Where I End

  Where I End

  Michelle Dare

  Published by Michelle Dare

  Copyright ©2017 Michelle Dare

  First Edition, eBook - Published 2017

  Cover Design by Q Design

  Interior Design by Riane Holt

  Editing by Barren Acres Editing

  Proofreading by Tiffany Landers

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  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or locales is entirely coincidental.

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  Michelle Dare

  Email: authormichelledare@gmail.com

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  Website: http://michelledare.com/

  Eve

  Pretentious. Arrogant. Condescending. Cruel.

  All words I'd used to label him. Exactly what I’d always believed he was. All that changed one spring morning when I realized I didn't know the man behind the facade at all.

  Angry. Desperate. Broken. Mine.

  All words I'd use to define him after I interfered. Once our eyes locked, I was all in. There was no turning back. He tried to push me away, but I refused to let him go. I was determined to save him. What I didn't expect was that he would save me, too.

  Cy

  I was so close to ending my misery. Mere seconds away. Then she stumbled upon our argument, and I changed my plans. She wasn't supposed to be there. She knew too much. Even with my entire world burning down around me, she wouldn't walk away.

  I’ve always been on my own. No one had ever fought for me before. Why should anyone start now? But she did, no matter how much I tried to stop her. I knew I was nothing, unworthy of her, but she was persistent. Once she got under my skin, I couldn't let her go, because where I end, she begins.

  Table of Contents

  Prologue

  One

  Two

  Three

  Four

  Five

  Six

  Seven

  Eight

  Nine

  Ten

  Eleven

  Twelve

  Thirteen

  Fourteen

  Fifteen

  Sixteen

  Seventeen

  Eighteen

  Nineteen

  Twenty

  Twenty-One

  Twenty-Two

  Twenty-Three

  Twenty-Four

  Epilogue

  A Note from the Author

  Acknowledgements

  Other Books by Michelle Dare

  About the Author

  Prologue

  Six Years Ago

  Eve

  I hear him before I see him. He's walking up the hallway with his band of asshole friends. I close my locker and turn just as they walk by. They don't stop. Thank God. I merge into the flow of traffic, my best and only friend, Tasha, joining me. We're almost to class when he stops in the middle of the hallway, does a one-eighty, and faces me. Shit. I don't want to deal with him today. I was foolish to think I escaped him.

  Everyone in the hall stops to watch. Their backs are pressed against their lockers, each getting a view of today’s entertainment. They always stop and observe anything he does. Hotshot, super wealthy, Cy Revere. All the guys want to be him, and all the girls want to do him.

  "Evie," he says, his eyes fixated on me. He’s the only one who calls me that. "I missed you yesterday. Will you be coming by tonight?"

  "Not in your dreams, asshole,” I growl.

  "How will your mom get home then? You have your family's only car, don't you? You drove it to school. I mean, no one can miss that red beast in the parking lot." His friends laugh, as do the others. Great. Just what I need—the whole school is making fun of me again. It’s bad enough my family doesn’t fit in since we aren’t made of money, but my car—my mom’s car—it draws attention on its own with its faded and chipped red paint, and the dent on the back hatch, thanks to my mom backing up one night and not seeing the tree behind her.

  I give Cy the finger and try to brush past him, but he grips my elbow, not letting me by. I freeze. I hate it when he does this. It's almost a daily occurrence. He finds me at some point every day and makes a dick remark in front of everyone. Not even Tasha backs me up. Some friend she is. She secretly pines for his attention. She's never said as much, but I know. Your best friend always knows.

  "Not so fast, Evie,” he says.

  "My name is Eve, you asshole," I seethe.

  His eyes bore into mine with a matching fire. It's equal hatred. I just can't understand why he chooses to pick on me. There are plenty of other kids in this school, yet I'm the object of his harassment. Not once has he singled out anyone else like he does me.

  He leans forward and for a second I think he's going to kiss me, which makes zero sense. Like the dumbass I am, I lick my lips and focus on his. Sure, he's hot. Okay, he's fucking beautiful, with his black hair and eyes so blue they resemble a clear ocean. He knows it, too, and that's one of his problems. Cocky, rich boy. However, I’m no different than any girl in the school. Once you see him, there’s a part of you that wants him. I try to bury that part down deep, but every once in a while, it shows. Like right now.

  My body tilts ever so slightly toward him. I want him to kiss me. My teenage hormones are going wild being this close to him. I can't help it. The only kiss I ever had was with an exchange student, freshman year. Once Cy saw my interest in him, he quickly recruited him to his group.

  Cy has this ability to make me block out the rest of the world when his eyes are on mine. I don't know what it is about him, but I hate it. I loathe it—because he's fully aware of the effect he has on me and uses it to his advantage. Like he's going to in three, two, one.

  Cy bursts out laughing. All his friends quickly follow, as does most of the hallway. My eyes dart around as a blush quickly heats my cheeks.

