Love, Lies, and Deception(17)

I had a strange feeling Kristian wasn’t going to be too happy with me.





Luckily, it only took me a total of fifteen minutes to get ready, a new world record for me. I was dreading having to face both Kristian and Alec at the same time, especially given what just happened not twenty minutes ago. I could already feel the heat rising to my cheeks.

When I stepped out of my room, both guys turned and gaped at me. Alec smiled appreciatively while Kristian scowled and clenched his teeth.

“Are you ready?” Kristian asked impatiently while grabbing my bag off the floor by the door. Oh yeah, he is pissed at me all right. I noticed he was wearing the brown leather bracelet I bought him in Fiji, and it made me want to smile, but I didn’t because of his attitude.

I ignored his tone and fetched my usual breakfast from the kitchen: orange juice and a blueberry cereal bar. “Yep, I’m ready,” I said casually, taking a sip of my juice.

Kristian opened the front door and walked out while Alec and I slowly followed behind him. Once Kristian descended the steps, Alec’s light grip on my elbow stopped me. I gazed up at him, my heart fluttering out of my chest.

“I had a good time this morning,” he said, winking.

I blushed. “Me too.”

“Have fun in class today. I’ll be sure to think about you while I’m slaving away at my aunt’s house.”

“Do you go there every day?” I asked, wondering if that’s all he ever did during the days.

He nodded, but his smile had faded; the guarded look was back. “Just about. There’s always something she likes for me to do.”

Grabbing his hand, I held it and squeezed. “Well, don’t work too hard. I’ll see you tonight?”

Alec moved closer and tilted my chin up with his finger. “You bet you will,” he promised.

Rising on my tiptoes, I leaned closer and kissed him lightly on the lips. “I look forward to it,” I whispered huskily.

I left him standing there and practically ran down the steps so I could catch up to Kristian. When I looked back at Alec, he was watching me like a hawk would stalk its prey. It had been a long time since I felt like I’d been desired, and one thing was for sure … it was intoxicating.





Kristian’s strides were clipped and fast as we walked to our first class. The dewy morning was a tad chilly, probably in the mid-fifties, but there were students out and about with shorts and short sleeve shirts on.

When I first got here, I thought those people were crazy, but now I was used to doing the same thing. Actually, by the afternoon there would be girls lying out in their bikinis, soaking up the sun. Kristian always enjoyed that part of the day. Speaking of Kristian, I was trying desperately to keep up with him, but he was leaving me behind.

“Kristian, slow down,” I snapped.

“We’re late,” he grumbled, picking up his pace even more. Clenching my teeth, I sucked it up and pumped my legs faster so that I was dead even with him.

“Look, I’m sorry I didn’t call you to tell you I was going to be late.”

He scoffed. “Yeah, I bet. I’m sure you were too busy.”

Fuming, I grabbed his arm and pulled him to a halt, but he wouldn’t look at me. “Enough!” I yelled, standing in his path. “Kristian, look at me.” Patiently, I waited for him to look at me and eventually he did. Pursing his lips, his cool gray eyes finally met mine and I sighed. “What’s going on with you? This isn’t like us, we never fight. Is it Alec, me, or your girlfriend maybe?”

Kristian’s jaw clenched and his hands were in tight fists. Huffing, he threw them up in the air. “I don’t know, Marissa. All of it maybe? First, Natalie is being distant and last night when I was on the phone with her I heard a dude in the background. Needless to say, it pissed me off and we got in a fight. She said she needs time to think, and I basically called her a cheating whore. Second, I don’t like Alec at all. Something about him doesn’t settle well with me. Not to mention, you’ve only been around him for one night and you’re already sleeping with him!”

“Hey,” I snapped. “First off, we didn’t sleep together. He could’ve taken advantage of me, but he didn’t. The only reason why he stayed was because something happened last night and I didn’t want to be alone. I was a little freaked out.”

Kristian’s eyes instantly softened. “Mare, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that, what happened last night?”

I shrugged. “I don’t know exactly. Alec and I were … talking, and all of a sudden I heard this loud banging from up above us. When we made it upstairs there was no one there, but it looked like someone had taken a baseball bat to the wall. I’m surprised you didn’t notice it.”

Kristian sighed and put his arm protectively around me. “You should’ve called me. I would have come by right away. Why didn’t you call the police?”

“I don’t know … it didn’t look like anyone was breaking in, so I didn’t think the police would be necessary. If I was alone, you know you would’ve been the first person I called, but since Alec was there I didn’t want to bother you.”

“You will never be a bother to me, Mare,” Kristian replied. He squeezed my shoulder and guided me down the path, weaving in and out of the other students that were scrambling to get to their classes. The walk was comforting, but deep down I felt a little unsettled. Should I have called the police last night?