Page 40 of Riot Rules
The door closes, and Carrie turns out the lamp on her bedside table. I lay very still, holding my breath until I hear Hugh’s heavy footsteps trail off down the hallway. Next thing I know, Carrie’s on her knees and she’s glaring at me under the bed.
“Out. Now. You have someseriousexplaining to do.”
18
CARRIE
“I came to get my AirPod.”
He stands by the window, wearing an aloof expression that makes me want to freaking scream. How can he look so damn bored after that? I thought I was going to have a heart attack. “I’m sorry.What?”
“My AirPod,” he repeats. “You took the right one out of my ear in the library. I told you. You need both the left and the right for them to work.”
Seething. Yeah, I’d say that was a pretty good way to describe how I’m feeling at this particular moment in time.I…could…fucking…kill…him.Mechanically, I cross the room, all eleven feet of space, and I grab my backpack from where it’s hanging on the hook behind the door. I fish his stupid AirPod out of the little zipper pocket on the front, slap it into his open palm, and then gesture to the door. “Alright, then. You got what you came for. Go.”
If he smirks, I swear to god, I am going to lose my fucking mind.
Lucky for him, his lips remain static, pressed into a flat line. “Aaaand…that’s just it? You give me back the headphone. I leave. The end?”
“Yes, the absolute final end, Dashiell. I’ve had enough. Next time you’re running through the halls of this school in the middle of the night, being chased by security, make sure to forget which door belongs to me. I am sick of this shit. I’m not even kidding. You should just go.”
He cracks his knuckles, eyes skipping over my features like he’s trying to read something on me. He runs his tongue over his teeth. “Fair enough.”
He heads for the door, but just as he’s about to turn the handle, there’s a loud crash from upstairs, quickly followed by three more loud bangs and…a horn?
“What thefuck?” He turns back at me. “I need to stay. Just half an hour, until he fucks off back downstairs.”
“Dash—”
“I mean it. I go out there now and I’m not gonna make it five feet before he catches me. I’ll be shipped off back to Surrey before tomorrow night, and it’s April, Carrie. Have you been to the U.K. in April? It’s cold, wet and miserable. Are you really that cruel?”
The audacity of this guy. I swear, he has no fucking clue. “I’m not the cruel one. That title’s reserved specifically for you, asshole.”
He rocks on his heels, arching one of his dirty blond eyebrows. “I keep telling you. If I’ve been rude, it’s been for your own good. If you’re butthurt because you feel like I’ve rejected you, then you should know that I did that for your own good.”
“Oh, stop. I’m sick of hearing it. Your excuses get weaker and weaker by the day. I’m not some simpering little girl who’ll shatter into a million pieces the moment you decide you don’t want to spend time with her anymore. You have no idea what I’ve gone through or dealt with in this life. If you really, truly think that you’re going to be the thing that breaks me after I’ve survived everything else that’s already been thrown at me, then I actually feel bad for you.”
Dash lets go of the doorknob. “Really?”
I cross my arms in front of my chest, setting my jaw. Defiance rolls off me, bolstering my confidence. “Yes.”
“You think you’re stronger than me, Mendoza?”
“Yes.”
“You reckon you’re strong enough to handle whatever I can throw at you?”
“Absolutely.” Am I fucking crazy? I should not be making claims like that. I’m strong because I’ve had to be. This isn’t the same thing. I don’thaveto do any of this. I could walk away. He’s told me in no uncertain terms that I should, and what have I done? I’ve called him arrogant for it and done the exact opposite. I’ve run toward him at every turn. It’s the most masochistic, moronic behavior I’ve ever displayed in my life.
“So youwantme to be cruel, then?” he says. The timbre of his voice has taken on a whole new quality. Deep and rough, the rasp a physical caress, stroking down my back, brushing between my thighs, pressing a part of me there that makes my body hum. My thin nightshirt isn’t providing much in the way of heat, but it isn’t the chill on the air that’s making me shiver anymore. It’s the fierce look in his eyes, and the way the tip of his tongue darts out to wet his bottom lip.
“I’m saying you can do whatever you want, Dash.” Lord, why is my voice wobbling so hard? “You can do anything you want. It won’t have any bearing on my life. None at all.”
“You sure of that?”
“Yes.” Lies, lies, and more lies. WouldIeven know the truth anymore? If it leapt up and slapped me in the face, would I even recognize it?
Dash glares at me. His brows pinch together into a knot, the lines getting deeper, deeper, deeper…and then his forehead abruptly smooths out. No lines. No frown. Nothing. “Fine then. Have it your way. Come here,” he growls.
