had taken me? What if one of the guys ended up dead? What if Rogue had to get blood on his hands again, or if other girls in their lives went missing? I hated Stephanie Palmisano, sure, but I would never want her to be kidnapped and sold into sex slavery. Who knew what this gang was capable of and how far they’d go?
When I made my way downstairs, I could hear Mama already using the blender, mixing up whatever concoction of the day that her nutritionist planned. I had no doubt that it would taste like kale piss. When I got to our kitchen, I slumped into the stool at the counter, letting my backpack drop to the floor.
“Morning,” she said over the loud rumble of the blender.
I mumbled it back to her as she turned off the machine and poured us each a cup. Placing it in front of me, she took the seat beside me and started reading the local paper. I drank the green smoothie, not even caring when the grittiness hit the back of my tongue.
“You’re quiet this morning,” Mama said, startling me out of my thoughts.
I looked over, but my eyes caught on the front page of the paper. There were large, blown-up photos of the cotillion club, gushing on and on about the chosen debutantes this year. My mama wanted nothing more than for me to be one of those debutantes when my time came after my first year of college, and Bonham had given me that in. If I played nicely and did the Junior Debutante bullshit, it could happen. But I remembered what Godfrey had said in the showers, and he was right. This was my bargaining chip. I could see it the way my mama’s eyes lit up as she looked at all the poised girls in the photo and read over their family names. And maybe it was because everything else in my life felt like it had been forced on me, but I was ready to play my hand and force something of my own.
“I’m not doing the Junior Debutante Club.”
Mama’s head snapped over to me and she dropped the paper onto the counter. “Excuse me?”
I took a long sip and met her eyes. “I’m gonna pull out of it,” I said with a shrug.
“Scarlett Anne, now you listen to me—”
“Stop,” I said, holding up a hand. “I’m not gonna do it...unless we make a deal.”
Her eyes narrowed and her lips went thin, making her disapproval clear. She sat back in her seat. “Let’s hear it then, young lady.”
“You want me to do the debutante thing? Fine. Then I want to be put back in gymnastics.”
Mama sighed. “As I live and breathe! Scarlett, we’ve been over this. You need to be focusing on school. Not to mention, gymnastics was very hard on your body.”
“This ridiculous juice cleanse you have me on is hard on my body,” I bit back. “And if you’re worried about school, then I certainly don’t have time for the Junior Debutante League.”
Mama’s mouth opened and closed, like she was debating on what to say. She knew I was right. “Why are you so against it, Mama? You know I love it, and Coach Michaels says I could really go far. I could go to the Olympics!” I couldn’t hold back the excitement in my tone even if I’d tried. I wanted this so badly. Everything else in my life felt so out of control, but this was something I knew I had a handle on. I wanted to go back to the mat, even if I never performed again. It was killing me not to be pushing body to its limits—to actually be coached again, rather than stealing a few minutes at the gym alone.
“I just… I don’t want to see you get hurt, Scarlett. You get all these grand ideas in your head.”
I let out a shaky breath, knowing that my words would hurt her. “Look, just because the only thing you amounted to was being Carlisle Livingston’s wife, doesn’t mean that I have the same aspirations. Even if I don’t make it, I want to do it because I enjoy it, Mama.”
Her quick intake of breath let me know that I’d hit a sore spot, but the doorbell rang just then, so I hopped off my stool to go answer it, effectively avoiding her trembling lip and frustrated scowl. I cracked the door and pursed my lips when I saw Rogue on