Page 52 of Tell Me You Like It

I don’t even let her finish that sentence, “Yeah, yeah, his family is rich, and owns this whole town, yadda, yadda. So he just gets to do whatever the hell he wants? No questions asked?”

Skye blows out a breath and leans back. “Yeah, pretty much. I mean, things weren’t as bleak last year, but something happened with Roman’s half-brother, and I think it really fucked with the Sacred Sons. They were all pretty close. But itespeciallyfucked with Roman, as I’m sure you can imagine. Things got really intense after that.”

Roman has a half-brother? He’s never mentioned any siblings—though, to be fair, we haven’t really talked about our personal lives. Still, if whatever happened fucked Roman up so much, then I would have thought it would have come up at some point.

“I didn’t even know he had a brother,” I say.

“Yeah, he’s older by a couple of years, and they have different dads,” she offers.

I blink, my mind whirring with the possibilities of what could have affected Roman so drastically. “What happened? Did the brother die or something?”

Skye looks away and shrugs one shoulder. “I don’t really know. There’s a rumor that he was accused of something he didn’t do, and it really messed up the family.”

I can tell she knows more than what she’s telling me, but I don’t push her. I’d rather hear it from Roman, anyway, because who knows what fantastical story the rumor mill has spun.

I push out a breath, my mind straying to that moment when I walked out of the bathroom to see some random chick sucking Roman’s cock. “There’s something sick about Roman Rush,” I say. “His need for control is pathological.”

“Can you really blame him?” Skye asks. “His family–” she stops herself like she’s rethinking her words, then she continues, “You already know the power they have around here. Growing up like that must have been a trip. Getting everything you want, whenever you want, no questions asked.”

“Yeah, well, he can’t haveme,” I say. “I’m not for fucking sale.”

Skye laughs. “Everyone has a price, Lux. Even you, I’m betting. No shame in that.”

I scoff at her. “Whose side are you on?”

She smiles at me, her blue eyes bright in the darkness. “I’m on your side, of course. Roman and his friends are fucking assholes, and they deserve a healthy dose of Karma. But I’m also a realist, and I’ve seen people kowtow them over the years. People who swore they’d hold the BurningCrown accountable.” She shrugs. “So, I don’t know, I guess I’m jaded.”

“I don’t want to hold them accountable. I just want out of their sphere. It feels like I’m stuck in a riptide. No matter how hard I swim against the current, I’m sucked right back in.”

“Yeah, they have that effect on people.”

I glance down at my hands. “So what do I do?”

Skye presses her lips together and shakes her head. “Yeah, I don’t know. Roman Rush is a force of nature.”

I swallow. “Yeah.”

She must feel bad for me because her smile doesn’t quite reach her eyes. “Go upstairs, get some sleep, and we can figure something out tomorrow. You don’t have to have all the answers tonight.”

I return her smile, but I’m suddenly so tired. Maybe it’s the alcohol finally hitting me. “Yeah, you’re right. Thank you for dropping whatever it was you were doing to come get me.”

“No worries,” she says. “I was out grabbing food anyway.”

We say our goodbyes, and I quickly make my way inside, opting to take the stairs, instead of waiting for the elevator. I stop by Bree's room on the way to my room, which has been my routine lately.

Halfway down the hall, I can see Bree's door open, and her roommate standing outside in the hallway, arms crossed over her chest, as she talks to campus security.

My heart crawls up into my throat as I approach. “What’s going on?”

I just pray, that whatever it is, it doesn’t involve Bree.

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

Roman

I’m fucking losingmy mind.

As soon as Lux is gone, I dismiss the Deb who sucked me off with a wave of my hand. I don’t even know her name, though it’s probably something equally basic. Something completely forgettable.

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