Chapter 15: Chapter 15

Amy

The sun hangs low in the sky, casting warm hues of pink and orange across the horizon. My breathing is ragged from the measly half hour of hiking we’ve done so far, while Tristan seems as relaxed as if he’s resting in bed.

Goddamn these brainless athletes.

No. That’s not fair. I’ve learned enough by now to know that Tristan is not an idiot.

He’s mean and manipulative, but not an idiot.

“Wow,” I pant, pausing to take in the view of the ocean through the trees.

A blanket of wildflowers dances in the breeze in the distance. The salty air caresses my face, making my skin tingle. I don’t think I’ve felt this alive in weeks. My fanfic normally gives me this feeling, but not lately.

Damn Tristan for fucking with everything in my life. I’ve texted Cody twice over the last few days, and he gave me one-word responses. I ought to leave him alone entirely—especially if he really is battling feelings for me—but damn it, I miss him.

And then there’s my very own Mr. Wickham—Tristan Wolfe—charming me with his smiles and telling me sweet lies. I forgive Elizabeth for being so quick to believe Wickham. After all, she had no idea he was lying.

I ~know~ Tristan is lying, and I’m still charmed by him.

“Pretty, huh?” Tristan’s blue eyes are fixed on the view through the trees. “I hike this every day. Sometimes in the morning. Sometimes after practice. It’s even more beautiful having you with me.” He turns to me, his eyes probing. “What are you doing tomorrow?”

“Um…” I tuck a stray strand of hair from my ponytail behind my ear. He’s not looking at me, so it should be easy to tell him about Nick’s plans. Still, I can’t help but wonder what he’s going to think. That I’m making it up? That I’m hoping to make him jealous? “I have a date,” I say in a rush. “I’m pretty nervous about it.”

Tristan whips around to face me. He doesn’t speak for a full ten seconds, and the look on his face sends a chill down my spine. I always thought he had cruel eyes, but I’ve never seen him look as terrifying as this. “With who?” His voice is quiet and oddly empty.

“Someone I met at your frat party.” I try to keep my voice even, though my heart races in response to his sudden intensity.

He takes a step in my direction, and his tall form looms over me. “The guy you were talking to when I pulled you away and made my announcement. The guy Nick introduced to you.”

I swallow. “Yes.”

Tristan shakes his head. “Goddamn Nick. This was the surprise.”

I frown. “Surprise?”

Tristan scowls. “Why is Nick trying to set you up with other guys?”

I swallow. Nick never said I needed to protect his identity. If anything, he seems to want Tristan to know he’s trying to sabotage his plans. “I asked him to.”

Tristan is in front of me in a flash. He gently grabs my chin and lifts it as he searches my face. “Why?”

I shrug. “I think the game has given me more confidence. I haven’t gotten out enough in college. Being around…people like you has helped me see that.”

Both of his hands fall to my shoulders, and he gives me a little shake. “I’d think being around people like ~me~ would make you avoid dates with other guys. I can give you whatever you need, and—” he smirks “—you belong to me, Amy. You agreed to it.”

I push away from him and walk to a large boulder at the edge of the trail, my skin heating. I’m sick of his lies. He’s not really going to give me that scholarship. According to Nick, he’s not even trying to make Harper jealous.

I don’t know what to believe.

“You aren’t going.” Tristan’s voice is hard. “No dates. No dating anyone but me. That’s my rule for you.”

Rage flares through my veins suddenly. Rule? How fucking arrogant and high-handed can he be? I whip around to face him, raising my chin. “I’m going out with Seth tomorrow whether you like it or not. I don’t work for you. I agreed to help you make Harper jealous. If you wanted exclusivity, you should have told me weeks ago.”

“Seth, huh?” Tristan walks over to me, lowering his head and stopping a few inches from my face. “What happened to Cody Morris?”

My throat grows tight. Fuck, I don’t want to cry in front of Tristan. “He’s my dearest friend.”

He tilts his head to the side. “You told me you wanted him, remember? On one of our dates.”

Fuck, I did. I almost forgot about Cody’s plan from weeks ago. Why didn’t it occur to me then that he might have feelings for me? What a strange way to taunt Tristan.

