My Ex From Hell (The Blooming Goddess Trilogy)

by Darling, Tellulah

  Yup. I could hear her around the corner, chatting to her main suck-up, Veronica Chen. Veronica modeled herself after Bethany in looks and attitude, her only individuality being the high, sleek ponytail she always wore. I could just imagine the rapt expression on her face as she listened to her idol.

  Cassie placed a hand on my shoulder. “Watch yourself,” she cautioned. “All kinds of things can happen at midnight on Hallow’s eve.” Then she slipped off down the hallway.

  I stared after her for a second, concerned, before shaking it off. There was no way she could have known what I was about to do. Just Cassie being Cassie.

  I slipped behind the open bathroom door and pressed my back against the wall.

  Bethany was still with Veronica. I held my breath. I couldn’t pull this off if Veronica hung around.

  “If I need you to wipe my ass, I’ll hand you the toilet paper. Now back the hell off.” Bethany was such a charmer. I heard Veronica stammer her apologies and flee.

  Bethany was now running as she rounded the corner into my hallway.

  The click of her heels grew louder and louder. I held my breath, keeping to the shadows as much as possible.

  Bethany whipped into the bathroom and slammed the door behind her. As she groaned and her bowels let loose, I jammed up the lock as I’d been shown. With any luck, Bethany would think she’d locked herself in. The perfect perpetrator-less crime.

  I’d done it. For once, I was going to have the upper hand and make Bethany hurt. Not huge amounts of hurt, since she didn’t even know this boy, but it would always bug her—missing out on what could have been the hottest hookup of her life—and that was good enough for me.

  I jammed on a cute black hat that I had at the ready. Identical to Bethany’s hair from a distance, my wig wasn’t up to close scrutiny and with the hat, it would just be the dark red ends sticking out. That ought to fool the guy. I darted through the exit into the moonlight.

  It was one of those perfect fall nights. Unseasonably warm with the right hint of chill and autumn crispness. Still, the sight of all the plants giving one last hurrah of color before dying always made me a little sad.

  I took a moment to breathe in the clean, country air and marvel at the silvery landscape. The moon was full and fat and seemed to wink cheerfully at me.

  The grass was damp beneath my shoes as I bounded out toward the back fence. Our school’s entire grounds were surrounded by a fence. Not a large one, more for show. Or so I thought. It was one of those chest-high, chain link deals, easy enough to hoist yourself over. Not that I ever had. I’d never gone out of bounds unless forced to in science class. There was just more grass, then some pine woods, and I didn’t see the attraction.

  I later realized that my lack of interest had more to do with me than any deficiency on the countryside’s part.

  After a few moments, I reached the back fence. There was no one around. I couldn’t believe it. All that effort I’d gone to and the dumb guy hadn’t even shown. Not that I blamed him. He’d probably only promised to meet Bethany as a way to get rid of her. If he’d even existed at all.

  I was just about to turn and leave when someone moved out of the shadows. “Hey there, handsome …” I drawled in what I hoped was a sultry voice. I know “handsome” was beyond lame but as I’d opened my mouth, I’d realized I had no idea what his name was.

  He glanced up. The moon was behind him so I couldn’t see his face clearly. He seemed to have dark hair and be wearing jeans and a leather jacket but that was about all I got.

  “The name is Kai,” he corrected.

  How to put this without sounding stupid? Aw, screw it. There is no way. His voice made me tingle and shiver and warmed me in places that definitely should not have been warm at that moment. Think of every bad romance cliché and you’re getting close. Kai’s voice was dark and lazy and slightly foreign and … whoa baby, I’m getting weak just thinking about it.

  Name, voice, it all worked for me. Fortunately, he couldn’t see me nod like an idiot puppy at his words.

  I’ll give Bethany props for this. Based on voice alone, this guy could have been the world’s ugliest dog and I’d still get why she made the date with him. Although I was totally hoping the face would do the voice justice.

