Page 40 of Kings of Westbrook High

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They want answers as to why I'm here.

Can’t say I blame them, if I’m being real.

Katherine Kingston is a threat. A threat to their family, to their inheritance, to their entire kingdom, even to their lives if I allow myself a second to go there. What better way to inherit everything than to kill them all? The thought is a little dramatic, but it wouldn't surprise me if that's how her twisted mind worked.

They want her behind bars, and they're assuming whatever she's hiding about me and my reason for being here could be the very match to blow this bitch up into flames, which is the only reason I'm playing their game tonight, playing nice with the evil little snake herself, following the king's orders like a good little girl.

A good little girl wearing an eight hundred dollar dress and a pair of toe pinching red bottoms that are still fucking killing me, by the way.

“You really do look stunning, Callie.” She tells me again, sipping her white wine in the chair across from mine.

We're seated in one of the two five star restaurants of Kingston Palace, the one that looks more like a place for corporate business meetings than mother daughter bonding sessions. The other one is a rooftop type place on the second floor that overlooks the main swimming pool and the ocean on the west side of the building.

It's fucking beautiful up there.

I haven't been here long, but I've killed a little time exploring this place from top to bottom, sometimes because I was bored and had nothing better to do but mostly because I was being nosy. They have two restaurants, three bars, a nightclub in the basement, three swimming pools, a gym with a spa, sauna and steam room, a six chair hair and beauty salon, a nine lane bowling alley with an arcade and a fast food joint inside, and a full on movie theatre with twelve screens and a big ass concession stand.It's a little much, let's be real, but I can't deny it must have been pretty fuckin’ awesome for them growing up here.

A playground built for kings.

“That dress fits you perfectly.” Katherine goes on, still staring at me. “And your body is flawless.”

I refrain from rolling my eyes and slide them from the bar to her, not missing the but on the tip of her tongue. It's clear she wants to add something about the black nails, the piercings and the fake silver locket hanging around my neck, but she wisely keeps her mouth shut.

As she should.

I remain silent when the waiter approaches us to take our food order, letting her choose for me because I can't pronounce anything on the priceless menu, literally, the prices aren't even listed on the menu. Once he's finally fucked off, I give her my full attention, knowing I'll have to tread carefully to get the answers I need from her. I won't kiss her ass, she'll know I'm being fake if I do, but I'm not about to sit here and sulk like she's expecting me to, either.

“Where did you go?”

“Paris.” She answers, eyeing me when I take a small sip of the disgusting wine she ordered for me. “Have you ever been to Europe?”

I shake my head, setting the glass aside and deciding I'll stick with water. “I've never been anywhere but Nevada and California. Jason barely moved his ass from his armchair for the most part of seventeen years. Vacations weren't exactly the biggest thing on his mind.”

“I see.” She licks her lips, waiting a full moment before she speaks again. “Your stepbrothers seem to have taken a liking to you since I've been gone.”

And there it is.

She really has no intention of getting to know me at all. She doesn't give a shit about my life or what I've been doing without her all this time, and that's fucking fine by me. Saves me the torture of pointless small talk.

“No, they just don't like you.” I throw it out there, leaning back to watch her reaction. “I'm pretty sure they're only pretending to like me to piss you off.”

She works her jaw, failing to hide her anger at that. “And yet you're letting them.”

“Kills the time.” I lie, briefly inspecting my nails. “Why don't you want me around them?”

“They can be..” She trials off, sighing while she thinks on the word. “Cruel.”

I laugh lightly, shaking my head because this bitch clearly doesn't know the meaning of cruel. “If you say so.”

“I'm serious, Callie.” She leans forward, pinning me with her snake eyes. “They're dangerous young men, clever and powerful and manipulative. They're only using you to get to me, and once they're finished, they'll only end up hurting you.”

Impossible but whatever.

I lick my lips, unable to resist asking. “What’d you do to them?”

“Married their father.” She says simply, sighing some more. “I was married to their mother's older brother for three years before Elijah. Liam was a good man, kind and romantic and sweet. He was killed in a hit and run four years ago last summer. Their mother was in the car with him and barely survived the swelling to her brain. She woke up in the hospital after surgery and became severely depressed. Losing her brother hit her harder than any of us could have expected. Not three weeks later, Damon found her in bed, overdosed on her own painkillers.”

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