if you refuse to believe me.”

He inhaled. “This? I believe that you believe it. But it’s not true, Aviva. Did you hear my speech at all?”

I swallowed down more tears. “Every word.”

“Then you should understand how important he is to me.”

“I do,” I said to him. “I understand it, and I know it’s hard to let that go, but Jack, if you care about me at all?—”

“I do.”

I do.

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