Twisted Palace (15 page)

“
W
hat are you doing here
?” I exclaim when I find Reed leaning against my car after school. “You’re suspended!”

He rolls his eyes. “School’s over. What are they going to do, suspend me again for standing in the parking lot?”

Good point.

I walk over and give him a hug, which he turns into a kiss that lasts long enough to leave me breathless. I’m smiling like a fool by the time he lets me go.

“You look happy.” His eyes narrow suspiciously. “What’s wrong?”

I sputter in laughter. “I’m not allowed to be happy?”

He flashes a grin. “Of course you are. It’s just that the last time we talked, you were threatening to punch Steve in the face for all his crazy rules.”

“I think I found a way to get around the rules.”

“Yeah? How?”

“That’s for me to know and for you to find out,” I say mysteriously, because I want everything to be worked out before I tell him the news. I’m not entirely sure Steve is going to buy into this, so I don’t want to get Reed’s hopes up if I fail. “Val and I are working on a secret project.”

“What kind?”

“I just told you—a secret one.”

Reed rests an elbow against the car hood. “Should I be worried?”

I run a hand down his chest to rest on the top of his belt. Somehow Reed manages to make a pair of black cargo pants and a blue sweater look as hot as if he was shirtless.

“You should always be worried,” I tease, giving his belt a tug. I’m tired of being stressed, scared, and unhappy all the time. I’m going to enjoy Reed and all my moments with him. Screw the rest of the world.

He allows his body to press into mine until we’re pancaked against the side of the car. His hand skims down my side until he reaches the top of my ass. My lips part, waiting for another kiss, the mingling of our breaths, the moment we shut out the entire world—

“Look at them,” someone says as they pass. “Perfect trashy couple.”

Reed’s head flies up. “Got a problem with me, Fleming? Come say it to my face.”

I see a short, dark-haired boy stiffen and then quickly walk away.

“Yeah, I thought so,” Reed mutters.

“Jerk,” I say angrily.

Reed takes my chin between his fingers. “Don’t worry about it, baby. Let them run their mouths. It can’t hurt us.”

He pinches me lightly before dropping a kiss on my lips. I’m tempted to linger, but if I do, I’ll be late. I push him away regretfully. “I’ve got to get back to the hotel. If I’m not there at four o’clock sharp, Steve might lock me in a dungeon.”

Reed snickers.

“Call me tonight?”

“’Course.” He leans down to give me one final kiss, and by the way his hand digs into my butt, I know it’s going to be one of those long, drugging ones. Oh gosh. I have to get out of his embrace before I turn into a puddle of mush.

“Okay. I’ll text you later.”

He wanders off to where his Rover is parked, and I wait until he’s driving away before calling Val. I put the phone on speaker as I pull out of the parking lot.

“Tell me the downside of this deal,” I say the moment she picks up. “What kinds of favors would Jordan ask of me? Like, I don’t want to tape any girl up to the side of the school because she talked to Jordan’s boyfriend.”

“I’ve been thinking about this since lunch,” Val answers.

“And?”

“And I think just because she asks you to do something doesn’t mean you have to do it. You owe her
a
favor, not a specific one.”

“Good point.” I press down on the gas, even though I hate driving fast. Well, I hate driving, period. But I especially hate driving fast. If I don’t hurry, though, I’m going to be late. “I like the way you’re thinking.”

“Let’s say she asks you to do something you’re not comfortable with. You just tell her to come back with something else.”

“Right. So I’m going to keep my word, if I give it, but it’s within the spirit of the agreement to exercise a veto over shitty acts.”

“Right,” she confirms. “So you gonna do it?”

“I think so.”

Jordan’s proposal does solve all my problems. Steve wants me to be involved in activities so I’ll be less interested in spending time with the Royals. I like dancing. The only downside is that I have to spend time with Jordan.

“This thing is only temporary until that other girl gets back,” I say. “So really, I’ll just be an alternate.”

“Do you want me to tell her yes?” Val asks.

“Is she there with you right now? Blink twice if you’re in danger,” I tease, pulling into the hotel’s parking garage.

Val laughs. “Nope, she’s at practice. Actually, you’ll appreciate this. Jordan scheduled all the dance team practices at the same time as the football team workouts.”

