Page 98 of Broken Princess

“Paris in Spring? Okay, that sounds cool. It’ll only take me a minute to book a flight. What time do we leave?”

“Notwe, Logan.Me. I’m going alone.”

He sits on the bed so fast, you’d think I hit him in the solar plexus or kneed him in the nuts. Even the one time I did, he didn’t sink down as fast as he does now.

“Baby, what’s going on?”

“What’s going on,is, I don’t want to spend a week with your friends.”

“Fine. Their asses aren’t invited to Paris. I wouldn’t drag them along with us, anyway.”

“I don’t want you there, either.”

His gaze darkens. I take a deep breathe preparing for the argument I know we’re about to have.

“This was supposed to be our time together, Jordy. A chance to get away from school, and the stress in our lives. You told me you were looking forward to spending spring break with me, and I made plans based on that. Now you’re telling me you’re going out of the country for two weeks. When were you gonna tell me all the plans I’ve been making were a waste of time?”

It wasn’t a waste and a part of me was excited he was going all out for us. If I say that, he’ll want to know what happened to change my mind, then bulldoze his way through the conversation to get me to agree to whatever he wants. I can’t tell him the real reason I’m leaving, so I have to let him think I’m just being a flake.

“I thought I did, but I changed my mind, okay? And now that you’re ambushing me with this news about everybody staying at the beach house, I’m glad I did. I don’t wanna spend a week crammed in a house, close to the water, with the very people who despise me. I don’t wanna hurt your feelings, but my feelings are important here too.”

“You could’ve just told me.”

“I’m telling you now. Jesus, Logan. What do you want from me?”

“Everything!!”

That shuts me right up. That phrase could mean so many things. “Everything like in bed? Because we already do a lot of kinky shit.”

“Everything means, just what it sounds like, Jordy. The only one of us having trouble accepting what’s going on here is you. You don’t want my friends around. Fine. Fuck them. I’ll go with you to Paris, and we can still have fun, because that’s the whole point. I want to be with my girlfriend.That’s you.You’re all I care about.”

This is the most real he’s ever been and my carefully planned speech is going to shit. I didn’t expect him to invite himself along for the trip. I need him to back off and the only way to do that is by putting him in defensive mode. He wants me, yes. But he wants his throne and power even more.

“Don’t you get it, Logan? It doesn’t matter if people know we’re dating, and they don’t care how many events you take me to. Your friends are always going to look at me like I’m an outsider. Hell, after everything that happened, they probably think I’m only interested in you because of your money.”

“No one thinks that.”

“Really? So Bella has never mentioned my newfound financial freedom?” He can’t say she hasn’t because I overheard them talking about it a few days ago.

“I know the truth, and that’s all that matters to me.”

“The truth is nothing. Every day is an uphill battle to earn their respect. After what all of you did to me, I think they’re the ones who should be trying to earnmyrespect.” Throwing more clothes into my suitcase, I say, “The point is, you’ll never understand what it’s like for me. You were born here, and into a certain way of life. Your family obligations and friends have this soul deep hold on you. Look at what you did with our spring plans. You invited them to stay with us. Howromantic.”

“I just thought we could all spend time together and move past our issues.”

“Really? Cause it sounds to me like you don’t know how to function without an audience. You like having all those people around kissing your ass. You’ll never give up that security, thatpower,and bringing me along forcing them to play nice, is just a way for you to wield it. Logan, I’ve seen how the quest for more corrupts. It’s how step-dummy wound up in jail. Wanting more influence, power, andmoney.”

“Jordy.”

I shrug him off when he puts a hand on my shoulder. “Logan, things are always so intense with us, and I just need space, okay? My mom paid for this trip because she sees how lost I’ve been with my painting. I’ll be home for two days, then I’m in Paris for a week, and then it’s on to Italy for the last part of spring break. I’m gonna read, and paint and just soak up some culture.”

“You’re saying you need space from me, and hanging out with my friends is a deal breaker for you. So what happens when you come back? What happens to us? Because I’m sure Paris and Italy won’t magically make you all best friends.”

“I don’t know. But I can’t keep going on like this. One minute I’m confident we’re on solid footing, the next I’m walking minefields waiting for Bella to jump out and tell me this was just another elaborate rouse.”

If she does, the jokes on her, because I’m in this with my eyes wide open. I only mention it because I need him to believe this is a trip of self-discovery, instead of what it really is. Me following up on my research project.

I found the city and neighbor Mr. Hernandez told me about. He was right about the family moving away. I was certain it wasn’t a coincidence that Shaw is the same name as the person Kenneth Ruttledge had a land dispute with, so I kept digging.

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