How Sinners Fight (Sinners of Hawthorne University 2)

The day drags a little. I’ve been working hard to stay on top of schoolwork, despite everything else that’s going on, but the art show is proving to be a big distraction. I’m not even handling the logistics of it, but all I want to be doing right now is painting, which makes sitting through lectures hard as hell.

In the afternoon, Max escorts me partway to my final class as we chat about the upcoming show. She’s been enthusiastically on board ever since the idea first popped up, and we spend so much time talking about it that we both end up late for class. We split up, hurrying to our separate buildings.

When I reach Hurst Hall, I slip inside quickly. It’s a small building that only holds a few classrooms, so it’s quiet as I head down the hall.

I almost don’t notice a voice echoing through the empty corridor up ahead, but thank god I do, because as I round the corner, I immediately catch sight of Cliff standing alone in the hallway, his back to me and his phone pressed to his ear. I freeze in my tracks before he sees me.

Scrambling back around the corner, I press a hand to my racing heart and strain to listen.

I don’t know who he’s talking to, but he’s pissed as hell.

“I want to act now,” Cliff growls. “I’m sick and tired of fucking waiting. That’s all you ever tell me to do, and I’m sick of it. I can handle this. I can handle her.”

I frown. There’s no doubt in my mind who she might be.

Me.

“I want to do more. I want to make her pay for embarrassing me in front of the entire fucking school.” I don’t have to see him to know he’s shaking in rage. “No, I don’t want to fucking leave her alone!”

I raise an eyebrow. He doesn’t say anything for a long couple of seconds, whoever is on the other side of the phone presumably trying to calm him the fuck down, because when he speaks again, his voice is clipped and contained.

“Fine. I’ll wait. But I’m not going to let this go. You fucking promised me.”

His footsteps echo through the hall, and I panic, trying to scramble away, but it’s too late.

Fuck, I didn’t realize how close he was.

Cliff comes into view, pressing a button on his phone to end the call. When he looks up and his gaze lands on me, his eyes go wide. He shoves the phone into his pocket and strides toward me, boxing me in against the wall as his features harden.

“Don’t get too comfortable, Sophie,” he says, his low voice brushing against my skin on a hot wave of breath. My skin crawls. “Don’t think you’re safe. The Sinners can’t always protect you, no matter how many fucking lies they tell you.”

My heart is an erratic drumbeat in my chest. His face is so close to mine that I can see the smattering of freckles across his cheeks and the two small scars on his face. One of them is the one I gave him a couple months ago. The other is slightly larger and looks older—I have no fucking clue where it came from. Hopefully from some other girl who beat the shit out of him.

“I don’t need protecting,” I tell him, my lips curling back. “I can take care of myself… or have you already forgotten?”

As I speak, I deliberately let my gaze linger on the scar under his eye from where my fist connected with his face.

My taunt hits home. He flushes in anger, his jaw twitching as he pushes into me a little harder.

“You can’t fucking protect yourself from everything,” he sneers, his face way too close to mine.

Fuck this.

My knee shoots up, hitting him right in the crotch. Hard. He stumbles back several steps and bends over in pain, turning away from me and sucking in a breath followed by a bellowed curse.

But it’s all I need. That little movement gives me enough space to get the fuck away from him.

“Sorry about your dick,” I bite out over my shoulder as I stride away. “I’m surprised I could even find it.”

I don’t head to my dorm. Instead, I make a beeline for the guys’ dorm building, slipping in after another student and ignoring the look he gives me. All three of the Sinners are still in class, but I know they’ll be back soon.

While I wait for them, I try to get my fury under control so I can think rationally about what I just heard Cliff say and about what just happened.

About thirty minutes later, the Sinners come down the corridor toward their rooms, talking amongst themselves. When they catch sight of me, they all stop.

“What’s wrong?” Gray growls. He strides toward me quickly, followed by Declan and Elias, who are less than half a step behind him.

I stand up from where I was sitting against the wall, brushing my pants off as I grimace. “Um… I think I may have just made shit worse.”