“I didn’t believe you then,” Tristan says. “If you wanted him, you’d be with him. Anyone can see that he wants you.”

My head grows fuzzy. How could I have been so blind? Tristan’s never even talked to Cody, and even he thinks he has feelings for me. “You have no idea what you’re talking about.”

He shrugs. “I don’t think you want Seth either. You’re doing all of this to piss me off. The makeover. Showing up at my party. Why?”

I roll my eyes. “Yes, the party where you announced that none of them are allowed to touch me. That I belong to you.”

“That’s right,” he says immediately. “Looks like Seth didn’t take me seriously. Maybe I should show him how serious I was.”

I force out a laugh, and it sounds like a cackle to my own ears. What an utterly ridiculous thing to say. “Is this how you handle conflict, Tristan? If it is, I don’t think it’s worth winning that ten-grand scholarship. Not if it means getting someone else’s ass beaten.”

I walk away to take several deep breaths. What a fucking Neanderthal. How is it possible that I’ve been softening toward him all these weeks?

I’m startled by Tristan’s big hands on my shoulders. “I won’t beat his ass. I was just…frustrated. It’s not fair for you to date other people when I’m essentially giving you ten grand.”

Liar.

I wish I could call him out. I need that fucking scholarship.

What if he really is going to give it to me, and I’m jeopardizing everything for revenge?

No, I can’t think that way. That scholarship is out of my control, and my dignity is worth more than ten K.

“Maybe Seth really likes me,” I say, my voice soft but defiant. “Did you ever consider that?”

Tristan’s grip on my shoulders tightens for a moment before he releases me. I can’t help the spark of satisfaction seeing him so ruffled.

Tristan

“It doesn’t matter,” I say, because I know she’s just trying to goad me.

She’s not into this Seth. This is some kind of game she’s playing.

I’ll figure out what it is.

“It doesn’t matter if he likes me?” Her voice is adorably indignant, but I refuse to smile.

She needs to know what’s up.

“No.” I lock my eyes on hers. “You belong to me for the rest of the game. If you want that ten K, you play by my rules.”

She crosses her arms over her chest. “So if I go on this date, you won’t let me win?”

My lips quirk at how cute she looks with her chin raised and those big eyes flashing. “You can go. I’ll allow it.”~ Because I’ll be there to chaperone.~

She smiles tightly. “Thank you, Master.”

My dick twitches. Oh, little Amelia. You’ll be screaming that in ecstasy soon.

I reach my hand out and brush my fingers over her cheek. “You’re welcome, little one. How do my clothes look on you? Maybe when we get back to your dorm, you can show me.”

As predicted, an adorable scowl forms on her face. “You mean the clothes your parents bought me.”

My grin grows. “How do you know they didn’t take the money out of my trust fund?”

She snorts. “Trust fund. Of course you have one. How gross. Anyway, I know they wouldn’t take it out of their golden boy’s trust fund.”

I scoff, rolling my eyes. “They don’t give a shit about their golden boy’s trust fund. Or anything about me. They don’t care about anything as long as I do well in school and football.”

As soon as the words are out of my mouth, I want to bite them back in. I sound like a whiny little bitch. She clearly senses it too, because the change in her is immediate. Her defiance melts away like butter on a hot roll and concern enters those big hazel eyes.

She’s so adorably expressive. I’ve always been able to read her expressions better than I can anticipate a quarterback’s next move.

“Are your parents really that bad?” Her voice is soft.

They aren’t. They’re just practically robots themselves, and the type of people who never should have had a child. It doesn’t really bother me anymore. I’ve grown to not to need them. But maybe I can use this to my advantage. This warmth pulsing through my veins at her concerns is heady.

I want more of it.

“They’re busy people,” I say. “Very obsessed with their own careers. I think having a kid was just a box to check off their list of what a good life looks like. Once they had me, they didn’t want to deal with the hard work it takes to actually raise a kid.”

“Tristan,” she whispers, reaching out to touch my arm. I take the opportunity to take her hand in mine. “That really sucks,” she says. “Having neglectful parents can really damage a kid. Make them feel unworthy of love. I hope you don’t feel that way.”

