A Hurt So Sweet Volume Three (Elite of Eden Falls Prep 3)

"You haven't," he says lamely.

"Thanks for the reassurance." I glare at him. "If only I could trust you with anything."

He stays stubbornly quiet, but the devil on my shoulder won't shut up. He wants to add more fuel to the fire.

"I hope it was fucking worth it, betraying me."

He stares me down, not saying a word. His mouth opens and closes but nothing comes out. There's nothing to say, nothing to add. He knows just how fucked up all of this is.

"Let me help you get home," he offers, not unkindly.

"Oh, just fuck off," I hiss. "I don't want or need anything from you. Just get the hell away from me."

"Calm down." Lai holds his hands up. "I don't want to fuck things up more."

"More? More?" I advance on him, grabbing the front of his shirt. "Look where your fuck-up brought us. An innocent girl getting hurt multiple times."

Lai raises his eyebrows at me. "Since when do you have a problem with that?"

His words render me speechless, and I stare him down before groaning and pushing him aside. "Forget it."

"I mean it," he speaks up again. "That pussy may be tight, but it sure as hell ain't magic. What's got you so fucking whipped for Pandora Oakes?"

I wish I could answer his question, but my silence says everything. Without saying another word to him, I walk away, wincing with every step.

It takes weeks for the wounds to hell. By then, Anders is back at work, but has also officially handed me his notice. Soon enough, I won't have anyone to help me with the situation at home. I'm going to need to find a different solution.

Over the past month, I've been wondering whether I still love Lily Anna. The affection is still there. The need to take care of her. But there's no passion, no lust, no deep love anymore. She isn't the girl I fell in love with. Maybe she never was.

At school, things have started running smoother, though not being at the top of the food chain has proven to be a problem for me. Easton runs Prep now. I'm just a bystander to his actions.

Lily Anna grows wilder by the day, making me miss day after day of school. Audra never stops hurting my toy, practically following her around with humiliating tasks. Pandora spent weeks being Audra's maid, for lack of a better word, because the blonde took offense to one of her answers in class. There's no way for my toy to fight it now. She just has to take what's doled out to her, grit her teeth, and pray she gets through it okay.

By the time I return to school, my back is scarred and my head is filled with ideas of revenge. I'm not only going to take down Brantley and Oakes, I'm going to bring this whole damn town down. And there's only one person I want by my side.

I pull Pandora aside in the hallway. She's wearing a thick black choker - a sign of the town that signifies she's disrespected someone above her in status. She looks beaten down, tired and pissed off.

"Where were you?" Her first words to me are accusatory. "Where have you been, Dexter? Do you see what they're doing to me?"

"Remember what I did for you," I grind out. "I had to heal. Get better."

"I don't think that's the whole truth," she mutters, and I can't even argue with her. She knows something's up. She may not figure out the Lily Anna situation, but she can sense my lies. "I think you're avoiding me."

Because you scare me, I want to tell her, but I hold my tongue and shake my head. "We need to get you the fuck out of Eden Falls."

"Don't you think I know that?" Her voice is bitter as she sighs and rubs her temples. "It's all I want, to go back home, to get away. But there's unfinished business I have to do first."

"Like what?"

"I need to go see my mother."

My eyes widen. "You aren't..."

"Supposed to know she's alive?" She smirks. "Tough luck. Brantley found her address for me. I've been saving money. I'm eighteen now. I'm free to leave. As long as I can get out of Eden Falls, I'm fucking free."

"Let me come with you." The words leave my lips on an impulse, and she knits her brows together. "Please. I'll come."

"What good will that do?" She eyes me suspiciously. "I don't need another burden."