The Elites Of Weis-Jameson Prep Academy: The Complete Series (A High School Enemies To Lovers Bully Romance Box Set)

by Rebel Hart

  The cold air carries with it a new hope. A hope for these unexpected changes, and that they can somehow work out better than we ever planned. While what happened to Emmett seems awful, we both know things might be better this way. Before, he only had one possible path in front of him that he just had to make the best of. Now he has the opportunity to do anything he wants. I call tell the crash of choices scares him, but it’s exciting at the same time. The hope of possibility. And while I promised I didn’t care if things with him weren’t easy, the hope of it all being simpler in the future is refreshing.

  We’re both smiling and grinning in his car, relaxed against the lingering warmth of the heated seats. My fingers loosely grip my phone in my lap, and I see Emmett close his eyes and tip his head back with softened features. It’s something I see him do a lot now, as if he is breathing in as much of this peaceful time as he can before it slips away again.

  Emmett smiles at me from the driver’s seat before he blows into his cold, red hands and rubs them together. The car smells like burnt lint as he turns up the heat, which is strangely comforting. He hasn’t talked to his family since the night they officially cast him out, and Malcolm and Bernadette have yet to return to school. But he seems happier this way. More at peace. I don’t think he could have ever turned his back on his family. Loyalty to them above all else was too ingrained in him for that. But when they disowned him, he was freed and it gave him permission to wash his hands of it all and walk away. I know there is an emptiness left in him, but not for the family he had. It’s a gaping hole for the family he should have had. The one he deserves—much like how I feel about my own father.

  As we drive off, my phone buzzes in my bag. “It’s my mom,” I tell him. “She’s probably wondering if you’re coming over for dinner.”

  “Hell yeah, I am,” he shoots back without hesitation. “I love your mom’s cooking. I’ll come any time she asks.”

  Emmett and I have decided not to tell them everything for now. We know we need to, but we decided we needed time to process it all ourselves first. Plus, we don’t want anything else to change right now. We want to get through the holidays with a sense of calm, and plan to catch them up to speed in the new year.

  “Mom?” I answer, still shivering as the car heats up.

  “Ophelia,” she huffs back, sounding worried. “Are you on your way home?”

  “Yeah, Emmett’s driving me,” I tell her. “Everything okay?”

  “I need to talk to you,” she says sternly.

  “Okay, sure,” I answer pensively, afraid of what this could be about. “What about? Care to give me a hint?”

  “It’s your father,” she replies grimly, stopping my heart cold. “He called me today. I haven’t talked to him since I left him when you were just a baby.”

  “Uh-huh,” I stammer, unable to breathe. “What did he want?”

  “Just come home,” she says again. “I need to talk to you before he gets here.”

  “Gets there?” I demand. “What do you mean ‘gets there’?”

  “He’s joining us for dinner,” she says plainly, but with an obvious tinge of anxiety.

  I hang up and stare straight ahead, wishing the afternoon hadn’t taken this unexpected turn. I want to go back to how I felt just minutes ago, when everything was going well for once. I don’t want my dad in any part of my life, even the dark, distant part my mom doesn’t know about. I can’t stand the thought of those two worlds merging. My mother, who I love. and the man who beat and left her. I hate him enough as it is. I can’t bear to see him with her and let the rest of it slide so easily.

  “What was that all about?” Emmett asks.

  “My father,” I reply breathlessly. “It seems he’s coming over for dinner tonight.”

  My blood boils. I grew up hearing my mom refer to him as the scum of the earth, and now he is coming over for dinner. He was completely absent for most of my life, and then became responsible for the torment I had to endure at the hands of the Elites.

  “I forgot to tell you,” I remember suddenly. “I got pulled over. The night Lily got arrested. The cops were asking me about him again.”

  “Did you tell them anything?” He looks at me questioningly.

  “No,” I reply. “I didn’t know what to say. I wish you had never made that deal with him Emmett. Now I feel like he’s never going to go away.”

