The Revenge You Seek: A Dark College Bully Romance (Maddison Kings University Book 1)

by Tracy Lorraine

  I drop lower to the hickeys that cover my chest and all the way down to an actual bite mark hiding just below the neckline of my tank.

  I bend slightly, looking at my thighs. Bruised fingerprints darken the skin before I find my Kane Legend brand.

  Well, if he was intending to stop me from being with anyone else then I think he's probably achieved it. Fucking caveman.

  I stare back at myself. My eyes are dark and swollen from lack of sleep and my lips still swollen from his kiss.

  I made the right move not going to class.

  If Luca or Leon saw me like this, well… I dread to think what would happen next.

  23

  Kane

  "Get the fuck out of my way," I bark, shoving against Luca's chest when he lingers in the locker room doorway, stopping me from escaping after our morning training session.

  I'm pissed. Really fucking pissed. And he's staring at me like he's ready to go a round or two.

  Bring it fucking on, QB1.

  I'd love nothing more than to fuck up your arm and screw up your fucking season.

  I knew suggesting she stayed was a fucking mistake but the sex and the sheer number of orgasms affected my brain and for some reason, I thought it was a good idea.

  Then I woke up this morning with a raging hard-on and craving another round before training to find I was alone.

  She fucking bolted in the middle of the night while I was passed out next to her.

  That is not fucking cool.

  I fucking rescued her when no one else could come to her aid and she just fucks off the second I close my eyes.

  I have no idea if she even fell asleep or just bolted the second I started snoring.

  I shouldn't care.

  I fucking hate her.

  But fuck. I want inside her again.

  "For someone who clearly got laid last night, you're in a bitch of a mood, Legend," Luca mocks, his eyes dropping to the scratch marks down my cheek and neck.

  I don't even remember at what point she clawed at me like a fucking cat but hell if it didn't make me hard looking at the marks she left on my body this morning.

  I can only imagine how she looks.

  A smirk curls at my lips.

  I can't fucking wait to look in her eyes and demand to know why she left.

  It certainly wasn't because she didn't fucking enjoy herself.

  "Jealous, Dunn?" I ask with a smirk.

  "Fuck you, I don't want your cheap little whores."

  "You sure about that?" I take a step forward, getting right in his face. "She was fucking wild, man. I guess you wouldn't be able to handle her."

  "Fuck you," he spits, getting so close his chest almost brushes mine.

  "Dunn, stand down," the quarterback coach calls when he spots us about to get into it.

  Luca holds my eyes for two more seconds before he shakes his head and takes a step back.

  "You're fucking lucky I need you."

  I laugh at him.

  "You're a fucking pussy, Dunn."

  He flips me off and trails after the coach, leaving me to shower and dress without the threat of taking him down.

  I crack my knuckles as I head for the shower.

  "You need to stop baiting him," a voice says from behind me.

  "Oh yeah. Why am I not surprised you think that?" I ask, turning on the other Dunn twin.

  "He's your fucking captain. I don't give a shit what the fuck is going on off of the field. But here, practice, training, games. You need to keep yourself in fucking line."

  "Whatever." I wave him off, dragging my shirt over my head and stuffing it into my bag.

  "No, not what—fucking—ever, Legend. You're here because you want to play. You want to win. You want a fucking championship just like the rest of us, so start fucking acting like it."

  "Fucking hell, you sucking off Coach or something?" I mutter, marching toward the shower.

  "What the fuck did you just say?"

  My back collides with the tiles before Leon's fist connects with my jaw.

  "Motherfucker." I launch back at him but hands wrap around my upper arms the second I leave the wall.

  "Enough," someone barks, but I don't look back, my eyes are locked on Leon's.

  "You want to keep your place on this team, your scholarship? You need to get in fucking line."

  Grabbing his bag, he stalks out of the locker room.

  "Get the fuck off me."

  When I spin around, I find Zayn and the two guys who live with Letty.

  I level them all with a look and not one of them says anything, although I can practically hear Zayn's warning that I'm sure is on the tip of his tongue.

  Marching past them, I continue toward the shower. There's no fucking way I'm going to be late to class and miss watching her walk in.

  As planned, there are only a few nerds already in the auditorium when I get there with my takeout coffee.

  I make my way up to one of the seats in the shadows at the back and wait.

  But as the room begins to fill and she doesn't show, I start to get the feeling that something's wrong.

  The two guys from the locker room appear without her, and when the professor appears, I start to think that she's not going to show.

  Is it because of me?

  I slouch down in my chair, trying to imagine what her body looks like this morning.

  I bet it's fucking beautiful with all the marks and bruises I left on her.

  Letty doesn't show her face all day and my cell remains quiet.

  Part of me is itching to message her and demand to know why she left in the middle of the night and why she's not in class, but there's a bigger part that wants to leave her on edge.

  She's going to be waiting for me to turn up to demand answers and I'm more than happy to leave her stewing.

  Luca is surprisingly calm as we run plays during our afternoon sessions and I wonder exactly what the quarterback coach threatened him with earlier to put him in line.

  I know he's still pissed, I see it in his eyes whenever he pins me with a look to silently make demands.

