Total pages in book: 60
Estimated words: 57044 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 285(@200wpm)___ 228(@250wpm)___ 190(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 57044 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 285(@200wpm)___ 228(@250wpm)___ 190(@300wpm)
“Malcolm, I need to study.”
“And study you will. You’re not allowed to come, anyway.”
Anticipation floods my gut. I shouldn’t want this. No matter what he says, I shouldn’t enjoy these games and his bossy, dominant control. But I can’t keep the smile off my face as I walk away, and nearly stumble when the vibration starts. It’s going to be a long afternoon.
11
Malcolm
Jack isn’t going to be happy about what I’m about to do, but I don’t particularly care. But first, one detail I forgot to get squared away. I dial Juno’s number and she answers on the first ring.
“I’m not supposed to be on the phone in the library.”
“I’ll be fast,” I say. “Your stuff is still packed, right?”
“Yeah, I just put whatever I wasn’t using back in the boxes I had in the dorm. Bailey’s going to start bugging me to pick it up soon.”
“Collins 301? You don’t have to worry about it.”
I hear her surprise. “How did you know my room number.”
“I know everything,” I laugh. “No, I have special access through my dad. His secretary can’t say no to me.”
“Creeper,” she mutters.
“Only when it comes to you.”
I can tell she’s trying to keep her voice down as she giggles. “What are you going to do, grab my stuff?”
“Something like that.”
“I’ll text Bailey so that you don’t scare the shit out of her.”
I walk up the stairs to Granite House. “Too bad, that would have been too much fun.”
“Bye.”
I would bet a decent amount of money that there was an eye roll attached to that last word. As I walk inside, there are a couple of freshman guys who we accepted before the school year hanging out in the living room. George and Casey. They’re good guys. They like to party the way everyone else in Granite House does, but I’ve made it clear that school comes first.
That’s the thing that not everyone knows about Granite House. In fact, no one knows except for the people that live here. If grades aren’t above a three-point-zero, there are no parties. And that includes every person, every assignment, and every test.
You better believe that every person here works their ass off to keep the legacy alive and party hard. Everyone knows Granite House for the parties, but I think they would be surprised if they actually looked at the people who graduated and lived here. A lot of them are really successful.
When the fraternity status got revoked two years ago—my freshman year—I don’t think I’d ever seen my father so angry. He cares about the legacy he’s leaving behind, and this house is a huge piece of it. Basically he made me swear to turn it around. Hence the reason that I have the rules about grades and parties and only let the best of the best into the house.
“You guys busy?” I ask them.
“Nah,” George says. “Just taking a break, actually.”
“I need a favor from you guys. I’ll owe you one.”
Both of them jump to their feet at the same time. “Sure,” Casey says.
Having me owe them one isn’t nothing. “Take my truck, and go to Collins 301. Grab all the boxes, and anything belonging to Juno Dennard and bring it back. It’s all going in Jack’s room.”
The look surprised, but George takes the keys from me. “Okay. Does Jack know?”
I smile. “He will shortly.”
They wisely don’t ask questions and head out the door. It’ll be good to have all her stuff here in one place.
I’m playing with fire with Juno, honestly. My dad is going to be pissed about the vase. Frankly, more than he has any right to be. It’s worth a lot of money, and it means a lot, but it’s just a piece of pottery, and legacy is about more than that. But having that break, and then choosing to move Juno in would all be things that he wouldn’t approve of. Especially if he had any kind of idea about the kind of relationship that she and I have.
I think about her questions from before. Are we strange? Maybe. I’m working on instinct here. Desires that I’ve always had and never had someone to perform them with. It was like when I saw Juno something knew that she would respond to this, and to me.
It’s true that I was pissed about the vase, and I was going to make her pay. But I’m not that cruel. Not really. I’d rather have her on her knees because she wants to be there. Telling Juno what to do feels good. Having her obey feels good too. But not because I want to crush her or beat her down, but because it feels like it’s meant to be that way.
Fuck.
Even in my head that barely makes sense.
All I know is that what’s between Juno and me seems right, and it’s becoming more important to me than I had anticipated after only a week. If she had said no to moving in, I would have been devastated. I want her here with me for the time being so we can explore what this is.