  His face contorts. “You know what would have happened if I hadn’t made that deal. One of our fathers would have killed you, and my dad would still be reigning over everything.”

  “I know you were desperate to get rid of him.” I sigh in acceptance. “But it’s like making a deal with the devil. I’m not convinced my father would have been any better than yours…if he had been around.”

  “Well, it sounds like you’re about to find out,” he says ominously.

  I remember my father defending his decision to kidnap me if Emmett hadn’t stepped in. He claimed he just needed to ‘remove me from the game.’ Like I was just some kind of gambling chip in his mind, one that was swinging the odds out of his favor. At the time, I didn’t know if I was better off with Emmett or my dad. Now it seems I’m getting both, whether I like it or not.

  We’ve come so far since then. When everything about Emmett and my dad came out, I couldn’t imagine ever trusting Emmett again after everything he had put me through. I certainly never thought we’d be where we are today. But I can’t help but feel like the lingering presence of my father threatens what we have. I don’t know how, but I know it’s not good.

  “Do you think he still keeps tabs on my mom and me?” I ask Emmett nervously. “You remember what he said after everything happened with your father. About my mother belonging to him before anybody else. You don’t think he’s...trying to get her back or something…He wouldn’t, right? Not with Brendan around.”

  “Despite what you think…your dad and I aren’t buddies, you know,” he reminds me. “My guesses about this whole thing are as good as yours.”

  “I don’t understand why he’s still around!” I lament. “He said he was going to leave me alone now that Thomas is dead.”

  Suddenly, I wish I had told Mom everything. Then maybe she would have known better than to let Dad join us for dinner. I’d like to know how he talked his way into this one, anyway, especially since my mom hates him. Not to mention how Brendan must feel about it. I cringe to imagine what kind of smooth talk he must have laid on them to make this happen.

  “What do you think he wants?” I ask as Emmett continues driving.

  “Maybe he just wants to be closer to you,” he suggests innocently.

  “Oh, come on,” I scoff. “You know better than that.”

  “Well, there’s only way to find out,” he says. “I guess we’re going to have dinner with your dad. And Mom. And stepdad. All at the same time.”

  I swallow hard, wishing there was some way out of it. Maybe if we can get there in time, we can talk some sense into my mom. But I don’t see how we can do that without telling her everything.

  “I guess we need to start working on our story.” My voice cracks. “Decide on a version of it my mom can handle.”

  “Your house is only fifteen minutes away,” he retorts. “I think it’s going to take a lot longer than that.”

  I press my head to the window and look out longingly. I knew things couldn’t stay simple and easy for long, I had just hoped that we could have until the new year before everything went haywire again. But I guess that’s just life in Jameson.

  Prologue

  BOOK 3

  I can practically hear dramatic trumpets playing a funeral march as my boyfriend, Emmett Jameson, drives me straight into my worst nightmare. My mom has just called to inform me that my biological father, Theo, will be joining us for dinner.

  It’s a scenario I’ve never prepared myself for. I grew up hearing her refer to him as the scum of the earth. And I had never met the man until my life came to depend on him in the midst of
being taken hostage in the sick and twisted game of the Elites, which he was more of a central figure in than I ever could have imagined.

  I don’t know how he’s charmed his way to our dinner table right alongside my stepfather, Brendan, who has been more of a father to me than he ever has. All I know is that when he shows up, everything goes wrong. And this is definitely not the way I wanted to spend my first afternoon of winter break.

  “I’m sure it will be fine,” Emmett offers, reaching over from the driver’s seat to squeeze my hand.

  My eyes dart over to him in desperation, wanting to believe he’s right. But his own view of Theo has been skewed ever since they made their demented little deal to kill off Emmett’s monster of a father together all in the name of bringing down the Elites once and for all.

