Sara took a sip of her drink. “Oh, yeah. Whatever happened with that? You were complaining about him every day and then suddenly, you stopped.”
“I stopped pretending to be his girl,” I replied, fingering my burger. “I couldn’t take it anymore. I figured that the investigation was almost through, and I didn’t think it was going to influence the final decision one way or the other, so I told Jace to fuck off.”
Sara reached across the table and gave me a high-five. “Right on, sister!”
We both shared a good laugh and then Sara asked, “What about Stefan? What has he had to say about all of this?”
I froze. After our steamy sex session in the janitor closet, Stefan and I had agreed to cool our relationship again until we were away from here.
“He just wants me to be happy,” I replied quietly, taking a sip of my drink.
Sara was staring at me. “That’s cool, but uh . . . hey, I’ve been thinking. Do you think you could get Stefan to go out with me?”
I nearly spit my drink into her face.
“Are you okay?” Sara asked when I began hacking and coughing. “I’m just saying, your stepbrother’s really hot, and if he’s single . . .”
I held up a finger. “Hold that thought,” I gasped. “I’ve got to go to the restroom.”
I got up and left the table. To be honest, I was partly evading Sara’s question, but I really did have to pee.
The nearest bathroom was closed, so I had to go to another one, down a corridor behind the food court.
The area was deserted and no one was in the bathroom. After relieving my bladder from what seemed like a gallon of fluid, I washed my hands, checked my makeup in the mirror, and then walked back outside.
I only got two steps before I heard a deep voice growl, “Why have you been hiding from me, Bella?”
I turned around to see Jace Randall staring at me, standing near the women’s bathroom door. He had dark circles under his eyes and looked like he hadn’t slept for days. Dressed in a dark hoodie and sweats, he looked like he was dressed for a foggy day and a jog, not a bright, sunny one.
My body went cold all over as I realized Jace must have been stalking me.
“I tried to be nice and give you a chance,” Jace continued, not giving me a chance to respond. “But you didn’t want me. All because you're in love with your stepbrother.”
I glanced around. No one was nearby. “I’m not in love with my stepbrother,” I refuted.
Jace sneered. “Save it. We know that you are. I can see it in your eyes whenever his name is mentioned.” Slowly, Jace began to advance on me and I began to tremble. I debated on running away, but I knew Jace was going to catch me.
I’m sure someone is around here somewhere, I thought. I mean, it's not THAT far from the food court, for crying out loud. He can’t be trying to harm me in such a public place.
I tried to calm my nerves, thinking that Jace was only here to rant and rave his displeasure at my rejection. I’d let him say his piece and then go on about my way.
“First your brother comes here and takes over the top Alpha spot, and even when he screws you, his own stepsister, he becomes even more popular.” Jace scowled at me as he advanced. “How is that even possible? Can you tell me that, Bella?”
My mouth was dry and I had no reply. Nothing I could say would make him stop hating Stefan, so why bother?
“And can you also tell me why you rejected me over him?”
“I didn’t reject you because of him,” I said tersely. “I rejected you because you are an asshole and I’m not attracted to you.”
Jace stopped directly in front of me, his eyes burning. “I’m afraid that’s not the correct answer, Bella.”
Looking into his eyes, I was hit with the sudden realization that Jace had come after me with an agenda, and if I didn’t act, I’d be in serious trouble.
Not giving him a chance to show me what it was that he was going to do, I surprised him by clawing him across the face with my long fingernails, drawing blood and some of his skin.
Jace let out a surprised cry of pain and grabbed at his face. “Ow, you bitch! The fuck you do that for?”
Not wasting any time, I ran away, my heart pounding in my chest, hoping to reach the food court before Jace gave chase.
I counted several seconds before I heard his footsteps pounding behind me. He was closing in on me fast.
“Help!” I yelled desperately, but I was too far away from the food court for anyone to hear me and no one was nearby to help. There was too much noise in the food court for anyone to hear either.
Jace was so close now that I could hear him breathing as he quickly closed the distance.
“Shit,” I gasped, feeling as if my lungs were about to burst. I was running as fast as I could, but I was wearing sandals and Jace was a powerful athlete. There was no way I was getting away.
I cried out as he grabbed me from behind, his arms encircling my waist.
“Where do you think you’re going, bitch?” He growled into my ear, his breath hot on my neck. “You’re going to fucking pay for scratching me.”
I struggled against him briefly and then opened my mouth to scream, but he quickly clamped his hand over my mouth.
“Shut the fuck up,” he snarled, bearing down hard on my jaw, preventing me from parting my lips to bite him. “No one is going to help you.”
He began dragging me away from the food court and away from salvation.
“This is all your fault,” Jace hissed angrily as he pulled me away in the opposite direction. I couldn't believe there was no one walking nearby to witness him, but that’s my luck for you. “For thinking you were too good to sleep with me. You walk around in those sexy clothes, flaunting your tight body and being a major cock tease, and then act surprised when a guy wants to fuck you. But not just any guy. No, you have the most popular guy in the school thirsty for it. And what do you do? You turn me down. No girl has ever turned me down. Ever. I mean, any girl who turns me down must have some serious issues. And then I realized that you do have serious issues. You slept with your brother, for Christ’s sake. What girl in her right mind does that?”
