Page 19 of Austen Persuaded

Before he could close the door, I was flying across the room, slamming it in his face and then sliding down, down, down to the floor.

Through gasping breaths, I stilled when I heard what sounded like … bone on bone? I quickly rose, opening the door quietly, just a crack. Brandon was holding his nose, fuming and stomping out the door.

Once he was safely out of the apartment, I stomped out of my room to find my roommates there, panting and red-faced. “Rainn!” I thundered. “I told you not to touch him. I’m not … I don’t like violence. Even with a bastard like him.”

And then I saw Rafael’s hand, bloodied and starting to bruise rapidly as he headed over to the sink. I gasped. “Rafael?” Never in a million years could I seehimhitting someone.

Rainn went over to help him wash and then bandage his hand. Once they were finished, they walked back over to me, heads hung low. “Sorry, Annie. I’m as surprised as you,” Rafael mumbled.

“No, it’s … it’s fine.” I felt a strange squeeze in my heart.

These guys loved me.

That was more important than anything.

“Don’t do it again, but … I’m touched.”

“Don’t be mad, Annie, but I also hacked into some accounts on his phone, since he left it in his coat on the rack when he got here,” Rainn said, wincing because he apparently thought this would upset me.

“Oh, you did? And what did you find?” I couldn’t hide a smile. Rainn was a pretty talented IT guy, which had definitely come in handy for nefarious reasons more than once during our friendship.

“Let’s just say, it’s enough to make sure he doesn’t try to hurt you, like give you bad job references or spread rumors or anything like that. And I let him know it.”

I lunged forward and embraced them both. “I’m sure I don’t deserve such amazing friends, but I am so glad I have you guys. Thank you, again and again and again. Now, excuse me while I gospend the rest of my life figuring out how I can make all this up to you guys. You’ve both been godsends all week. Forever, really.”

Rafael shook his head. “No, no, no. Don’t you dare talk like that.As ifyou don’t deserve us. Give yourself some credit, girl. We might have been listening a bit at the door tonight, and that was an epic takedown of an epic jerk.”

“We could go on and on all night about how much we love you, Annie,” Rainn said, “but we’re guys and, well, love fests aren’t really our thing. At least not that kind.”

Rafael and I laughed, but then he sobered. “But seriously, Annie. I heard his parting shot. He’s full of BS, you know. Youdoknow that, right?”

I thought his words might be burned in my brain forever, except that they were words I’d heard many times before, from many other men and some women too. They were already imprinted there, had been for years, maybe my whole life. It was practically my birthright, as a daughter of Jacqueline York.

“Right, I know,” I said with a smile that didn’t reach my eyes. My tired eyes. It was well past midnight by now, and I was exhausted.

Thank goodness for sleep. It was my only refuge of late.

Chapter 6

“Oh no, Joel, have my degenerate roommates converted you too?” I asked, covering a yawn as I padded out of my bedroom toward the table where my roommates sat, along with Rafael’s boyfriend.

Joel leaned back in his chair with a grin that showed both dimples. “Hi, Annie.” He stretched his long legs, finely sculpted from years of dancing with a professional ballet company. Although they met while dancing together with the company, Rafael had chosen to shift careers to teaching a few years ago after a chronic condition—fatigue and a finicky heartbeat—made the long hours of professional dancing excruciating.

Rafael smirked as he laid down cards on the table. “Hardly. Joel was a closet gamer as a teen, apparently. Why I’m just finding this outnowis a question I’m asking myself …” he trailed off, a pouty expression on his face.

Joel leaned over and stretched his arm around Rafael’s shoulders. “I have to keep some air of mystery if I want to keep you interested, don’t I?”

Rafael smiled at Joel, his eyes showing a tenderness I’d never seen in him before he met Joel. These two could make almost anyone believe in love, cheesy as it sounded even in my own mind.

After a long moment of enduring their pining-for-each-other eyes, Rainn cleared his throat. “I think it’s your turn, Joel.”

Joel reluctantly turned back to the game and made his play. “You should give it a try, Annie. You never know—even you might like it.”

“She’d rather die,” Rafael said dryly.

I pursed my lips. Feeling contrary, I heard myself say, “Well, I don’t know. Maybe I would.”

“So, Mythic Forge is a card game, but it’s a bit like Dungeons & Dragons. Have you heard of that before? That’s classic roleplaying, but in this game, it’s more structured …”

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