  I might accept that on the field. Leon was right, he is our captain and our starting quarterback, but he needs to think again if I'll follow his fucking orders the second we step off this field.

  I've no idea if he suspects the scratches he pointed out earlier and Letty’s absence today are linked or not, but the fact he's not said anything about it makes me think he's either not put two and two together or that he's trying to convince himself it can't be true.

  Either is fine by me.

  But the time is coming when the truth is going to come out and I'm not entirely sure where that's going to leave us.

  He's meant to be in charge. The one ensuring our team works effectively and all that shit, and he's going to find himself right in the middle of the tension. Leon too.

  If it comes down to it, I know Coach will back them over me. But he won't do it easily. Leon and I are by far the best wide receivers this team has. Everyone knows they'd be leaving too much up to chance if they go into the season with someone else on the offense.

  My need to see her finally gets the better of me when I drop down into my car after practice.

  I'm fucking starving, but that's going to have to wait.

  I'm not missing a chance at seeing her while I'm still on campus.

  I start my car and just about to throw it in drive when my cell starts ringing.

  Pulling it from my pocket, I find Devin's name staring back at me.

  "Yeah?" I bark, preparing to hear that we've got another fucking job despite the fact I'm supposed to be done.

  "You need to come back to the house. Now."

  "Why? What's going on?"

  "Just get your ass here now."

  "Right. Fine. I'm just leaving."

  Throwing my cell down in the center console, I spin my tires out of the parking lot right as Luca and Leon emerge from the entrance. Flipping them the bird as I pass, I
head home to find out what the fuck is going on.

  All three of their cars are parked out the front of the house, which is unusual for this time of day.

  "What's going on?" I ask as I walk into the living area to find Ezra and Ellis on the couch with concerned expressions on their faces while Devin paces back and forth.

  "Look," Devin spits, pointing at something on the coffee table.

  "What's that?"

  "Hidden cameras?"

  "What? Who would do that? Victor?"

  "Funny, we were going to ask you the same thing."

  "Me? I didn't fucking plant them. If I wanna know some shit, I'll ask you."

  "We didn't mean you, asshole," Ezra spits.

  "Okay so—"

  "Your girl," Devin mutters.

  "Scarlett? Nah, she wouldn't…"

  "Was she still here when you woke this morning?"

  "Uh…"

  "And why was she even here, Kane? You fucking hate her."

  Realization dawns and my body tenses in anger as it begins to burn up.

  No, no she wouldn't.

  I really try to convince myself that those words are true, but I already know they're not.

  Last night was a fucking stunt. She fucking played me.

  "She's going to fucking pay for this," I promise the others as I swipe a few of the cameras from the table and retrace my steps from only minutes ago.

  By the time I pull up in the parking lot behind Letty's, I'm more than ready to unleash hell on her.

  What the fuck was she thinking?

  I'm out of the car and halfway up the stairs before I've even taken a breath.

  I don't stop to think about her roommates, I wrench the main door open and storm through.

  "What the—"

  There is a guy and girl I don't recognize at the dining table. Both stare at me with their mouths gawping as I march through their space.

  "Do you mind?" the girl snaps but I don't so much as look her way.

  "Shut the fuck up and mind your own business."

  I'm pretty sure she's more stunned than following orders but she doesn't say anything else as I come to a stop outside Letty's door.

  "Princess, open this fucking door."

  My fists rain down on the chipped blue paint, the entire thing rattling under my force.

  Nothing.

  "Open this fucking door, Scarlett, or I'll kick it the fuck in."

  "You need to leave," a weak voice says from behind me.

  When I look over my shoulder, I notice that the guy has grown a pair of balls and is attempting to stand up to me.

  "Fuck off."

  Ignoring him, I go back to Letty's door until I hear the unmistakable click of a lock.

  Not a second later does the door open.

  My palm slams down on it, forcing it to swing wide open, Letty just about manages to jump out of the way in time to save her from going flying across the room.

  "Shall we call Luca?" the girl screams as I barge inside Letty's room.

  "No, everything is fine," Letty calls back. "Just leave it, yeah?"

  Fuck knows what the pair of them think but I don't give a shit. I'm not here for them.

  "You left," I state, stalking toward her, wrapping my hand around her throat and continuing until her back collides with the wall with a thud, the air rushing from her lungs in shock. "I woke up and you were fucking gone. Why?" I get right in her face, my increased breaths mixing with hers.

  Her eyes are wide as she stares at me. She looks terrified and it makes my cock hard.

  "Why, Princess?"

  "I-I just thought it would be b-better not to do the awkward morning."

  "Bullshit. Fucking bullshit. You're such a fucking liar, Hunter. Has anything that's ever come out of your mouth been the truth?"

  "I haven’t lied to you, Kane." But as she says the words, something flashes in her eyes.

  "Lies," I spit. "Fucking lies."

  "What did I ever do to you, Letty? I fucking wanted you. Just fucking you and you chose him," I hiss, my fingers tightening on her throat, but at no point does she try to stop me.