I struggled against Jace’s grip and tried to swear at him, but all that came out was a garbled mess. He was one to talk. Jace was obviously obsessed with getting revenge on Stefan and having sex with me.
“And sometimes, sick people need medicine,” Jace said into my ear, his words sending a chill down my spine. “And I have just the medicine you need.” He pressed his body into me as he made me walk forward, and I could feel his hard cock rubbing up against my ass.
I began to tremble within his grasp as I realized what he was going to do to me.
“Yeah,” he whispered in my ear, aware of my fear and probably getting even more of a kick out of it. “I’m going to show you just exactly what you’re missing.”
I tried to look around for help, someone, anyone, but Jace kept my head in one position as we continued to move forward. Still, I couldn’t see anyone in the vicinity.
Surely, someone had to see what was going on.
Feelings of despair overwhelmed me as the desire to scream, yell, bite, and kick faded away. Even if I could somehow manage to fight back, Jace was too strong. He had absolute control in this situation, and he was going to have his way with me whether I liked it or not.
We were just about to round a corner and probably disappear from any last chance of help when a deep, familiar voice said, “Let her go.”
My heart sang with joy and relief.
Jace whirled around clumsily with me in his arms. “Fuck off, Livingston.”
“I warned you not to lay a finger on Bella,” he said darkly, “and I told you what would happen if you did.” His eyes strayed to me briefly before going back to Jace. For a moment, I wondered how he had miraculously appeared right at that moment, but then I realized that even though we were supposed to keep our distance, Stefan had been watching me from afar this whole time to m
ake sure I was safe.
I loved Stefan even more in that moment.
“I’m warning you one last time,” Stefan said in an even tone, ignoring Jace’s bait. “Let her go.”
Stefan's eyes strayed back to me again and then back to Jace. Slowly, it dawned on me that he was sending me a subtle message. If he rushed Jace, who knew what he would do to me before Stefan reached him? He needed my help.
Jace shook his head. “Not going to happen. You’ve been a thorn in my side ever since you transferred to NSU.”
Stefan’s eyes flickered one last time to mine, and I almost felt a shared connection between the both of us. I knew what he wanted me to do.
Stefan’s voice cracked like a whip. “Now, Bella!”
Jace had gotten distracted by Stefan’s appearance and had relaxed his grip on my jaw, just enough to allow me to open my mouth.
I bit into his palm as hard as I could, breaking skin, the taste of blood and sweat flooding into my mouth. Jace let out a pained cry and let go of me, and I rushed away just as Stefan rushed forward.
I spat Jace’s blood from my mouth just as Stefan collided into Jace’s body with a loud grunt. The two went down on the ground, rolling over each other, each one grappling for domination.
Injured, Jace was at the disadvantage, only managing to score a couple of blows to Stefan’s back, which did little to stop him. After a brief struggle, Stefan overpowered Jace and straddled his midsection.
Then, he began sending powerful punches into Jace’s face. “I told you not to lay a fucking hand on her!” Stefan roared, landing punch after punch.
Nearby, people were coming out of the woodwork, gathering to see the fight. I stared at them in disbelief. Where were these people when Jace was dragging me away?
I turned my attention back to the fight. As much as I felt Jace deserved the beatdown he was getting, I knew I had to stop Stefan before Jace was severely injured, or worse, dead.
I rushed forward and grabbed Stefan’s arms before he could deliver another punch. “Stefan, stop!” I cried. “You’re going to kill him.”
Stefan turned on me, his face twisted in fury. I took several involuntary steps back, my blood chilled. Stefan looked truly frightening. He had a small cut on his lip and his nose was bleeding from the scuffle, but it was his eyes that horrified me.
They were filled with pure, unbridled hatred and rage.
“Please,” I pleaded. “Look at him. I think he’s learned his lesson now.”
Jace lay there, moaning and groaning, his eyes rolling around in his head, eyes almost swollen shut. I should have felt a small sense of satisfaction at his current condition, but all I felt was sick to my stomach.
“We have to leave,” I told Stefan, who looked like he wanted to finish the job. I glanced at all the people who were showing up. “Now, before more people show up.”
This had been the very thing I feared since the beginning—Stefan’s anger being unleashed on someone and causing trouble. Given the circumstances, I suppose he had no other choice, but this probably would have never happened had I not been forced into pretending to be Jace’s girlfriend in the first place.
Stefan turned around and stared at Jace. For a moment, I feared he was going to fly back into a rage and finish the job, but then he climbed to his feet and stepped over Jace’s prone form.
By this time, a small crowd had gathered, and people were whispering amongst each other. Several of Stefan’s frat brothers and Jace’s buddies came running up.
“Stefan, man, what the fuck?” one of them demanded as the others quickly knelt on the ground and began trying to revive Jace.
Stefan ignored him and reached out his hand to me. “Come on, Bella, let’s go.”
With one last look at Jace’s battered face, I took Stefan’s hand and let him lead me away.
“Where are we going?” I asked Stefan as we made our way across the campus.
