Second Snowfall (Elton Hall Chronicles Book 2)

  “I also said some things I shouldn’t have. I didn’t mean to criticize you and Janice,” I replied, trying to smile back at him.

  “Thanks. I’m glad we can move past this. I think Vi will need us at our best.” Jason opened his door and got out. He was right, we needed to get it together so we could be there for Violet. Her problems were much bigger than the petty crap Jason and I were fighting about.

  As I exited the car, I started to slip. I tried to grab the door to keep myself upright but it was slick with snow and I couldn’t get a grip. I closed my eyes tight and braced for impact. But it never came. Confused, I opened my eyes and looked up into the light blue eyes of Jason. He had walked around to my side of the car, apparently to help my clumsy ass. Now he was holding me in a dip with a playful look on his face.

  He didn’t pull me up straight away. Instead, I hung there as we just looked at each other. It was different from when Kingsley looked at me. I felt adored and special whenever he stared deep into my eyes. But with Jason, I felt a little confused and maybe a little uncomfortable. Something in me stirred and I didn’t know how I felt about it. Maybe it was like the feeling you got going up a giant hill on a rollercoaster. Some people really liked that feeling of anticipation while others dreaded it. The jury was currently out as to which group I was in.

  “It’s a good thing I didn’t trust you to walk on your own. We might be on the way to the hospital,” Jason teased as he finally pulled me to my feet.

  “It’s your parking job,” I insisted, walking slowly on the sidewalk to the entrance of the apartment building. “You parked right next to a giant pile of snow. I bet you did it on purpose.”

  “Obviously, I really wanted to see you wipe out.”

  “Then why did you catch me?”

  “I guess I don’t like being the bad guy.”

  “I figured as much,” I said, and took Jason’s extended hand. He clearly didn’t trust me to make it inside on my own. Frankly, he was probably right. These were new boots that I’d gotten for Christmas and I definitely should have scuffed up the soles a little before I wore them. I just wasn’t getting any traction.

  We walked the rest of the way in silence as I tried to ignore the return of the rollercoaster feeling in my stomach. His hand was warm and seemed to radiate heat up my arm and straight through my soul.

  An attendant opened the lobby door for us and we walked in. It wasn’t until we were entering the elevator that I realized we were still holding hands. I thought about letting go. It was on my mind the entire ride up to Berneli’s floor. But for some reason, I couldn’t get my hand to cooperate. I kept hoping Jason would let go on his own and I wouldn’t have to worry about my decreased motor function.

  Finally, as the elevator opened, Jason released my hand and let me exit before him. I walked quickly to the apartment, desperate to be in mixed company. I shouldn’t be alone with him. I didn’t even know where that came from. It wasn’t something we’d done before…well, except at that hockey game.

  I knocked on Berneli’s door and he was quick to answer. “Hey, guys, come on in.”

  I almost ran in and saw Violet, a puffy mess of tissues and snot, balling her eyes out on the couch. “Oh, honey. What the hell is going on?” I asked, rushing to her side.

  She tried to speak but was quickly taken over by a plague of hiccups. She grabbed a used tissue and tried to wipe her face. Jason grabbed some paper towels from the kitchen and handed them to Violet, sitting on her other side.

  “Vi, take a deep breath. What’s going on?”

  She attempted to speak again but the hiccups worsened. Jason and Berneli both gave her a sympathetic look as Berneli leaned over the back of the couch and slowly massaged her shoulders.

  I needed to break her out of this and get her to talk, and it seemed there would only be one way to do it. I stood up and looked down at Violet. “Enough,” I shouted at her. “Get it together. We can’t help you if you don’t calm down. All you’re doing right now is getting snot all over this beautiful couch and Jason’s shoulder. That’s gross and really unnecessary.”

  “Annabelle,” Jason scolded, trying to stop my outburst.

  “No, Jason. This isn’t helping anyone. Tell us what’s going on so we can fix it. Once we know what’s up, then you can go back to the blubbery mess, okay?” I said.

