Page 26 of Pretty Girls Never Lie (St. Mary’s)

The bell rings, and I rush out of the classroom in hopes that Brantley won’t follow me, though I know he will. His presence is heavy, and his shadow falls in line with me right away.

“You gonna tell me what’s wrong? Or do I have to force it out of you?” He takes my books from my hands and adds them to his pile.

Being alone with Brantley inside his room with the truth hidden is one thing. But being in a semi-crowded hallway with too many eyes and ears is another. The chaos hit me the moment I was alone. Zachary is still dangling my brother around in the background, and I’m not sure what to do about it other than play the game I started as soon as I found out his ploy. Brantley’s warning about his father wanting to kill me lingers on the edge of my worries too. It does nothing but add to the disarray in my head.

I peer at Brantley through clear eyes and sigh. I pull us under a small stone archway until we’re blanketed in darkness and wait until the footsteps from students slowly disappear before opening my mouth. Only, Brantley beats me to the punch.

“Isla, fuck.” He grabs my hand and places it on his chest. His heartbeat rams against my palm, and my lips part. “I don’t know what the hell I’m doing.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean,this. Us.” Brantley’s groan echoes around us. “I don’t like feeling like this. I don’t like that my heart is beating out of my fucking chest with the thought of something being wrong with you.”

Emotions clog my throat, and it takes me a second to breathe. “I…” I clear my throat and look away, even though he can’t see me in the dark. “I don’t know what I’m doing either.” A sigh escapes us both, but I’m the first to break the tension. “I’m just doing what feels right, even if part of me thinks it might be wrong.”

He gulps, but I keep spilling things that I haven’t even fully processed yet.

“If I think too much about everything, it gets too messy.”

Brantley finds my waist and drags me closer to him. “Everything feels right when I’m with you.”

My stomach fills with butterflies, and I’m rendered speechless. How can so few words make me feel something indescribable? I press my cheek into his hand when he cups my face. “Tell me what’s wrong, Isla. I can tell something is wrong with you.”

“How can you tell?”

I am damn good at hiding my emotions. It’s astounding that he knows something is up with me.

“I just can.” A sarcastic huff falls from his lips. “I don’t understand it, so don’t make me explain.”

A little smile curves onto my face, but it’s gone a second later when I’m forced to swallow my pride. “Zachary called.”

The strands of my hair tighten in his grip. “What did he say to you?”

Tension fills the small area, and my guard fly up so quickly it’s like they never came down to begin with. “He wants to see me tonight.”

Silence follows, and I suddenly feellost.I don’t know what I’m supposed to do.

“Brant–”

“Okay.”

I glance around the dark alcove with utter surprise. My walls slowly start to come back down, and my shoulders relax with his response. “I thought you’d be angry.”

“How can I be angry when the only reason you’re not with your brother is because my father murdered yours?” Brantley’s words are clipped, and the air around us becomes heated. “And I could have stopped it.”

“You were a kid, Brantley.”

It’s the first time I’ve ever admitted aloud that I don’t necessarily fault him for that night.

“So were you.”

Silence cages us, and we stay trapped inside the small, musty area for too long. Brantley finally grabs on to my hand and drags us back into the hall. He doesn’t let go of my hand until we’re safely tucked behind his closed door and on top of his bed.

SIXTEEN

Brantley

“I cannot believe she didn’t tell me.” Raven, the woman the headmaster is secretly fucking even though she’s half his age, whispers from beside me.

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