Page 90 of Teacher's Pet

A part of me already knows why I want those details.

All it would take is a single call to one of my lingering connections, the ones who stepped aside when I walked away from my family's business.

One conversation.

One favor.

And Cole would cease to exist.

Because unlike Walker, Ana fears Cole.

That makes him a problem.

Her lips part, but she hesitates.

"I don’t need you looking at me differently, Noah."

If only she knew the blood I already had on my hands.

If she did, she’d never let me touch her again.

I lean in slightly, my voice low.

"Try me."

She exhales, the sound almost defeated, and shifts forward, resting her cheek against the cool edge of the tub.

The makeup smudged around her eyes makes her look haunted.

I reach for the washcloth, dipping it into the warm water before dragging it gently beneath her eyes, clearing away the remnants of the night.

She doesn’t move away.

"The night of prom, our senior year, I ran into Cole with Erica."

My grip tightens around the cloth.

"At that point, I was already a laughingstock at school. Erica and Cole spun our breakup as me being a whore. He said I cheated. One of Cole’s friends, someone I had a fling with before him, had taken a picture of me during one of our hookups."

A slow inhale fills my chest.

I already fucking know where this is going.

"That picture got passed around. That was all it took. Suddenly, I was that girl. The easy one, the liar, the bitch no one wanted to sit next to at lunch."

She tries to laugh, but it’s empty, bitter.

I keep wiping her face, but something shifts in her eyes.

Something detached.

"My dad wanted to see me in my dress," she continues, her voice quieter. "He wanted to take pictures. He wanted to feel like he was part of something big in my life. But I didn’t have the heart to tell him the truth... that Cole had fucked my best friend and left me. So I showed up. Just long enough for my dad to see me off. Just long enough to sneak out and take an Uber home."

I don’t say anything.

Just keep listening.

She swallows hard.

---