Page 73 of Redeeming the Villain

Instead, he takes off, storming toward the dorm hall with the rest of the guys on his heels.

“Well, he seems …intense,” Phillip mutters, opening the passenger door for me.

Sliding into the seat, I buckle myself in. “You have no idea.”

The ride to the restaurant is anything but silent. Phillip starts hounding me with questions. But the moment I mention who the grumpy guy really is, he starts to understand. At least slightly.

“But you hate him,” he says, his words hanging in the air as we pull up into the valet line.

I sigh. “Yes, and no …”

“Oh God,” he groans. “You’re going to have to start from the beginning, Lore. Fill me in.”

Which is exactly what I do.

Phillip’s always been a rock. Confident, strong, and sure. He knows exactly what life will look like for him, and so far, he hasn’t been wrong.

Aside from his girlfriend cheating on him last month and moving in with her new boyfriend days later.

Cheating on Phillip is just gross.

I assure him that he’ll have no problem finding someone new, but he wants to take a break from dating and just focus on his schoolwork for a while. If only I could do the same.

Instead of classes and studies, my mind lingers on Malik. I’m not even sure when that really began, but I know that everything has changed between us. We can’t go back to just hating each other. We’re forced to figure out where we go now. I think I know what I want, but it depends on him. I won’t play his games anymore. I’m tired of them.

But if playing them gets me one step closer to breaking down his walls, I might be willing to play one or two. Even if it means I’m the dumbest, most naive girl in the world who’s assisting in breaking her own heart.

After we devour delicious pasta, Phillip takes me back to my dorm and makes sure I get inside the building safely before pulling away.

I’m exhausted and so excited to kick my heels off, climb into bed, and cuddle with Sunny.

Unlocking the door, I step inside, flicking my heels to the ground and hanging my purse on the hook behind my door.

Sunny’s paws hit the ground, and she trots over to me.

“Hi, baby. How was your night?”

When I bend down, she gives me a little kiss on my chin while I pet her head.

Standing up and rounding the corner, I slam to a halt, my stomach jumping into my throat.

“What the hell are you doing in here?” My heart starts doing flips in my chest while butterflies take flight in my stomach. “How did you even get in here?”

Malik smirks, lying in my bed with absolute ease, his ankles crossed and arm stretched out behind his head.

My body heats from the intensity in his stare, and I suddenly feel like a bug flying headfirst into a trap, confusing the tingly warmth of electricity with the sun.

His voice is raw and sharp. “How was yourdate?”

Itold myself not to come here, to leave her alone. Let her find happiness with that guy.

But I couldn’t, not when she already belonged to me.

“My date?” Alora’s lips show the slightest hint of amusement. “It wasn’t a date.”

Petting Sunny once more, who trotted back over to me after greeting Alora, I swing my legs off the edge of the bed and sit forward, resting my elbows on my knees as my eyes eat her alive, traveling from the bottom of the slit in her dress to the top of her thigh, up and over every inch of her until I land on her parted lips and her curious stare.

“Thatdress, and you want to say it wasn’t a date.”

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