Page 32 of The Good Girl

“It’s a good thing she moved schools,” Serena says with a smug expression. “I heard that she tried to convince one of the other girls to lie too, the whole thing is just ridiculous.”

There’s something echoing in her words that makes my brain whirr to life. Something that sounded familiar. “What are you on about?”

“Haven’t you heard the rumors about Sam?” someone called Destiny asks as she shuffles closer to us on the sofa.

“Poor boy,” Serena mumbles, with a sad look on her face, but again...something feels off.

“One of the girls from the netball team tried to say he raped her at a party. It was all lies, obviously.” Shanice shrugs. “I mean, look at him. Girls go willingly.”

Laughing, Serena jokes, “She probably just felt like a slut the next morning and tried to justify it.”

I vaguely remember something about this last year, but it was like a shimmer, there one minute and gone the next, so I never thought anything about it again. Besides, I never got involved in the school dramas, so why did something strike me as familiar? “And there were others?”

Destiny rolls her eyes. “No, shesaidthere were others.”

The three girls all share a knowing look, and they remind me of witches cackling over their cauldron as they stir up toxic troubles.

“No one else came forward,” Serena explains with a sly smile, and it’s like I’m seeing her for the first time.

She sits back, her hand still firmly in mine, and the way the corner of her mouth drags slowly up her face tells me everything I need to know.

She knew the rumors were true. She knew, and she offered up Elena on a plate. I was going to kill her with my bare hands, but first...I needed to find Elena.

Chapter Twenty-Six

Elena

“Do you want another drink?” Sam whispers into my neck, and I nod. He winks at me as he heads to the kitchen to grab us both something, and I use it as an excuse to go to the bathroom and splash some water on my face.

Why was I here? I hated these things. I hated these people. And I was getting drunk, I could feel it. My body felt sluggish, and it was almost like I was floating, but every time I said no, he just handed me another one anyway.

Tristan was here somewhere with Serena, she’d already text me a selfie of the two of them, but I had yet to actually see him. I’d run into Blythe, however, who’d barged past me with her shoulder before disappearing amongst the crowds of people. I guess she couldn’t handle seeing Tristan with another girl either.Either.Why did I think that? Seeing Tristan with Serena didn’t bother me, he was free to do what he wanted with whoever he wanted. The same way I was.

Sam comes back minutes later, two beers in hand. “Hey, you’re looking flushed. You want to grab some fresh air?”

“Yeah.” Air was a good idea. Tristan was confusing me, making me behave in ways I wouldn’t normally. I didn’t even want to be here, but I wanted to prove to him...I don’t know what I was trying to prove.

When Sam had picked me up this evening, my father had pulled me to one side and reminded me that I was a Montgomery first. I was the mayor’s daughter. An image had to be upheld. I had to behave myself and not disgrace him. His ears were ringing in my ears as I downed the shots one after the other, and now that it was all hitting me, I could feel something simmering away inside.

The cool air washes over my skin, and it feels like I can breathe again. I’d chosen a strappy dress because it had been warm all day, and I knew it looked good. I trained hard, I earned this body, and every once in a while, I liked to remind myself of that.

“Wanna go and sit in the pool house? It’s quiet there, and we can talk for a bit?”

“Yeah, sure.” I smile, but it’s fake. Sam was boring. And pushy. And he was beginning to get on my nerves.

Taking my hand, he leads me down past the swimming pool towards the back of the garden. The pool house is dimly lit, with a single lamp, but I prefer it that way. I don’t have to keep smiling and pretending to look interested in the faded light. I could just sit and pull myself together. I was tense, and I was struggling, especially since Sam was determined to pour more drinks down my throat.

“Can I kiss you?” he asks suddenly, breaking the silence.

“Sure,” I whisper. A kiss was nothing. It meant nothing, so what did it matter if he kissed me?

His lips are on mine instantly, and all I can think about is how wet his mouth is. I’d been kissed before, but I never felt anything. It was what it was, our lips touching, our tongues joining the party, and the bitter taste of disappointment. It’s when his hands start moving over my body that I try to pull away.

“What? I thought you wanted this?” he murmurs against my neck, and I try to shrug him off, but it's like he’s made out of syrup as he sticks to me.

“Get off,” I growl softly in warning, pushing him back. I was hanging on to myself by a thread today, now wasn’t the time to press my buttons.

“You’re such a stuck-up little princess, but fine. If you want to play hard to get, I’ll play.” He lunges, hands grabbing at my dress, and as we tussle, I hear the tearing of fabric.

---