James: A College Girl Romance (14 page)

“Would you feel better if we were dating, and I gave you the money, no strings attached?”

You
are
the fucking devil, McDevitt
, I thought.

“I don’t know. I guess,” she said tentatively.

“What’s the difference, though? I’m curious.”

“Because I wouldn’t be selling my body—or soul—for money.”

“That’s a bit dramatic, isn’t it?”

“I don’t think so,” she said. “Where’s the integrity in selling yourself for money?”

“Everyone sells themselves for something. Why else would people work jobs they hate?”

“Because they need the money. Like me working at
Fantasy Land
.”

“Then what’s the difference in taking the money from me instead of a loan that would take years if not decades to pay off because of a rigged student-loan industry that will create the next generation of indentured servants? Just wait until they bring back debtors’ prisons. Where’s the integrity in that?”

She sighed and squeezed her eyes shut.

“I don’t know.”

When she opened her eyes again, she looked around the park. A beautiful smile lit up her features.

“It really is pretty here,” she said wistfully. “I feel like I’ve stopped looking around lately. Work, sleep, worry about money—that’s pretty much been my life since I quit school.”

I followed as she walked over to a shaded patch of grass off the path, beneath a stand of trees. She sat and tucked the skirt of her lavender summer dress around her legs before lying back and closing her eyes.

I sat next to her and looked down at her. I was such a bastard. I wasn’t good for her. I wasn’t good for anyone. My phone buzzed, and as soon as I reached for it, I regretted it. Disgust and anger coursed through me.

I expect you at the event. My assistant will send details. Bring your young friend.

I cursed savagely, startling Cass, who sat up and looked around for the source of my ire.

“What?” she asked in wide-eyed shock.

There was no way I could sum up the loathing I had for my father. He was like the villain from an old-time film—no nuance, no grey. Just pure evil. Even after revisiting it a million times in my mind, I never could fathom what had convinced my mother to marry him. It was one of those double-edged swords that was impossible to rectify. If they had never married, I wouldn’t exist, but if she had never married him, she would have still been alive.

“My father.”

I could hear the contempt in my voice. To this day, after all the times I had defied and rejected him, the man continued to expect that I would bow to him. But I wasn’t alone—he expected the entire world to bend to his will. Fucking bastard. My eyes narrowed as I scanned our surroundings. Still having me followed. I was, as I had always been, just one more puppet for my father to manipulate.

Bennett had said to me once during undergrad that his parents had never been the same after his brother’s death. They had become cold, removed. But at least he had known his parents to be human. My phone buzzed again with details of Papa McDevitt’s summoning of all the demons from Hell.

“Is he that bad? I mean, my dad is …”

She trailed off, her cheeks flushing.

“In prison?” I finished coldly. “I’m sure your father is a paragon of virtue compared to Papa McDevitt.”

When I turned toward her, she was staring at me like I had slapped her.

“How did you know—”

“That your dear old dad was in prison for embezzlement? I told you—I do my research. Like father, like son.”

“
Patris est filius
—he is his father’s son,” she muttered, shaking her head. “You really are a bastard—you know that?”

“I know it better than anyone else.”

Not only that, I also knew that I had just pulled this girl into the wake of not just my depravity, but my father’s. I stood and offered my hand, which she reluctantly accepted. I pulled her up.

“It looks like you’re coming with me to the devil’s celebration.”

She hurried to catch up to me as I started walking.

“What the hell does that mean?”

“It means he’s requested your presence.”

A fact that made my skin crawl. Cass stopped.

“
What?
”

I turned back to face her.

“He’s holding a little dark money fundraiser for whichever politicians he can purchase. I’m sure he’s looking to use you to manipulate me in some way.”

“Are you fucking kidding me?” she demanded.

“Oh, how I wish I were.”

O
h fuck
.
Oh fuck
.
Oh fuck
.

I couldn’t breathe. This was a different type of fear than what I had felt when that psychotic sleazeball had grabbed me in the back parking lot of
Fantasy Land
. That had happened so fast that I hadn’t had time to process the level of danger I had been in.

How had James described his father during the drive here? A
megalomaniacal asshole
? Coming from James, that depiction was seriously worrisome, particularly since his father was the reason he was missing a third of the pinkie finger on his left hand.

I had just stepped into Wonderland. Only the Queen of Hearts was the sociopathic CEO of a health insurance company looking to purchase politicians. Fucking fantastic. I turned toward James as he drove us back to the hotel.

“You know what?” I muttered. “Forget the money. Just tell me where you had that guy Irving store my stuff. I’m going to go ahead and get off the crazy train now.”

He surprised me by nodding.

“I’ll take you back today. I’ve already arranged a new apartment. Stay as long as you want. It’s been paid through next summer.” He looked over at me. “And I’ll have the money for the next academic year transferred to your account.”

