Saint (Angelview Academy #1) - E.M. Snow Page 0,13

navy and forest green plaid skirt.

“We’re not done until I say we are.”

It’s not the guy’s words that draw my attention back to them, it’s his voice. Low and lethal. Suddenly, he pins the girl up against the wall, and I freeze, terrified that he’s going to hurt her.

“You make things right, or I swear to God, you won’t last a week this year,” he hisses. I’m close enough that I can see his profile clearly when I dare peek up at him. My heart hammers furiously in my chest as recognition sets in.

It’s the hot blond I literally ran into on my first day here, the one with the cold eyes. Then, he’d seemed cocky, but intriguing. Now, his muscular body is tense, his broad shoulders straining against the expensive navy-blue fabric of his uniform blazer, and his smokey eyes are burning with a fury that makes my blood run cold. I think he might actually be capable of violence in this moment.

If the girl’s tears are any indication, she thinks that, too.

“Please, I’m sorry! But … but I could lose my scholarship! I had to tell them what I saw that night.”

“You think I give a shit about your scholarship?” The laughter that spills from his lips is dark. Dark and cruel and taunting. “You think your worthless, white-trash ass means a thing to me? To anybody here?”

The girl is sobbing softly, and my temperature spikes. She’s just like me. I study her more closely, and I can see that her uniform is clean but worn, and a surge of protectiveness overwhelms me, along with rage. Does this rich prick think he can harass that girl just because she’s not wealthy? Because her parents aren’t business moguls, international superstars, or old money royalty?

The injustice of the situation makes my teeth clench and my hands ball into tight fists that leave my palms stinging from the impact of my fingernails.

My anger gives me courage, and I march right up to the pair without a second thought. “Hey, shithead! Let her go!”

The girl lets out a startled gasp and stares at me over the blond guy’s broad shoulder, her eyes wide and alarmed. I pretend she doesn’t look more frightened now instead of relieved at my intrusion. A stillness settles over us as I wait for the guy to respond. I can see his shoulders are tense, but he’s quiet. So, so quiet.

It reminds me of the calm before a storm.

That moment of unnatural silence before a predator strikes out at its prey.

And I think—no screw that, I know—I made a mistake.

Slowly, he drops his hands from the girl’s shoulders and turns to face me. I gulp and a small fissure of fear shoots up my spine at the ice behind his gaze. His eyes are fascinating, like smoke and blue flame, burning hotter than a regular fire, and when he stares at me, I feel like he’s scorching my soul.

I lift my chin and straighten my shoulders, refusing to let him see how scared I truly am. That would only feed him, I know. That’s what bullies like him thrive on. Fear and submission and I refused to give this bastard either.

“Who the fuck do you think you are?” he asks at last, his voice still alarmingly soft, his words slicing into me like daggers. “This is none of your business.”

“I can’t just walk by when I see some entitled dick picking on someone just because they’re poor,” I snap back. “You’re disgusting.”

He tilts his head, and honestly, he looks a little crazy. A little wild.

A little unstable.

“You think I’m picking on this bitch because she’s poor?” He grins, as though he finds the idea amusing. “I don’t give a shit about her. I don’t care about her in the least.”

“Then why are you harassing her?” I demand to know. “Let me guess, she hurt your wittle ego?” I hold my thumb and forefinger an inch apart and make a point to shift my gaze toward the crotch of his black slacks.

He steps closer to me, and I realize that he’s at least a foot taller than me. I want to back away, but I don’t. I stay very still as he shoves his face so close to mine that we share the same breath. “Because she’s a fucking liar, and I hate liars,” he spits.

Out of the corner of my eye, I see the girl scurry away, disappearing into the dining hall without a backwards glance toward me.