  Kai came slightly closer. Not near enough to reveal his face, but close enough for me to notice he was taller than me, with broad shoulders. I guessed he was about six feet to my five feet, five inches. Very promising.

  “Wasn’t sure you were going to come,” he said.

  I put my Bethany voice back on. “Of course I was, silly.” I added ‘casual’ into my voice repertoire. “Enjoying the moonlight?” Yeah, I was knocking that witty banter out of the park.

  Kai continued to move closer, until it was just the fence separating us. The voice inside my head cheered. That’s it, buddy. Come closer and let me see the goods.

  I almost lost my breath. He was that good looking. He was maybe about seventeen, but he’d outgrown that awkward boy-to-man phase. Before me stood a fine male specimen with dark hair that curled slightly at their ends, eyes the color of my favorite strong espresso, and wearing a spicy cologne that I found myself leaning into to inhale like a crack addict.

  Suddenly, I didn’t want him to think that I was Bethany. What was I supposed to do, though? Pull the wig off and look like some little kid pulling a Halloween prank?

  If I went through with my original plan of making him think that Bethany was dead weight, he’d probably bolt to get out of spending time with me. Her. I weighed my options.

  Even if I did get Kai to like me as Bethany, the chances of him meeting her again and realizing he’d been duped were slim. Which meant that I could have this night, Bethany would lose out, and then Kai and I would go our separate ways.

  I was a veritable mastermind of strategic planning.

  He shot me a cocky grin. “You gonna come out and play, sweetheart?”

  Insolent puppy. My total crushing on this dude was at odds with my natural inclination when hearing something like that to shoot off some sarcastic comment. I clamped my lips firmly together, swung my leg over the fence (big props for stretchy yoga wear) with only a moment of hesitation, and hopped down on the other side.

  “Better?” I raised an eyebrow. Two could play at this cocky thing.

  Kai shrugged and pushed a lock of hair out of his eyes. “It’s a start.” He sat down on some spongy ground and patted the place next to him. “It’s dry.”

  I sat down. Now, I’m going to be brutally honest. I had no idea what to do or expect. While I’d kissed a couple guys before, there’d been build-up. This whole “hello stranger, take me” scenario was unfamiliar territory. Should we talk for a while? Or just cut to the physical part? Exactly how much would that physical part involve? I hadn’t really thought this through.

  “So. What’s your story?” He turned dark eyes my way and it felt like my answer actually mattered to him.

  “You know. Mom and Dad from rival families, forbidden affair, love child produced. Parents disappeared, leaving me rich beyond my wildest dreams but alone, and I continue to hope they’ll come back so I can know love.” I turned big, blinking eyes on him.

  This was the period piece version of my life and way better than the true “adopted by a drunk socialite, stuck at boarding school in middle of nowhere, catch me in ten years when I actually have a life and a story” reality.

  He stared at me for a second. A long second. An extremely long second in which I thought that maybe normal people don’t give weird melodramatic and fake life stories to total strangers. I’d forgotten that I wasn’t with Theo and Hannah and maybe this didn’t actually fly in the real world. Two minutes in and I’d already blown it.

  Then he laughed. Hard. Relief swamped me.

  “I wouldn’t have
thought you were this funny,” he said.

  Relief turned to indignation. “Why not?” I bristled, completely forgetting that he was referring to Bethany, not me.

  “Chill. Just thought your type would care more about looks than humor.”

  Now I was indignant on Bethany’s behalf, which was a real feat. “My type?” I asked sweetly.

  “The kind of hot chick who wants to grow up and land some rich guy.” He was right about Bethany in that regard. Still.

  “You’ve had a wide sampling, have you? Gotten to know all us chicks intimately enough to know our hopes and dreams?” I kept a smile on my face but from his flinch, it may have looked more feral than friendly.

  He smirked. “Yeah. I’ve been intimate.”

  That killed it. Dude was such a douche. “Wow. Well, I’m underwhelmed. And cold now. So I’m going back in. Have a nice life. Hope you don’t die naked in a closet after your sugar mama’s husband shows up and shoots you. Because we all know your type.” I stood up and took a couple of steps back toward the fence.

