Page 41 of Theirs to Rule

Bianca nodded, her expression serious. "Alright. Let's head back to my dorm. We'll talk more about what I know so far, which isn't much more than I've already told you. But maybe we can figure this out together."

Chapter 19

Camille

Iwas knee-deep in Halloween decorations, the chateau living room resembling a cross between a haunted house and a party supply store gone rogue, when my phone pinged with a text. It was from Drew Nelson, my math tutor. He'd texted me before, and I'd been meaning to get back to him, but I'd forgotten. I responded and we threw out some dates we could meet.

Alright, looks like we're set for a while,he texted.

Thanks. Are you good?

Not really. Larry and I broke up.

I winced. Drew was gay and he’d told me his boyfriend had been growing impatient that Drew wasn't ready to acknowledge their relationship in public.

I’m sorry.

It’s my own fault. But I’m not giving up.

I figured that meant he was trying to gather the courage to come out, but I couldn’t help but think Larry didn’t deserve Drew if he was going to force the issue. Then again, there weretwo sides to every relationship, and Larry couldn’t help what he needed.

God, relationships were messy. Especially when there were more thantwosides.

I sighed and got back to work on the decorations, only to pause twenty minutes later when I heard a knock on the door. I got up to answer. It was Dante. The sight of him, framed against the doorway, was so unexpected it took me a moment to register his presence.

I was about to ask him why he was suddenly gracing me with his presence, but my words quickly faded when I got a good look at him. Dante had been beaten, his face marked with fading bruises. I instantly thought back to when he’d intervened at Devil’s Engine, stepping in when a big biker had called me a cunt and was about to slap me. Dante had demolished the guy—then he’d had the shit beaten out of him by guys he called friends.

"What happened?"

"Just a minor disagreement," he said, but the tightness in his voice told me it was anything but. "Can I come in?"

"Of course." I led him to the couch, and he sat down. I kneeled beside him, my fingers gently tracing the contours of his face, assessing the damage. He winced but didn’t pull away from me.

"This was more than a disagreement. You really need to stop getting into fights,” I murmured. I hated seeing him like this. As if I hadn’t seen the men in my life go through enough as it was...

“That’s like telling a cat not to meow,” he said. “It’s in my nature.”

"Dante, I know you," I reminded him. "You’re a lethal fighter but not just for kicks, which means something serious happened. What?”

His eyes darkened for a moment. "There are things you don’t know about me, Peaches."

“Yeah, no kidding. Seems I only like guys hell-bent on keeping secrets from me.”

He scowled. “Don’t compare me to Kage. I would never hide another woman from you.”

“Really?” I said, thinking of the mysterious woman named Jane who’d called him more than once now. “Doesn’t matter. You’re hidingsomething.”

He remained stone-faced.

I shook my head. “Whatever. But I’m sure it’s not a great look for a faculty member to rock up to school with bruises all the time.”

Dante shrugged. “I’m a counselor. I’m supposed to be relatable to the kids.”

“Is that what I am to you? A kid?”

“You know you’re so much more than that.”

Now it was me who didn’t reply.

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