Page 97 of Pure Vengeance

“Do you care?” I ask.

“Yes,” he says. “I care. Because you had sex with me, and if you’re sleeping with every fucker on campus, I’ve got a right to know.”

“You say that like we’re going to have sex again. Did you decide you enjoy fucking me?” I ask, taking another deep sip of orange juice.

“Yes.”

I stare at him. “Well, I wasn’t expecting that answer.”

“Listen, I’ve been thinking about this for a while, and I can’t stop thinking about you. I know we’re stepbrothers, but I can’t get you out of my head. I enjoy spending time with you. I enjoy when we have sex. It’s hot, dirty, and fucking sexy.” He blushes crimson. “And I feel like there’s more there than just sex.”

I don’t know what to say, so I sip the orange juice again, then I get up, unsteady. He stands, and I push him back down. “No, you stay there.”

I cross to my desk and sit on the chair. I light a cigarette and swing back and forth. “You’re saying you’ve developed feelings for me?”

“Yes,” he says.

I scoff. “So years of torturing me. Of bullying me. Of playing for favorite with my father. All that is just poof, gone, because you like the sex with me.”

“It’s not just the sex, it’s how you make me feel,” he says.

“It’s an illusion,” I say. “You are very disillusioned as to what I wanted from you. I wanted sex. Nothing more than that, Adrian. I have no feelings for you. And I will not give you more ammo for your little revenge plot you’ve got against me.”

“I didn’t go through with it,” he says earnestly. “You know I could’ve done it at any time.”

I snort. “Or you could be building up to it, gathering more evidence. I’m not going to give you the ammo to use to shoot me down.”

“Noah,” he starts to say.

“Enough.” I cut him off. “Piss off out of here.”

Adrian looks hurt, at least, I believe he pretends to be hurt. He gets up and walks out, pausing at the door, but I swing on my chair and turn my back to him. “Shut the door after you.”

I hear the door shut, and I down the rest of the orange juice before I climb into bed, still fully clothed with shoes on and everything.

I toss and turn most of the night. I know it’s because I’m coming down from the high. I eventually fall asleep in the early hours of the morning, and when I wake up, it’s with a start. My alarm is going off next to my bed. I kill it and wage war with myself. Do I skip class or not? No, I best not.

Maybe I should lay off the coke for a while, too. I was pretty reckless last night with that guy. Whatever his name was. I’m sure he told me, but I didn’t really care. He doesn’t suck dick, so I really couldn’t be bothered.

I drag myself out of bed, grab fresh clothes and go shower. While I’m in there, I let the hot water run over me, clearing my head. I hate the comedown from any drug, but more so with coke. It kills my creativity. It creates a mental block, and now I’m expected to go to an art class and be expressive.

I get dressed and brush my mouth. I feel like I’m going to throw up, but I keep it down. There’s a banging on the door and I groan. “Coming.”

I grab my things and head out. “Jesus, Liam, give a guy a chance.”

“You took forever.” He goes into the bathroom and shuts the door.

I put my dirty clothes in the hamper and throw on my trainers before I grab my portfolio and my bag and head out. When I get outside, I’m disappointed to see Adrian standing there.

“I wanted to make sure you were okay,” he says quietly.

“I’m fine,” I snap. “Shouldn’t you be at class?”

“I don’t have class this morning,” he says. “And if my frat brothers knew I was here, they would kill me. They’re already pissed with me.”

“You defended me, of course they are,” I scoff. “What did you think would happen?”

“So me defending you doesn’t count for anything?” he asks hotly.

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