She's Bad News

Chapter 27

“I’ve got it,” Joey said, his low, smooth voice making something inside of me jump even as I turned calmly towards him, cereal bowl in hand, to get the milk.

I reached for it and just before I could grip the carton, he shifted it out of my reach. I gave him a blank look and raised an eyebrow at him.

His lips stretched into a fake smile. “How long are you going to keep up the silent treatment, Cory?”

I shrugged and reached for the milk again. He pulled it further away.

“You’re not being very mature.”

I nodded and shifted to the other side of the island, taking a seat as I popped a few dry Cheerios in my mouth. “Sorry,” I mumbled, lying.

“It speaks,” he said, grinning broadly at me, passing the milk towards me.

Feeling like I’d lost, I reached for the container again and this time, he let me pick it up and pour it into my cereal.

I ate in silence, feeling the weight of his stare on me but I kept my eyes down, focusing on the way my Cheerios bobbed in the milk.

“You’re going to be happy here. With me.”

“No, I won’t,” I said bluntly, my voice flat.

He slammed his fist down on the flimsy table. It, like the rest of the house was falling apart. “You’re not giving this a chance.”

A small, emotionless smirk played across my lips as I leaned back on my stool, tilting my head to the side as I gave him a considering look. “Get fucked.”

He moved slowly, his eyes lit with anger but there was more there, a knowledge that he had me, that I could say what I wanted but it would change nothing. I was his.

And he knew it.

With a casual flick of his wrist, he sent my bowl flying across the kitchen, the cheap ceramic shattering against the wall and spilling my breakfast all over the floor.

I watched, keeping my face its usual blank mask as he lifted his hand and wrapped his fingers around my throat, making them tighter and tighter until I couldn’t breathe. Slowly, by increments, he lifted, forcing my butt off the stool until my toes were barely touching the ground.

My vision started to go black around the edges but I refused to react, refused to try to save myself. Maybe he’d just kill me. Then this could all be over.

Instead, just as I felt like I was going to pass out, he brought his face close to mine and pressed his lips against mine before letting me go.

I stumbled back a step and wheezed in a breath of air, wincing as it burned my throat.

“You’ll come around,” he said, giving me another broad smile before turning and leaving the room, his stride casual and unhurried. Before he was out of sight, he paused, reaching into the pocket of his jeans for something before turning around and coming back to me.

I pretended that my heart wasn’t in my throat, that my hands weren’t shaking and my knees weren’t weak.

I mentally congratulated myself when he reached out to me, gripping my wrist in his hand and I didn’t wince. He placed something in the palm of my hand and I glanced down to see a small baggy of pills.

“No thanks,” I said easily, pushing my hand towards him.

He just grinned and shook his head, closing my fingers around the drugs. “I want you to be happy.”

I snorted and brought my free hand up, brushing my fingers over my sore neck. “You have a funny way of showing it.”

“I shouldn’t have lost my temper,” he said softly, leaning towards me as if to kiss me again.