  My cozy, comforting suburban home suddenly looks like a haunted castle with dark, ominous clouds looming overhead and crows cawing as they fly by. As Emmett’s car rolls to a stop in the driveway, I’m frozen for a moment. My hand slides along the seat belt, but I’m unable to bring myself to actually unbuckle it and get out of the car. All I can do is stare at the front door with dread, knowing that behind it, the man I hate so much is putting on his best face for my mom and stepdad as we speak.

  “Let’s just get this over with,” Emmett says as he opens my door and tries to lure me out. “It’ll be over before you know it and everything will be back to normal. We can watch a movie later.”

  I can’t help but snort at the word “normal.” He doesn’t even know what that means. I don’t think I do anymore either, not since the day I arrived in this fucked-up little town. But I take a deep breath and force myself from the car.

  The house smells delicious as we step inside to see Theo sitting with Brendan at the kitchen table. My mom is busy behind them preparing dinner. I do my best to hear what they could possibly be talking about, but the moment we round the corner they both stop and perk up.

  “Ophelia!” Theo chimes, looking especially pleased with himself and this position he’s managed to talk himself into.

  “Hi, sweetie!” my mom sings with a big smile.

  She looks calm and happy, maybe even a little excited, but it seems naïve and dangerous to me. Emmett is quick to take a seat with both of them and soon they are chattering on about sports. Once again, I’m frozen. Staring at the scene in bewilderment. It’s like they’re a bunch of helpless gazelles grazing away in ignorant bliss, completely unaware of the lion stalking from just a few feet away. Only it’s worse than that. The gazelles invited the lion to dinner.

  I join my mom in the kitchen and do my best to corner her. On the phone, she sounded panicked and had wanted to talk to me before Theo arrived, but we didn’t make it on time.

  “You sounded upset on the phone,” I whisper with my eyes still glued to Theo’s back at the table. “What’s going on? How did this happen?”

  She scrunches her nose and waves her hand dismissively. “I was just nervous is all. But as soon as he arrived, I knew everything would be fine. Not nearly as awkward as I expected.”

  My heart races in frustration. None of this makes any sense. My mom hates Theo as much as I do and she doesn’t even know the whole story. But she’s humming to herself as she continues cooking away, cheerful as can be like she’s preparing a meal for a king.

  “Mom,” I hiss more sternly, pulling her to rapt attention. “What the hell is going on!? Why is he here!?”

  “We’ll talk later,” she replies through clenched teeth, breezing right by me to place a dish onto the table. “Sweetie, grab some plates and silverware, please.”

  I want to refuse. The last thing I want to be doing is serving Theo, but I know that making a scene won’t help anything. Everyone is bizarrely calm and cheerful, so I take another deep breath and hope that Emmett was right. Maybe if I just play along for a little bit, he’ll go back to where he came from before I know it and everything will be okay.

  My mom and I set the table and put out all of the dishes, filled to the brim with the makings for building your own tacos. She made way too much food, which means she’s nervous. Even though she already admitted that much, it’s a relief to see proof of it. I need to know that anyone feels even a fraction of the tension that I do.

  “This looks delicious, Lala,” Theo announces gratefully as he piles fillings into a tortilla. Brendan and Emmett let out grunts of agreement, but I still find myself looking around the table wildly, feeling like I’ve stepped into the twilight zone.

  “Ophelia,” my mom blurts, jerking me to. “Aren’t you hungry?”

  I nod blankly and slowly begin putting some things on my plate. I can feel Theo’s eyes looking at me every so often, but mostly he smiles politely and looks around at everyone with a friendly gaze. His grin reminds me of an outside dog who conned his way into the house and is sitting on the sofa like a throne.

  The dinner carries on with small talk and polite conversation. I’m on edge the entire time, expecting his real motive to surface at any moment. But no. We eat, we talk, and then at an appropriate time once the table is cleared, Theo thanks us for the invite and goes home.

  Brendan and my mom show him out, but he stops and turns in the doorway with an appreciative, humble smile. “I can’t thank you two enough for letting me into your home...after everything. I’d…I’d like it if we could do this again sometime.”

