Page 1 of Jerk
ONE
RYE
Junior Year: Fall Semester
Cut off.
Two deadly words from my father glow on my screen, gutting me worse than the headlines stacked below it.
Fallen Crown: Rowen Scandal
—The Hill Herald
Captain Cut from Team Amidst Controversy
—SBU Magazine
Locking my screen, I push my phone in my pocket and grasp the glass vial next to it. Nights like this used to belong to me. To us.The Crowns. This is different. This feels like a funeral.
It was a mistake.Shewas a mistake. Everyone has a moment of weakness, and every buzz in my pocket reminds me of it. A-grade powder doesn’t soothe the burn in my chest. Gin doesn’t calm the ache in my mind. If I were a different man, a more level-headed man, I’d walk away. That’s hard with my father’s voice swimming in my head.
“When people see you, they’ll see failure. You’re not one of us.”
His words hit like a bullet, cold and final. No advice. No support. He would much rather compile a long list of reasons I’m a disappointment. The smart move is to walk away. But I’m a Crown. And when you fuck with us, you get what’s coming to you. Revenge is the only thing I can control. So instead of doing therightthing, here I am, waiting forher.
“Rye?” Gray leans closer to me, using the nickname students gave me when they couldn’t wrap their tongue around ‘Ryung.' Considering how much whiskey I drank freshman year, it’s fitting. He takes the vile from my fingers. “You look worse than you looked in Ibiza. You alright?”
I nod, but I’m not. I haven’t been alright since she shattered my world, and I know I sound dramatic, but believe me, it’s warranted. Because of her, my life isn’t what it used to be. My family doesn’t trust me, and my status? She’s fucked that too. So I’ll fuck her right back.
My body senses her before I see her. I can tell by the way my heartbeat picks up, faster than the bass bumping through the room. That voice fills the air.Hervoice. Clear. Poised. Loud enough to make every muscle tense.
“Don’t worry, everyone.” Confidence drips off her silver-spooned tongue as all eyes turn to her. “The main event has arrived.”
Hannah Alfonso is a filthy display of luxury, using daddy’s card to adorn herself in Dior and Chanel. Her favourites. A furry coat hangs off those slender, tanned shoulders, her collarbones as sharp as her bite. If I imagine what’s under that pink dress clinging to that body, I’m in trouble, and I can’t fuck this up. I’ve counted down the minutes to this very moment.
Art surrounds us, displayed on walls and easels, but all eyes are onher. Hands still in my oversized slacks, my back against the brick gallery wall, my gaze moves to one of the many bottles sitting on the table near the entrance.
As a loyal Crown, I shouldn’t be the one approaching the table knowing what I’m about to do. Mac, my fellow Crown, would kill me if he knew my plan. It’s his girlfriend’s gallery opening, and it’s a pretty big deal.
So I’ll ask for forgiveness later.
My hand wraps around the neck of the Belvedere bottle, the sounds of laughter and chit-chat muffling around me.
CRASH!
The bottle shatters on the stone gallery floor, right before those honey-brown eyes land on me.
She looks confused. No, nervous. Whatever it is, I’ve knocked the confidence right out of her. The way her throat moves when she swallows, the subtle bite of her lip, the tightening of her fists. It’s all porn to me.
Crouching, I pick up a shard of what’s left of the bottle, vodka dripping off it.
“Hey, Ember,” I say, loud enough to make sure I have the attention of every fucker in here. “I have an art submission.” This is my moment.Ourmoment.
Hannah’s gaze sticks to me as I approach her, every step making that deadly, floral scent harder to ignore. She’s about to open those glossy lips, but oh no, Kitten, you won’t speak until I let you.
“I call this one, ‘Mine.’” My words ring around the room as I slip behind Hannah. My arm lands in front of her neck, but not to strangle her. I only want everyone to see that she’s my possession. Her back slams against my chest, her mink against my silk shirt, only heightening the heat from our bodies.
“Rye…” Her voice is soft, far from her usual assertive tone, and I ignore what it does to my guts. “Wh-what the hell are you doing?” Hearing her stammer, feeling her body shake even a little against mine, only fuels me. She lowers her voice, her tone sharper. “Everyone’s watching.”
