Savage Royals: A Reverse Harem High School Bully Romance(25)

“Next weekend. Shopping and movies,” I promised. “And we’ll study, which I desperately need to do.”

“Deal.” She perked up, tucking her auburn hair behind her ears.

She waved as I slid into the car and sped off. The pink monstrosity looked mostly back to normal, although there were smudges of color where I hadn’t been able to completely remove the graffiti. Hopefully my grandparents wouldn’t notice.

When I pulled up outside the massive mansion, an older man emerged from the front door and took my keys from me before bringing my car around to the private garage.

I walked inside to find Jacqueline in the study with Philip. He was behind the desk, bent over some paperwork, while she sat in a chair opposite him. She didn’t have a book or anything, and I wondered if maybe they’d been talking before I arrived. They certainly weren’t when I walked in.

A crystal glass of whiskey sat in front of him, just like before. When I knocked softly on the doorframe and entered, he nodded, but that was about all I got in the way of a greeting from him. I nodded back.

“Ah, Talia. Why don’t we go out to the garden?” Jacqueline rose and sauntered toward me.

She wore a pale green dress that made it look like she was about to go out for the evening, though I doubted she was. I think she just likes to look like that all the time. She followed me as we left the study, and I got the feeling she was herding me out because Philip didn’t want to deal with me. When we reached the garden, we settled into two comfortable chairs that faced the ocean. The smell of saltwater and the sound of the waves relaxed me, making me glad for the first time that I’d agreed to come.

“How’s school?” Jacqueline asked.

I shrugged. “Not bad. The classes are a little hard, but I’m studying.”

“Don’t shrug. Such a noncommittal gesture.” She looked out toward the water. “And are you getting along with everyone?”

I dropped my shoulders, frowning. “Um… pretty much. I mean, there are some people who don’t seem to like me all that well, but it’s fine.”

“Like who?”

“Oh, it’s no big deal,” I said evasively, tucking my feet under me on the large chair.

“Talia.” Her voice was firm. “I’m not going to ask again. Clearly, there’s something going on. So spit it out.”

“It’s nothing,” I insisted, hating that I’d let anything slip. Jacqueline wasn’t the kind of person I wanted to have a heart-to-heart with about this. “It’s just that… some of the kids at Oak Park don’t like me all that much. I guess because I’m poor.”

“You were poor,” she interjected. “Not anymore.”

I nodded. “Right, was poor. They don’t want me at the school though. It’s these four boys called the Princes. They just like to tease me and push me around sometimes. It’s okay.”

“The Princes.” She rolled the word around in her mouth, looking vaguely disgusted. “Those boys are just as much trouble as they’ve always been then.”

I blinked. “You know them?”

“I know their families.”

My eyes widened. “Like, you know of them or you know them personally?”

“Personally.” Her gaze cut to me, her brows drawing together. “Roseland is a small community, Talia. You’ll find that everyone important knows everyone else here.”

“What do you know about them?” I asked, leaning forward slightly.

I couldn’t help myself. I knew I shouldn’t care about the Princes after the way they’d treated me, but my pulse jumped at the chance to find out more about them. Maybe if I did, I could figure out how to fight back against them. Figure out why they hated me so much in the first place.

“They’re the oldest sons of the Whittaker, Mercer, Prescott, and Van Buren families. The Prescotts are the wealthiest family in Roseland, and they’ve been grooming Elijah to take over as their heir since he was a baby.”

Made sense. He seemed like he’d been made for this life, like a thoroughbred that existed for one purpose only.

“Edward Van Buren has had some financial difficulties in the past—I think losing his wife hit him hard—but he’s doing well now. Mason will inherit a large empire.”

My hand curled into a fist at my stomach as I blinked at her. Mason’s mom is dead?

I hadn’t known that.

Which wasn’t surprising, really. We weren’t exactly having long, involved conversations.

Jacqueline waved a hand, as if growing bored with this topic. “They’re all being raised to take over their families’ businesses and holdings. A child is a legacy, and they’ll continue theirs through that bloodline.” Then she sighed, her voice softening. “It’s a great thing, to be able to pass down what you’ve worked so hard to build and to know it will continue even after you’re gone.”

She cleared her throat, and for the first time all afternoon, I saw real emotion in her face. She quickly brushed a finger across her cheek, turning to face the ocean again. I got the distinct feeling she’d wiped away a tear, and pity swelled in my chest. No matter what had happened to drive them apart, my mom had been her daughter. Maybe Jacqueline had cared about her, had missed her when she left. She just hid it better than most.