  Brendan looks to my mom who smiles and nods hesitantly. Just before starting down the front steps, Theo looks over their shoulders to me with a wave. “It was nice to see you, Ophelia. I hope to see you again soon.”

  All of my questions and fears have been bubbling up for hours. The moment the door closes behind him, it all starts to spill out.

  “Can someone tell me what the fuck is going on here!?” I shriek, causing everyone but my mom to freeze and look at me like I’m a madwoman.

  “Theo called and apologized. He asked if it would be possible for him to be more involved in your life. In our lives. That’s all, Ophelia,” she explains casually as she starts on the dishes.

  “He apologized!?” I fume in laughter. “Can he even do that!? Just call up out of the blue and say ‘I’m sorry’ after what he did? Mom! He beat you! I had never even seen him until we came to Jameson!” She stops and looks up to me with a wrinkled brow and I immediately realize my mistake. As far as my mom knows, tonight was my first time ever meeting him. “Until tonight,” I quickly correct myself. “And anyway, don’t I have any say in this!? Shouldn’t he ask me if he can be a part of my life!? Not just use you to force me into it…”

  Truthfully, he has asked. Or rather implied. I have shut him down each and every time.

  “Enough, Ophelia,” Brendan grumbles from the other side of the room. “This isn’t just about you. Theo and your mom have their own baggage to sort through too, you know.”

  “And you’re okay with that!?” I gape, flailing my arms dramatically.

  Emmett appears at my side, placing a hand on the small of my back in comfort. He doesn’t say it out loud, but I know he’s begging me to calm down. But the calmer everyone else is, the more enraged I feel. I press the issue throughout the night as my mind races through the possible disastrous outcomes of Theo hanging around.

  “People change,” my mom insists, sounding tired. Not by our dinner guest, but by me. “I don’t want to keep hanging on to old grudges. If he wants to try and make amends, I’m ready to let the past be the past. And you should too, Ophelia. You may think you hate him now, but one day when you’re older you’ll regret not taking this opportunity to get to know your biological father.”

  “The sperm donor as you called him!?” I huff back, but she ignores me. She may think I’m being too dramatic or bratty, but she doesn’t realize that Theo’s worst offenses aren’t so far into the past. It’s easy for her to let go of things he did eighteen to twenty years ago and the absence that followed. But once she knows the truth about what Theo has done in just the past few months, I know s
he’ll feel differently.

  Chapter One

  BOOK 3

  There is still a light snow lingering on the ground outside as I look out my bedroom window, waiting for Emmett to pick me up. Just as he promised, the dinner with Theo came and went. We haven’t heard from him since, thankfully. But it didn’t stop me from feeling on edge for the rest of winter break, worrying when he might pop up again.

  But now there are bigger things to worry about. The first day back to school. Even in a normal town at a regular high school, I’d be teeming with anxiousness over today. It’s my last semester in high school, which means in just five short months, I can finally put WJ Prep behind me forever. There’s college, prom, and graduation to think about. But that’s overshadowed by the fear of not knowing what we’re walking into now that everything in our school’s everchanging hierarchy has shifted once again.

  Emmett’s beat-up green Toyota pulls into our driveway. A downgrade from his expensive, luxury sports car that he sold to have more money to live off of now that he’s on his own. It’s a reminder that he’s probably going through just as much anxiety as I am over this first day back. I feel guilty over how comforting that is for me. I’m used to a new semester at WJ Prep feeling ominous, but for once, I’m not facing it alone.

  I bound out the front door and into his car, eager to escape the crisp, cold morning air. He smiles as I jump in, but I can see the worry in his eyes.

  “Good morning,” I lean over for a kiss, avoiding stating the obvious.

  His lips linger against mine for a moment, as if he needs to soak up a few extra seconds of comfort before we take off. His fingers gently trail against my cheek before he finally pulls back with a deep sigh and puts the car into drive.