The Cruel World

by Scarlett Haven

  Rook grins as he heads our way, but his grin is different from the one that Jensen gave me. Jensen looks at me like I’m a challenge. Rook just grins because he’s a friendly guy. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him not smiling.

  “Hey, Ian, Roxy.” Rook nods at us both.

  “Rook,” Ian says curtly, turning back around to face the pool.

  I nudge Ian with my elbow. “You want to head back upstairs?”

  Because it’s either go back upstairs with West, which I don’t want to do, or stay here with Jensen, which I also don’t want to do.

  Ian nods. “Probably.”

  Jensen pulls his shirt over his head. “Don’t leave on my account. I’m just going for a swim.”

  I snort. “That water is ice cold. Good luck.”

  He smirks. “We just got back from Russia. That water is not cold and I am sweating.”

  I ignore him and push myself up from the side of the pool. Once I’m up, I hold out a hand to Ian to help him. I’d rather not have to rescue him if he falls into the pool. Despite what Jensen says, the water is very cold right now.

  Rook walks over to Ian and me and surprises me when he helps me pull Ian up.

  “Thanks,” I tell him as I grab Ian’s crutches that are leaning against the pool house.

  “No problem.” Rook grins at me, then goes to jump into the pool.

  Jensen gets up as Ian starts to hobble toward the exit. I walk ahead of Ian, to open the gate, but Jensen runs toward me.

  “Yo, Princess, wait up.”

  I turn to glare at him. “Only West is allowed to call me Princess. My name is Roxy. Call me Princess again and I’ll break your jaw.”

  Jensen chuckles. “I’d like to see you try.”

  I don’t think I could really take Jensen in a fight, so I keep my mouth shut.

  Turning to open the gate once more, Jensen grabs onto my arm.

  “Wait. Before you leave, I was hoping to talk to you.”

  I turn to face Jensen. Ian lets out an annoyed huff. I hope whatever Jensen wants to say it doesn’t take long.

  He rubs a hand at the back of his neck. “So, uh, I know that I joke around a lot about wanting to take you out, but I am serious. I’d love to take you out on a date sometime.”

  I look at him, trying to gauge if he’s serious or not. Certainly not, right? But before I can even read the situation, one of Ian’s crutches falls to the ground. I’m worried he’s about to fall when he launches himself at Jensen, punching him in the nose. Horrified, I watch as Ian and Jensen go tumbling toward the concrete.

  Rook jumps out of the pool quickly, probably to break up the fight, but I just stand there with my hands over my mouth, watching in horror.

  Why would Ian just punch Jensen like that?

  Rook easily pulls Ian off Jensen, who is wiping at his bloody nose. I notice that Ian has a bloody nose too. I grab Ian’s crutches from the ground, quickly handing them to him.

  “What was that for?” Jensen spits blood onto the concrete.

  “Stop trying to flirt with Roxy. She’s made it clear that she’s not interested in you,” Ian seethes.

  My heart swells as I realize Ian was just defending my honor. It’s kind of sweet.

  Jensen smirks. “You can’t blame a guy for trying.”

  I roll my eyes. “What Ian said—I’m not going to date you, Jensen. Even if you could get along with my team, who are my family, you’re just not my type.”

  Maybe he’s a little my type, but he doesn’t need to know that.

  “Thank you, Rook.” I nod at him, then look at Ian, shaking my head. “West is going to kill me for letting you get into a fight.”

  Ian frowns. “Let’s just head back to the condo.”

  He heads toward the gate at double speed, so I wave at Rook and glare at Jensen.

  “Bye, Roxy.” Rook holds up a hand, waving back.

  I follow Ian out of the pool and toward the elevators. As we head up to the seventh floor, I look at Ian’s nose and the bruises that are forming under his eyes.

  “Sorry about that.” I motion to his nose and eyes. “That looks rough.”

  He shrugs. “I’ll be okay.”

  I sigh. “Why did you have to fight him? It’s sweet that you stood up for me like that, but I am capable of saying no to him on my own.”