“But …”

I trailed off and then nodded. I had just gotten what I wanted, so why did I feel creepy and empty? I risked looking over at him. His jaw was rigid, and his gaze was steely as he drove too fast—but always in control—through city streets. He had been so different this morning. Almost human. Part of me didn’t want him to just disappear, but that was completely irrational. I had won. I had gotten the money I needed for school, no strings, with my dignity relatively intact.

Within a few minutes, we were on a bridge passing over the water. Back to real life. I looked over at him and tried to think of something to say. When nothing came to me, I chose silence.

The drive back was strange. Like someone had pressed the reverse button on my life. I had literally known this guy less than seventy-two hours, and in that time he had managed to deconstruct my life. Now he was going to drop me off like none of it had ever happened.

The trip passed in tense silence. Eventually, James turned on some classical music I didn’t recognize. After getting off on the exit toward the university, he turned in the opposite direction of my old apartment, and within a few minutes we had pulled up in front of a giant new complex between Halsey and Rousseau.

James parked and got out, and I trailed after him toward the rental office. I walked in behind him, stunned into silence by the cool air blasting from the air conditioning. Then I waited silently, feeling like a little kid as he walked over and had a conversation with a woman at the desk. A minute later, he gestured for me to join them.

“Your license?” James asked.

I nodded and took it out of the purse he had bought me. When I handed it to the woman, she took it and walked to the other side of the room to scan it into the computer. She came back and handed me my license before giving James the key.

“Welcome home,” she smiled in the same insincere smile of every apartment manager I had met since freshman year.

We walked back outside into the stifling heat and began walking across the enormous complex. On the way, I glimpsed a gleaming pool, a fitness center, and a sand volleyball court. We walked up the outdoor stairs, and James stopped in front of a corner apartment. He used the key to open the door and held out his hand for me to go ahead. I shook my head.

“You didn’t have to do this.”

He waited with an impassive expression. I stepped inside and sighed at the feel of air conditioning. Air conditioning. Functional air conditioning in my own apartment. Plus, the apartment was fully furnished—and not with hand-me-down furniture and garage sale purchases. I began walking around in a daze.

A vase filled with white roses stood on the dining room table. There was a balcony, complete with chairs and a small, glass-top table. A giant flat-screen TV mounted on the wall opposite some expensive-looking sofas and a glass coffee table. A washer and dryer combo—inside the apartment. I almost yipped with joy.

In the bedroom, there was a king-sized sleigh bed, a walk-in closet the size of my old bedroom, and a desk—with a brand new computer. I shook my head again as I walked out into the living room, where I found James sitting on one of the sofas.

“I take it the apartment meets your needs?” he asked with a hint of his old humor.

I nodded and swallowed.

“Your things are stored at the storage facility on Olive,” he continued. “The business card is right there.”

He pointed at the island.

“My car?” I asked quietly.

“In the parking lot, though I would be happy to obtain a replacement for you.”

“That’s okay.”

He stood and walked over to me. Before I could say anything, he took my face in his hands. I closed my eyes, afraid to look at him. His lips touched mine softly, the tenderness of his kiss taking me by surprise. By the time he deepened the kiss, I was clinging to his T-shirt. The way his mouth moved against mine only made me want things from the night before. Then he nipped my lower lip, making me whimper.

He pulled away, and by the time I had opened my eyes, he was walking to the door. He didn’t turn around, and a second later, he was gone. Just like that. I continued to wander the apartment in a stupor. When I opened the refrigerator, I found it stocked with food I never could have afforded on my budget.

My phone buzzed in my pocket, and I grabbed it, desperately hoping it might be him. Instead, it was a text from Vicki. I groaned. She had apparently had
another
major blow up with Justin—meaning he had flipped out
again
. I bit my lip and hoped he hadn’t hurt her this time. I sighed and texted her that I would be right over.

I had to walk around for five minutes or so before I found my car, which I barely recognized—because it had been cleaned and waxed. As I drove back toward campus, I tried not to think of James, but I couldn’t stop myself. What a strange gap in time the past few days had been. I decided that I wouldn’t tell anyone, ever. The past three days would stay my secret.

And James McDevitt would remain a strange, indelible memory.

When I got to Vicki’s apartment, the door flew open the instant I knocked. Her light blue eyes were red-rimmed—and she looked like she was on the verge of another breakdown. She stepped out of the way and blew her nose as I walked inside.

“He broke up with me,” she wailed as she shut the door.

I stared at her. She should have been relieved, because not only was Justin an asshole, but he was also a dangerous asshole. I hugged her.

“It’s okay, Vick. You’re better off without him anyway.

She shook her head vehemently as I sat on the couch next to her. She curled her legs under her and sniffled.

“No way, Cassie. He was the best thing to ever happen to me.”

I sighed inwardly, knowing that I had to tread carefully here. Vicki and Justin had broken up half a dozen times, so I knew that anything I said would eventually get back to that psycho. The last thing I needed was to be on his bad side.

