Page 100 of Pure Vengeance

I look at him in disbelief. “I’m fucking gay. How can she not tell that?”

“It’s not obvious. I didn’t know until... we kissed.” It’s a good point. I wear a straight mask very well.

“I don’t know what I’m going to do.”

“You’re going to leave it to me to sort out. Don’t go home yet, just go back to the frat house and hide out there away from the media.” Adrian gets up. “I will sort out the rest.”

I look at him skeptically. “Why would you do that?”

“Because I care about you,” he says. “I meant what I said. I’ll sort everything out. I’ll deal with the media. You don’t need to worry.”

“If you fuck this up any more...” I say.

“You can kill me.” He cuts me off. “You can do whatever you like to me. But I promise, by midday today, they’ll have forgotten about you.”

I haven’t seen this level of confidence in a long time in Adrian, and it instills a belief in him I didn’t think I had. I nod and move to leave. “Adrian, I don’t want anyone to know I’m gay.”

“They won’t. Don’t worry.” He gets up. “Go out back. I’ll distract the media in front.”

We both go downstairs, ignoring his president who protests my being there.

Adrian walks out the front, and I can hear him promising an exclusive to the reporter while I walk out back. I don’t even care if the frat brothers jump me at this point. I just need to get out and away. They don’t, though. They seem to sense something bigger is afoot. I sneak down two houses before I get back on the road and hightail it to my frat house.

There’s a broadcaster setting up outside. I go around back, avoiding them. When I get inside, all my frat brothers are downstairs. I look around and hold my hands up. “I wasn’t blackmailing them into having sex with me, okay?”

Richard looks at me. “You swear it?”

“I swear it,” I say. “On my life.”

Richard nods. “Then we’ll protect you. This is some bullshit your brother pulled...”

“It wasn’t him,” I say quickly. “It was the girl... she seems to have a bee in her bonnet.”

“If you weren’t blackmailing them for sex, what were you doing?” Richard asks.

“It’s complicated,” I say calmly. “But I promise this will be sorted out by midday today. Adrian is on it.”

“You think it’s wise to trust him?” Richard asks. “He could make it worse.”

“I trust him. This time. I know we’ve got our differences, and we’re enemies, but if anyone knows what’s at stake here, it’s him.”

At least, I hope he knows what’s at stake, and I pray he knows what the fuck he’s doing. He won’t be able to charm this away with his good looks.

CHAPTER TWELVE

Adrian

I stand outside the fraternity house and hold my hands up. “I will give you an exclusive story that will blow this one out of the water. Because you’ve got your facts wrong. Abigail is lying.” The reporter holds her phone to me so she can record me. “It wasn’t Noah who did this, it was me. I just used Noah as a scapegoat.”

“Are you saying the allegations are actually about you?” she asks.

“Yes, I am. I paid the girls good money as well.”

“Girls, as in plural?” she asks. “Can you name a few of the others?”

“I won’t, I want to protect their identities. But I can tell you now that Abigail is a huge cokehead, so she has her wires crossed,” I say calmly. “But as much as I wanted to use Noah as a scapegoat, I can’t bring myself to do it. My conscience won’t let me.”

“Why did you pay the girls?” she asks. “What are you hiding?”

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