  Violet looked up at me, a little shell-shocked. Her eyes were wide and her eyebrows were raised so high I could hardly tell the difference between them and her hairline. But she nodded and took a few deep breaths.

  “Trent visited me with a message from Finn.”

  Chapter 9

  “What the hell!” Berneli shouted. “Why didn’t you tell me? Love, you should have mentioned that wanker stopped by. I would have—”

  “You would have what? He already guessed I had a thing for you. We don’t need to encourage that. Who would that help?”

  Berneli nodded, but he didn’t look all right. His jaw was clenched tight and he kept cracking his knuckles one at a time. Violet had mentioned to me that was a nervous habit of his and it drove her crazy.

  “Okay, so what did he say?” I asked to break the spell.

  “So. David dropped me off at my dorm for a few minutes. I needed to grab a few books so I could do some homework. He was waiting for me at the door.” She looked over at Berneli and he brushed her cheek lightly.

  Violet, empowered by her man, continued her story. “He didn’t tell me how or why but he said Finn got in touch with him, told him he knew I wasn’t going to come. He’s already mailed the picture.” The tears started again and she reached for one of the paper towels Jason had waiting for her. After blowing her nose, she looked at Berneli and held his hand.

  “I’m sorry about this,” she managed to get out.

  Berneli slammed his fist onto the couch and raked his fingers through his hair. Then he took a deep breath and looked back at Violet. “I don’t regret a moment of this. You have been my sanctuary. I will resign on Monday. There is no way this will affect your future.”

  “It might be too late,” I piped up, almost regretting interrupting their moment. Everyone looked at me and I spoke softly. “The affair happened while you were employed with the school. You quitting just confirms the rumor. Violet would still be at fault. I looked up the rules and some similar cases. I wanted to be prepared if something like this happened.”

  “Is there any way out?” Jason asked me.

  “I’ll keep looking, but I haven’t found anything yet.” I motioned to Jason, and pulled him to the side.

  “What’s up?”

  “Let’s just give them a moment to themselves. Berneli probably wants to talk to her.”

  “We’ll be in the hall so you guys can talk for a second.”

  Jason and I went outside and I slumped against the wall.

  “It will be fine. This is probably the best case scenario. Who knows what would have happened if she went to see him in jail. So it’s a picture of them kissing. That doesn’t prove an affair happened, and it certainly looks bad coming from the guy Vi put in jail. We don’t know what’s going to happen.” Jason slid down the wall and sat next to me. “There’s a chance it could work out. Worst case, she gets kicked out of school. At least she’s not hurt.”

  I rubbed my face with my hands, ignoring my make-up. “I hope you’re right. I didn’t have a lot of friends in high school. If she gets kicked out of school, I—”

  “You’ll have me. I’m not going anywhere,” he promised, draping an arm around my shoulder, and I leaned against him.

  I didn’t have the heart to say I might not have him either. I liked Kingsley, but I didn’t want him to be the only person in my life. That was too much time together. I’d have to talk to Kingsley. I still needed Jason in my life.

  “What were you up to today?”

  “This is probably not the time to mention it but, uh, well, you wanted me to be honest, right?”

  He nodded and I continued. “Well, I w
ent on a date with Kingsley today and we decided to become official.”

  Jason’s face fell and he pulled his arm from around me. “Good, that’s good.”

  “If it were so good, then why do you look like I told you that your cat was run over?”

  “Well, I’ve had that cat for many years, and if he were run over, I’d be devastated.”

  I hit his arm. “I’m serious. I don’t want this creating any more problems between us. You’re my friend too.”

  He stood up and paced in the hallway. “I don’t know. There is just something about him that sets me off. And he’s such an ass around the dorms. Do you really think he’s going to be cool with us hanging out all the time?”

  “Kingsley might have mentioned that it bothers him when we’re together, alone.”

  “See, that’s what I mean. Why is he trying to control who you’re with?”

  “He’s not. He’s just threatened by you and our friendship.”

