I was nobody to him.
However, it didn’t stop Danielle. I know she’s up to something. I can feel it in my gut.
I haven’t mentioned my worries to Selina or Kaiden. What would be the point? I don’t gossip. I know Selina would listen, but so far, it’s just a gut instinct, and I don’t want to cause trouble for myself. The other reason is because I know I can handle anything the spoiled bitch throws at me.
“Hey, Ivy,” Selina greets, her expression falling when she takes a look at me. “Are you okay? You look a little pale.”
“I’ll be fine,” I assure her, looking away from her friend that is staring at me. “I’m heading to bed; will you be okay? I feel bad for leaving you.”
“Of course, I will. I’m heading back to mine soon anyway, so don’t worry about it. Did you want me to come back now?”
“No, you stay and have fun.”
“Okay, text me if you need me.”
I nod, grateful. I’m hurting badly, and every brush of the light breeze, or heat from the sun still beating down, is making it worse. It’s getting late into the evening, but at certain points, the sun felt like it was setting me alight when it hit my sunburn.
I didn’t think to bring any sunscreen or painkillers, and I feel stupid. But it isn’t like I’ve needed it before. I was never out in it long enough to get burned.
I leave Selina with her friends, chatting about school and what to expect from the Academy. I walk past another hot tub before I reach the stairs. I step to the side to let a group past, looking up when a body steps in front of me.
Danielle crosses her arms over her chest, pushing her tits up. I roll my eyes. She pastes on a fake smile, and I want to slap it off her face.
“Going so soon?”
“You going to miss me?” I ask politely, smiling.
Her happy expression falls a little, but she quickly puts up the pretence, looking around before her attention is solely on me. “Don’t think for one second I’m going to let you have him. He always comes back to me. You’re just another piece of arse.”
“If he wanted you, he’d be with you. Jealousy really doesn’t look good on you.” I eye her outfit. She looks good, but I hate the bitch. “Nothing does.”
She shakes her head at me, her expression filled with pity. “Oh, sweetie, you have no idea about the things we’ve done together. He’s a beast in bed. He’ll always want me. And to be jealous of a washed-up tramp who come from nowhere…” She laughs, clucking her tongue. “You’re just a joke. A big joke. And by the time I’m done with you, everyone will be laughing at you.”
“You guys need to work on your threats. You don’t scare me. And if you keep pissing me off, I’m going to make sure you fall asleep crying each night. I’m not some prissy rich kid who thinks the sun shines out of your arse. I won’t bow down to you. I won’t follow you. So get it through your thick head before you make me do something you’ll regret.”
“You’ll see,” she hisses. “You’re pathetic, and I’ll make sure he sees exactly who you are.”
“He’s seen plenty of me,” I whisper, so no one else can hear.
I see her hands lift and react instantly. I guess trying to drown me is high on her to-do list. I push her before she can push me, and I watch with satisfaction as she falls backwards into the hot tub, landing on a couple groping each other.
“Hey,” the lad snaps, shoving her away.
She stands up, looking like a drowned rat. She screams, sliding her wet hair off her face. “This is a fifteen-hundred-pound dress.”
I wince at the high decimal her voice goes. “You should wear better shoes next time, maybe then you won’t trip,” I tell her, a smug smirk on my face.
“You—”
I hold my palm up, stopping her, and step a little closer to the hot tub. I bend down so we’re face level, her face so red it looks ready to burst. “You messed with the wrong chick. I don’t fight fair, and if you keep this up, I’ll fucking ruin you in a way Daddy can’t fix.”
I get up, turning my back to her, and with my head held high, I walk off, heading back to my tent.
I ignore her profanities and high-pitched screeching, smiling as I do.
I’m heading down the path leading to my tent when Kaiden steps up beside me. “You look sore.”
I flick my gaze up at him. “I am. I want another shower to get all the sweat and grime off me, but I’m scared it might kill me.”
