And I just put spaghetti all over Noah Cage. I’m fucked.
I just put the biggest fucking target on my back. I might as well walk down to the morgue, climb up onto a table, and wait for the inevitable. Hell, I’ll sign my own death certificate just to speed up the process.
My mind continues to scramble as all eyes watch on with interest, waiting for Noah to deliver his smack down. Not a sound rumbles through the cafeteria. Not silverware against the cheap china, not the lunch lady yelling at kids, not even the sound of one hundred kids breathing.
Dead fucking silence.
All I hear is the rapid beating of the pulse in my ears from the fear that’s quickly claiming me.
I shake my head as I try again. “I…” You know what, I’m already screwed. I might as well go out with a bang. “Well, that will teach you for putting your big fucking nose into someone else’s business.”
Noah looks taken back as he watches me. I might even go ahead and say that he looks impressed. “Excuse me?” he scoffs adjusting himself to face me more directly, really showing off his sheer size to appear like the scariest shit to ever come out of Haven Falls. But beyond that, he looks surprised to see at least one person in this school has the balls to give him attitude.
I straighten myself up and raise my chin, challenging him. This is the face of someone who has nothing left to lose and no doubt he senses that. “You heard me,” I tell him, ignoring the way his tall, muscled frame seems to hover and intimidate.
I pause for a moment waiting to see what he’s going to do. Those green, fuming eyes travel up and down my body before focusing on my face as a grin lifts the corners of his lips. I hate what he sees. Smudged mascara framing blue eyes that have nothing left to lose. Dirty hair and borrowed clothes. I’m a mess and no doubt, he’s about to point it out to the whole school.
“Well,” he says, appreciatively. “You’re a little spitfire, aren’t you?”
Say whaaaat?
Monica squeaks beside him and instinctively slides her arm around him before turning a ferocious glare on me. Just great. He added fuel to the fire. Now they’re all going to think I’m trying to steal her boyfriend and tear me to absolute shreds. Just fucking great.
Noah’s eyes move from mine and it’s like a weight lifting off my chest, finally allowing me to gasp for breath. He turns to Candice, his grin disappearing and quickly replaced with a less than enthusiastic scowl. Noah takes in her narrowed glare before indicating to the spaghetti at his feet. “Clean this shit up.”
Ummmmmmm…. What? Did he just…? Noooo. Not possible.
I take in Candice’s shocked squeal and watch as her eyes flick to me. “You’ve got to be kidding?” she demands of Noah, reminding him of her position within the school.
Noah shrugs and steps back from the mess, clearly not giving a shit about her protests before turning back on me. It’s clear he’s got something to say, but I’m not about to hang around to find out what.
I’m out.
I duck around him and haul ass towards the door. The closer I get, the more I can smell freedom. Hell, I’m too terrified to even turn around to see if she’s cleaning up the spaghetti. I doubt it. She would have just stormed away while plotting my untimely death.
Fuck. That was a dangerous game I just played and I have no idea how I’m alive right now.
I barge my way out of the door and take a deep breath as I break through to the hallway. I stop by my locker and grab my wet clothes from this morning and pull my bag over my back.
Finally. Now, I just have to get my ass home and lock every door and window, turn off all the lights, and cower under my bed for the rest of the day. Hmmm, maybe I’ll stay there until the end of the week, maybe graduation would be best.
Shit. Where did my backbone just go?
I start heading for the front doors of Haven Falls Private when a large hand curls around my elbow and yanks me to a stop.
“Where the fuck do you think you’re going?” Noah growls as my world crumbles around me.
I’m in serious trouble here.
Chapter 3
“Ummm,” I say, looking around anywhere except at the intimidating guy with his fingers curled around my elbow, making my skin burn with his touch. My eyes flick back to the exit, wishing desperately that I was on the other side of that door. Shit, Henley. Find that backbone. “Where does it look like I’m going?”
He narrows his eyes on me, studying me as though I’m some kind of alien, or maybe just some idiot with a death wish. “You called me out,” he says accusingly as though he can hardly believe it happened, which I guess, is something that doesn’t happen often. “Nobody calls me out.”