“Even better.” I grin to myself. “Okay, tell her I’m in, with payment to be made later.”

Val chuckles again. “Gotcha. I’ll relay the message when she gets home.”

T
he elevators don’t appreciate
that I’m five minutes late and take forever to arrive and carry me up the forty-plus floors. However, when I walk in the door ten minutes after four, Steve isn’t even home. It’s just Dinah.

“Well, look at you,” she sneers from her perch on the leather sofa. “You’re surprisingly obedient. Like a little dog that comes when you’re called, sits when you’re told, and stays when you’re ordered to stay.”

In her hand is another stemmed glass, or maybe it’s the same glass from this morning and she’s just been refilling it all day.

I’m tempted to snark at her to get a job, but then I remind myself that she’s just lost her best friend and that Steve’s brutal to her. Then again, he thinks she tried to kill him, which doesn’t seem all that far-fetched considering what a witch she is.

“I’m going to my room,” I mutter as I walk past her. “I have homework.”

Her taunting voice tickles my back. “Your father brought you a gift, Princess. It’s lying on your bed.”

By the way she says that, I know I’m not going to like whatever Steve got me.

Sure enough, when I dump out the contents of the shopping bag on the bed, I find three pairs of cotton khakis.

Too bad there isn’t a fireplace in this hotel suite.

“I hear there’s an away game this weekend,” Dinah drawls from the door.

I look up to find her leaning against the frame. Her long legs are encased in a pair of loose-fitting pants and she has a sheer floral top on. It’s kind of a dressy look for hanging around the suite, and I wonder who she’s been visiting.

“How do you know that? Are you blackmailing some poor high school student, too?”

She smirks. “Is that why you think Gideon’s in my bed? Darling, you are delightfully naïve. Have you ever heard of a Royal doing anything he doesn’t want to do?” She drags her hand down her body to settle at her waist, emphasizing the tininess of it. “Gideon can’t get enough of me.”

I hold back a barf. “I know you’re blackmailing him,” I reply coldly.

“Is that the excuse he uses?” She juts her delicate chin forward. “He sleeps with me because he wants to. Because he can’t stay away.”

Ugh. I don’t need to hear another word of this.

“Why are you still married to Steve, then? It’s obvious you guys don’t love each other.” I sweep the pants back into the bag and set it onto the floor.

“Oh my goodness. Is that why you think people get married? Because they love each other?” She starts to laugh. “I’m here for Steve’s money and he knows it. Which is why he treats me like shit, but don’t worry, he pays for each word he says to me.” She waves a hand over her outfit. “Like this? It cost him three thousand dollars. And every day that he’s an asshole to me, I’ll spend a little more. And while I’m with him, I’m fantasizing about Gideon.”

“That’s beyond gross.” I walk to the door, pushing her out. Dinah’s my favorite for the killer, mostly because I can’t stand her. Finding evidence against her is the problem. “I’m going to study now.”

I slam the door in her face and pull out a sheet of paper that I title
Dinah
. Underneath, I write
means
,
motive
, and
opportunity
.

Then I stare at it for an hour without writing another frickin’ letter.

I
’m still hiding
in my room, doodling all over the Dinah page while
Orange is the New Black
plays on my laptop, when Steve knocks on my door.

“You decent?” he says.

I shove the paper under my laptop and hop to my feet. “Yeah.”

“How was school?” he asks, poking his head inside.

“Good. How was work?” I grab a sweatshirt from the chair near the window and slip it on.

Steve eyes the top with a smidge of unhappiness, guessing from the size that it’s not mine but Reed’s. “It was good. The R&D team is getting close to having a prototype finished of a hypersonic delivery vehicle.”

I raise one eyebrow. “That sounds dangerous.”

He shrugs. “It’s primarily a research vehicle and would be flown remotely as a UAV.” At my blank look, he expands. “Unmanned aerial vehicle.”

“A drone?”

He bobs his head in a considering motion. “I suppose, but not exactly. Similar concept, although ours is much more sophisticated. Essentially the UAV is launched like a rocket into the upper atmosphere. It’s definitely not as fun as flying an aircraft, but unfortunately most military aircraft is heavily focused in the unmanned area.”

