Paper Princess (The Royals #1)(94)

He is? On a Monday? Gideon never comes home from college during the week.

“Can we go for a drive? I need to talk to you.”

My brows knit together. “Why can’t we talk here?”

“Because I don’t want anyone overhearing us.”

I sit up in bed, but I’m still not comfortable with his request. Not that I think he’s going to murder me on the side of the road or anything, but asking me to go for a drive is strange, especially for Gideon.

“It’s about Savannah, okay?” he mutters. “And I want it to stay between you and me.”

I relax slightly. But the confusion lingers. This is the first time Gideon has mentioned Savannah to me. I only know about their history because of Easton. Still, I can’t deny I’m insanely curious about it.

“I’ll meet you outside,” I tell him.

His huge SUV waits in the driveway when I descend the front steps. I hop into the passenger seat and Gideon drives off without a word. His profile is like stone and his shoulders rigid. And he doesn’t say a single word until he pulls into a small plaza five minutes later and kills the engine.

“Are you having sex with Reed?”

My mouth falls open, and my heart starts pounding, because the furious look in his eyes is unexpected.

“Um. I…No,” I stammer. It’s the truth.

“But you’re together,” Gideon presses. “You’re hooking up?”

“Why are you asking me this?”

“I’m trying to figure out how much damage control I’m gonna have to do.”

Damage control? What the hell is he talking about?

“Shouldn’t we be talking about Savannah?” I ask uneasily.

“This is about Savannah. And you. And Reed.” His breathing sounds labored. “Whatever you’re doing, you need to stop. Right now, Ella. You need to end it.”

My pulse is even more off-kilter. “Why?”

“Because no good will come of it.”

He drags a hand through his hair, which causes his head to tilt back a bit, drawing my attention to the red mark on his neck. It looks like a hickey.

“Reed is screwed up,” Gideon says hoarsely. “He’s as screwed up as I am, and, look, you’re a nice girl. There are other guys at Astor. Reed’ll be off to college soon.”

Gideon’s words tumble out, a bunch of disjointed sentences that I can’t make sense out of. “I know Reed’s screwed up,” I start to say.

“You have no clue. No clue at all,” he interrupts. “Reed and I and my dad, we have one thing in common. We ruin women’s lives. We drive women to the cliff and then push them over. You’re a decent person, Ella. But if you stay here and continue with Reed, I…” He breaks off, his breathing heavy.

“You what?”

His knuckles whiten as he grips the steering wheel tighter but offers no other explanation.

“You what, Gideon?”

“You need to stop asking questions and start listening,” Gideon snaps. “End it with my brother. You can be his friend, like you are with Easton and the twins. Don’t start up a relationship with him.”

“Why not?”

“Goddammit, are you always this fucking difficult? I’m trying to save you from getting your heart broken and offing yourself with a bottle of pills,” he finally explodes.

Oh. His outburst makes sense now. His mother killed herself… Oh God, did Savannah try something, too?

Reed and I have things sorted out, but I don’t think Gideon is ready to hear that. And I suspect he isn’t going to let up until I agree to his crazy demands. Well, fine. I’ll agree then. Reed and I are already sneaking around behind Callum’s back. It’ll be easy enough to hide it from Gideon, too.

“Okay.” I reach out and rest a soothing hand on his. “I’ll end it with Reed. You’re right, we’re messing around, but it’s not serious or anything,” I lie.

He runs a hand through his hair again. “You sure about that?”

I nod. “Reed won’t care. And honestly, if it upsets you this much, I’m sure he’ll agree that it’s not worth it.” I squeeze Gideon’s hand. “Chill, okay? I don’t want to ruin the dynamic we have going on in the house. I’m cool about ending it.”

Gideon relaxes, his breath coming out in a long rush. “Okay. Good.”

I take my hand back. “Can we go home now? If someone drives by and sees us parked here, the rumor mill at school is going to explode tomorrow.”

He chuckles weakly. “Truth.”

I fix my gaze out the window as he starts the engine and pulls out of the parking lot. We don’t talk on the ride back, and he doesn’t get out of the car when he drops me off.

“You heading back to school now?” I ask.

“Yeah.”

He speeds off, and for some reason I don’t believe that he’s returning to college. At least, not tonight. I’m also more than a little freaked out by his outburst and his insane request for me to stay away from Reed. Speaking of Reed, his Rover is parked near the garage, and the sight fills me with relief. He’s back. And all the other vehicles are gone, even the Town Car, which means Reed and I will be alone.

I hurry inside and take the stairs two at a time. At the landing, I veer right, toward the east wing, where every door is open except for Reed’s. The twins and Easton are nowhere to be seen, and my bedroom is empty too when I peek in.