Page 44 of Vengeful Queen
Julia smiles as she holds me by the shoulders. “We’re delighted to have a part of our son returned to us. That’s all we care about.”
They stand under the porch light and wave as our car pulls out of the driveway. I promise to stop by whenever I’m in town. I guess I’m keeping the mansion in Alva Park. I can’t leave now.
“Wow. They’re so wholesome,” says Asher as he stops at the end of the street. “Good thing I hid my hooves under the table.”
I have to laugh and then swat his upper arm. “You’re awful, but I’m glad you came with me.” I peck Asher on the cheek. “They really liked you. I wonder if they would like to live at Alva Park.”
Asher looks straight ahead. The headlights illuminate the sign welcoming us to Rockingham. “They seem happy in their own home,” he says. “I know I was. Where are we heading for the night?”
“I’m too worn out to see Dr. Rawlins. Let’s go to Alva Park, but only if you’re staying with me,” I reply. Astrid has moved her mother, Evelyn, to the apartment in Gramercy Park. “It’s that or sleep in the car. But I’m sticking with you wherever you go.”
Asher smirks as he makes a turn. The oncoming headlights illuminate a glint in his eyes.
“What’s so funny?” I ask him.
“Nothing,” he laughs. “Just something someone said.”
CHAPTER 22
Asher
Good times, bad times. I’m the one she runs to. The guys were telling the truth and not bullshitting me. Or worse, using Charlotte as a reason to convince me to stay. I love her, but I can’t picture myself hanging around College Hill unless I am in school with them. What am I going to do if I flunked out? Work for Marshall?
The guard at the gatehouse is thrilled to see Charlotte. They joke about things that happened long ago when she was a kid. He eyes me as he writes my name on a clipboard. We drive up to her fancy mansion lit with floodlights, and there are no lights on inside. I feel like we’re breaking in.
“I thought you had a housekeeper?” I ask.
“She doesn’t live in,” Charlotte replies. “I got rid of the furniture. There’s nothing to dust.”
Yeah, she’s feeling better after meeting the Andersens. It guts me that her father is dead, and so recently; if someone had only told Charlotte the truth sooner…But she might not have wanted to know the truth back then. It’s obvious her grandparents fell in love with her at first sight, and she felt the same. But that might not have happened if they had met before her fall.
I park the Prius in the driveway, but neither one of us moves to get out of the car. We sit in the dark and stare at that specter of a house as if it’s our future looming over us. Even if I pass my last exam and my ass doesn’t end up back in Weymouth, I don’t want to live in Alva Park. The zip code is flashy, but I don’t belong here.
“Let’s go inside,” I tell her. “We both need to rest.”
Charlotte doesn’t say anything and gets out of the car. I thought she was exaggerating, but the downstairs is empty, only a few pieces of furniture left. Our footsteps echo in the hallway as I carry the bag of food the Andersens insisted we take and place it in the empty fridge.
“Where are we going to sleep?” I bite into a cold biscuit. Bad news never slows my appetite.
“Astrid picked out the furniture in my bedroom, so I kept it,” she explains. We go upstairs, and her bedroom is crammed with her stuff. Clothing in the closet and a laptop on the floor; it looks as if someone still lives in here. Charlotte climbs into bed with her clothes on. I join her, and we lie in her huge bed, listening to the house creak and settle. She moves closer and lays her head on my chest.
“What did you talk about with Peder in the yard?” she asks.
I grin, picturing the old man again in his wife’s apron, mashing potatoes. After dinner, he led me outside under the pretense of giving me a tour. He kept looking back at the house until he thought we were far enough not to be heard.
“He asked me if I was going to marry you,” I reply. “And I told him you were skittish.”
Charlotte’s body stiffens. “I’m not skittish.”
“I don’t think you’re sure.” I stroke her cheek, hoping her scowl will vanish.
“Are you still thinking of leaving Ivymore?” she asks.
I avoid her side-eye. “I haven’t decided. It depends on my grades.”
Charlotte places her hand on my chest as if to keep me with her. “I always thought I’d marry, but I don’t know what my plans are now. Everything has changed in the last year and a half. I hope I have too. Did you speak to your uncle, or is he still ghosting you?”
My jaw ticks. “Yeah, we talked, and I told him I wasn’t joining the Hunt. I said wouldn’t it be better to have a lawyer in the family instead? Especially if he’s going to keep getting into trouble.”