Veils of Rivalry
Chapter 11
Allie is already inside with Cole and the others, and I try not to let that thought bother me as the gates finally open with an ominous creak. Silence falls over the crowd while we wait outside the tall iron gates. Mia interlaces her fingers with mine. I wonder, not for the first time, if I can go through with my plan.
I don’t have time to fret, though, because the crowd surges forward, steering us toward the gothic monstrosity that stretches fanged towers toward the sky.
Mia’s hand feels so small in mine. Small and fragile.
We enter the building, greeted by rock music and a large chandelier verhead that, if it fell, would kill countless students in one
swoop.
The crowd finally thins out as the masked students make their way to the main hall. I barely have time to take in the artwork on the domed ceiling as Mia pulls me along, swaying her hips to the heavy beat. She’s in her element now, but I remain stiff. Ronnie’s rowdy laughter behind me sounds far away. Distant.
“Allie said to meet them by the fireplace,” Mia shouts over the music
We weave through masked men and women until we reach a seating area. Tiago and Ronnie are nowhere in sight, lost in the faceless crowd.
Lknow the moment I spot him, sprawled on the luxurious couches closest to the lit fireplace, dressed in all black, with one booted foot on the coffee table and his muscled arms spread out behind him
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Goosebumps erupt over my skin, and a chill winds its way down my spine. As the music hits the bridge, his dark eyes lock onto mine, searing me through his striking half–white, half–black mask.
Clashing colors. How ironic.
We stare at each other while I fight against my visceral reaction to the energy emanating from him.
Someone throws themselves at me, and I break eye contact to smile at Allie.
“You came. Thanks for bringing my girl.”
“Get off my man,” my girlfriend scolds, pulling Allie away while laughing. She plasters herself to my side and flips her off.
Arm flung around her shoulder, I accept the beer Allie hands me, then glance around the room.
Now, on to the next part of my plan.
A smirk plays on my lips as I shift my mask to sip my beer.
Tonight is the night for mayhem.
Chaos.
Destruction.
“C’mon,” Mia says, interlinking her fingers with mine and guiding me to the plush couches. I drop beside Samson and pull her down onto my lap.
Music blares around us while I drink my beer, feeling Cole’s eyes on me. The urge to get lost in the darkness that swirls around him
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Chapter 11
like shadows has me white knuckling the bottle in my hand.
I hold the cards tonight. Not him.
Allie appears before us, pulling Mia to her feet.
Samson leans in. “Plenty of fine pussy here tonight.”
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I take in his green and black Venetian mask with its creepy jester smile. “Got your eyes on anyone?”
He scans the vast room, stretching his arms out behind him on the couch, then leans back in, shouting over the loud riff of music. “Freshman, two o’clock.”
Craning my neck, I look behind me, spotting a girl by the tall windows. She’s pretty in her white mask and angel wings. Even more so with the starry night sky as a backdrop.
Samson is so close that his mask brushes up against the side of my face. “I’m gonna be balls deep in her pussy before the night’s end.”
I turn around, and Samson jostles my shoulder, laughing, but I’m caught by the storm on the couch across from us.
If you could define turmoil, Cole is it.
His knee jiggles, and he clenches his hands.
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