Page 45 of Rockwell Academy: The Twist

“You know–” she lowers her voice. “When I came here, Frankie warned all the guys off. It was his idea to pair me with Jack because he knew it wouldn’t go any further than kissing.”

“And did it?” I’m curious about their relationship because, from what I learned from her over the holidays, it was exactly that.

“Not anymore.”

“No way!” I stop and pull her around to face me and her impish grin lights up her face.

“Since when?”

“Since the night after the party.”

“What was it like? Are you scared your parents will find out?”

I’m asking for a friend obviously because if Siri has walked the walk, I’m intending on following hard in her footsteps.

“Fantastic and no, I’m not scared.”

Siri shrugs. “I kind of broached the subject with mom in the holidays.”

“Wow, Siri, you’ve got balls. That’s the last conversation I would have with any member of my family.”

Siri laughs softly, her affection for her mom heavy on her face.

“Mom gets it. She reminded me she was a young woman once—her words, not mine. She told me that nature has its own agenda and doesn’t follow the rules made by man.”

“She makes a good point.”

A wave of affection hits me for my beautiful Aunt Charlotte. She’s an English rose with extremely sharp thorns that are needed to handle my Uncle Ivan. The Russian Bratva king who is tattooed to fuckery and scary as fuck and yet a pussy cat around ‘his girls’ as he calls the female members of his family.

Aunt Charlotte has him in the palm of her hand and she plays with him constantly. It’s amusing to watch and Siri is lucky to have the kind of relationship with her that allows her to speakfreely. I have the same relationship with my mom, but we are guarded as a family and she is more protective over us than Charlotte is with her kids. It’s because of mom’s own experience here and she is right to be concerned. If she saw the company I am keeping, she would be extremely worried indeed and I envy Siri her uncomplicated relationship with a guy who is open and honest and so cute he doesn’t even realize it.

“I must say, Summer, I was nervous as fuck, but Jack was so gentle and kind it became the best experience of my life.”

Siri smiles dreamily. “He held back all last semester and I didn’t know why. He obviously settled his demons because our relationship is way deeper than before, especially now we’ve, well, stepped over the line, shall we say.”

“Did you use protection?” I’m concerned for my friend and she nods.

“Of course. I’m not a complete idiot. I decided to get on birth control though, just to be safe. Mom told me she would arrange it because it’s one thing going all in but another thing entirely facing my father with news that I’m pregnant.”

“Fuck!”

I shiver at the image of that and Siri whispers, “Mom arranged my visit to the doctors before we returned. I’m not saying we’re giving up on the condoms, but double protection sets my mind at ease.”

I wonder if I should do the same because if Siri is worried about an unplanned pregnancy, I can only imagine the explosion my own would create because Luca is the enemy, not the chivalrous Jack who any father would be happy to trust with his daughter.

“It got me thinking about your mom.” Siri’s voice holds a heavy dose of sadness.

“My mom?”

“About her relationship with your father here when they met.”

Her words tug on my heartstrings because mom lived the nightmare I could well be repeating. My father was one of Uncle Angelo’s friends who had warned them all off from touching my mom. She was supposed to remain a virgin because her father had already arranged her marriage to a friend of his. The twisted deranged psycho, Massimo Delauren, and she was expected to be a virgin on her wedding night.

She wasn’t.

She was pregnant with Frankie and my father didn’t even know about it. It was a terrible time for all of them and it acts as a huge warning to me not to follow the same path.

I sigh inside and as we reach the cafeteria, I attempt to push away my problem. It may never be one because I’m not convinced that Luca has my best interests at heart, anyway.

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