The Ruthless Boys (Adamson All-Boys Academy #2)

by C. M. Stunich

  I open my mouth to protest, but then I remember the conversation we had at the rest stop, the hurt on Tobias' face when I refused to kiss him, the lecture I got from Micah.

  “Do you have any condoms?” Tobias asks, and I swear to fuck, when I kick him in the back, it's pure reflex.

  “Assuming much?” I blurt, flushing as I sit up. “You can park your ass on the chaise.”

  Spencer leaves the room and comes back with a box, tossing it at me.

  “Like I said, I'm not afraid of them. I definitely have a bigger dick. Trust me, I've seen theirs more times than I care to admit.”

  “Nobody is having sex in this room tonight,” I mumble, shoving Tobias off the edge of the bed. He stumbles but catches himself, turning to grin at me as I crawl into the sumptuous sheets. “Now get the fuck out of my room.”

  “Yes, ma'am,” Spencer says, and I smile as Church pats my foot on his way past, Ranger following along behind him. I'm asleep before the door closes behind them.

  The park is super crowded, and the lines are crazy long. Even with the fast pass app on Ranger's phone, we only manage to ride Big Thunder Mountain together before we have to head to the restaurant for dinner.

  To be fair, riding the old train cars through the faux western landscape was fun, especially with these guys in tow. Spencer and the twins scream at everything while Ranger holds on for dear life while hosting a scowl that scares children. Church, meanwhile, sits all pretty-like, as if he’s having afternoon tea.

  “It's disappointing that the park closes so early today,” I say as we sit down in this super fancy restaurant in the adjoining theme park, California Adventure. The waiters are all wearing suits, and the menu is like some 'prix fixe' thing where it's all pre-planned. The only choice we have is between beef, fish, or vegetarian options.

  “There's always tomorrow,” Ranger says as I stab a bite of lettuce and bring it to my mouth. I'm not complaining about a free trip, especially not when I'm staying in a princess room, and hanging out with these guys.

  After dinner, we head out of the park with the rest of the crowd, but when I try to turn toward the hotel, Spencer takes my elbow.

  “Hey,” he says, smiling down at me, turquoise eyes glimmering with mischief. “Do you want a hit a few more rides?”

  “The park is closed,” I say, gesturing in the direction of the gates and the rapidly dispersing crowd.

  “Not for us,” Spencer says, grinning. The twins appear on either side of him and hold out their hands to indicate the park.

  “We reserved the park for the next five hours,” they say, and I swear, my heart stops beating for a second.

  “You … reserved … the entire park?” I don't mean to sound like a sarcastic, crazy person, but that's sort of how it comes out. “You can't do that, can you?”

  “You can; we did.” They link arms with me and Spencer scowls, but he follows along anyway as the McCarthy brothers drag me across the plaza. I pull from their grip and just stand there, my new dress fluttering in the breeze.

  “The whole park … just for us?”

  “The whole park,” Spencer repeats, flashing a bright grin. “Getting bullied by us was the best thing that ever happened to you, you shithead.” He ruffles up my hair and then starts forward, tucking his hands in his pockets as he strides confidently up to the entrance.

  “I seriously can't believe this is happening,” I whisper as we pass through the front gates into Disneyland.

  The park is freaking empty, but for some employees.

  Holy. Shit.

  My eyes water, but I sashay forward all nonchalant like. No way I'm letting these guys know how much I'm enjoying this.

  “I've always hated rich people, on principle, but I have to say: this is pretty freaking epic.” I hold my arms out to indicate the vastness of the park, the very empty Main Street, and Cinderella's castle in the distance. “I've decided to forgive you guys for being old money assholes.”

  “Ahh, we thank you for that,” Micah says, putting a hand to his heart. He grins as I put my arms out and spin in a circle, taking it all in.

  Holy. Freaking. Crap.

  I feel all lit up inside, sort of like I did that night Spencer showed up in the rainy dark. Well, maybe not quite that good, but close.

  “This is fucking awesome,” I groan, sliding my hands down my face. I'm having a bit of a hard time processing. Just yesterday, I was at SCHS trying to get by one day at a time. And now … I'm here. I drop my hands down and then shake them out, exhaling.

