Forever Golden: Dark High School Bully Romance (Kings of Cypress Prep Book 3) by Rachel Jonas (books like beach read txt) 📗

you know? There’s no way either of us can say for sure he won’t make good on his promise if I don’t make good on mine,” she fires off. “I can’t take that risk, West. I absolutely could not live with myself if something happens to her.”

Holding her is the only comfort I can offer, because with how tight these two are, I know there’s nothing I can say to ease her mind.

I’m rifling through my thoughts, putting pieces together now that I know the specifics of Vin’s threat, now that I hear out loud what she thinks he’s involved in. There are still a ton of missing pieces, but I fully believe Vin’s capable of the shady-ass shit Southside just accused him of. But what he’s definitely not banking on is that he’ll have to get through me if he intends to get to her.

A flash of light outside has me leaving her to peer through the blinds.

“Is that him? Is he back?”

It breaks my heart to hear how terrified she is of him.

I shake my head. “Just Ricky.”

As much as I hate the guy, I don’t think having him on lookout tonight is a bad idea. If things are headed in the direction I think they’re headed, he and I may need each other to some degree if we intend to protect Southside from whatever Vin has in mind.

“I don’t think I can be alone tonight,” she admits, and I can’t believe she thought I’d even consider leaving.

“I’m not going anywhere.”

Her loaded stare stays trained on me and she eventually nods. I feel her emotions all the way across the room. Which is why I double back toward her, pulling her up from the floor to hold her tight.

As expected, she’s a ball of anxiety and nervous energy, making me want to skin my father alive. More than I already wanted to.

“I’m terrified,” she admits. “For me. For Scar.” Her words are muffled against my neck. She squeezes tighter and I place a kiss in her hair.

“I’m having an alarm system installed tomorrow,” I reveal, which has her leaning away to stare at me.

“I can’t let you do that. It’ll cost—”

“Fuck the cost,” I cut in. “It’s happening whether you agree to it or not. I’ll need your key to get in, then I’ll hang out here after school while you’re at practice, because you are going to practice,” I add quickly, seeing she’s about to protest. “I know that’s the last place you want to be, but we’ve gotta go about things like nothing’s changed. So, by the time you make it home, it’ll be installed.”

She stares. There’s more she wants to say, but I’m guessing she knows I’m firm on this. There’s no way she’s staying here after this without both of us knowing she’s protected.

“Okay,” she nods, unable to hide the sense of relief this brings even if she hates that I’m paying for it.

Words come to mind. They’re kind of transparent, and not ones I’d typically say, but I know she needs to hear them, needs a little more reassurance.

“I’ll always protect you. No matter who or what you’re up against. And you have my word, Southside, no matter what it takes, I’m gonna fix this.”

There’s no response at first, which I hope is because she’s letting that sink in.

Standing here, holding her, I have no clue what expectations she has when it comes to this relationship. But what I do know is that I have to be the best for her. The best at whatever it is she needs me to be. And if what she needs tonight is for someone to exist with her in the silence, or hold her until the fear subsides, then that’s what I’ll be.

But first chance I get, mark my words—Vin will feel my fucking wrath.

@QweenPandora: Whoops! Was it something I said?

Looks like the whole crew showed up to rally around their girl after that last post. Not sure what BigDaddy did or said, but one thing’s for sure.

The Golden Boys, VirginVixen and SeXyBeAsT aren’t having it.

I know what you’re all thinking. It’s probably not smart to potentially make an enemy of the city’s most powerful man, but if there’s one thing you should’ve figured out by now, it’s that I don’t take sides. From the greatest to the least, if there’s gossip to share, you’d better believe I’m on the job.

Don’t want all of Cypress Pointe rifling through your dirty laundry? Well, might I suggest being a bit more careful next time? Just a tip.

Later, Peeps.

—P

Chapter 5

BLUE

“So, yeah. That’s everything.”

I’m nervous as hell having just admitted all that, laying mine and West’s entire story at Dr. Pryor’s feet.

In the spirit of full disclosure, we made sure to even include the parts that don’t paint either of us in an innocent light. From West admitting he made me his emotional punching bag for several months, to Parker’s sprained ankle being the result of retaliation on my part. We left no stone unturned.

Now, with it all out in the open, the look on Dr. Pryor’s face has me even more uncertain.

Neither West nor I are squeaky clean, but Parker took things to a whole other level. And, honestly, it just felt damn good to expose her—the video leak, the peanut sauce fiasco, my near-drowning in the pool.

All of it.

But there’s another side of the situation—the fact that I’m not sure any of this matters in the big scheme of things. For instance, potentially getting Parker expelled from Cypress Prep could be somewhat of a moot point. Seeing as how I’m not even certain I’ll be here long. West is holding out hope that things will work out, but I’m nowhere near as optimistic. Then again, I admit life’s left me feeling a bit jaded.

Dr. Pryor lowers her gaze to my file, but still hasn’t said a word. She sort of just let West and I vomit out all this information without any feedback on her