My heart squeezes. She’s so damn sweet in these rare moments she shows me her softer side.

What if she fell in love with me? I bet she’d tell me while I’m inside her. She’d whisper it against my lips while I worshiped her with my body.

Fuck, I can’t think this way. I don’t want her to love me. It’ll make it so much harder to leave her behind.

I don’t want to hurt her.

I press a soft kiss against her cheek. “You think I’m worthy of love?”

“Of course you are,” she says. “Everyone is worthy of love.”

I ought to be relieved that she didn’t outright say she loves me, but here I am, wanting more. Always wanting more than she gives me.

I brush my lips along her face until I find her mouth. She opens for me immediately, and I massage my tongue against hers.

My dick grows as hard as concrete. I’ve never enjoyed the simple act of kissing as much as I do with her.

“Thank you for sharing that with me,” she whispers against my lips, her breath warm and inviting.

I pull back slightly, and our eyes lock together. “I’ll tell you anything you want to know. You just have to ask.” Her fingers trace gentle patterns on the back of my hand, sending shivers down my spine.

“It’s nice to know that you’re…not impenetrable,” she says. “The more I get to know you, the more I like you.”

Her words hit me like a tidal wave, making me momentarily dizzy. She’s never outright said that she likes me before, but every time she’s softened, it’s because I’ve let my guard down.

I’ve shared things with her I hate sharing. Things that make my skin prickle with heat because my own words sound so embarrassingly pathetic and weak. But she seems to like it. And somehow, afterward, my chest feels lighter. Sharing with her feels good.

I could open myself up entirely…if only I could be sure of her.

Craving my parents’ undivided attention really fucked me in the head. Why am I so needy? I’ve learned I can live without validation. My parents ignore my thoughts and feelings now as much as they did when I was a kid, and I’m perfectly fine.

Yet somehow I crave her undivided attention. I want her to tell me I’m as interesting to her as she is to me.

This had better go away after I’ve fucked her. Craving someone this way makes you weak.

“Thank you, Amelia,” I finally manage to say, my voice cracking. “I like you more than anyone I’ve ever met.”

~At times, it feels like I love you.~

It’s not true. It’s just my horny brain playing tricks on me.

Her eyes grow wide. “Then why did you…” She swallows. “Why have you been mean to me in the past then?”

My chest pulls so tight it’s hard to take a breath. I wish I had never acted on my stupid impulses. The truth is she gets to me more than anyone I’ve ever known. One dismissive word from her over the years was enough to send me into a rage.

~“I still think you’re boring.” ~

Boring. That word kills me coming from her mouth, even though I’ve learned not to care anymore when my mom’s eyes glaze over when I try to talk about things that matter to me.

It’s pathetic. My parents don’t find me boring because there’s something wrong with me. They don’t even really find me boring at all. My success in football and academics exhilarates them. They just don’t give a shit about anything else. Conversations with Amy make me feel like a king. She listens to me.

Talking to her that day in the library made me as giddy as a little kid. It was the first real conversation I’d had with her since high school, and I thought she enjoyed it as much as I did. I was ready to fall to my knees and beg her for a date.

Then she crushed me with a few words.

I acted out. I let Harper read her fanfic aloud because I wanted Amy to feel a fraction of the agony I’ve felt. It was a mistake. Those wide, vulnerable, pained eyes of hers will probably haunt me for the rest of my life.

“Because I’m an asshole sometimes,” I say, hating how utterly inane it sounds.

What a pathetic excuse, but it’s the truth. I lash out when people hurt me, and no one has held as much power over me as little Amy.

“But I promise you, Amelia, I’m trying to be better. I’ll never be mean to you again.”

Her expression grows mischievous. “You don’t have to make promises like that. I won’t let you be mean to me again.”

I grin as I lean in and kiss her hard. “So where is this date tomorrow?”

She snorts. “Like I’d tell you.”

I chuckle. “You don’t have to. I’ll find out.”

Nick’s going to tell me, even if I have to threaten him again. There’s no way I’ll let my girl go on a date unsupervised. That prick Seth will probably fall in love with her the moment he sees those pretty eyes light up when she talks about something she’s passionate about.

I won’t let it happen.