  “First things first, let's get some ears. I was in too much of a hurry earlier.”

  “Ears?” Church asks as I grin and then gesture with my head in the direction of the shops. The guys let me lead the way, straight to a display of Mickey and Minnie ears in all sorts of different colors.

  “I'm not fucking wearing those,” Ranger says, but then I shove a pair of pink ones with a bow on his head. He narrows his eyes, but doesn't protest. The twins choose matching ones, the same rainbow pride ears that Tobias had on last night. Spencer goes for these creepy Haunted Mansion ears with a black top hat, while Church settles for ones with a crown.

  Of course he does.

  I grab a pair with a blue and white polka dotted bow, and a bouncing daisy. It's as ridiculous as it is fun. Monica would hate it.

  “We should probably pay for these,” I say as Church starts walking off. He pauses and glances back with a grin.

  “Don't worry too much about it,” he says, and then continues on. I glance back at the woman behind the register, but she just smiles at me.

  “Mr. Montague is a very special guest,” she tells me, and then the twins are dragging me down the street.

  “It's your call,” Spencer says, walking backward and watching me with that all-consuming gaze of his. “Where do we go first?”

  “Fucking pirates,” I say, and the twins grin.

  “Aargh, pirates!” They each snatch plastic swords from a basket outside a gift shop and hop on some benches surrounding a tree, brandishing the weapons at one another.

  “On-guard, my dear brother,” Micah shouts, and then the two of them start a fairly epic sword match with their makeshift weapons.

  “See what I mean?” Spencer says, giving me a look. “Like I said, one set of twins is more than enough.”

  The twins continue their fierce battle, leaping off the benches and using fences and trash cans as platforms and shields. None of the employees bother us, not until we walk down the curving stone pathway inside the Pirates of the Caribbean ride and approach the gently bobbing boat.

  “Welcome, Mr. Montague and friends,” she says, “climb on in.”

  Tobias smacks Micah in the ass when he's not looking, declares a victory, and then takes the seat next to me.

  “There's plenty of room for three,” Micah argues, but then he just gets in the center row with Spencer, Ranger and Church in the back.

  “I'm so freaking excited,” I whisper as the boat takes off through the water, into a dark area with a makeshift swamp, complete with faux alligator, creepy hut, and a rocking chair with an old man in it. The ambiance is dead-on. Frankly, the trip to Disneyland is worth this ride alone.

  “It gets better,” Micah whispers, leaning over the seat and licking my ear. I shiver, and Tobias smacks him with his sword. But now we're heading for the first drop, and the ride is really getting started.

  I'm dumbstruck as we make our way through, the light from the faux cannon fire flickering across our faces as the infamous Yo Ho (a Pirate’s Life for Me) song plays. As soon as the ride’s over, I’m ready to do it again.

  The guys—who’ve all been to Disney World, apparently, as well as Disneyland—humor me, letting me drag them from ride to ride until the sky is dark, and the lights of Main Street, USA are shining.

  “One more ride on pirates, and we can take a break?” I say, and Micah stands up, offering a hand.

  “Let’s do this, milady.”

  Tobias joins
him, and they each take my arm on either side. The other three boys look perfectly comfortable stretched out on the patio of the restaurant balcony; it even overlooks the water feature where the nightly shows usually play. Tonight, however, it’s just us, so there’s no performance, but I am more than okay with that.

  “You guys go,” Ranger says, and my eyes stray over to Spencer.

  “Go,” he says, nodding his head in the direction of the ride. “I’ll finish these fries, and then we can go back to the hotel.” His mouth curves into a seductive smile. “It’s my night, after all.”

  “Unless I decide I’d rather have Church as my guardsman,” I joke, flicking a ketchup soaked fry in his direction. Miraculously, he manages to catch it in his mouth before the twins lead me off toward the ride.

  “This whole day has been awesome,” I tell them, my voice low and soft. I don’t mean to sound emotional, but months away from them has made me appreciate their friendship even more. True, we’ve only known each other, what, nine months? And several of those were spent with me being an asshole, and them being bullying jerks. Still, I missed them in ways I never missed Cody or Monica. “One of the best in my entire life.”