“A thousand bee stings.”
“A what?” I mutter, wincing when my top rubs at my back. I could kill Selina for making me wear a bikini top.
He laughs at my expression. “My mum used to say getting in the shower whilst sunburnt felt like a thousand bee stings.”
I frown at him. “That doesn’t make me feel any better. I’ve never really been burnt like this before. It fucking hurts like a bitch.”
Chuckling, he links our hands together. “Come on. I’ve got stuff back at the tent. Our housekeeper is forever babying us and chucking it in our shit.”
“Annette needs to work on that,” I joke, but secretly wishing she had.
We reach his tent without bumping into anyone. He pulls me inside, letting the doors flap shut behind us.
“Go lie down on the bed. I’ve got some after-sun and ibuprofen.”
“My hero,” I sigh dramatically, heading towards the room. The bed looks so soft and inviting I could cry. I wince as I pull off my T-shirt, untying my bikini top. I lie on my front, rubbing at the slight burn I’ve got on my chest. It’s my back that got the most of it as I was either bent over the boat or leaning forward, waiting for something to happen in the water. I’ll never get that time back.
So, I literally spent the day bored out of my mind, didn’t even catch anything and got burnt in the process.
Life.
Kaiden walks into the room, squirting lotion onto his hand.
“Mate, if you think you’re getting some after, think again. Hump the sheets.”
“Just let me take care of you without the bitching.”
“Whatever,” I mutter.
Chuckling, he sits down next to me. I can feel him move closer, and my body tenses because of it, but nothing could have prepared me for the cold onslaught of liquid burning into my skin.
“Mother fucker!” I screech, sucking in a breath. “I knew you were going to torture me. I knew it. Last night was too good to be true.”
I ignore his smug laughter as he keeps applying more. “Wait for it. The burn will start to ease.”
He’s right, but every fresh piece of skin he applies that shit to, I feel it all over again.
“You’re good with your hands.”
“I know!”
“Cocky,” I mutter, yet, my lips twitch into a smile.
He stops, and I relax into the bed, feeling the cream melt into my burning skin.
“I’m going to grab some ibuprofen and a bottle of water. You need to stay hydrated.”
I yawn into the blanket, nodding in agreement. He chuckles, and I hear him move from the bed and out of the room.
He needs to stop treating me like a princess. I might get used to it. Fuck, I think I already am. He’s such a contradiction to the guy I first met. I want to know who the real Kaiden Kingsley is. I can’t trust him until I do.
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
I can hear music and laughter when I rouse from my sleep, which surprises me. I thought everyone would have gone to bed already due to leaving early in the morning.
I barely remember taking the tablets Kaiden handed me before I was lost to the dream world.
Turning over, I smile, finding Kaiden asleep on his stomach, his lips parted as he lightly snores.
He looks younger, more approachable with his frown lines gone and his features relaxed.
I want to stay, and it scares me because I know I can’t. He messes with my head. Our relationship went from him loathing me, to whatever this is now. He was so sure at the beginning, so adamant to make my life
hell that I’m unsure what to believe right now.
The more I think about it, the more it terrifies me, because it happened within a blink of an eye.
And if it turns out this is just some sick game he’s playing, I’m too invested to come out unscathed, and that bothers me the most. I’ve always protected myself. Always. And I’ve let my guard down.
I can’t let him in. I can’t let him have that power over me.
With that settled in my mind, I slowly slide my legs out of bed, grabbing the shoes Kaiden must have taken off when I passed out, and slide my feet into them.
A small lump forms in the back of my throat when I realise Kaiden had tied my bikini top back up. It was thoughtful, but again, it could be him playing games.
I need to get out of here.
I look around for my discarded top, not seeing it anywhere. I grab the first T-shirt I come across, pulling it over my head, grimacing at the slight sting on my back.
I look back at the bed when I reach the opening. Kaiden is still in the same position, none the wiser.
