Mom and I share a look and it’s as though we can read each other’s minds. She’s not sure about this kid and the feeling is mutual. She sends me a silent warning to keep away from him and I nod, completely on board.
Getting mixed up with the boys in the Breakers Flats Black Widows is one thing, but getting mixed up with a rich boy is something else entirely. A Black Widow would use me and leave me brokenhearted, but a rich boy would humiliate me and leave me completely destroyed. They’re both dangerous. I guess it’s a question of which kind of danger gets me the hottest.
Right now, I'll be fine without either.
Colton reaches a massive staircase and skips up the steps two at a time, leaving me and mom to scramble behind him. He stops by a door and turns to watch us as we hurry to catch up. His long, thick fingers curl around the door handle and he swings it open. “Maria, you’re in here,” he says, not missing a beat before turning and continuing down the hall.
Mom stops by the door and peers into what will be her room for the next few days as I follow Colton, knowing that if I miss which room he says is mine, I'll probably end up sleeping in the hallway.
With one big stride, he steps over to the opposite side of the hallway and comes to a stop by a solid wooden door. He turns while curling his hand around the handle, his earthy eyes coming to mine. “Your room.”
The door swings open and I go to step into it, but the prick steps right into my way, cutting me off. His eyes drop once again and I know without a doubt that he’s judging me. “Don’t get too comfortable, Jade. You won’t be staying long.”
I raise my chin, taking this for what it is—a challenge. He’d be smart to learn now that I’m not the kind to back down from anyone’s bullshit, especially not from some rich, entitled prick. I don't care about his muscles, his good looks, and dreamy eyes. When someone has thrown down a challenge, nothing else matters.
My eyes narrow on his and I square my shoulders. “You don’t scare me, Carrington. Where I come from, the people come packing a lot more than what you’ve got. You’re nothing but an entitled prick who likes to play with daddy’s things.”
“You don’t want to try me, trash.”
I push up onto my tippy-toes and let my lips brush past his. I lower my voice to the softest whisper. “Watch me.”
I bring my hand up and give him a hard shove back, creating space for me to walk past. I step into my room and grab the door, more than ready to slam it in his face. I only need him to back up one tiny little step but something tells me that’s a harder challenge than it ought to be. “And for the record, the name’s Ocean.”
Colton’s tongue shoots out over his bottom lip, right where my lips had brushed over his. He stares at me for a second, almost shocked that I had the nerve to stand up to him. I raise my brow, impatiently waiting for him to say whatever douchey comment he needs to say before fucking off.
“You and your mom, you’re both trash,” he says slowly, pronouncing each word as though I’m incapable of understanding his message. “You don’t belong here. You won’t last more than a week.”
A breathy laugh pulls from within and I grin up at him, feeling my eyes shimmering with excitement. If he thinks his comments are going to scare me away, he’s got another thing coming. He's got the wrong girl. “Tell me, Colton. Are you a dick to everyone, or am I already so far under your skin that you need to aim all your bullshit at me?”
He laughs, rubbing his hand over his wide chest. “You’re nothing, Jade. You don’t have the power to get under my skin. You’re some cheap whore from who the fuck knows, living it up as though you’re playing Cinderella. I see chicks like you every fucking day and it’s pathetic. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not going to say no when you offer to suck my dick for a few bucks, but you won’t be getting shit out of me or my family.”
Wow. He’s so pleasant. Daddy Warbucks must be so proud.
“You need to scrub up on your people skills,” I laugh, entertained by his tough-guy act. “Not sure if anyone has told you, but they’re really fucking lacking.”
“There’s nothing wrong with my people skills. It’s my tolerance to trash that needs work.”
A wicked grin spreads across his face and not a second later he’s gone, leaving me staring at the empty doorway, unsure of what the fuck had just happened.
Chapter 4
My door hardly has a chance to close behind me before mom is there, stepping into my massive room and glancing around. “Wow,” she says, taking it all in. “These rooms are …”
“I know,” I say, still looking around while pretending that I'm not at all fazed by the cocky prick who just vacated my doorway with a silent promise of running me out of here.
