“Wow, so because I didn’t want my dad to use this as some kind of negotiation strategy, you’re here to make my life hell?”
“Not to make it hell. To make it better,” River said, smiling.
“You really don’t know what it’s like to be a girl in this day and age, do you? To be female in this world.” She stared down at her clothes. “Look at the way I’m dressed. You think this is how I want to look?”
She held on to her hair. “That I want my hair this long? Or how about my shoes?” She pointed her toe out. They were heeled shoes, designed to emphasize the woman’s calf. “I can’t have a boyfriend and don’t even get me started on my driver.”
The thing about being a Monster and the biggest shark in the sea was that we had a whole lot of spies in our corner. Loyalty meant a great deal to us, and there were many staff members willing to spill every single little detail of what went on inside each of the homes beneath us.
We were aware, as of today, of the random virgin tests she had to undergo.
“I don’t need or want you to make this better for me. Just accept what I did and move on. That’s all I ask.” She pushed past us and I watched her walk away.
After a couple of feet, she tripped but caught herself before she fell. She bent down, removed her shoes, and carried them the rest of the way back into her home.
“I had no idea her life was like this,” River said.
I couldn’t help but laugh. They all turned toward me as if I was crazy or something. They weren’t wrong.
“Come on, you guys seriously didn’t think her life sucked? Like mega-sucked?” I shook my head. “She’s right. None of us are chicks and the ones we do really know are the kind that don’t have to wait around.”
“It explains a lot,” Vadik said.
“Her dad’s a dick,” Caleb said. “I don’t like him and what’s more, I don’t think he’s on our side. The deal he had going down for Emily, that kind of transfer of cash, it needed to go through one of our fathers, and it didn’t. You all saw the way they looked when they discovered that detail. If Crane becomes a traitor, the entire family pays the price of his sins.” Caleb folded his arms across his chest.
I didn’t like doing our business here, but until our dads were done, we were staying here. We had started this, and now we were going to have to see it through.
“I want her,” I said, sliding my hands into my back pockets of my jeans. I was going to buy Emily a pair of jeans just to see a smile on her lips.
She never smiled. I realized that now.
“Listen up, shitface, we all want her,” River said. “That was the point of our declaration earlier.”
“She’s not going to come willingly,” Caleb said. “And if our dads agree to the marriage, she’s not ours to have.”
“No, but she’s ours to take and no one will back down once we take her. You heard the terms, Caleb. So long as she remains a virgin.”
“You want to fuck the good right out of her?” I asked.
All gazes turned toward me.
I shrugged. “I’m already on board. She saved me when she didn’t have to. You’ve got me down with this chick. I’m intrigued by her. It’ll be good to finish senior year with a blast.”
Before we had a chance to speak anymore, my dad came out, giving us the signal it was time to leave.
Heading back into the house, I saw Bernard Crane’s hands clench into fists, and his jaw tense, as he almost shook with rage. If he so much as laid a hand on Emily, I’d be the one coming for him. Her mother’s eyes were glazed and she held a glass of wine in her hand. She wouldn’t remember any of this.
After leaving the house, I climbed into my dad’s car.
“I want you to be careful, Gael,” he said.
“Emily isn’t a danger.”
“No, she’s not, but I don’t trust Bernard. I’m going to talk to the others. I don’t like this deal he has going on the side. I’ve already initiated an investigation into the kinds of deals Crane’s got going.”
“She saved my life, Dad,” I said.
“I’m not proud of that, son. I taught you better than that. If she hadn’t been there, or if she’d been a real threat, you’d be dead. I have no one to replace you. Do not make that mistake again, do you understand me?”
“Yes.”
We drove away from the house. The main driveway wasn’t big enough for all of our cars. It was rare for us to drive with our parents. In case anything went bad, we all normally drove separately.