Page 10 of Burn With Me

Thankfully, I’m saved by the sound of Hel’s chair scraping back against the stones beneath our feet. The sharp noise jerks me out of whatever trance Isaac Icari put me in, and I pivot back to see her and Selene gathering their shit.

Selene gives me an odd look. “We’re heading back to start picking out our costumes for the party,” she says. “You coming?”

“Yeah.” I quickly grab my now-empty cup and move with them to throw it away in the nearby trash.

Almost as if I have to know if he’s still watching me, I casually look back over my shoulder once more as we pass the front of the coffee shop and head back towards the dorms. I pause slightly, though, when I see he’s gone and so are the other two. The only one remaining is the girl—who’s now surrounded by two other girls as she pouts. Her face scrunches up as she appears to be distressingly ranting to them. Guess she got dropped. Poor girl. Then again, maybe she was saved. Who can say?

Something tells me that this won’t be the last time I see him, and for some reason that makes a feeling of dread bloom in my stomach.

“Damn it,” I mutter as I force my legs to hurry to catch up to Hel and Selene, who are making their way down the campus steps.

Whatever Isaac Icari thinks he’s doing looking at me like that—if it’s a challenge or something else—I can’t let it get to me. I’m not a toy for him to play with, and I’m certainly not as easy as my mother was.

5

RORI

Hel, Selene, and I are walking up the front steps of Rozenfeld Dorm when my phone buzzes against my side again. I pause as they reach the doors, but before I can answer it, a familiar voice calls out.

“Rori!” The phone stops buzzing and I turn as Marcus jogs up to me.

“Hey—oomph!” I gasp when he enfolds me in a massive hug and my eyes widen in confusion. We’ve always been close, but he doesn’t do public displays of affection. When he leans down and his jovial voice dips into one of seriousness—I understand what he’s doing.

“We need to talk,” he whispers. “Alone.”

I force a smile onto my face and hug him back quickly. When he releases me, I turn back to Selene and Hel. “Hey, I’ll catch up with you guys later. I’m going to go hang with my brother real quick.”

Selene smiles and waves me off, but Hel seems to catch on, watching me with a curiosity that I know—thankfully—she won’t push on me later. She was right about rich kids and their masks. Even if Selene can’t admit it to herself, I can.

Once the two of them are gone, I turn back to Marcus and frown. “Come on,” he says, grabbing my hand and pulling me after him.

“What’s with the spy treatment?” I ask, not really expecting an answer. And just as predicted, he doesn’t say a word. He keeps utterly silent until we reach the parking lot behind the dorm and I spot his truck a few spaces down in the front row. He releases my arm and pops open the passenger-side door for me.

“Let’s go, kid.”

I roll my eyes. “Not sure if you’ve realized it yet or not,” I say snidely, “but I’m not a kid anymore.”

He leans down as I settle into the seat and drops an arm over the top of the doorway. “You’ll always be a kid to me, brat. Buckle up.”

Douche.But I do as he says after he shuts the door, and watch him as he circles around the front of the vehicle. As soon as he’s in the truck and the engine has started, I attack. “Okay, can you tell me what’s up now?” I demand.

“Needed to get you alone to talk about what happened at the luncheon,” he states.

My lips twist and I frown at him. “Uh, yeah, dumbo, I was fucking there. I know what happened.” Marcus shoots me a look but doesn’t respond immediately. I blow out a breath. “Okay, fine, enlighten me.”

“We’re meeting some friends of mine,” he says instead.

“I thought you wanted me alone to talk about this?” I remind him.

“I do, but Dean’s got more information than I do on this Damien guy, so I want to talk to him, too.”

I lean back into my seat and cross my arms. “And you think he won’t mind you bringing yourkid-sister along for the ride?” I can’t help the bitterness in my tone when I say the word ‘kid.’ That’s all I’ve ever been to him. A child he needs to look after and protect. My nails bite into my forearms as the reminder that I’m the reason he and Mom don’t speak anymore hits me hard in the guilt department.

Marcus’ gaze burns into the side of my face, but I keep my eyes glued to the windshield. After a beat of silence, he sighs. “I’m thinking about transferring soon.”

Shock races through my system and I whirl around to gape at him. “Transferring?” I repeat. “You only have one year left! What’s the point!”

He focuses his attention on the road ahead of him. “There are friends who need me on the East Coast.”

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