A Hurt So Sweet Volume Two (Elite of Eden Falls Prep 2)

Anders will be back home tomorrow, and I’m ready to go back to Prep and show Pandora who the boss is. That Brantley kid won’t know what fucking hit him. I cannot wait to smack that god

damn smirk off his face. If he thinks he has any influence on the girl I’m going to marry, he’s going to get that thought knocked right out of his head.

I’ll never forgive Easton for what he did. He may think I’m over it, but I never will be.

My name is Dexter Booth.

Four years ago, my parents died in an awful house fire.

I’m one of the only three people in the world who knows it wasn’t an accident – it was arson.

And I’ve dedicated my entire life to punishing the person who took my family from me.

Emilian Booth, I’m fucking coming for you.

The only way I can hurt the son of a bitch is through his daughter. I was starting to have doubts about taking it out on Pandora, but her father needs to pay. There’s no way around it.

And if it means my pretty little toy must go down along with him… Well, I’ll just have to hope she can get over what I’m about to do to her.

Eleven

Pandora

Another school day without Dexter.

I’ve been in a bad mood all day. I should be ecstatic – I spoke to my sister, I have a new ally, and things are finally going well for me. But I can’t seem to stop the frown that’s permanently on my face.

I want Dexter to come back to Prep.

The thought is sickening. I hate him. Why do I want him back? It’s like he’s put a spell on me – some kind of messed up black magic that makes me crave him despite all the horrible things he’s done to me. I hate that I miss his touch.

As I navigate the hallways of our prestigious school, I realize how fucking lost I feel in the maze of white and grey marble, ornate gold accents and expensive artwork. I don’t belong here. I never fucking did.

“Pandora. Over here.”

I raise my eyes to find Lai standing before me, huddling in a group with some Secondborns. He smirks at me, and I shift my weight uncomfortably from one foot to the other.

“Is Dexter back?” I ask him.

He shakes his head, furrowing his brows. “Come here.”

“No,” I hiss, moving past him to keep walking.

He catches up with me, falling into step beside me without a worry in the world. The hallways get emptier and emptier, but I’m still five doors away from my next classroom. Another pair of legs joins us, the footsteps echoing in the marble hall. I shift my focus to the other boy, recognizing Julian, who gives me a knowing smile.

With one of them on either side of me, I’m afraid I have nowhere to run.

“Room 302 is empty,” Julian tells Lai.

The other boy gives him a nod, and before I can make a sound, Julian’s got his palm over my mouth, muffling my screams of desperation. They drag me into the empty classroom. Julian pushes me inside while Lai locks up the doors.

“You’re such an easy target,” Julian smirks at me. “Almost too fucking easy.”

I stay stubbornly quiet as they advance on me, refusing to dignify them with an answer.

“Heard you made friends with the Brantley boy. Kissed him in front of the whole country club, even.”

Lai’s words sound like an accusation, so I lift my chin up in defiance as I say, “Yeah. So what?”