Page 70 of Teacher's Pet

My fists clench.

"I hope you have a great fucking night with whatever asshole is locked behind that door."

The moment the words leave my mouth, regret twists in my stomach, but the pain is louder, hotter, more suffocating.

Once again, I let myself get played. I let my feelings be toyed with by another straight girl looking to fool around and call it nothing.

Ana grabs my hand, desperation in her grip.

"Meg! Please-"

I rip away from her touch like it burns.

"Fuck off, Ana!" The yell bursts out before I can stop it. "Other people need time to work things out, too."

The fight drains from her immediately.

She stands there, staring, looking… broken.

"I wasn’t trying to hurt anyone."

A bitter laugh scrapes my throat.

"Look how well that worked out."

I turn on my heel, fingers shaking as I viciously scroll through my contacts, searching for Elijah’s number.

This isn't just Ana’s fault.

I know where this is stemming from.

She was curious. I am not.

Right now, all I want is to crawl into bed, drown myself in greasy food, down an entire bottle of water, and pretend this night never fucking happened.

I force myself forward, not looking back.

The crisp night air hits my face the moment I step outside, cooling the heat burning beneath my skin.

A shaky breath slips past my lips.

"How far could you have gotten, Elijah?" I mutter, eyes scanning the parking lot. "Damn it-"

"Rough night?"

The grating voice sends a chill down my spine.

I freeze.

Slowly, I turn.

Cole leans against the wall, a cigarette dangling between his fingers, watching me like he’s enjoying every second of this.

His cold, dark eyes meet mine, the satisfaction curling at his lips making me want to slap the smirk off his face.

"Piss off," I snap.

Cole exhales a slow drag, blowing a cloud of smoke into the night air.