He sounds disappointed, which reminds me of how Callum told me that Steve enjoyed testing the machines out, rather than designing, building, and selling them.

“Seems safer that way,” I say lightly.

“Probably is.” A rueful smile tilts up one side of his mouth. “I get bored easily. Callum kicked me out of the meeting because I kept launching paper airplanes around the room.”

He’s bored, huh? Is that why he’s so intense on this parenting thing? It’s new and he’s trying to find something that interests him?

I think that’s what the girls were trying to tell me earlier, so maybe they’re right about everything else. I just need to learn to manage him. Once I’m eighteen, I’ll be back in control for good.

“I thought about what you said this morning,” I inform him.

“Oh?” He leans against the desk, his fingers brushing the side of my laptop. I can see the
D
of
Dinah
poking out. Nervously, I slide toward the desk.

“Yes. I’m going to join the dance team. It’s supposed to be really good.” I’m not even lying. According to the banners outside the gym, Astor Park has won the state dance competition for the last eight years, except for one time. I wonder what the story is behind that.

Steve straightens, a pleased look on his face. “That’s excellent.” He crosses the distance between us and pulls my stiff body against his in a hug. “High school and college are all about experiences, and I don’t want you to miss out on any of them.”

I let him hug me for another second even though this type of contact makes me uncomfortable. The only attention I’ve ever gotten from men Steve’s age hasn’t been good.

Stepping back, I walk into the living room and away from the blank list of investigative notes. From the table, I pick up the room service menu. In the short time I’ve been here, I’m getting tired of room service.

“When do you think we’ll be back in the penthouse?” I ask Steve. If there’s any evidence that could clear Reed, it’s going to be there.

“Why? Are you getting stir crazy?” At the wet bar, he mixes himself a drink. “I spoke with the detective today. We should be allowed back by the end of the week.”

I pretend to study the menu more carefully. “How’s the investigation going?” Reed and Callum are so tight-lipped about everything, so I’m dying for more details. Really, I just want someone to tell me the cops have nothing and that the case will be dropped any day now.

“Nothing for you to be concerned about.”

“Did Brooke’s, um, autopsy results come back?”

“Not yet.” Steve’s back is to me, but I don’t need to see his face to know he’s not interested in talking about this subject. “Tell me about this dance team.”

“Well, it costs some money, because I’ll need to buy a uniform.” I actually have no idea what the details are. I’m winging it here. “And we travel.”

“That’s no problem.”

“It means staying at hotels with only the dance coach as a chaperone,” I point out.

He waves his hand. “I trust you.”

Now’s the perfect time to tell him the rest. If I wait, that trust will erode. If there’s actually any trust there—he could be lying. Then again, what I’m planning to do is definitely against his rules, so he’d be right not to trust me.

But it’s Reed, and I want to be with him. I’m afraid he’s going to prison, and I need to get all the time I can in with him right now.

I shove those despairing thoughts into the back of my head, muster up a bright smile, and dive in. “In the interest of full disclosure and all, the dance team travels with the football team.”

The drink in his hand halts halfway to his mouth. “Is that right?” he drawls, and I feel like he can see through my entire charade.

“Yeah. I know that puts me near Reed, which you don’t want.” I feel myself blushing, because this is totally TMI for a dad. “But that thing you’re worried about? I haven’t done anything. With anybody.”

Steve sets down his glass. “Are you serious?”

I nod, wishing this awkward discussion was over already. “I might wear a skirt to school—” I offer a wry smile. “But I’m not easy. I guess because of my mom, I haven’t had any desire to go down that route.”

“Well.” He seems at a loss for words. “Well,” he repeats and then half-chuckles to himself. “I really stuck my foot in my mouth the other morning, didn’t I? I think I let Dinah rile me up with all those comments about your skirt.”

I force myself not to shift uncomfortably, because while I haven’t lost my virginity yet, I’ve still done a lot, and I have big plans for this weekend.

“I really misjudged you,” Steve says ruefully “I’m sorry about that. I’m messing up all over the place. I read this book on parenting and it said that I should listen more. I’m going to do that,” he declares, lobbing another promise out there like his paper airplanes.