Page 42 of Swallow Your Sorries

“What have you two been doing?” Zedd asks.

“Drop it Zedd, you’re not Dad, ok?” Stassi says finally, taking a sip of water. “Just leave me alone.”

“After you answer. You know Beaussip’s going to be all over this. They’ll say something stupid like you were pregnant and got rid of the baby.”

“A guy would have to get within a metre of me first,” she mumbles miserably.

“And I’ll see to it that that doesn’t happen,” Zedd swears. “But it doesn’t stop the rumours. Or they’ll say that you’re doing drugs to lose so much weight.”

“That’s horseshit,” she says, but then why does she look so guilty?

“So what’s the truth?” Hale asks softly, his fingers twitching as if he’s about to reach for her before he settles on a muffin and an orange slice instead. “We’re just worried about you. Is everything okay? Are you okay?”

“Are you okay?” Zedd asks, his eyes snapping to Hale. “Why are you asking her shit? Why are you even here right now?”

“What? At thecafe?To eat!”

“I’m fine!” Stassi bellows, running a hand through her blonde locks. Multiple strands cling to her fingers, and she hastily tries to hide her hand in her lap, but not before catching my eye. “You guys stress me out so much my damn hair’s falling out.”

I doubt that’s the reason.

“I just spent time with Mum in St. Barts to unwind, that’s it, ok? And Ari and I crashed at Benoit’s so we could catch up after the break. You know, have some private girl talk in peace without our unhinged brothers lurking around.”

Benoit’s is a five-star hotel not too far from my penthouse.

Still, I know it’s a lie, and so does Aria.

Aria flinches at theb-word, but she doesn’t look up from her plate of French toast, completely ignoring Éti’s stare boring into her skull.

“You’re all so invested in us, but what about you, Gant?” Stassi nods at me incredulously. “He just pissed on someone in front of the entire school. You guys have clearly been scheming all summer, and yet this is the first we’ve heard of it?”

The change of subject snaps Aria back to her snarky self almost immediately. “I can’t believe you fabricated an entire scholarship to lure her here. Why didn’t you tell us you’ve finally found your arch nemesis?” she asks, stabbing at her French toast and arching a brow.

“Perhaps for the same reason you two are keeping secrets,” I say, exiting the conversation thread with Eloisa’s mother. There’s no news about Jarett there, just a message that her mother had gotten home safely and that she loved her.

Somehow that simple I love you raises enough bitterness and resentment within me to toss the phone straight into Bae’s coffee mug, but I resist the urge, gripping the phone tighter. I’d never get such a message from my mother again and it’s all thanks toher.

Stassi squirms, but Aria lifts her chin and brushes away a stray curl from her forehead.“You may want to reconsider being more open with us.”

“And why would I do that?” I ask lazily once the bitter feeling passes. I click open Eloisa’s period tracker. This could come in handy later.

Her last cycle ended two days ago and it should be back on in twenty-nine days. Little alarms go off every morning at seven to remind her to take her birth control. My lungs stiffen at that.Is she fucking someone? Or had she been in her old town?

Immediately, I open her photos and search for any sign of a male. My heart slows when I only find a few pictures of her at her old public school that looks like a prison. In almost every photo, she’s alone or in ballet attire. There’s a picture from last Christmas of her and her mum posing next to a sad, skinny Christmas tree. If it could be called that. It looks like a plant they’d swiped from the woods. Only two gifts sit at the potted base, but both women are cheesing in ugly Christmas sweaters as if it’s the best day ever.

I stare at the broken gingerbread man using two candy canes as crutches on Elle’s sweater and immediately comparisons of my own Christmases sprint to the forefront of my mind. Bart, when he showed up, would never wear a matching sweater with me much less an ugly one. Then again, neither could my mother.

The next photo shows both women again in hairnets, grinning behind a meat display counter. Did she work in a deli? One thing is obvious, despite each seemingly abysmal background, Elle’s smile progressively shines brighter. The final picture is of her standing on Beaulieu’s front steps making the peace sign just hours ago.

My, how things have changed. That’ll be the last smile she wears for the entire year.

“Because she’s our new roommate.”

I freeze, glancing up at Aria’s smirk before a smile stretches my lips. Well, this fresh development could take my revenge to a whole new level.

“Ari, let’s finish unpacking,” Stassi says, her eyes darting between us before she pulls Aria to her feet.

As they walk past me, I slip Eloisa’s phone into Aria’s blazer pocket. I’d already installed spyware on it. I could finish lurking remotely.

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