What does he think is going to happen? Is he going to pull out all his douchiness and force me to leave, or does he just assume that mom and I don’t have what it takes to make it in this cut-throat world? If that’s the case, he doesn’t understand who he’s messing with. Mom and I have had to grow a thick skin living in Breakers Flats. We dealt with dickheads like this daily—usually before breakfast.
Mom walks deeper into my room which is when I notice my luggage is already here and I have to admit, I'm amazed by how quickly that happened. The staff here are seriously on the ball.
I make my way over to the massive floor to ceiling windows and peer out with mom coming to stand by my side. "This is insane, isn't it?"
“It is," I agree, looking out to see the very edge of the pool, only to realize this isn't the same pool that I'd been drooling over earlier, but a secluded, more private one. There's a building beside it and my brows furrow as I point it out to mom. "I wonder if that's the pool house."
She moves in closer and looks down, pressing her lips together. "Maybe," she says with a shrug. "Who would actually know? This place is huge. It's going to take me a while to learn my way around here."
"Right."
"I wasn't quite expecting the Carrington mansion to be quite so ..."
She stops, lost for words and I give her exactly what she's looking for. "Intimidating?"
"Yeah," she agrees with a soft chuckle. "Charles was lovely. Nicer than I had expected and very handsome too."
I roll my eyes. "Shame his personality didn't rub off on his son."
"Yeah," mom sighs. "I caught that. Are you alright? Colton didn't seem to take a liking to you. I wasn't fond of the way he was watching you."
"It'll be fine," I assure her. "I can handle guys like Colton Carrington. He doesn't scare me."
Mom's hand falls to my shoulder and she forces me to turn and face her. "Are you sure? I can have a quiet word with Charles if you'd prefer. After all, you have to live with the guy now. I can't have you getting in trouble or stressing about what he might do. You have school work to think about."
"Mom, seriously. It's fine. I can handle myself. Dudes who think their dicks are huge just need a woman to help remind them of their place in the world. Speaking of school, were you ever planning on telling me that I was enrolled in some prissy private school?"
Mom shakes her head, letting out a heavy sigh before giving me a caring smile. "I worry about you sometimes."
“Seriously? That’s all I’m going to get? Why is Charles paying for me to go to school? At least, I’m assuming he’s paying for it because there’s no way we could afford it.”
She groans and I can see from the look in her eyes I’m not about to get a response, though I can’t tell if it’s because she doesn’t want to explain the answer or because she doesn’t know it. “Can we talk about this later?” she questions. “I need to get back down there. Just tell me if I need to be doing something about Colton?”
"No," I say with a frustrated huff, giving in. I’ve got all day to find answers and if she won’t explain it to me, then I'll have to figure it out on my own. "I might be 5'2 but my attitude is 6'1."
"I know," she groans. "That's the issue."
I laugh and step away from the window only to have mom come w
ith me. "Are you going to be alright if I go back down and meet with Maryne?"
"Of course," I tell her, knowing how eager she is to start training for her first day tomorrow morning. "I was going to check in with Nic and look around a little."
She sighs and I know exactly what's coming. “I really wish you'd take a little space from Dominic. It's not a healthy relationship."
"Not this again, Mom," I groan, watching her make her way across my new room and stop by the door. "Nic is my best friend."
"I know this … I just think it'd be good for you to find some new friends who don't have gang affiliations. You know that boy is going to end up taking over for that troubled father of his. It's only a matter of time."
I let out a sigh. She’s right but it’s not going to be the same. "Nic's not like Kian. He's never hurt me."
"Yeah, that's what I thought until you caught him with that Saunders girl."
"Mom ..."
“Look," she cuts me off. "What's it going to hurt to talk to a few girls at school tomorrow and try to make some friends? I know Nic has a good heart despite his downfalls, but whether you like it or not, he's heading down a bad path … a troubled path that I don't want you getting involved with. That goes for all those boys of yours and besides, they’re too old for you. You could do with some friends your own age."