  “You have said no. I just made him listen to you saying no.” Ian smiles at me. “We’re a team. We have to look out for one another.”

  I giggle at the thought of me fighting another girl because she won’t stop harassing Ian. He looks at me, raising an eyebrow, but I keep the thought to myself as the elevator doors open up. I stop laughing as we head toward the condo. My heart is racing at the thought of going inside. I wonder if West is going to yell at us, or more specifically, me. I’m sure this will all be my fault.

  Opening the door for Ian, I motion for him to walk in first. As soon as we walk in, Kal is running up to us.

  “What happened?” Kal looks between Ian and me.

  “Jensen Kaplan happened.” I cross my arms over my chest.

  West walks up beside Kal, looking at Ian. “Explain.”

  “Jensen wouldn’t stop flirting with Roxy, so I made him stop,” Ian says, sounding bored. “If you don’t mind, I’m going to hack his record now.”

  On his crutches, Ian hobbles past West. I smile, shaking my head.

  Never mess with a hacker.

  But when I glance at West, his narrowed eyes and pursed lips has the smile quickly falling from my face.

  Great… what did I do now?

  “Does every guy on the planet have to be attracted to you?” West clenches his jaw. “Why do you have to be so pretty?”

  Kal shakes his head. “Dude, she can’t help what Jensen does. He probably doesn’t even like her, he’s just asking her out to get under your skin.”

  West turns his glare to Kal.

  Kal backs up, raising his hands in the air. “I’m just saying it’s not her fault. Go easy on her.”

  With that, Kal turns and leaves me alone with West.

  Great—now there is nobody to protect me from his wrath.

  I sigh. “It’s not like I go around trying to get Jensen to ask me out. I don’t flirt with him or anything like that. I think it’s like Kal said—he does it to get under your skin.”

  A vein in West’s neck pops out and I realize that no matter what I say, he’s not going to believe me. He’s already made up his mind that I’m dating the enemy, or at the very least, flirting with the enemy. And I’m not sure who I am madder at—Jensen, for asking me out, or West, for making me feel like trash because Jensen did ask me out.

  I storm past him, not wanting to hear anymore.

  The last guy on the planet I’d ever date.

  West yells after me, but I ignore him as I stomp out of the condo and onto the balcony. I sit down, praying West doesn’t follow. I relax after a few minutes, realizing that he’s giving me privacy. Good. I’m not sure how much more I can take of West Newman today.

  My heart is pounding hard and my head is swimming—I’m sure my blood pressure is through the roof right now. I take a few slow breaths to try to calm myself down. Nothing really helps.

  I wish I could go for a run right now—nothing calms me down more than running. But if I leave the condo, I risk running into Jensen, Cole, or Rook. That’s the last thing I want.

  Rook really isn’t so bad. He’s actually kind of nice. But he’s still the enemy, at least in West’s eyes. Therefore, he has to be my enemy too.

  After sitting outside and listening to the calming sound of the waves crashing into the shore, my heart eventually stops racing. I poke my head into the condo to grab my laptop. Ian is sitting on the couch, his computer in his lap, and Kal is watching something on his computer with his headphones on. Thankfully West is nowhere to be seen. He’s probably somewhere with Alek. I hope they’re sparring or running, anything to let out some aggression so he won’t be so mad.

 
I take my laptop back out to the balcony and get started on some homework.

  The semester is wrapping up at Spy School, at least for me. I’ve been working hard to get ahead, and I should finish all my work this week. It’ll be nice to take whole month off from school before my last semester starts in January. I’m excited to graduate, not that anybody ever graduates Spy School.

  All the guys on my team have already graduated, technically, but they’re always still taking classes and working. That’s what you have to do to be a good agent. You have to dedicate yourself and work hard. And Royals—we have to work twice as hard as any other Spy School agent.

  Just as I am about to get started on my French homework, a loud noise comes from the balcony next door, scaring the crap out of me. I put a hand against my racing heart.

  What the heck?