  “But why?” He knelt down in front of me, his face inches from mine. “Is there a reason for him to feel threatened?”

  The door opened and Violet was standing there, mouth open, eyes wide.

  “I’m sorry, I’ll leave you two alone.” She closed the door.

  “We definitely can’t do this now.” I got up quickly, stumbling and tripping over Jason’s shoelaces. I grumbled, frustrated, and turned to look at him. “Just tie your shoes and meet me inside.”

  Berneli walked around the couch and knelt in front of Violet. He put his hands on her knees and looked up at her. “Listen to me. I don’t care what he says. I’m not leaving you. If Trent can just walk up to you, then I’m afraid for you. It’s a nightmare to think those two might be teaming up.”

  Violet sighed and tears started to pour out of her eyes. “Do you think he’s who left the flowers?”

  Jason and I looked at each other and he had the same confused look on his face that I did. “It doesn’t make sense. Why would Finn and Trent team up? How would they even know to do that?” I didn’t think this was true. Someone must be pulling the strings. Neither one of those guys seemed that clever or manipulative. Yeah, they were jerks, but they weren’t super sneaky.

  “I don’t know. But I’m just—”

  “Violet, love, if these blokes are playing games, I think you need to spend a little more time at your place and less time here.”

  “What are you saying? Are you breaking up with me?” She grabbed his hands tighter, as if it was the only way to keep them together.

  “No, I just think we need to keep apart until the investigator figures out what’s going on. I don’t think it should be much longer. If us being together is setting these wankers off, then I won’t risk it. It’s not about jobs or education, it’s about your life. I’d hate to think that someone was following you.”

  “Someone has to be following you,” I insisted. “Where do you think they got the picture?” I’d kept it in as long as I could. I was done trying to be strong for her. I needed to speak my mind.

  “Not helping,” Jason growled at me.

  “What? We can’t pretend like she isn’t at risk.”

  “My love,” Berneli interjected, and turned to look at Violet. “I’ll call the investigator, and up my payment. We’re going to get this sorted out soon. It won’t be for long.” Berneli reached out and gently wiped her tears away. “I’m going to end this. I’ll tell them I caught you by surprise. Let me take the blame for this. I can get another job. They may even take me back in London. The dean of our program is one of my mates.”

  “Just promise me this isn’t over,” Violet begged him.

  “Never.” He leaned in and gave her a sweet kiss.

  I stood up and tried to keep my own tears at bay. It was heart wrenching to watch the two of them together. Their love for each other was strong and I hated to think of this stalker playing with them. It wasn’t fair and it was affecting me. To make matters worse, looking at how Berneli cared for Violet made me jealous. I hoped I would find someone who cared for me like that. Maybe I had. I couldn’t help but think what Kingsley would do if he thought someone was trying to play the same games with me. All I could see was Kingsley going after Finn and Trent with a fire ax. I had to force back the smile as I pictured him standing up for me. I had no doubt he would. It probably wouldn’t help, but it was nice to think I had someone willing to fight for me.

  “Vi, why don’t Annabelle and I leave you guys. I can pick you up tomorrow and we can grab some takeout and watch a couple movies. Annabelle and I will be there for you. It won’t take forever for this to be dealt with. Have some faith in Berneli’s investigator.” Jason walked over to me and placed his hand on my lower back. “Come on. You said it yourself, they need to be together.”

  I made eye contact with Violet and she nodded her head, indicating it was all right for me to leave, so I let Jason lead me out of the apartment. We drove in silence and were in the parking lot of the dorms before it all overwhelmed me. I was scared. Scared for what could happen to Violet, scared for Berneli, and scared for what their future could be. What if something else happened to her? After last semester, she didn’t deserve it.

  Jason looked at me and placed a hand on my knee. “Don’t cry. You heard Berneli. The private investigator is going to handle it and they will be fine.”