Realizing she isn’t going to back down here, I let out a sigh and nod. “Fine. I’ll try and make some friends but you know I don’t mesh well with girls. They’re too bitchy. And for the record, Nic is only twenty-one, it’s not like he’s that much older than me.”
She gives me a scathing look and reaches for the handle. “Four years is a lot at seventeen,” she tells me. “But try with the girls.”
With that, she’s gone.
I stand awkwardly in my room for a few drawn-out moments, not sure what the hell I’m supposed to be doing. What does a poor girl in a rich world even do apart from cleaning up after slobs?
My legs are itching to take me out of this room and explore the estate but something’s holding me back and it’s pissing me off that I don't know why. Seeing as though it’s not Harrison who I want to avoid seeing, that only leaves one option and it infuriates me that he’s already managed to get under my skin. Though I’d bet what little I have left that the dickhead is currently moping around his castle with me on his mind. I know I’m under Colton’s skin, it’s just a question of what it means to be there.
I find myself walking circles around my room, taking it all in. A massive king-size bed with about as many pillows as there are staff in this circus, a massive walk-in closet which I wouldn’t be able to fill if my life depended on it, and a private bathroom. The walls are white, the bedspread is white, the furniture white, and even the curtains are all white. It’s so clinical but in a modern living kind of way. Certainly not my style.
I don’t doubt that I’m going to fuck it up. I can’t be trusted not to spill my midnight snacks everywhere. At least it’s only for a few days before we’re moved down into the pool house and a step further away from the prince of darkness.
My phone vibrates against my ass cheek and I slip it out of my pocket, smiling down at Dominic’s name. “Well, well, well, I’ve hardly been gone three hours and you’re already calling me,” I say, answering the phone as I flop down onto the too comfortable bed.
“Shut up, I had to make sure you made it there alright.”
“We did …”
“And?”
“And it’s just as bad as I thought it was going to be. Everywhere I look, there’s a sign of how much money they have to waste. There’s a fucking indoor pool and you can press a few buttons and it somehow becomes an outdoor pool. The whole ceiling opens up, Nic. It’s crazy. There are secret rooms, private bars, and a butler with his head shoved so far up his own ass that he probably eats his own shit for breakfast. Not to mention, the guy has a douchebag son who’s in serious need of an ass-whooping.”
“Yeah, I know,” he says dangerously.
“Right … wait. How do you know the guy is a douchebag? I don’t even think I told you where I was going.”
Nic scoffs and it turns into a deep chuckle. “You really think I was going to let you walk out of Breakers Flats without knowing exactly where you were going and who was going to be around you?”
My eyes practically roll into the back of my head. “Why am I not surprised?”
“You’re my girl, O. I’m always going to be looking out for you. No matter what.”
“I’m not your girl anymore, Nic.”
“Don’t start with me, babe. I just watched you walk out of here. I’m not about to listen to you reminding me of how I fucked it all up.”
I scoff, fighting a grin. “You fucked it up real bad.”
“Cut the shit, Ocean,” he says with a sigh before getting back on track. “Just do me a favor and stay out of Colton’s way. The guy is bad news and I don't want you getting caught up with him.”
“Seriously? It might already be too late for that,” I laugh, picturing the way Colton is probably fuming to daddy about their little house guest. “But what kind of bad news could he be? Surely he couldn’t be any worse than you or the boys.”
“Just … stay away,” he says with that familiar annoyance when having to deal with me, but deep down I know he loves it. He lives for this shit. Keeping something from me ‘for my own good’ is one of his favorite pastimes and because of that, I know he’s not about to give me what I'm looking for.
“You realize I’m currently living in the same house as him. Staying away from the guy isn’t exactly going to be that easy when I’m sitting across from him at the breakfast bar.”
“Ocean, I’m being serious.”