  I shut my laptop and put it on the seat next to me. Standing up, I glance around the wall to see what is going on when I see Jensen. He’s got back to me with his shirt off. I take a moment to appreciate the sight that is shirtless Jensen, but only a moment. He might be a jerk, but he is an attractive jerk.

  The balcony next door is huge. Where ours is barely enough for a couple pieces of patio furniture, next door, the balcony wraps around the side of the building. They have patio furniture, a grill—which I’m fairly sure we’re not supposed to have in a condo—a hot tub, and a punching bag, which Jensen is currently using. He has yet to notice that I’m peeking around the balcony.

  “Can you turn it down?” I yell.

  Jensen spins around, facing me. When he sees that it was me who yelled, his face transforms. One corner of his lip slowly tilts up into his signature smirk. He stands up straighter, puffing out his chest a bit, as he saunters my way.

  The boy has game, I’ll give him that.

  “Roxy Villareal, just the girl I wanted to see.”

  At least he didn’t call me Princess.

  I put a hand on my hip. “Can you please turn down your music? I’m trying to finish up my homework and it’s hard to do that when you’re listening to your chick music.”

  “Chick music?” He raises an eyebrow. “This is not chick music.”

  I chuckle. “I hate to break it to you, but this is chick music.”

  He raises an eyebrow, considering.

  “Do you mind turning it down for, like, thirty minutes?” I ask.

  “Can’t you go study inside?”

  “And risk the wrath of West Newman? No thanks.”

  “He’s pissed about the fight?” Jensen inquires.

  I nod. “Furious. And of course, it’s my fault.”

  “How was that your fault?” Jensen furrows his brows.

  My cheeks grow warm. “Uh, I guess because West thinks I’m too pretty and that’s why guys ask me out all the time. Which isn’t true. Guys don’t ask me out all the time. One guy kissed me at Fight Club after I kicked his butt and you’d think the world had stopped spinning by the way he treated me after. I punched the guy—I didn’t want to kiss him. But it doesn’t matter to West. He despises me for no reason.”

  I don’t know why I’m telling Jensen, of all people, this.

  Jensen leans his hip against the balcony. “West has it bad for you, huh?”

  “No.” I snort. “As if. West can’t stand me.”

  Jensen shrugs. “I’m just saying, he sounds jealous.”

  Jealous?

  West?

  Well… maybe he does sound jealous, but I know he’s not. West has kissed me plenty of times. He’s had a plethora of opportunities to tell me if he likes me like that, but he doesn’t. Not even a little.

  “It must be hard to be on a team when all four of them are crushing on you,” Jensen says.

  I roll my eyes, crossing my arms over my chest. “I don’t really feel like chatting. I just want to finish my homework. Can you turn it down? Please.”

  He shakes his head. “No can do. I need the music to pump me up. I should be done in about forty-five minutes if the hot blonde next door stops distracting me.” He pauses. “A compromise. I’ll turn the music off for thirty minutes if you agree to go out on a date with me.”

  “You’re the last guy on the planet I’d ever date.” I huff, turning on my heel. I grab my laptop from the chair and head back inside. As I’m shutting the patio door, I swear I hear him laughing.

  I hate Jensen Kaplan.

  But as I shut the door, West appears in front of me. Part of me wants to go back out on that patio, but there is only so much I can take.

  “Who were you talking to?” West nods at the balcony.

  “None of your business.” I stomp past him.

  He grabs onto my hand. “Hey, I’m not done talking to you.”

  I yank my hand from his. “Well, I’m done talking to you.”

  Wanting to be alone, I go to the only place I know I can be alone. I open the door to my old bedroom and slam it shut. I make sure to lock it behind me so nobody else can come in.

  My old room is now bare. There is no bed in here. I still have my clothes inside the closet, just because it’s easier to have my own closet than to share with four other guys. But other than a dresser, two nightstands, and a single desk, it’s empty. I sit down at the desk, taking a moment to just breathe.

  What am I supposed to do about the whole Jensen/West situation? I’m not sure I can handle being in the middle of their feud anymore.

