Chapter 16

Heather

I run as fast as my legs can carry me, the mask still on and tears squeezing between it and my cheeks. God, he knows. How does he know? How the hell does Jake know? Guilt sears me, forces me onward.

I trip over my bare feet and my robe bursts open. I scramble it closed again and race toward my villa. It’s not too far from Nicholas’, and that in itself brings another surge of guilt.

You should’ve told him. Or you should’ve refused to see him.

But both options don’t sit right with me, and it’s too late to worry about them now. Nicholas knows who I am and he’s probably mad as hell that I haven’t told him the truth.

I finally reach the villa and crash into the door. I open it and rush inside, slam into the wall and rest my forehead against it, breathing hard. This is it. This is rock bottom.

No, this is lower than that. I’m buried beneath the rock, struggling for air. He’ll never speak to me again, and Jake will spread rumors about this at Columbia. Everyone’s going to think I’m a crazy slut.

But how does he know? I can’t work that part out and it swirls through my brain, followed by the shock in Nicholas’ eyes.

“I told you to stay away from him.”

I look up and swallow more of that bitter shame.

Becky stands in the doorway, her fists on her hips. She’s red from the line of her hair, down to her pale chest, exposed by a bikini. Her mask is off, but she doesn’t seem to care. “You’re a fucking idiot, Heather. I told you to stay away from him and you refused. I had no choice.”

“You told Jake.” It hits me right between the eyes, a bolt from the blue. “Why would you do that? We’re friends!”

“We were friends until you went and broke the rules. I wanted you to have fun here, Heather, but you took things too far. You’re so self-involved you can’t even see what you’re doing here.”

“I’m not doing anything.” I ball my hands into fists but it does nothing to quell the shaking.

“All you had to do was stick to the rules. Just lose your damn virginity, have fun, not get involved with Jake’s father, for fuck’s sake!”

“Why would you tell him, Becky?” I ask again, because she still hasn’t answered the question.

Her face contorts into a picture of rage, her lips peel back, her eyes narrow to slits. “Because you have everything,” she spits. “Everyone loves perfect little virginal Heather. Heather the A-student on her scholarship. Heather who landed Jake. Did you know I saw him first? I did!”

“What?” I reel and catch myself on the wall. “Are you serious?”

“Yes, I’m serious. And I would have satisfied Jake,” Becky continues, pressing a palm to her chest. “Unlike you. But he chose you over me, regardless. And now you’re with his dad! What are you going to be, his stepmom? Agh!”

“I’ll be whatever I want to be,” I say. “You’re certifiable. If you want Jake, take him. I don’t love him anymore, and god knows, he treated me like dirt. You two deserve each other.”

Becky trembles with fury. “And take your shitty seconds? No thanks. I’ve spent too long in your shadow, Heather.”

“You don’t make any sense,” I whisper. None of this makes sense to me. If she likes him so much, she should take him. And why hasn’t she told me any of this before? “I don’t understand why you’ve done this. I’ve never tried to make you less than me or to make you feel that way.”

“Then why did you do it?” Becky asks. “You showed me up in every single situation. And don’t tell me you didn’t do it on purpose. I know when you’re lying.”

“I didn’t!” I yell, then suck in a breath to calm myself. This is bullshit. Becky’s ruined everything and I’m just entertaining her massive ego.

“You did,” she replies. “You’re not a true friend. I can’t believe I wasted my time with you.”

“Get out,” I say. “Get out of my villa. I don’t want to speak to you again.”

“Fine by me, bitch.” Becky throws up a hand, then turns on her heel and stomps from the room. She leaves the door open behind her.

I sink to the floor, my back still pressed against the wall. I hate this. I hate every moment of what’s happened over the past half hour and there’s not a damn thing I can do to change it.

I get up, slowly, haltingly, and walk over to my bedside table. I open the drawer and bring out my cell phone. I have no missed calls. Not one. Jake cares enough to yell at his father but not at me.

Maybe if I tell him to back off, I can fix this. No, that’s impossible. Nicholas loves his son, he respects him, even though Jake is a total dick, and he’ll never get involved with me, now that he knows who I am.

Tomorrow’s the day I leave Mystique. I don’t have much to pack – the island provided almost everything for me – but I toss the cell, the sunblock I brought, and my contraceptive pills into my handbag.

I rush to my closet and rip open the doors, search for the clothes I wore on the plane over here – a simple cotton dress and flip flops, then change. In minutes, I’m ready to leave, but I’ve still got nowhere to go.

There’s an entire afternoon of regret ahead of me, and an evening of shame after that.

My energy drains, and finally, I sit down on the chaise lounge in front of my bed and give up. This is over. There’s nothing I can do to change that.