  “Really?” they ask together, looking down at me with matching expressions of surprise.

  “Really.” Micah climbs into the boat first with me following, and Tobias squeezes himself in next to us. We take off, bobbing gently through the waters of a make-believe swamp, a sea of faux stars above our heads that twinkle like the real thing. “If I get back into Adamson for senior year,” I whisper, “I want to lay a blanket out and look at the stars. They’re hard to see here. But I bet the view on campus is amazing … I never bothered to look before.”

  “We stole the key for the dormitory roof and made a copy once,” Tobias starts, curling his fingers through mine and giving me a little jolt of adrenaline.

  “We still have it. We could take you up there sometime.”

  A smile lights my face as we hit the first small drop and water splashes over us. The ride is over too quick, and I decide we’re going again when we circle around. It’s beyond luxurious, to just sit there in the seat and ride another round without having to wait in line. I doubt even presidents get this level of star treatment.

  “I can’t believe you guys set this all up.” The twins exchange a look over my head that has me immediately suspicious. “What?”

  “We all thought up the idea together,” Tobias offers, trailing off for a moment.

  “But Church paid for it all,” they say in unison. “All of it.”

  “Seriously?!” I choke out as we pass the pirate skeletons on the right, a make-believe storm swirling above our heads. “This had to cost …”

  “Millions,” the twins say, lifting their hands up in a well-coordinated shrug before Micah continues.

  “And it’s not just the money thing. He’s the only person with strong enough connections to set this up. They barely let royalty rent the park unless it’s after-hours. He pulled mad favors for this.”

  “But why?” I ask, trying to talk over the sound of the music, raucous pirate song and laughter that makes the adventurous side of me wish I could board a ship and set sail with a cutlass and an old, yellowing map.

  “Dunno.” Tobias sounds a tad frustrated, and I narrow my eyes. “Maybe he likes you? I’m not sure. He’s been acting weird as hell lately.”

  “How so?”

  “Sneaking off, making weird phone calls, I don’t know. He’s just been … off since you left.” Micah shrugs, like it’s no big deal. “And then there was a whole week where he was missing. I didn’t want to say anything, but it was that same week you got attacked. I mean, he was there the day of, but not the few preceding it …”

  My brows go up.

  “You don’t suspect him, do you?” I ask, because there’s been a teeny-tiny part of me that’s wondered. Church himself explained to me how sociopaths and psychopaths worked. That, and he was always fiercely aggressive about the Jenica thing. I’d just assumed it was his love for Ranger that spurred his temper, but …

  “No, no.” Micah rears back like I’ve slapped him. “No fucking way. I’m just saying, he’s been weird. And he paid for all this crap. That, and he’s inviting you to a party with his parents? He’s probably in love with you.”

  “What?!” I stand up and the boat rocks a bit precariously. Tobias pulls me down into his lap and wraps his arms around me, making my heart flutter. There’s a musty smell in here from the water, but I can still smell his cedar and vetiver scent. “That’s ridiculous.” The words come out in a snort, but at the same time, I’m not fully convinced it’s as ridiculous as it sounds.

  “Maybe,” the twins say together, but they sound as unsure as I feel.

  The boat bobs through the shallow water, and we all stay quiet for a while. I can’t believe Church paid for all this … for me. He either really does like me—as a friend or otherwise—or else he’s somehow involved in whatever’s going on at Adamson. Clearly, he’s not the original killer, but maybe he’s connected in a different way?

  As we near the exit, Micah starts to stand up, and I reach out, putting my hand over his.

  “One more time?” I plead, because this is the only night we get the park to ourselves. Even Church doesn’t have enough pull to make this happen multiple days in a row; I don’t think anybody does.

  “You’re too cute, Chuck,” the twins say together, and then Micah flashes a naughty grin. “Maybe after this we can hit the pirates’ gift shop and buy you a cute little wench outfit to wear?”