“What happened?” I asked.

She hiccupped.

“He said I was a f-fat cow and that he could do better.”

My teeth clicked together. That white trash fucking loser.

“Vicki, you know that’s crazy, right? You’re beautiful, not fat, you’re sweet—and you do his fucking laundry for him every week. He was lucky to have you. You deserve better.”

I was really starting to think that my friend was possibly not the sharpest tool in the shed, given her inability to kick this loser to the curb, but she didn’t need me criticizing her taste in men right now.

“Are you working tonight?” she sniffed.

I shook my head. Vick still thought I worked at the big bookstore in the mini-mall one town over. I hadn’t told her that I had worked there for all of two weeks before they had fired most of the staff as part of the chain’s bankruptcy settlement.

“You want to go out?” Vicki asked with a hopefulness that made me cringe. “Come on! All you do is work, Cass.”

“Yeah, that’s ’cause I need the money to pay rent. Whatever money’s left has to go toward finishing school.”

Until now
, I thought. Vick stuck out her bottom lip and gave me her mopey face.

“Fine,” I sighed. “Just nothing too crazy, okay?”

Like anything could be crazier than the last seventy-two hours had been. Vicki clapped her hands together.

“I just got a new outfit. I hope it looks okay.”

“Have you eaten anything today?” I asked.

“Not really.”

“Then I’m making you something. After that, I’ve got to get my … place together.”

“When’s Bitch Face getting back?” Vicki asked before blowing her nose.

I smiled and shrugged at her reference to my now former roommate.

“I don’t know, and I don’t care.”

Because I didn’t have to live with her from now on.
Thank you, James McDevitt
, I thought sheepishly. I got up from the couch and walked into Vicki’s kitchen, thankful that
her
roommate wasn’t home. Vicki got along with Amber, which made sense, since Vicki could get along with anyone, including Satan himself. I found bread in one of the cabinets and American cheese and butter in the refrigerator.

Ten minutes later, I poured a glass of orange juice and carried the plate of grilled cheese to where Vicki was sitting and watching bad daytime TV. Then I hugged her and started toward the door.

“Come back early and I’ll do your makeup!” she yelled after me.

I nodded and then groaned as soon as I was outside.
Lovely
. Just what I needed. A night out getting my shoes puked on. On the other hand, getting out was probably a good idea. What else was I going to do? I didn’t have priority registration now since until this morning I hadn’t had any plans of registering for fall classes.

There was studying for the LSAT, but I was starting to rethink my law school plan. Did I really want to be a lawyer, or had it been more about doing something that would make a ton of money and also make my mom happy?

After driving back to my new apartment, I got the card for the self-storage place, including the instructions for getting into my unit. It only took a few minutes to get there. As I looked through my old furniture, I realized I didn’t need most of it now that I had an entire apartment of new, expensive furniture. All I really needed I could take in one trip.

Within twenty minutes, I had loaded up the car. The heat was oppressive, as usual, and I was sweating by the time I re-locked the storage unit. The drive back to the new apartment was a huge relief as it sank in that I wouldn’t have to live another year in that hideous old apartment.

When I reached the new complex, I parked and began dragging my stuff up to the apartment. As soon as I turned the corner, though, I saw the door standing open. My pulse sped up. James? I yelped when a guy around my age with sandy blond hair, hazel eyes, and charmingly geeky glasses came walking out of the apartment. He stopped suddenly, looking as shocked to see me as I was to see him.

“Ms. Flynn?”

I nodded cautiously.

“I’m Matt Irving, James’s—”

“Hacker?” I finished for him.

He grinned at me. In a plaid shirt and jeans, he was handsome, but he also had an unassuming air about him. Plus, he was definitely more boyish than James McDevitt—but that made sense given their age difference.

“James asked me to come by with items you had left behind at the hotel. He also wanted me to confirm receipt of the funds he had promised.” When I nodded, he gave me a sheepish grin. “Sorry about walking in unannounced. I didn’t realize you had moved in already.”

“Just barely. It doesn’t really feel like my place,” I admitted as I set down the box of stuff I had been carrying.

“The lease is in your name, but there is an automatic payment being made from one of James’s accounts.”

I made a face as I wondered how much this guy knew about his employer’s penchant for paying women for their company.

“Would you like to see proof of funds now?” he asked politely.

I shrugged.

“Um, sure.”

“Do you mind if I come inside?”

When I hesitated, he laughed. He didn’t seem dangerous, but I hadn’t exactly had the best judgment lately.

“Don’t worry about it. Let me just add your phone to the Wi-Fi connection, which I’ve encrypted. Then you can sign into your bank account.”

“Okay,” I said tentatively.

I took out my phone and started pulling up the website for my bank. He laughed.

“You don’t have the app?”

I shook my head.

“Do you mind?” he asked, reaching for my phone.