Page 90 of No One Else

“I’m going to press charges. Assault and battery both come with jail time and hefty fines. And then after that there will be a personal injury lawsuit. I have a lot of eyewitnesses saying he attacked me unprovoked. Plus, that recording I have shows prior intent.”

I stare at him, knowing he’s completely serious. “Why do you even care that much?”

“He humiliated me. It’s personal now.” There’s vehemence in his voice. A glint of rage in his eyes. I have no doubt he’ll do exactly as he says. What the hell have I got Evan into?

“A charge like that will have him losing his scholarship, his job with the university,” he continues. “I’ve looked into his family’s financial records. His dad’s in serious medical debt. With Evan locked up in jail, no money coming in, who’s going to make those payments?”

I brace my hand against the wall, my knees suddenly weak. “What do you want?” I whisper. He didn’t just come here to rub all this in my face, although he’s obviously taking pleasure in telling me.

“You.”

I stare at him, stunned. “Is this some sick game to you? No one else can have me?”

“Don’t flatter yourself,” he sneers. “I need us to act like we’re dating.”

“Act?”

“Dad’s running for Senate. He needs the whole family to look good. A positive, wholesome image and you fit the bill.”

“Did you tell them we broke up?”

He purses his lips and then admits, “No.”

“Why don’t you get someone else? I’m sure plenty of girls on campus would love to date you. What about Olivia?”

“Some guy leaked nudes of her.” He dismisses her with a flick of his hand. “Besides, Dad’s campaign manager is playing up the high school sweethearts angle for us. And they like your charity work. The public eats up shit like that.”

“Tell him no,” I insist. “This is crazy. You can’t just blackmail me into dating you again. Even if it’s for pretend.”

“I don’t have a choice about it either.”

I study him carefully. “What, they threatened to cut you off otherwise?”

“Exactly,” he snaps. “And they’re already mad I haven’t delivered any social media posts with you lately.”

“Lately? You mean like three months? They don’t find that suspicious at all?”

“I said you had mono. Listen, do you want me to press charges and have Evan go to jail? For him to get fired and kicked out of college? To have his dad file bankruptcy because he defaulted on his loan? To have him evicted? And then after all that sue Evan so he can’t possibly climb out of the hole I’ve put him in? Because I can make all that happen. Or I can drop it all if you break up with him and go out with me instead.”

My heart crashes to the bottom of my stomach. There has to be some kind of workaround. If this act with Carter is fake, Evan will understand, right? “It’s just for appearances only,” I tell him shakily. “For a little while and then Evan and I-”

“No,” he cuts me off. “You break up with him for real. That’s my personal stake in the matter. I want you to break his heart.” He straightens his jacket, appearing calmer now that he has the advantage. “I’ll have eyes on you. I’ll know if it’s not real.”

My jaw drops down and I automatically shake my head in denial. “I can’t do that to him. I love him-”

“If you love him, then you’ll protect him. What’s it going to be?”

My mind races, trying to come up with some alternate scenario, but I can’t get past him coldly saying he’ll destroy Evan. And he would. Everything he described sounds like a nightmare. I have no doubt he really could put him in jail, get him kicked out of college, lose his job. The entire course of Evan’s life would change. I can’t do that to him. He wouldn’t be in this situation at all if it wasn’t for me.

“I-” I choke back a sob, my whole world crumbling around me. “Appearances only,” I repeat. “I don’t want anything to do with you in private.”

He nods, relief crossing his features. “Fake brunch tomorrow morning. I’ll pick you up at eleven. And wear some makeup.”

He strolls off down the corridor and I slowly crumple to the floor, tucking my knees into my chest. I desperately want to cry, but the tears won’t come. It’s like my body’s shut down, in shock to the events of the last ten minutes. How can so much have changed so quickly?

I make my way inside after a while, staying quiet so as not to disturb Morgan sleeping, and curl up under my covers. I grab my phone off my nightstand, bringing up my notifications. There’s a new message from Evan, dated fifteen minutes ago.

Evan:Can I come over in the morning?

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