Dark Vow (Blackwoods College)

“Have you seen him yet?” Cora looked at me sideways, a sparkle in her eye.

I knew who she meant. The one person I wished didn’t exist.

“Not yet.”

I didn’t want to say his name. I was afraid it might summon him, like Voldemort but much hotter. Though, to be honest, I had a thing for the snake-face version in the movies. Something about that weird nose and the way he held his wand sent tingles down into my nether region. I chose not to look too closely at that.

“You’re going to, though, right? I mean, that was an insane offer. Do you think he was serious?”

“Jarrod said he probably was.”

“Yeah, but Jarrod doesn’t know everything.” Cora sighed and clung to my arm. “He does know a lot, though, especially about human anatomy.”

“Okay, gross, he’s my cousin. That’s definitely over the line.”

She laughed and pushed me away. I sighed, scooped snow, and pelted it at her. She squealed, threw some back, and as I packed the perfect ball, ready to bean it right into her face, I saw him.

He stood at the end of the walk, off to one side, leaning up against a light pole. His arms were crossed over his chest. He wore a black jacket and slim jeans, and his eyes burned into mine, even at a distance. The snowball fell from my fingers.

He was gorgeous. It always struck me how perfect he seemed. Calvin Solar could be covered in mud and blood and still look like a chiseled Greek god. His arms, his lips, the way his cheekbones accentuated his eyes. Even his hair was thick with a slight wave, tossed carelessly back and perfectly messy.

As I gaped at my stalker, I got slammed with a chunk of ice right in the stomach.

I groaned, doubled over. Cora cursed and grabbed my arm. “I didn’t realize it was so hard! Oh my god, are you okay?”

I nodded, trying to smile. I looked up, but he was gone, like he’d never been there at all.

I couldn’t forget those eyes, that stare. Like he wanted to undo me.

Which he did. He’d said as much in the letters.

“Seriously, I am so sorry,” Cora said. She helped me up and brushed off my jacket. “I got a little carried away. I guess I’m excited to be back too.”

I looped my hand through her arm. “It’s fine, but you owe me a coffee now.”

“That’s a deal.”

We headed to our respective classes. She had an elective on popular culture, some filler class that she hoped would be as easy as it was boring, and I had a course on modern American fiction. As I listened to the professor talk about the syllabus, I stared out the window and couldn’t shake the feeling that someone was staring back.

Calvin couldn’t be everywhere. He was rich, well-connected, and part of the most popular group of guys on campus, but he wasn’t omniscient and couldn’t be everywhere. If I was careful, I could avoid him.

Maybe forever.

His offer from last semester kept nagging at the back of my mind. I’d find myself drifting off, staring at the TV, and suddenly I’d start thinking about him. About the way he looked at me, the curve of his lips, and the sound of his voice when he’d said he wanted to marry me.

The deal was simple. Calvin needed a wife, and he had the power to make sure my father never left prison.

We could help each other. I wanted my father to rot behind bars forever—but his sentence carried a maximum of twenty years, and my dad wasn’t in such bad shape. He could get out one day.

I would do anything to make sure that didn’t happen.

Except, apparently, give myself to Calvin Solar.

I left class and trudged out onto the sidewalk. My boots crunched over sprinkled salt granules as I headed toward the student center. I needed coffee and Cora planned on meeting me after her next class. I figured I’d do some reading and kill an hour, then we’d head back to her place for the night.

But as I approached the building, I slowed and looked over my shoulder. The small hairs on my neck stood on end, like some primitive part of my brain was firing off neurons like crazy. I sensed something, someone watching me, eyes on my body, a sense I hadn’t known I had. It was eerie and uncomfortable, and I picked up my pace.

It was like he hid behind every corner.

I almost screamed when he stepped out into my path and matched my pace like a car slipping into traffic.

“You scared the shit out of me,” I hissed at him.

Calvin Solar barely looked down at me. He stared ahead like he was sizing up the world and he didn’t like what he saw. I hated that arrogance, like he knew he was better than everyone around him and he wasn’t afraid to show it.