“So am I. What’s the big deal? He’s just some arrogant rich dude with a chip on his shoulder.”
“He’s bad news, Ocean. He’s not like the guys you’re used to dealing with who get put down and stay down. Guys with money, they keep coming back until they win. It’s a game to them. Something to keep them entertained until the next thing comes along. I know you, O, and you’re going to see this guy as a challenge, and being the girl that comes from nothing, you’re going to be his most exciting game yet. I don't want that for you.”
“I can handle myself,” I tell him, feeling as though I’m having to repeat myself after having a too similar conversation with mom. Only with mom, she gives up a lot easier. “I’m not a child who needs protecting anymore, Nic. I’ll be fine. You don’t need to worry about me.”
There’s a short silence and when he finally sighs, his voice is low and filled with emotion. “You won’t be fine, Ocean. I’m going to lose you to that world.”
“That'll never happen,” I whisper.
He goes quiet again and just when I start thinking that maybe he’d ended the call, his velvety voice comes murmured through the phone. “How are you really doing? No bullshit.”
I press my lips together and give him my honest truth. “Dead inside but I’m caffeinated.”
“That bad, huh?”
I close my eyes, not wanting to keep looking at the plain ceiling any longer. “I miss you guys. I don’t belong here. Neither of us does. Mr. Carrington has already taken it upon himself to enroll me in some fancy private school so unfortunately for you, It’s not just Colton you have to worry about, but a whole school filled with rich pricks.”
“The fuck?” Nic grunts. “What’s his game? Why does he give a shit about your schooling?”
“I don’t know but I don’t like it. I’m kind of hoping it’s just some way to look good in front of his rich friends. You know, maybe they have a club and he’ll get a badge for taking us in and giving the poor girl a better life. Maybe I’m just a charity case.”
Nic chokes back a laugh. “Trust me, nothing in that world is ever going to be that simple.”
“Yeah, I had a bad feeling about that.”
“Alright, babe. I’m out. Dad’s out of town for the day so I
’m playing boss man today.”
“Shit. Don’t fuck anything up and get yourself killed.”
I can practically hear his smile through the phone. “Can’t make any promises. Bye, O.”
Nic ends the call, and the second his voice fades away I’m left missing him so much more. I don’t know how it’s even possible, but somehow he seems so much further away than he did ten minutes ago.
I drop my phone to my stomach and just lay for a minute, but that minute quickly turns into ten and then thirty.
My stomach grumbles and the need to pee creeps up on me and I recall that after the third coffee I had this morning, I failed to actually eat anything.
I pull myself up from the bed and drag my feet across the floor to the bathroom. I guess a private bathroom is one of the few bonuses around here.
I push the door open and find myself gawking. What the fuck is that?
I walk over to the toilet, warily keeping my eyes on the second toilet that doesn’t exactly look like a toilet. It’s kind of more like a urinal but not … wait. Is this one of the bidet things mom was talking about earlier?
No fucking way.
I find myself laughing and as I drop my pants and sit on the toilet, I stretch my foot up to the little lever on the side of the bidet.
Water squirts up into the sky and my eyes bug out of my head.
No. Hard fucking no. I’ll pass. This thing really does squirt water up into your asshole. What’s a girl supposed to do? Squat over this thing and voluntarily get ass raped by pressurized water? Hell to the mother fucking no. I’d rather clean my ass with a scourer than participate in this ass witchery.
I bet Colton has one of these and I bet he loves it. He probably lives for getting fucked over by inanimate objects.
I finish in the bathroom and find the nerve to open my bedroom door. Feeling like a complete idiot, I peer up and down the hallway, making sure there’s no sign of Colton Carrington before venturing out into this big house. I don't understand my hesitation. Twenty minutes ago when he stood at my door, I practically screamed from the rooftops that I could handle his bullshit. I practically dared him to try his worst yet here I am ready to scamper away at the sight of him.
Tough Sh*t: A Dark High School Bully Romance (Rejects Paradise Book 1) Page 4