Page 117 of Ice Princess

Rebel strides in. She looks stunning in a pink blouse and a black skirt that shows off her long, toned legs. Her hair’s twisted up into a bun, allowing my eyes to scour every inch of her face.

She’s… smiling.

But those eyes… they’re not crinkling at all.

“Rebel,” Benji says, taking an unconscious step forward.

I slam a hand in front of him, barring his way.

The movement draws Rebel’s attention to me. Her blue eyes widen and then narrow in calculation. A second later, the plastic smile on her face widens, “Baby, you’re back!”

B-baby?I gawk at her.

“Did she just call him ‘baby’?” April whispers to Chance.

Rebel makes a running leap toward me.

The entire world gets fuzzy at the edges except for the sight of her lean arms swinging back and forth and her heels thudding against the concrete floor.

My heart slows to match each rhythmic beat of her feet on the ground.

Thud, thud, thud.

A second later, Rebel collides into me.

I stumble back, placing both hands on her hips to steady her while fighting to keep my own balance. In a fluid motion, her arms wrap around my neck, bringing my head down just as she pulses to the tips of her toes.

Without warning, our lips crash together in a harsh, searing kiss.

CHAPTER

THIRTY-FIVE

REBEL

Act like everything’s okay.Act like everything’s okay.

The phrase pounds like a drumbeat in my head as I run straight to Gunner.

His look of utter confusion should have been enough warning to stop, to get ahold of myself.

But I’m not thinking straight.

My body is on autopilot and my mind is still stuck in that boardroom. Disappointment cuts me to the quick and I feel lower than dirt.

But what does it matter? I got the donation, didn’t I? I won, didn’t I? Marjorie White and the other ladies are going to guarantee my seat on the Society, aren’t they?

My entire life, I’ve heard the same thing:

“There are worse things than being pretty, Rebel.”

“Oh? No one listens to you because you’re so pretty?”

“Oh poor, pretty Rebel. Life must be so hard for you, huh?”

No one will fully understand why this morning hurt me so much. No one, except April, will really care anyway.

Why bother explaining to them?

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