I leave the tent as quietly as I can with such little light. I pat the back of my shorts, happy when I feel my phone still there. I jump down the porch step, onto the grass, and turn to head towards my tent, but a noise startles me.
I spin around, facing the treeline that is fenced off. Even in the pitch black, the white horse stands out as it feeds from the ground.
My lips part. I’ve never seen anything so beautiful in my life. I walk over, ignoring the sting when a few stinging nettles brush my ankles.
He’s beautiful, his hair white as snow. I take a tentative step forward. When I draw closer, his head snaps up, looking right at me.
“Hey, buddy. It’s okay. I’m not going to hurt you,” I assure him, lifting my hand out to him. He bristles a little but steps closer, bringing his cold nose to my hand. I let out a small giggle, stepping even closer so I can run my hand up his snout. His fur is coarser than I thought it would be. I’ve seen so many pictures but never a real-life horse.
They’re magnificent.
“Are you lost?” I ask, running my fingers over his mane.
He neighs, knocking his head against mine. I laugh, rubbing his snout again.
He rears back suddenly, and I have to take a step back. “Woah, buddy.”
Screams and smoke fill the night air, and I spin around towards the campgrounds, my eyes widening when light flickers in the distance, thick, dark grey clouds polluting the air.
The horse gallops off in distress, and I do the same, but instead of running away, I run towards the chaos.
I pass people coming out of their tents to see what’s going on. A sick feeling swirls in the pit of my stomach. Call it intuition, gut instinct, but the need to get to the fire is overwhelming.
The closer I get, the thicker the crowd becomes, and above the yells and cries, I swear I hear my name being yelled.
I push through the crowd, my stomach dropping when I see a tent is up in flames.
Oh my God!
“What happened?” I ask the closest person to me.
A girl around my age with curly red hair shrugs my hand off her arm. “A tent is on fire!”
Way to state the obvious. I try to look around the people blocking my way, to see what’s going on.
Another girl standing with the redhead speaks up. “I hear she’s seriously poor and has no family to bury her. It’s such shame, Shell.”
Her accent is different to her friends. I think she’s from Essex. But her words register and my stomach twists into knots.
“I don’t think that will be a problem. I think she’s burnt to a crisp. I heard she’s some charity case Selina Farley’s family took in.”
Hearing her confirm it, I push past them, ignoring their insults, and push through the small gap between two people standing in front of them.
It’s my tent.
My tent is in flames.
Blinking through the thick clouds of smoke, I try to get closer.
“Ivy!” I hear roared, and this time, I know I’m not hearing things.
Kaiden.
In a daze, I see Grant tackle Kaiden, trying to push him back from the flames engulfing the entrance to the tent. “Stop!”
“Get out of my way,” Kaiden spits in Grant’s face.
“You aren’t risking your life for that bitch,” Grant snaps, blocking his way.
The noise around me suddenly disappears, and I hear what Kaiden hears. It finally registers in my brain, and my attention goes to the tent.
Screaming. Loud, painful screaming. I hear the anguish straight to my soul, and I stagger to a stop, fighting for air.
Someone’s in there.
The terror in their voice paralyses me, and I know I’ll never get the sound out of my head. I don’t care that could have been me right now. I don’t care that it’s my tent.
What matters is the person suffering inside, fighting to get out. They sound terrified.
“Help! Somebody help!”
I can’t make out who it is as their pleas stop.
I take a step forwards, needing to do something, but become glued to the spot once again when, in a rage, Kaiden punches Grant, knocking him to the floor.
Kaiden storms over to the twins, who run up, holding a knife. My eyes widen when I realise what he’s about to do.
“Ivy!” he yells, walking to the side of the tent. His expression is one I’ve never seen before. “Go towards the back.”
People follow him, and numbly, my gaze searches the chaos around me. Lads are yelling for someone to get water, others are trying to pat the fire out with wet towels. Girls cry into their friends’ arms, staying as far away as they can from the flames, but close enough to see the action.
