Total pages in book: 36
Estimated words: 33104 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 166(@200wpm)___ 132(@250wpm)___ 110(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 33104 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 166(@200wpm)___ 132(@250wpm)___ 110(@300wpm)
I brushed my teeth, my anger beginning to boil over as I thought about all the prejudices he held against me.
I’d said goodbye to the only man—possibly the only human—to show me unconditional love, and I had to go and fight with Elis fucking Brooks? I grew so annoyed with his presumptions that if I wasn’t already stripping out of my dress, I might be crazy enough—and exhausted enough—to run after him to give him a further piece of my mind.
Elis Brooks didn’t know shit about me anymore. I just wished I could kick him out of the real estate in my head.
***
“Ms. Price.” My professor nodded somberly the next morning as I stepped into my lecture approximately ten seconds before class started. “I’m sorry to hear about your father. The wake was beautiful.”
I nodded, not at all surprised that my professor had been there. He was a tenured professor in the department, and as an alumnus, my father was one of the university's biggest donors. I'd seen the dean and head of the board yesterday through my tears.
“Thank you,” I breathed, taking one of only two seats left in his crowded lecture.
“He’ll be missed so much.” The professor shook his head sadly.
I wished instantly for any distraction to relieve me of this torture.
And then I wished my prayer had gone unanswered.
The door swung open as the clock chimed on the hour, and in head-to-toe black with an oversize hoodie pulled low over his eyes, in walked Elis Brooks.
“Oh my God,” I gritted, my eyes rounding when he ignored the professor's gaze and zeroed in on the chair at my side.
He slipped in, opened his notebook, and pulled a pen out of his hoodie pocket. “Morning, Barbie.”
“What the fuck is this?” I seethed.
“Biology 310, right? Am I in the wrong class again? Hey, Prof?” Elis winked as the professor’s mouth dropped open.
I shook my head, scooting my desk as many inches away from his as possible before knocking elbows with my other neighbor. The professor started the lecture but didn’t get more than ninety seconds in before Elis thrust his hand into the air and started bouncing what sounded like impossible questions at him.
I was lost in scientific lingo from the start.
Forty minutes later, the professor was not much deeper into his slides. Elis had kept him busy answering dead-end rhetorical questions. His ability to verbally spar with anyone was unmatched. I’d loved that about him in high school, but he was getting deep under my skin now.
“What the fuck, Brooks?” I hissed as we crowded through the lecture hall doo a while later.
“Needed inspiration. I was hoping to find it in one of America’s finest institutions of higher learning, but it turns out this place only crushes the free thought out of you. I’d run if you know what’s good for that pretty little head of yours, Price.” He tapped my temple.
“How did you even get into this lecture? I was the last add, and I had to beg them to let me slip in,” I fumed.
His grin cracked, sliding to one cocky side and making me want to kick his teeth out. “I’ve got a way with words.”
I shook my head. “Why are you torturing me like this?”
His head tipped at an angle, his amused grin turning wry. “Because I can, Barbie, and because you deserve it.”
Chapter 7
Elis – Five Years Ago
I walked through the front doors, the scent of Devlynn still on my skin. My mom and Sarena huddled at the kitchen table, the place settings all in proper order, but the food was still on the stove, untouched.
My father wasn’t around, which wasn’t unusual. He worked hard and was barely home. What was strange was that my mother made today’s dinner seem important, and my dad’s presence was usually a requirement.
I didn’t care much now that I had Devlynn to occupy my time.
“Who died?” I joked, hanging my jacket behind my chair and sitting at the table. As soon as I sat, my mom began bawling hysterically. Sarena hugged her, shooting me a dark look. “Mom, what’s wrong?”
I didn’t understand why she was acting the way she was. My entire life, I’d never seen my mother cry, not once. She was the epitome of measured grace.
I caught my sister’s eye, and she shrugged her shoulders, her look of confusion mirroring mine.
“I’m sorry, kids. Can you both sit down—are you hungry?” My mother stood, walking to the stove.
“Why aren't we eating in the dining room? We always eat in the dining room,” I said, thinking this scene was beyond weird.
Maybe I should have skipped this dinner in favor of Devlynn’s kisses. Since she’d come into my life, home hadn’t seemed quite as unbearable.
“Really, Elis?” Sarena scolded, shooting me a death-defying glare.
I walked over to my mother, took the white serving spoon from her, and placed it on the marble countertop.