  Because she knows she's guilty, a little voice says in the back of my head, but even still I pray that I'm wrong. That she's not the deceitful liar she's turning out to be.

  "You chose him and then you fucking killed him."

  My hands tremble and there's no way she misses the reaction.

  Releasing her before I squeeze even fucking harder and do something that I'll forever regret, I take a massive step back.

  Lifting my hands to my hair, I sweep it back from my brow and pull at the lengths until it hurts.

  "I didn't kill Riley, Kane, and you fucking know it. What he did… it was an accident."

  "You broke his heart. It's your fault," I seethe, turning back to her and pinning her to the spot with my death stare.

  "It's not my fault he got in his car drunk, Kane. He was his own person with his own mind."

  "You should have stopped him."

  "How?" She throws her arms up in despair. "He wasn't drunk when he left me. How the hell was I supposed to know what was going to happen. I'm not fucking psychic."

  My chest heaves as I stare at her. I know she's right. I've always known that, but it's easier to pin his death on her and hate her for it than to accept the truth.

  "He fucking loved you," I bellow.

  Her shoulders slump in acceptance.

  "He always loved you, why do you think I let him have you?"

  "You let him? How fucking big of you."

  A growl rips up my throat. "It should have been me," I bellow.

  "But you fucked up and I chose him. What the fuck are you going to do about it now? You going to hurt me, punish me. Get your sweet fucking revenge so you can sleep at night. Well, newsflash, asshole." She lifts her shorts and exposes her upper thighs to me. "You're too fucking late. You've already done all of that. So what's next?"

  Tension crackles between us as I stand immobile, staring at the bruises I caused.

  For the briefest moment, I feel bad for hurting her, for marking her. But then I remember why I'm really here and I forget all about being a decent human being.

  "Tell me the fucking truth, Princess?" I calm my voice and drop my tone. "Why did you run this morning? And think very carefully about your answer."

  She stares at me, her eyes narrowed trying to read me.

  "You already know," she states, calmer than I want her to.

  I want her to fight, to scream, to tell me that I'm wrong. But she's not. Because she's fucking guilty.

  A roar rips from my throat before my fist collides with the wall beside her head.

  She lets out a squeal of shock but she doesn't move as I stand, staring down at her, waiting to hear the words from her lips.

  "Why? Why the fuck would you do that?" I ask quietly, searching her eyes for the truth.

  "You ruined my life, Kane." Her voice is so calm, void of the anger from a few moments ago. Her mood change damn near gives me whiplash. "Why wouldn't I?"

  "You left. You fucked off to Columbia. How the hell did I have any effect on your life? You turned your back on all of us, walked away from Riley's memory and got on with your life."

  A laugh falls from her lips but she's anything but amused.

  "You want to know what happened? You really want to know?"

  "Yes, I fucking want to know. What went so wrong that you had to leave your beloved Columbia and slum it here with us."

  "You happened, Kane," she seethes, her anger resurfacing.

  Resting my forearms on either side of her head, I stare down at her waiting for her to fill in all the fucking gaps.

  "That night at the party…" She sucks in a breath as if she needs to find the strength to say the words. "You fucking got me pregnant, you asshole."

  It takes three long seconds for her words to settle in my brain and when they do, I back up.

  "W-what?" I stutter, still not believing those wo
rds just fell from her lips.

  "You. Got. Me. Fucking. Pregnant," she spits like she's talking to an idiot.

  I rip my eyes from hers and look down at her belly.

  "B-but—"

  My mind races as I try to put everything together. The party was… the party was like… eighteen months ago.

  A year and a half.

  Pregnant.

  Baby.

  "Where's my baby, Letty?" The words sound wrong coming out of my mouth.

  A sob erupts from her as her hand lifts to cover her mouth, her eyes filling with tears.

  "Scarlett, where is my fucking baby?"

  I take a step back toward her, my fists curled and my muscles tight.

  "G-gone," she whispers, her tears finally dropping as she says the word.

  "Gone?"

  "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

  A red haze descends as I stare at her, refusing to hear the words she's saying as fury spreads through my veins like poison.

  "You killed my fucking kid?"

  "What?"

  I take a step back and then another, knowing that if I don't put some fucking space between us right now, then I'll squeeze the fucking life out of her.

  "You killed my best friend. You left me. Then you killed my fucking kid?" I roar.

  Blood rushes past my ears at such speed that I can't hear my own voice.

  Everything is a blur. Nothing makes sense.

  I'm vaguely aware of my name being screamed as I take off. I run through her dorm and fly down the stairs in my need to escape.

  My entire body trembles as I stumble from the building, colliding with some other students as I run around the corner toward my car.

  I hear her voice but I've no idea if it's in my head or if she's actually following me. All I know is that I must leave. I need to get away from her, from the truth, from the pain, from the betrayal, the lies, the deception.

  The second I'm in my car, I start the engine and floor the accelerator.

  I don't see my surroundings, I don't register the stoplights or the intersections or the other cars.

  I just drive.

  I know where I'm heading without even thinking about it.

  But as I turn the corner before the entrance to Hallie's, I take the corner too wide and end up nose to nose with a truck.