Shattered Dynasty by Ava Harrison
16
Payton
I’m backin the same classroom where all of this started.
Heather isn’t here yet, but as soon as my butt makes contact with my usual chair, I hear her speak from behind me. “You’re alive after a weekend with Mr. McHottie.”
“Barely,” I admit on a sigh, turning over my shoulder to face her. “And don’t rule out my murdering him, either. I’m keeping all the options on the table right now.”
“So, you really were with him! What happened?” Her nose is scrunched as she moves to take the seat next to me.
“Basically, in a nutshell, he’s blackmailing me.”
She lifts her hand, offering me the half-drunk coffee in it. “White chocolate drizzled mocha latte. You need this more than I do. Now tell me what you mean. You’re joking, right? He’s not really blackmailing you, right?”
“No, not really. More like extortion.”
Her mouth hangs open.
“Close your mouth, or you’ll catch a fly,” I say, laughing. “The truth is, he’s actually bartering with me.”
I think.
I’m not absolutely sure why he wants me under his roof, but I’m convinced it’s a power play. Some way to drive me so insane, so I willingly want to give up on the twenty-two mil.
I’ve thought about it since I moved in. It’s a shit ton of money, but his building itself is worth way more. He doesn’t need it. His family doesn’t need it. He wants me under his thumb, miserable, the only relic of his father wilted because of Trent’s power.
I won’t give him the satisfaction.
“It’s your money.” Heather sounds appalled on my behalf. It gives me a small measure of comfort. At least one person is on my side. “How is he even able to do this? We need to call a lawyer. This isn’t legal.”
“Well, technically, it’s not my money until my twenty-second birthday.”
“Not the point. He can’t do this to you. I’m sure—”
“It’s fine. I don’t want to go to court. I just want to live through this and move on. Plus, I get to live in his bougie-ass house while finishing school. He thinks he’s going to break me, but the way I see it, I’m winning.”
“You got this. It’s not too far away. What is it, like, eight more months?”
“Give or take.” Bitterness is laced in my voice.
Dealing with Trent is hell, but I can’t tell her that. It would lead to her worrying, and I’m worried enough for the both of us.
She nudges my shoulder, patting my hand. “So, you just have to hold out a bit longer.”
“It feels like an eternity. I keep telling myself it will all be worth it.”
“Hell yeah, it will be.”
“I just don’t know how I can do this.” I shake my head, lost in the absurdity of his stipulations. “Living with him, the maid gig, going to college, and the extra work he’s making me do. Add volunteering to the mix, and I’m fucked.”
Heather’s gaze becomes intense, and her mouth dips into a frown.
“Hold up. Did you say maid gig?”
“That’s the only part you got?”
“Pretty much.” Her hand squeezes mine so tight it turns white. “Oh, and what the hell do you mean you are living with him now?”
“Shh! Keep it down,” I whisper-shout, paranoid someone’s listening in. The last thing I need is rumors around our small campus. “I mean exactly what I said. Apparently, for him to pay for my school, I must live with him. Oh, and be his maid.”
“Um.” She nibbles on her lip. “That’s really kind of creepy.”
“You think?” I roll my eyes. “Brad has nothing on this dude.”
“Do you think he’s doing this to get in your pants?”
Her expression has changed from shock to something else. I can’t put my finger on what, though. Curiosity?
“If so, he’s doing a shitty job at it. Apparently, he doesn’t find me pretty.”
“So, you weren’t handed a sexy French maid costume?”
“Heather. Come on. Like I said, he’s not attracted to me. Although, I’m pretty sure he’s lying.” I giggle.
“Why do you think that?”
“I dropped my towel in front of him.”
Cue the wide eyes.
Cue the open mouth.
Cue the gasp.
“Oh my God, you hooker.” She leans into my side, and I just know she’s biting back a squeal. “Details.”
“No details. I was just trying to fuck with him the way he fucks with me. Prove he isn’t so robotic and controlled as he thinks he is.”