  I jerked to a stop as he grabbed my arm in a really strong grip.

  “Sweetheart, you have no idea of my type.” There was something ominous in his tone.

  Outwardly I remained calm, but inside I was seriously freaking out. Flirty fun died pretty quickly when a strong stranger had you at his mercy.

  While Hannah and Theo knew where I had gone by this point, they wouldn’t bother coming to find me yet. I was out here alone with some random male who could easily kill me and dump my body in the woods where it wouldn’t be found for days. I swore if I ever got out of here, I’d follow the advice of every boring safety talk the school ever gave us.

  I desperately didn’t want to die before I’d really lived. Maybe I could bluff my way out. I forced myself to make eye contact with him. “Let go,” I said evenly.

  Thankfully, he did. Kai raised his hands in compliance and took a step back. He stared at me, really stared, as if he was trying to figure something out.

  Then he reached out and tugged my wig off. My fab locks of sweaty, wig-smashed hat head fell lankly down. “Nice look.”

  I knelt down to pick up the hat that had flown off my head and instead found myself lunging for a chest sock making a sudden escape, hoping Kai hadn’t seen it.

  His sarcastic laugh proved otherwise.

  Since I couldn’t replace the sock, I pulled the other one out as if it didn’t matter. “You’re a dick. Let’s cut our losses and hope to never see each other again.”

  “You know, girls don’t usually mouth off to me.”

  “Yeah, yeah. They fall all over themselves trying to impress you.” As I almost had. But that was the me of five minutes ago. Way in the past. The current me was all “sisters are doing it for themselves.”

  He grinned. Almost like he was surprised at my backtalk. “Pretty much. They do.”

  Before I knew what was happening, he kissed me.

  Oh, yes. Oh, deliciousness. And then some. I felt electricity shoot between us. He must have felt something too because he broke it off looking totally dazed. “Who—”

  I grabbed him and kissed him again. Small talk later. More kissing now. It was so amazing, I got dizzy and saw lights. Hannah was so wrong about the whole fireworks thing.

  My heart was racing. My bones were melting. If Kai hadn’t had his arm around me, holding me, I don’t think I could have stood. It was like I’d kissed him a million times before, each one better than the last. He was familiar and new and right. And, above all, so mine.

  A blinding flash of pain nailed my skull. Like someone was ripping my head in two.

  I doubled over. Kai caught me and grabbed onto my shoulders to steady me. “Who are you?” he demanded.

  “Sophie,” I began, as another stab of incredible agony tore through me. But this time it came with visuals. I saw an enormous white and gold hallway, filled with larger-than-life figures.

  He shook me. “Talk to me.”

  I swatted at him.

  Flash! Another image. A powerful man was holding court. No, not a man. It was … “Zeus,” I whispered.

  Kai paled.

  Part of me had the presence to acknowledge that I’d look like a ghost, too, if I was stuck with a strange girl having some kind of psychotic episode.

  I slumped to the ground, put my head to my knees, and curled up in a little ball, trying desperately to stop the insane images. There was an auburn-haired woman in a flowing robe, whose smile was made of sunshine and who looked at me as if I was the most precious thing in the world. The way a mother would look at her most beloved child.

  Vaguely, I was aware of Kai muttering “no, no, no” somewhere beside me. I tuned him out and tried to focus in on this woman. My real mother. I knew it with absolute certainty.

  My inner video stream changed. Gone was the place of light. Instead I was in a horrible place. Dark and fiery and full of hate. I whimpered.

  My hair was sweaty and plastered to my neck. I was getting colder and starting to shiver.

  Kai swore under his breath. Then he bundled me up in his jacket.

  I inhaled his scent like a talisman that would keep me grounded.

  It did the trick. The pain and the crazy hallucinations went away. I took a deep breath and opened my eyes.

