Catherine’s POV
His hand was on the wall beside my head, while his other arm was so close that I could feel the faint brush of his sleeve against my shoulder. I should have been intimidated, or maybe even afraid, but I wasn’t. Seeing his composure crack and his chest rising too fast was something very satisfying to watch.
"Why do you care?" The question rolled out softly, even when my heart was doing its own drum solo.
"Catherine?" His warm breath hit my cheek. "Tell me his name?"
I lifted my chin, pretending to be calm. "Collins," I finally answered after a beat. "Collins and I are dating now," I repeated in a more convincing tone.
The reaction was instant, his eye brows shot up and his body instantly moved. I could see the disbelief written across every sharp line of his face.
"Collins? Do you really expect me to believe this?" He repeated, almost to himself. "All you do is fool around, I’m sure there’s nothing more to it. Try harder."
I shrugged, even though my stomach was twisting. "I don’t owe you an explanation. Don’t believe me, if you don’t want to."
He leaned in a little closer, his voice dropping lower. "You think I can’t see what you’re doing? You’re lying."
"Then call my bluff," I said quietly, meeting his eyes.
His nostrils flared, and for a second, I thought he might actually do something reckless like touch me or kid me but before that tension could break, Sasha walked in on us.
"Julian?"
Sasha called, standing at the doorway, looking between us with wide, suspicious eyes. "What’s going on here?"
Julian didn’t answer, he just pulled back, every bit of heat between us freezing over.
Without even sparing a single glance at her, he turned and strode out of the room.
Full of venom, Sasha’s gaze swung to me. "You? You just can’t help it, can you?" she spat.
I blinked, taken aback. What did I do this time?
She stepped closer. "Don’t play dumb. Do you think I didn’t see you throwing yourself at Julian? You’re pathetic."
My jaw tightened. How on earth did she come up with that conclusion!
"That’s not true," I defended and tried to walk out but she grabbed my arm, biting her nails into my skin. "Shut that hole you call a mouth, you shameless slut. Julian is supposed to be your stepbrother!"
"Let go of me and stop falsely accusing me."
She laughed coldly. "You are talking back now? You may have quickly forgotten what I did to you the last time, Catherine. I wouldn’t want to have to beat some sense into you again."
That word—again—made me tremble, but I forced myself to hide the fear.
I forcefully pulled my arm free, stepping forward. "You may not get away with it a second time," I countered, low and firm. "And stop making up stories. I have no interest in Julian."
Her brows arched, but I kept going.
"Actually," I added, trying to sound casual, "if it makes you feel good, I’m dating Collins now."
She paused and spoke again. "Is this true?"
"You heard me."
Her eyes darted across my face, searching for any sign of a lie. "How long?"
"Recently," I forced a small shrug.
"Then why doesn’t anyone know? No one’s mentioned you and Collins."
My mouth opened, but nothing came out. I scrambled for something believable. "Because... we wanted to keep it private."
She stared at me for another long second and scoffed.
Before she could say anything, I slipped past her, my pulse racing. I didn’t stop walking until I was out of the hallway, the tension finally breaking free from my chest.
What had I just done? I’d backed myself into a corner with that lie and now there was only one way out.
By the time I reached my next class, my decision was made. I had one assignment for the day: Find Collins and ask him to be my boyfriend.
—
Lunch couldn’t come fast enough. My nerves were shot, my mind looping through every possible version of how this could go wrong till I finally spotted Collins across the cafeteria leaning against a table, laughing with his friends. My feet just started moving and when he saw me halfway across the room, his smile faltered. Great start.
"Hey," I said when I reached him, forcing a small smile. "Can we talk?"
His friends immediately perked up, all smirks and whispers.
"Damn, Collins," one of them said. "When do you plan to make an introduction?"
Another elbowed him. "If you don’t want her, I wouldn’t mind replacing you."
Collins shot them a glare. "Shut up."
He turned back to me with a sigh. "Fine."
We walked to an empty table near the corner of the cafeteria. He dropped into the chair opposite me, folding his arms. "What do you want, Catherine?"
His tone wasn’t angry, but there was no warmth in it either. I fiddled with my fingers before meeting his eyes. "First, I wanted to apologize."
"For what?" he asked flatly.
"For what happened with Julian. You didn’t deserve that."
His eyes darkened. "You think an apology fixes it?" He leaned forward with a sharper voice now. "You’re mature enough to make your own choices. So why do you keep letting him interfere with what’s going on between us?"
I blinked. "It’s not like I let him..."
"Yes, you do," he cut in. "Every time something happens between us, he’s there. It’s like he controls you."
His words stung because they were half true. I looked down at my hands, then slowly reached across the table, resting my fingers near his. "I’m sorry. Trust me, I’m working on it."
He stared at me for a moment, then let out a long breath.
"Do you like me?" The words came out of my mouth before I could second-guess them. For a heartbeat, he didn’t respond. Then he leaned back in his chair, studying me, before slowly reaching out, his hand settling over mine.
"If I didn’t," he began, his thumb brushing my knuckles, "I wouldn’t be talking to you after the humiliation from Julian."
My throat tightened a little while I forced a small smile.
"Good," I whispered. "Because I like you too."