Page 29 of Soul of a Psycho

“Mr. Haven was transferred to Mrs. Fawn’s Social Studies slot,” he answers curtly.

“Oh.” My frown turns genuine. “Okay.”

I make my way to the door, wondering in a narcissistic way if Cade’s transfer has anything to do with me, when Mr. Rykes calls my name, stopping me.

“Yes?” I turn back around, even though I’ve lost my sweet disposition.

“I wouldn’t worry yourself with Mr. Haven’s studies. A lost cause is a lost cause.”

Chapter Twenty-One

Cade

The way Sky flits from one class to the next, the way she pulls open doors, even the way she blinks, tells me our kiss did nothing to her, and that I’ve made the right decision. But just because I got my classes changed to stay away from her, doesn’t mean I can’t watch her.

I pull my fingers from the shelf of books, and a residue of dust coats the tips. Apparently, Ms. Lynn, the librarian, can’t reach to dust up this high. Which makes sense, seeing as how I’m six-foot-one to her five-foot. Sometimes my height has its perks, other times it does not. Like now. It’s exceptionally hard to stalk Sky when even crouching could give me away. But I’m making it work.

I slink down to the end of the stack and peer around the corner. She’s currently at a low lit table with a few books in front of her. I wouldn’t have pegged her as studious, but then again, I pegged her as a vanilla ice cream girl, and instead she went with rocky road. She’s defying all my assumptions, and it only makes my need to watch her more imposing. I should be doing my own course work, or adding to my crate, but instead I’m tethered to her as if I’m wearing a leash. It’s a fucking affliction I can’t shake.

When I’m not following her, I’m thinking about her. About those pouty lips that tasted like the promised land and howmy ill-omened essence felt light for the first time. I can’t sleep, resorting to almost depleting my sleeping pills. But even when sleep finally finds me, I dream of her, of watching her. I’m in her room as she breathes softly, her delicate chest rising and falling while I stand in the shadows and admire her. I wake up so hard it hurts, and I have no choice but to grip myself until the ache subsides.

I suddenly clench my jaw. She’s gathering her hair, snapping a hair tie around those golden locks. It’s bad enough that she just exists, but when she moves her hair,jesus,I want to fall to my knees.

A goddess.

A false goddess.

A false goddess that was sent to undo me.

I recoil behind the shelf and lean back against the books. This is torture. I can’t look any longer. She’s killing me. It’s taking every ounce of restraint I have to not go over there, wrap her hair around my fist, yank her head back, and put my tongue in her mouth.

But that would be a mistake.

I have plans that an angel can’t come with me through. And I refuse to be derailed by enlightenment.

I should have never kissed her.

How many times are we taught to never do drugs, that justonetime can get you hooked? I should have known better. Maybe I don’t even deserve Valedictorian.

“Hey, Cade.”

I whip my head and come face to face with green eyes. They run down me in a way that makes my skin want to shrivel up.

“Doing a little—” Britney stops, her gaze frozen below my belt.

God, damn it. I might be a littlefirm,and pressing against the seam of my pants. Fucking Sky.

“Wow, you really are a pervert.” She smiles in that evil way of hers, like she was taught by the spawn of satan on how to make a smile drip with disdain.

Little does she know she’s fucking with someone much more sinister.

I shoot out a hand and grab her arm, wrenching her three stacks over before she draws anymore attention. She struggles, but I dig my fingers into the soft of her flesh, daring her to make me touch her anymore than I have to. I won’t be so gentle if I have to subdue her.

“Oh, my God. What is wrong with you?” she shrieks.

Everything.

When I let her go—which isn’t fast enough in my opinion—she rubs her arm and narrows her eyes at me, those green beads making me sick. She’s one ofthem—a target and not collateral. One of the X’d out faces in last year’s yearbook. One of the main people who spread my pictures.

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