“Violet—”
“You need to leave,” she orders, her voice as cold as her face.
“We need to talk about this,” I argue, frustration pushing through me rapidly. I have an extremely bad feeling that Violet isn’t even going to listen to me as I try to apologize.
“You either leave, or I call the law. I imagine the school would find you consorting with a stripper and breaking the law on the seedy side of town a violation of their morality clause too.”
I smile. Jesus, Violet is so damn hot when she sasses. She’s also clueless to how shit is done around here. They’d sweep it under the rug, hit dear old Dad up for another donation and nothing would be said. Christ, it’s no wonder I’m attracted to Violet. She’s the most honest person in my life—gorgeous too, but that’s a given. She’s real and she’s a million other things and only a small part of that is her beauty. Everything I find out about her makes me want her even more.
“Violet, I was an asshole,” I mutter.
“Wrong. You are an asshole, Mike Huntington. You thought you could put me where you wanted and control me. I called your bluff. Our dealings with one another are over. I don’t want to see you and I really don’t want to breathe the same air as you.”
“I wasn’t trying to control you.”
“The hell you weren’t. You were blackmailing me, asshole.”
“I only threatened to blackmail you, damn it,” I respond, wincing because that doesn’t sound better at all. It probably sounds worse.
“Get the hell out of my place.”
“This is not your place. You don’t belong here.”
She just stares at me. Her eyes narrowed, anger evident in everything about her—in everything she does.
“Look again, Mr. Rich and Fancy Asshole. This shack on the wrong side of the tracks is a fucking mansion compared to where I’m from. I belong here and in worse places,” she snaps.
“Bullshit. You’re so far above this place it’s not even funny. Hell, you’re above me. Why do you think I did everything I could to force you into spending time with me?”
“Because you’re a jerk?”
“Because I knew I didn’t have a shot any other way, Violet. I was desperate,” I admit, taking a few steps toward her. She doesn’t move, but she definitely looks panicked.
“You don’t have a shot,” she says stubbornly.
“You deserve so much more than this place, Angel. You deserve better than me, but because I am an asshole, I’m not going to stand back and let someone else take you away from me.”
“Great line Huntington, but it’s a day late and a dollar short. I’m going back to California.”
“You don’t want to leave here, Violet. You wanted to go to this school for a reason. You’re happy here.”
“Do I look happy?”
“Stay, Violet.”
“And let you hold my job over my head with the school? No thanks.”
“Fuck, I wasn’t going to tell the school shit. I just said that.”
“You want me to believe it was all a lie?”
“It was. I wouldn’t have said shit to anyone, Violet,” I tell her, irritated with myself, because I’ve painted myself into a corner.
“I couldn’t believe you if I wanted to. I think everything that comes out of your mouth is a lie.”
“Not this, Violet and not with you,” I deny, trying to figure out how to make her believe me.
She lets out a bitter laugh, shaking her head at my words. “I’m sorry, but were you at the same party I was? The same party that I never wanted to attend and let you talk me into. The exact same party where you disappeared and left me alone the majority of it.”
“Fuck, Vi, you don’t understand. My dad is a bastard, and I let him—”
“Looks like the apple didn’t fall far from the tree,” she says with a sneer.
My control snaps. I don’t think, I just act. Getting compared to my father hits a nerve that is always exposed. I march toward her. She backs up, shaking her head no.
“Get out!” she cries, but I ignore her. I make it to her, and I pin her against the wall. My hand goes to her neck, holding her there, feeling the beat of her pulse against my hand.
“I’m not my father. I’m not that person, not with you. I fucked up. I was a complete asshole. I let my father’s toxic poison hit me and I drank too much. I should have just left. I should have come back to you, but you don’t understand...”
“I understand you need to let go of me, Mike,” she says, her voice tight. Her fingers wrap around my wrists, as she pulls against my hold.
“I don’t want to let go of you, Angel. You’re the first real thing in my life. I know I’ve been an asshole from day one, but I’m giving you a vow that it ends here. I’m going to change. If you just give me a shot.”