  I turned to look at him but I barely saw his face through my own tears. I forced them away, disgusted at myself. I didn’t do tears and here I was balling. “Jason, she barely got away last time. She’s my best friend and she’s in danger. Like, real danger, and I can’t do anything. Finn is in jail, and that’s awesome, but what about this sidekick? What if…” I managed before my body started shaking.

  He got out of the car and opened my door for me. I climbed out and Jason pulled me into a hug. He started stroking my back and I crumbled into him. “Come on, let me get you back to your room. Those tears are going to freeze to you pretty face and then we’re not going to be able to take you anywhere.”

  I started laughing and we walked up to my room. Earlier, I had been scared to have him in my car, and here he was coming up with me to my room. Kingsley was going to freak out if he found out, but I needed Jason. I didn’t want to be alone just yet. I knew I couldn’t tell Kingsley exactly what was going on with Violet, but maybe if I explained to him that things had gotten bad, he’d understand exactly why I needed Jason. He wasn’t available to be there for me at the moment.

  Jason followed me in and I walked over to my bed. “Hungry?” Jason asked as he sat down in the desk chair.

  “Yeah, I think we definitely need some Chinese food.”

  Jason nodded and took his phone out. The two of us had spent enough time together that he knew my order by heart. I loved the sweet and sour chicken with steamed dumplings and egg rolls. Actually, I definitely needed more egg rolls. Tonight was going to be a comfort food extravaganza. I was about to tell Jason to get an extra order but he held a finger up at me.

  “Yes, we’re going to need four orders of egg rolls.” He finished ordering and smiled at me. “Is that going to be enough? I can call back and add to it.”

  “No, that’s plenty. How much do I owe?” I got up and grabbed my wallet out of my purse. It was sitting on the desk in front of Jason where I left it when we walked in.

  He stopped my hand and shook his head at me. “I got it, don’t insult me. Come on, we need a distraction.” Jason led me over to my bed and turned the TV on. “If you beg enough, I might even watch that stupid dating show you and Vi love so much.”

  “I think you actually like it too. Let’s not deny that the drama gets you all excited.” I took my laptop out from under my bed and hooked it up to the TV so I could stream it.

  “Yeah, I’m sure that’s what gets me excited.” He climbed on the bed and settled in.

  The food came and we chowed down. “What are we going to do about Violet?” I asked him as I inhaled my third egg roll.

  “I’m working on somet
hing but I don’t want to say it yet in case it doesn’t work out. Between my plan and Berneli, no one is going to lay a hand on her and Finn’s fuckin’ letter won’t matter.”

  I nodded but I still couldn’t suppress the thoughts. “I just wish we knew why Trent was working with Finn and if he is the only one helping him. Then we could shut this down. It’s not like Finn can actively do anything.”

  “Annabelle, look at me.” Jason placed his hands on my knees. “Listen, we aren’t going to let anything happen to Vi. If I have to walk her to and from class every day, to her dorm, wherever. Hell, I’ll drive her to Berneli’s and pick her up. If I need to, I’ll sleep on his couch. She’s my best friend too.”

  “The couch is actually very comfortable.”

  It took a moment but then I remembered. He and Violet were almost as close as I was with her. I now saw the hurt in his eyes, the wrinkle in his forehead, and the jitter in his leg. I had been so self-centered that I didn’t think to check on him. He wasn’t just saying these things to make me feel better, he needed to feel better too.

  I didn’t know who moved first, but we were hugging on my bed. He gently tucked my head into his neck and I tried to even my breathing as Jason stroked my hair. It was so relaxing that I closed my eyes for a second.

  ***

  I woke up cuddled up next to Jason. His arm was wrapped around my back and our legs were intertwined. My hand was up his shirt and resting on his pec and his hand was on my upper thigh, my upper, upper thigh. He was breathing heavily, and at first I didn’t want to wake him. Then I realized just how ridiculous that was. I sat up quickly and jarred Jason.

  “What’s going on?” I exclaimed.

  Jason’s eyes shot open and he jumped out of the bed. “You fell asleep and I figured I’d sit with you for a few minutes. I guess I must have passed out too.”