My legs feel wobbly and my hands begin to shake. I hope the boys don’t notice how hard I’m trembling, that they don’t see how shaken up I am by this news.
Going home is suddenly the last thing I want to do.
13
One by one, our cars pull into the grand, circular driveway of the Royal estate. My convertible. Easton’s pickup. Reed’s Range Rover, and the Rover the twins share. I remain in the car as I watch the Royal brothers slam doors and disappear through the side door of the mansion.
I can’t believe Brooke is in there. I can’t believe Reed “forgot” to mention it. In all the times he’s gotten in my face and mocked me about how he’s going to win me back and how I still want him, he couldn’t tell me that Brooke was back?
But of course he didn’t say anything. He thinks if he pretends he never touched Brooke, if he pretends she doesn’t exist, that maybe I’ll forget about her.
I won’t, though. Ella Harper doesn’t forget. Ever.
I take a deep breath and order myself to get out of the car. The internal command fails, because I stay put. It’s not until the side door swings open that I scramble out of the driver’s seat.
“Ella,” Brooke calls out, smiling from ear to ear.
I grab my backpack and round the car, trying to bulldoze past her, but she steps into my path. I’ve never wanted to punch anyone more than I want to punch this woman. She’s as blonde and fake as I remember, decked out in an expensive minidress, sky-high stilettos, and enough diamonds to fill a Tiffany shop.
“I have nothing to say to you,” I announce.
She laughs. “Oh, darling, you don’t mean that.”
“Yes, I do. Now get out of my way.”
“Not until we have a little girl chat,” she chirps. “I can’t have you going in there until we set a few things straight.”
Disbelief makes my eyebrows soar. “There’s nothing to set straight.” For some reason, I find myself lowering my voice, even though she and Reed deserve that I scream it from the rooftops. “You slept with Callum’s son.”
“Did I?” She titters again. “Because it seems that if I did, and that if someone in this house knew about it,” she gives me a pointed look, “then Callum would have learned about it by now.”
She’s got me there. And now I’m pissed at myself for keeping my mouth shut. One word to Callum, and Brooke would be history. He’d throw her out on her ass faster than you can say cheating shrew.
But…he’d throw Reed out, too. He might even disown him.
God, I’m sick. I’m screwed in the head. Why else would I care what happens to Reed Royal?
Brooke smiles knowingly. “Oh, you poor pathetic girl. You’re in love with him.”
I clench my teeth. She’s wrong. I don’t love him anymore. I don’t.
“I tried to warn you. I told you that the Royals would ruin you, but you didn’t listen.”
“And because of that, you punished me?” I say sarcastically.
“Punished you?” She blinks in what looks like genuine confusion. “What exactly do you think I did, sweetie?”
I gape at her. “You slept with Reed. I walked in on you two! Or have you conveniently forgotten that?”
Brooke waves a hand. “Oh, you mean the night you ran off? Sorry to disappoint you, but there was no…excitement…to be had that night.”
“Y-you were naked,” I stutter.
“I was proving a point.” She rolls her eyes at my bewildered expression. “Reed needed to learn a lesson.”
“That you’re a cheating liar?”
“No, that this is my house.” She gestures to the mansion behind us. “He doesn’t call the shots anymore. I do.” Brooke fingers a strand of her shiny golden hair before tucking it behind her ear. “I wanted to show him what happens when he gets out of line. I wanted him to recognize that I can destroy him without any effort. And see how easy it was? I take off my dress and poof! His relationship with you disappears. That, my darling, is called power.”
I bite the inside of my cheek. I don’t know what to believe anymore. Did Reed bargain for this with her? She’d lie and pretend she didn’t sleep with him in exchange for…what? Does it matter? They slept together at some point. And if he’s capable of betraying his own father like that, think of how easy it will be for him to betray me.
I can’t take that chance. I know what I saw in his bedroom. Brooke was naked. And he just sat there and said nothing. If I let Reed and Brooke plant these seeds of doubt, it’s only a matter of time before I do something stupid…like forgive him. And then he’ll hurt me again and I’ll have nobody to blame for it but myself.
“You slept with Callum’s son,” I repeat, letting my disgust for her show on my face. “Doesn’t matter if you didn’t hook up that night—you still cheated on him with his own son.”
She just smiles.