I had no idea what in the world was going to happen now. Stefan had beat the shit out of Jace. Who knows what lies Jace would make up? All any of the bystanders saw was Stefan beating his ass.
The thought frightened me more than just a little.
But the answer Stefan gave me was one that I had least expected.
He looked over at me and replied, “Home.”
Bella
“You think they bought it?” I asked as I watched Stefan dump his duffle bag on his bedroom floor.
We were back at home and I was helping Stefan unpack his things. When we got back home from NSU, both of our parents had been relieved and perplexed to see us back mid-semester.
Of course, they had immediately inundated us with questions about why we hadn’t answered their phone calls for weeks and bitched about how worried sick they were.
Any longer, my mom said, and she was going to have called the sheriff to come look for us. It was only the carefully designed messages that Stefan left on his father’s voicemail that had stayed her hand.
Stefan, being the devious devil that he is, made up a story that there had been several assaults on NSU campus and that he wanted to bring me back home because he feared for my safety.
He made up some story about me receiving threats from several athletes for speaking out against a sexual assault that had taken place on campus. These athletes, he explained to my parents, would probably not be punished because of their valuable status to the school and would likely be able to carry out their threats against me and be able to get away with it free and clear.
Stefan had even admitted that he got into a fight with a fellow frat brother on my behalf, which resulted in more threats against me.
Rather than risk more fights, Stefan had brought me back home.
Both of our parents, who I thought would be pissed as hell that we were wasting a semester of their hard-earned money and that Stefan had gotten in trouble once again, praised Stefan for doing the right thing and were happy we were both safe.
Luckily for us, the story of our having sex hadn't reached our parents’ ears, and they’d only heard small rumors about a scandal on our campus involving a popular fraternity. Still, there was the problem of what Stefan had done to Jace. From what I understood, Todd made up a story about what happened to Jace so that the school wouldn’t investigate the fraternity further. So, Stefan made good use of the ignorance of our parents to weave a tale that was so good that I almost believed it over the events that really happened. Some of it had truth to it, anyway. I was threatened, and Jace did attempt to assault me.
Stefan grinned at me. “Hook, line, and sinker.” He walked over and gathered me up into his arms, delivering a solid kiss to my lips.
I burned with desire, a feeling of happiness in my heart. Now that we were home, I could have Stefan all to myself. The thought of having sex with him right under our parents’ noses filled me with breathless excitement and dread at the same time.
Our kisses quickly became more passionate, and Stefan pushed me back onto the bed. He gently lowered himself on top of me, smothering my neck with kisses. “You know, Evelyn and Dad are supposed to be going on vacation here soon, after his big project with the Governor,” Stefan murmured, his deep voice filled with unbridled lust. “We’ll have the whole house to ourselves.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” I purred softly, knowing the answer. Stefan’s strong hands on my body and his lips pressed against my skin felt incredible.
He grinned and kissed me hard on the lips. “Making up for lost time and mistakes. Starting with lots and lots of time in bed together.”
I smiled and replied dreamily, “I think I can come to love that.”
I pulled him down into another deep kiss, and we rolled around on his bed until I felt a sharp pinch and cried out.
Stefan pulled back immediately, his forehead creased with concern. “What’s wrong, Bella? Did I hurt you?”
“I don’t think so,” I replied, rubbing at my hip. “Something just dug into my side.”
“Hmm.”
Stefan pulled back off the bed and onto his feet. “Move,” he ordered.
Dutifully, I rolled off the bed, revealing a medium-sized orange package with Stefan’s name on it and no return address where I had been lying.
“The hell is that?” I wondered.
Stefan stared at the item with suspicion. “I have no clue.”
“I think it must have been on the bed before we even walked in,” I suggested.
“Must have,” Stefan muttered absently, his eyes on the package. After a moment, he picked it up and examined it.
He shook the package close to his ear, but it didn’t make much of a sound. Gritting his teeth, veins bulged on Stefan’s biceps as he tore open the top part of the package. He peeked inside before pulling out a folded piece of paper. When he unfolded it and read it, his face went white.
My pulse began to race, my heart pounding so hard that I thought even Stefan could hear it. “What is it?” I asked breathlessly. “What does it say?”
Stefan’s voice sounded strained. “It says For brother and sister.”
“Throw it away!” I hissed immediately. “Now!”
Stefan folded up the piece of paper and stuffed it in his pocket, shaking his head. “I can’t do that, Bella.” He glanced at the package apprehensively. Whatever the package contained, it wasn’t anything big. “Someone wants to give us a message.”
“All the more reason to chuck it out the window. Please,” I begged. “Get rid of it.”
Stefan stared at me. “Do you really want to do that? Obviously, it’s someone who knows who we are and where we live.” Stefan shook his head. “As much as I want to please you, we have to see what it is.”
I crossed my arms, glaring at him. “Fine, whatever. Just do it.”
I held my breath as Stefan reached inside the package and pulled out a small, black, square-shaped item.
“What the hell is that?” I asked in confusion. Then I recognized it a moment later.
It was a flash-drive memory stick.
Whatever was on the drive, I knew it couldn't be good.
Baby Fever Page 49
