Page 17 of Blurred Lines

It’s probably the worst thing I could say to him, and he lurches forward, his hand snapping out to grab a hold of my wrist in a painful grip. He digs his fingernails into my skin, and I can feel the bones grating against one another under the pressure. I wince, trying to pull my hand back, out of his grip, but it only makes him hold on tighter.

“Listen here, you little slut, the next time you and your friend are hanging out with them, youwillinvite me. Got it?”

I don’t immediately respond as I’m still struggling against his restraint. Eventually I snap out, “fine,” with no actual intention to follow through.

“Good. Maybe I’ll reward you for a job well done.” The way his gaze drops to my boobs and a sleazy leer crawls across his face makes it more than obvious what his idea of a ‘reward’ is. As much as I want to tell him I’d rather fuck a cactus, I bite my tongue. “God knows, it’s not like you are getting any other offers.”

My jaw hurts from gritting my teeth, but thankfully the fuckface gets to his feet and saunters off.

***

The next few days are pretty uneventful, and I almost manage to forget about Deke and his threats. My wrist has horrible finger-print bruises though, which serves as a constant reminder. I’ve been wearing a bangle on my wrist all week to cover them. The last thing I need is Hadley seeing them and asking questions. She and the others have enough on their plates.

It’s late when I head to the dining hall, but I have a ton of work still to do tonight, and if I’ve any hope of accomplishing it, I need caffeine and sugar to fuel me. As expected, the hall is empty when I arrive, and I go straight to the coffee machine, fixing myself an extra-large cup. While the machine whirs to life, I peruse the selection of sugary goodness, until I hear the sound of the door opening behind me. I hate the way I involuntarily tense, and my heart rate picks up, nervous that it could be Deke back to threaten me some more.

My shoulders relax when Wilder steps into the hall, glancing around before he notices me.

“Hey.”

“Hey. You getting a late night caffeine fix too?”

“Something like that.”

Ever since Hadley disappeared, Wilder and I have been spending more time together, at breakfast and in the library—although I’m still confused as to why he even bothers to go to the library, it’s not like he does any work. I’ve gotten to know him better over the last few weeks, but he’s still a complete enigma to me.

He moves over to the coffee machine, lifting my now finished latte off the tray and popping a top on it for me before going about setting up his own. Deciding on a bag of M&Ms, I head toward him.

“Thanks.” I smile at him as I reach out to grab the cup, which of course is when he notices the bruises. Being so late and all, I didn’t see the need to cover them up, which was my mistake.

“What the fuck is that?” His voice is this deep, menacing baritone that has me yanking my arm back, hiding the bruises behind my back.

“It’s nothing.”

He snorts, but there’s no humor in it. “That is not nothing. Who the fuck did that to you?”

Getting irritated, I glower at him. “What I meant to say was that it was none of your business.”

If it’s possible, his features turn even more hostile. “Emilia, don’t pull that shit with me. Tell me who did that to you.”

“Why?” I snap. “Soyoucan deal with it? I’m handling it, so just leave it alone.”

Forgetting about my coffee, I turn on my heel and march toward the door, but just as I reach it, a hand snatches out to turn me around, and Wilder pushes me up against the stone wall, caging me in with his larger frame. He plants his hands on either side of my head and ducks his own so his face is inches from mine.

“Don’t play with me, Emilia. If you don’t tell me, I’ll find out for myself, even if I have to beat up every guy in this school to find the culprit.”

Even though my breath is coming in uneven gasps and I’m struggling to swallow with his close proximity, I still manage to find enough attitude to roll my eyes. “Don’t be ridiculous.”

He quirks a brow. “You think I won’t?” He leans in even closer and my eyes dart down to his lips which are so close to mine. If I flicked my tongue out, I could probably touch them...taste him. “Watch me.”

His words are a threat. A promise. And it takes a second for them to register in my mind. When they finally do, I tear my gaze away from his plump lower lip that is just begging me to sink my teeth into, and instead stare into his hard, hazel eyes. Eventually I sigh, resigned. It will only do more harm if I don’t tell him.

“Fine, but you don’t get to interfere. This ismylife,myproblem.I’mhandling it.”

He purses his lips, and I can see he’s not happy about my order, but reluctantly, he agrees.

Licking my lips, I hesitantly say, “It was Deke. He wants me to invite him the next time I hang out with Hadley and the guys, but I don’t know why.”

If I thought Wilder looked furious before, it’s nothing compared to the white-hot rage blaring in his eyes. His features are so tightly drawn, his face looks like granite, and his body stands tense as it towers over mine.

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