  Kai was fixated on me like I was something out of a horror movie. I touched my hair self-consciously. I knew I must have looked like something a zombie wouldn’t touch, but Kai could have given me a break. For all I knew, I’d just discovered I had a brain tumor and six months to live.

  “Was this all a big game to you?” he demanded.

  “More of a joke, but—”

  “And I was the punchline?” He kicked the fence, hard.

  Time to calm him down and get out of here. “Look Kai, I’m sorry you got caught up in this.”

  He gave a bitter laugh.

  “But the joke was supposed to be on Bethany.”

  “Stop lying to me.”

  I jumped at the fury in his voice, shrinking back as I glanced up at him and saw a flat blackness in his eyes. I kept a careful watch on him as I spoke. “I’m not lying! What’s wrong?”

  “I want the truth. You owe me that much.”

  This guy was super touchy. Must have had a whopper of a burn from some chick. “Truth: I’m Sophie Bloom. I go to Hope Park. Bethany? She’s a giant cow, so I pretended to be her so you wouldn’t ever want to see her again. I didn’t mean to upset you.”

  He searched my face carefully. “You’re sure of this?”

  “Yeah. I wouldn’t lie about something that exciting,” I commented, my snarkiness plain.

  Tension eased from his body. He sat down beside me and shook his head. “Sorry. For a second I thought … hoped … Doesn’t matter. Halloween weirdness.”

  Cassie’s earlier warning echoed in my head and my entire body turned into a giant goose bump.

  “Definitely.” I agreed, shoving aside all concerns. I turned my head to look at him. “It’s been a night to remember. Or not.”

  Somewhere in the distance, a crow cawed, reminding us both of the lateness of the hour. “I’ve got curfew so …”

  He stood up. “Of course.”

  I grasped the hand he outstretched and let him pull me to my feet. Then I reluctantly handed him back his jacket.

  We stood a moment looking at each other. “Goodbye, Sophie Bloom.” He leaned in and gave me the softest peck on the lips.

  The boy might have looked scary for a bit but right now, he was so fine. “Goodbye,” I said, then clutched my head as the mother of all torment wrenched through it. Along with an image so strong, so right, that I knew it wasn’t an image at all. It was a memory.

  Of Kai and myself or some
version of myself having just made love.

  I stared at him, open-mouthed in shock. “Kai?”

  His face lit up. “Finally.” He kissed me as if his very life depended on it.

  This time there were no more painful flashes. No more crazy images. Just bliss.

  Until someone ripped us apart, then punched Kai in the jaw and sent him sprawling.

  3

  What doesn’t kill you makes you seriously doubt your sanity

  γ’

  I pivoted around to angrily confront whoever had just wrecked the best moment of my life with a sucker-punch to Kai’s pretty face.

  “Theo?” I asked, astounded.

  His actions smacked of jealousy, but that was so not Theo’s M.O. Not over me, anyhow. Theo (to clarify) was gay. In theory. There’d never been a real guy I’d seen him crush on, but the selection available here at Hope Park was hardly stellar. And I figured if he’d been jealous over gorgeous Kai, he would have punched me. So no idea what his deal was.

  Other games were at play here and while I seemed to be a participant, I was clueless about the end goal.

  I turned to check on Kai. He was gingerly rubbing his jaw but didn’t seem to have suffered any major damage. I had to know what was going on. Why did I think I’d had a relationship with Kai before? Why was Theo so mad? How could I get more of those kisses? Suckily, I never got a chance to ask.

  “Stay. Away. From. Her.” Theo spat out. He grabbed my hand and with a strength I wouldn’t have thought he possessed, forced me back over the fence with him, onto the school grounds.

  To be fair (and yes, I was shallow enough to be thrilled by it), Kai tried to get me back. But when he reached the fence, Theo yelled something at him in some language I didn’t know he knew and certainly didn’t recognize. Whatever he said stopped Kai dead in his tracks.

  “This isn’t over,” he called back to Theo. I caught a final glimpse of him kicking the fence in anger before Theo’s sprint forced me to pay attention or risk breaking a leg.