Chapter 33

Judy’s POV

“Oh, hey Judy,” Irene said as she recovered from Ethan's hold. Her cheeks were flushed and that smile never left her lips. She ran her fingers through her hair and gave me a sheepish look as she stepped into the parlor.

Matt lifted his gaze from his homework to look up at his sister.

“How are things going in here?” She asked, taking the loveseat across the room, Ethan sat beside her, his fingers entwined with hers. They were all lovey-dovey and close to one another. I I wondered if she knew that he was over at my house last night while she was desperately trying to call him.

“Great, just finishing up some Algebra,” I answered, turning back to Matt. I tried my best to ignore Irene and Ethan while he whispered sweet nothing into her ear, making her giggle.

I couldn’t help but feel the annoyance creep up my spine. I could feel Ethan’s gaze landing on me periodically, but I just straightened my spine and focused on my work at hand.

“I brought some pastries,” one of the maids said, walking into the parlor. She sat a tray on the coffee table for us all to share.

“Thank you, Maria,” Irene said politely.

The maid nodded and left the room moments later.

Ethan stood and walked over to the coffee table, lowering himself as he took a look at the pastries. They were scones and small sugar cookies. They admittedly smelled delicious. He picked up a couple of cookies and brought them back to the loveseat he shared with Irene. He draped a protective arm around her, and I watched as he brought the cookie to her lips.

She smiled as she opened her mouth and bit into the cookie.

“Gag,” Matt muttered, rolling his eyes. “Can’t you do that somewhere else?”

Irene frowned at him as Ethan wiped a crumb off the side of her lips, bringing his finger to his mouth and licking the crumb off his finger, his eyes lingering on mine. I pressed my lips in a thin line and glared at him; he was doing this on purpose to get a rise out of me and I wasn’t going to let it work.

“You don’t have to watch us,” Irene snapped back.

She snuggled into Ethan who kissed the top of her head.

Not for the first time, I wondered if Ethan had something to do with the fact that my dead found out about my dyslexia. At this point, I wouldn’t be surprised if he did something as cruel as that to try and push me out of college. The thought made my stomach twist and turn and was suddenly feeling sick.

I turned away from them and drowned myself in Matt’s work. We worked tirelessly for the next hour while Irene and Ethan continued to snuggle and flirt on the loveseat. It’s almost like they didn’t have anything better to do with their time.

By the time we finished Matt’s work, I was exhausted both physically and mentally.

“Do you want to stay for dinner again?” Matt asked as he put away his assignments.

“I need to get home,” I told him, standing to my feet. “But I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Matt pouted, but he didn’t argue this time.

“I’m going to see what we are having for dinner and offer my assistance in the kitchen,” Irene said, standing to her feet and pulling Ethan along with her. “Come with me?” She asked him, batting her long lashes in his direction.

He looked down at her and for a moment, I thought he was going to agree and accompany her ot the kitchen. But he only gave her a sweet smile and pressed his lips to hers, kissing her gently. “I’ll meet you in there, I have to make a phone call.”

She frowned at him, but she didn’t argue. Instead, she gave him a chased kiss on the lips and turned to look at me, giving me a breathy laugh.

“My man is a hard worker,” she said. “Always so busy. It was nice to see you, Judy.”

She started towards the kitchen, and Matt followed after her.

“I’ll come with you,” he offered.

She nodded and the two of them disappeared into the kitchen. I grabbed my bag off the coffee table, fully aware that Ethan was watching my every move. I tried my best to ignore him though, not wanting to give him the time of day.

I shouldered my bag and started to walk towards the door, but he grabbed my arm, halting me in my tracks. I whipped around to face him, my eyes burning with fire.

“Let go of me,” I said through my teeth.

“When are you going to stop pretending that you don’t have feelings for me, Judy?” He asked, his tone sultry and his eyes dark with desires, making a cold chill run up my spine. “I know you still want me.”

“In your dreams, Ethan,” I murmured, ripping my arm out of his grip.

“You were watching us with those jealous eyes of yours,” he told me, gripping my chin between his fingers, and forcing me to look up at him. “You can’t deny that.”

“I was watching you flaunt your relationship,” I told him. “It was unsettling and not called for. Especially in front of her little brother.”

He gave me a mock laughter.

“Don’t pretend to care about the little brat,” he laughed. “We both know you are only using him to get into Gavin’s pants.”

“You have no idea what you are talking about?” I said through my teeth as I pushed his hand away from my face.

“Don’t pretend you aren’t deceitful, Judy,” he sneered.

I narrowed my eyes at him and pressed my lips together.

“You want to talk about being deceitful, Ethan? Then how about you tell me how my dean found out about my dyslexia?”

The flicker of recognition flashed in his eyes, and that told me exactly what I needed to know. He knew exactly what I was talking about because he was the one who did this… my assumption was correct.

“I don’t know what you are talking about,” he said, straightening his posture and giving me a pointed look. “You are talking nonsense.”

I furrowed my brows at him.

“I don’t think I’m the one speaking nonsense,” I said, shaking my head. “You told the dean about my dyslexia and then he told all my professors! You’re the reason they were treating me poorly all day.”

“Stop making shit up, Judy. I did no such thing,” he growled, stepping closer to me. He was never going to tell me the truth, that much was obvious. I hated him for getting himself involved in my education; he had no right to get involved like he did and yet he took it upon himself to speak with my dean and tell him something personal about me. “You don’t even need to be at this school; what are you learning there that you can’t learn in the outside world? It’s pointless and a waste of money. The professors are incompetent. Come with me to the house I bought for you, Judy.”

He grabbed a hold of my arm, this time much tighter to a point where it was almost painful. I was stunned by his boldness in the middle of Gavin’s parlor where his fiancé was only in the next room. She could walk in at any moment and see Ethan manhandling me, but at this moment, he didn’t seem to care. Or maybe he had forgotten she was under the same roof.

“Let go of me, Ethan,” I said through my teeth, trying to shove his arm away, but he held on even tighter.

“Just give in, Judy. I know you want to,” he murmured; his other hand came around my waist and he pushed me against the wall. My body was pinned between him and the wall; there was nowhere for me to go.

Panic rose in my chest like bile and my body trembled as he pressed himself into me. I felt his hot breath on the nape of my neck as he breathed in my scent, exhaling deeply before blowing his scent along my shoulder line.

“I know you still want me,” he murmured, his voice deep and sultry. Once upon a time, his deep and subtle voice would have a completely different effect on me, but now it only filled me with disgust and despair. I bit my lower lip, struggling against his hold, wanting to gain some distance between us.

“Let me go, Ethan,” I said again, my tone threateningly.

“You don’t really want me to let you go, do you?” He asked, his lips trailing up the nape of my neck.

Fury was boiling through me and just as I was about to shove him off me, the door of the parlor swung open and a new dominating presence filled the room.

“What the hell is going on here?”