Heather looks at me like I’m a reality show she can’t get enough of. “And—”
“And he definitely was affected. Whether or not it was in lust or disgust is the question.”
If I’m honest, he stared at me like I’m a buttery steak he knows he shouldn’t eat but can’t wait to sink his teeth into. My heart throttles at the memory. Those damn eyes and smirk. Suddenly, it’s hot in the classroom.
“Lust, obviously. Have you seen yourself?” Heather groans dramatically, making the shape of an hourglass with her hands, and fans herself.
I shrug. “Not to him. He is cold as ice.”
“You would be hot to anyone, girl. The man is full of shit.”
“He is that, for sure. He may think I’m hot, but he also thinks I’m trash. His pretentious ass wouldn’t touch me with his maids’ double-layered gloves.”
“Your gloves,” she corrects with a disbelieving shake of the head.
“I’m one of many.”
“Damn. How rich is he?”
“Rich enough, he shouldn’t care about my inheritance.”
She lifts a brow. “Then why does he?”
“Good question.” I look down at my hands and back at my friend. “It’s weird that he wants me close. He says he wants to drive me insane. But something tells me it’s more than that.”
“Do you think he’s trying to nullify the will?”
My upper teeth bite down on my lower lip. “A part of me does. There is no question he resents his father and resents me for being important to him. But the thing is, he’s sketchy AF. He’s crooked. If he wanted to steal my money, he could.”
“Maybe it’s really about making you live with him so he can see what will hurt you most, then he’s going to strike.”
I nod in agreement.
“I also think this has to do with what happened to his family. He holds me responsible for some reason.”
“Crazy, since he doesn’t even know you. Otherwise, he’d realize what a great person you are.”
“You’re obligated to say that. You’re my friend.” I’m smiling, but it fades as soon as my mind drifts back to Trent. “I can’t even pretend to understand the motive. Nor do I want to. All I want to do is survive. If I clean some dishes, that’s okay. I just can’t let him ever have ammunition on me. That would be disastrous.”
“Keep him away from your sister.”
“Understatement of the year. Erin is likely to hit on him.”
“I’m surprised she hasn’t.”
We both start laughing. Not that my sister is particularly funny, but when someone is this way, you just gotta laugh it off.
“She’s not that bad.”
“She’s not good either.”
Erin is a conundrum. There were moments right after our parents died that she was caring, but that version of my sister faded fast. Probably the moment she realized how hard it actually was going to be to raise me alone.
She went from being my sister to being someone I no longer knew. That and the biggest narcissist on earth.
It all depends on her mood.
Her ups and her downs.
Unfortunately, that mood is often dependent on her finances and whether she has a man in her life.
Right now, she’s a loose wire.
Sure, she has someone, but I can’t be sure about her finances.
I’m not sure how Ronald set her up.
If he gave her money before he went away.
It isn’t my business to ask.
I’m trying to protect myself.
Now, I’m just trying to get as far away from everything, including Trent, as possible.
Eight months.
You can do anything for eight months.
“Listen,” Heather says, turning to face me so she knows she has my attention. “Do what you have to do. Keep your eyes open. Don’t ever let your guard down. Be careful and bide your time.”
“I will.”
“And know I am always here for you. Always.”
“Thanks, I appreciate it.”
“Come on. If we don’t stop talking, we will never pass this class. Especially after what happened last time you were here, you don’t want to draw any more attention to yourself.”
She’s right.
Everything she said is true.
I can get through anything. I have already been through so much. I can handle a rich prick like Trent.
I just need to keep my wits about me.
Not pay attention to him.
Stay far away from him.
And certainly not allow myself to even look at him.
Because that’s one thing I didn’t tell her.
I might have told her how I stripped bare for him, but I didn’t mention that a part of me wanted him to look. I wanted to get a rise out of him, and a small part, a part I don’t want to acknowledge, wanted to see the hate in his eyes replaced by lust. And for the briefest moment, I got my wish.