My eyes stop on a small figure hidden in the background, further away from the group of people trying to get a good look.
Danielle.
It’s odd, where she’s standing, blending into the background.
She’s with Sophia and Krystal, glowering at the back of Kaiden’s retreating form. But before that, there was a smugness and sardonic look upon her face.
Shaking myself out of it, I rush down to the side of the tent, feeling the heat from the flames burning my skin. I need to help whoever is in there.
I cover my mouth with the back of my hand, coughing when my lungs fill with smoke. I hit the back of the tent in time to see a body drop through the hole Kaiden has made.
Everything around me begins to move in slow motion, and I feel like I’m stepping in quicksand.
“Selina?” he asks, his face paling as he quickly passes her off to the guy behind him. My heart stops when he tries to get inside the tent.
The twins help pull Kaiden back while another lad takes Selina, pulling her away from the smoke. I run over to Selina when I’m satisfied the twins have Kaiden and drop to my knees on the ground beside her.
Her eyes aren’t open, and her face is covered in soot. “Selina,” I cry out, bending down so she can hear me. I look up to the lad who helped carry her. “Call an ambulance.”
“They’re already on their way,” he explains.
I look down at her body, noticing her arm is burnt, and her clothing is burnt and torn in places.
“Ivy?” Ethan asks, surprised to see me when he bends down on the other side of Selina.
We both turn when Kaiden roars. “She’s in there. She’s fucking in there!”
It takes that moment to truly see that this isn’t a game to Kaiden. If it was, it isn’t now. The agony etched into his expression cannot be faked. It’s real. It’s raw.
“Look after her,” I quickly order Ethan, jumping to my feet.
“Kaiden,” I yell, finally snapping out of my dream-like trance.
He’s about to get himself killed, trying to fight his way into the fire. Grant is here now, standing next to Lucca as they block his path.
“Kaiden!” I yell again, louder this time.
He spins around,
his fingers locked together on the top of his head. I suck in a breath when I see he’s holding back tears.
My feet are moving faster, and before I realise it, I’m running into his arms, wrapping my legs around his waist.
“Ivy,” he breathes, holding me so damn tight I can’t breathe. “Fuck, I thought you were in there.”
“Ambulance, fire engines and police are here,” someone calls.
I pull back, gripping his face. “I’m good. But I need to be with Selina. She’s hurt.”
“I thought it was you,” he croaks.
“I know. I’m good. I promise.”
He puts me down, and I take a step away, but he pulls me back at the last second, kissing me senseless.
“I fucking knew it,” Lucca declares loudly. He begins to laugh as Kaiden and I separate. “Looks like you’ve been dumped, G.”
From the corner of my eye, I see Grant storm off, but I ignore it, kissing Kaiden once more, glad he’s okay.
I guess people know about us now. The twins don’t know how to keep quiet.
“I need to get to Selina.”
“Go. I’ll go speak to the firemen then meet you at the hospital.”
“Okay.”
I head over to Selina. She’s still out cold, and I begin to worry, running my fingers through her hair.
The annoying morning person has come to mean something to me. I’ve never cared about anything or anyone since I was five years old and I gave up on my mum. Selina has been there for me, even when I said no. She’s been there at my worst, and every day since, supporting me and being my friend.
I hate this feeling; this vulnerability inside of me that I didn’t have before. I never had anything to lose, and now I do. And I don’t want to feel weak.
She has to be okay. She just has to be. She makes all of this bearable.
“Please be okay.”
“I’ve called Nova. She’s meeting us at the hospital,” Ethan informs me gently.
When the paramedics come, I get up off the ground, stepping back to let them work on her. I run my fingers through my hair, closing my eyes and wondering how this happened.
How did the fire start?
Was it something I had done?
Wrong Crowd (Kingsley Academy Book 1) Page 20