  “You better be joking,” I warn, giving him a look that’s cold hell. “If I buy an outfit from that shop, it’s going to be a captain’s hat, and then I’m going to run you through for insubordination.”

  “I’d like to see you try,” Micah challenges, whipping his own sword out (not a double entendre, I mean like, his literal plastic sword). I smack it away, and he leans in suddenly, pressing his lips to mine, tongue teasing along my bottom lip. It happens so quickly, and I’m caught so off-guard that I let him in. “Got ya, Captain,” he whispers, his mouth hot, just as much of a challenge as his words. There’s a suggestion there, too, one that I’ve been resisting since … maybe since the assholes pinned me against the door at the Jaw Flapper?

  “Are you two serious?” Tobias groans, and even though I can’t see him, I can tell he’s rolling his eyes. I’m sitting on his lap, too, so when I wiggle, moaning under my breath at his brother’s touch, I can feel him hardening underneath me. “How long is this ride anyway?”

  “Sixteen minutes,” I murmur, because I looked it up on my phone earlier. My right hand lifts to the back of Micah’s neck as he presses in closer, kissing me with this searing passion that has the fine hairs on my arm standing on end. It’s electrifying, the way he kisses, like there’s something beyond his firm but gentle touch that’s dangerous, that’ll destroy me if I get too close.

  And yet, I get too close anyway.

  Our tongues tangle, and I lean forward, still sitting sideways on Tobias’ lap, but with my hands now on Micah’s legs. If I were to inch up just a little …

  “We’ve been on the ride, what, two minutes?” he whispers, and I nod against his mouth. “How quick can you be?”

  “You’re not seriously suggesting we go further than kissing? In here? There must be cameras.” My words come out in a rush, but I can’t help but entertain the fantasy. I mean, I’m traveling on a boat through a pirate’s grotto, a bed covered in treasure behind me, the soft lap of water against the sides of the boat a gentle reassurance. When am I ever going to get another chance like this?

  “Church’s family has connections; don’t worry about the cameras.” Tobias reaches out and touches the side of my face, turning me back to look at him. We stare at each other in the darkness for a moment, and my lids feel suddenly heavy, like my body knows better than my mind how long I’ve been wanting this.

  “There must be something in the
water at Adamson,” I grumble, and Tobias laughs. His chuckle tapers off as our mouths meet, his kiss both startlingly familiar and distinctly foreign from his twin’s. Speaking of, Micah’s hands are running up the sides of my legs, underneath my skirt, and pulling down the stupid black lace panties that Ranger bought me.

  My breath escapes in a rush as I glance over and find him tucking them into his pocket. Heart racing, I watch as he unzips his pants and frees himself, right there on the ride. We are so going to hell for this, I think, but then Micah’s pulling me onto his lap to straddle him, his fingers tickling my chin.

  “Look how smart I am,” he says, pulling a condom from his pocket with two fingers. “A good pirate is always prepared.”

  “You brought a condom to Disneyland?” I choke out, and Tobias laughs from beside me, flashing a condom of his own. “You two are seriously perverted.”

  “We have the whole park to ourselves. This is a once in a lifetime thing,” he says, undoing his pants, a challenge in his green eyes. “And there’s only one girl here we want to share this with.”

  “Maybe.” I lick my lips. Maybe I shouldn’t be bringing this up, but I can’t help myself. “You said you didn’t share girls with anyone, but each other, and yet Spencer …”

  “We don’t,” Tobias says, and his voice is so hard and dark, he almost sounds like Micah there for a minute. “But until you figure out what you want to do, we’ll try this. Just this one time.” I watch him watching me, and I feel this pit in my stomach. Like, one day I’ll have to actively choose a guy? The thought makes me seasick in a way the rocking boat never could. But then, he's right: I’m on a trip of a lifetime, and I don’t want to waste it. In forty years, in fifty or sixty, I want to be able to look back on this moment and remember I grabbed it by the balls, so to speak. This time, yes, double entendre intended.

  I take the condom from Micah’s fingers, and try to remember the goddamn lemon cucumber and banana back in the classroom. Crap, I really should’ve practiced instead of letting Ranger do it for me …