  Jensen doesn’t like me, not really. He’s only asking me out to get under West’s skin. Maybe he thinks I’m semi-attractive, but he’s not the type to really date. Spy School is his life—it’s why he’s in The Royals. It’s why we all are. I just wish West wouldn’t get so mad at me for something outside of my control.

  Doesn’t he know that I don’t like Jensen like that? Can’t he tell there is only one boy who I am pining after? And even though it’s stupid, I can’t help it.

  West doesn’t even like me like that. Actually, I’m not sure West likes me at all.

  I groan, covering my face with my hands.

  Why am I so stupid? I swore I’d never be like those girls at Spy School who fell for the bad boy, yet here I am. I fell for the one guy that I know I can’t have.

  Pushing the thoughts from my head, I decide I’ll just focus on other things. Like… The Royal Games. I’m going to show the guys that I am strong enough to be on their team. I’ll train harder than I ever have in my life and work hard so we can beat Jensen’s team. And I’ll do everything I can to stay away from Jensen, Cole, and Rook.

  That’s it. I’ll just stay in the condo until we leave for The Royal Games, that way there is no chance of running into anybody. It’s a genius plan.

  Tuesday, December 5

  Working with the enemy.

  West’s phone rings really early in the morning. We’re just about to head out the door when I hear the tone and I know right away that it’s most likely Michael Sinclair. Nobody else would dare call this early.

  “Hello.” West stops at the door, putting his phone up to his ear. Kal, Ian, Alek, and I all back up, giving him a little space. Since West is the team leader, sometimes he gets information that the rest of us aren’t privy too.

  West clenches his jaw, and it makes me wonder what Michael Sinclair is telling him. Whatever it is, it can’t be good from the way his face turns red.

  “But, sir,” West protests, then goes quiet again.

  West is one of the only people brave enough to try and fight with an order from the director of Spy School. It’s why he’s a team leader.

  “Okay.” West sighs. “We’ll do it.”

  That’s another reason he’s a leader—yes, he fights, but if Michael Sinclair deems it important, West will do it, even if he doesn’t want to.

  “We’ll meet them there,” West promises, ending the call.

  The four of us look at him, ready for whatever order he’s about to give us.

  West rubs his fingers at his temple, like he’s trying to ease a headache. “Everybo
dy pack a bag. We’re going to St. Thomas.”

  I raise an eyebrow. “And you’re sad about going to the Virgin Islands?”

  He finally looks up. “It’s not the location I’m mad about, it’s the company we will have.”

  I swallow hard. “Please tell me that we won’t be going with an infuriating guy who can’t understand that I’m not interested in dating him.”

  West huffs. “Well, Princess, maybe if you didn’t flirt with him, he wouldn’t ask you out on dates.”

  Flirt?

  I’m about to take a step close to West, most likely to punch him, when Kal puts his hand on my arm.

  “Come on, Roxy. We better get ready.”

  Kal’s words have me backing away from West. I need to get ready for this mission—I have an entire flight to fight West.

  I go to the spare room, aka my old room, to get dressed. I quickly change out of my workout gear and into something comfortable for the flight. Normally I’d wear a hoodie on the plane, but we’re going somewhere warm and I won’t be needing something to keep me warm.

  My heart flutters with excitement over the fact that we’re going to St. Thomas, but that excitement turns to dread as I realize I’m going to be stuck on a small island with West and Jensen. What did I do to deserve such horrible luck?

  Stuffing my suitcase full of clothes that I normally wear, I zip it up and am ready in four minutes and thirty seconds. A new record. Still, all the guys are waiting for me when I come out.

  West huffs, looking at the time on his phone. “If Princess is ready, we should go.”

  Without a pause, he turns around, heading toward the door.

  “That joke is getting a little old,” I mumble, pulling my suitcase after him.

  West stops abruptly and I run into his back.

  He turns around to face me. “No, what’s getting old is how clumsy you are.”

  I wait until he turns around to stick my tongue out at him. Kal sees and laughs. He puts his arm around me as we exit our condo.

  “I can’t believe I have to be on a plane with Jensen Kaplan for three hours,” Ian grumbles as he hobbles along on his crutches.