  "Did you think I was going to kiss you?" he asks through his fit of laughter. Then he sobers so fast I'm surprised I don't get whiplash. "I wouldn't kiss the help." The help
. That's what I am to him: the daughter of the woman who assists his mother with her business. Maybe if my mom didn’t work for his, I wouldn’t be on his radar. I didn’t have the pleasure of knowing him in grade school, since we only moved to Arrow Falls, Pennsylvania the summer before freshman year.

  I close my eyes tight and wish the entire encounter away. When I open my eyes, everyone will be staring and laughing, just as they always are. One thing is certain, though. Cy will be gone. Once he gets a good dig at me, he's off with his friends again as if we never exchanged words.

  The laughter dies down. All I hear now is the shuffling of feet on the school floor. A hand lightly touches my arm, making me jump. My eyes open and I come face-to-face with Tasha. She's trying hard not to smile. I'd call her a bitch, but I don't have any other friends. As much as she wants to join Cy's little clan, she stays by my side. I’m grateful for that. At least I have someone.

  "I'm sorry," she says, trying to stifle her smile. "I don't mean to laugh."

  "Go to hell." I walk away from her. Tasha will brush off my words like she always does. I need to get to class. It's only second period and my day is already ruined. Cy rarely shows up at the same time every day. There are days I’m lucky and don’t see him until the end of the day.

  She runs after me, but I ignore her. I can't get the image of her laughing, along with the other jerks, out of my head. We enter history together and take our seats at the far end of the room, next to the windows. Everyone's eyes are on me as they whisper to one another.

  Tasha leans forward on the desk behind me when we sit down. "I really am sorry, Eve. Honest."

  I let out a long sigh. "Whatever." I don't feel like arguing with her. Her apology is genuine; it always is. However, it doesn't change what she did and will continue to do where Cy is concerned.

  She doesn't get a chance to say anything else. The bell rings. Our teacher starts talking in his monotone voice, effectively putting half the class to sleep. I take the time to stare out the window and daydream.

  What would it be like if I were rich? Would Cy still make fun of me, or would I finally measure up to the invisible bar he has set for those around him? Only the super-rich can be his friends. I swear he has a list of requirements his cronies must meet before he lets them join his group.

  Must have:

  2009 or newer BMW

  Zero morals

  Clothes to make you look like you stepped out of a magazine ad for preppy dicks

  Willingness to follow the leader—no questions asked

  Ability to laugh when the leader laughs, regardless if it's funny or not

  No independent thoughts

  Those are only the guy requirements. Thinking about the idiot girls who hover around him is a whole other story. Yes, he's attractive, but then he opens his mouth and his personality drives away anyone with half a brain. Except me. I have a brain. I'm smart as hell but somehow keep getting sucked into his traps. Stupid, foolish Eve.

  I spend the rest of class trying to focus on what our teacher is droning on about; however, history isn't interesting to me. Luckily, the bell rings, saving me from any further torture.

  Out in the hall, I walk as fast as I can without drawing attention to myself. I want to get to my locker, grab my books, and get to the safety of my next classroom. With Cy gunning for me so early in the morning, I dread what the rest of the day will be like.

  ****

  Somehow, and I'm not sure how, I make it through the day without seeing him again. That is, until I leave the building and start walking to my car. There he is, leaning up against the passenger side of my mom's old Subaru station wagon, with his arms crossed and a smirk on his face. He's alone, though. No clan of morons along with him to ridicule me.

  I stop when I'm a foot away from where he's standing. "Get off my car."

  "Sorry," he says, and turns around to rub his hand over faded red paint his ass was just touching. "Didn't mean to damage the beast." If it were possible to roll your eyes clean out of your head, I would have done it by now.

  "Just move. I need to leave." I quickly hit the unlock button on the remote. I need to get out of here. Nothing good will come from me talking to him, especially when I have no clue what he's up to. That thought scares me. He could have anything up his sleeve.

  "Your mom doesn't finish working for three hours. We should go do something."

  My eyes narrow. What game is he playing? "I'm good, thanks."

  "Let me at least walk you to your door."

  “Get the hell away from me.” I try to step around him, but he stays by my side as we walk around the rear of the car. He then pushes himself ahead, quickly opening the door for me. I ignore him and throw my bag inside. "Leave."

  He smiles innocently, with his white, straight teeth, and closes my door once I'm inside. He backs away with a stupid smile on his face. Prick.

  Cy quickly runs away when I start the engine and put my car in reverse. I back out of the spot and shift it to drive. It's then I notice everyone around me laughing and pointing. Pointing right at my driver's side door. A few have also taken out their phones and snapped pictures and videos of me. I throw the car in park and jump out to figure out what's got them going.

  Then I see it: a blown-up picture of me leaning in toward Cy like I'm about to kiss him and the revolted look on his face at the thought. Perfect. Just fucking perfect. Plastered on my door for all of Arrow Falls High to see.

  I rip the picture from my door as fast as possible and crumple it into a ball, throwing it on the front seat. The parking lot is suddenly too small, and I'm starting to hyperventilate. I need to get out of here.

  Slowly, not wanting to go too fast in the parking lot and feel the wrath of the principal for driving over the speed limit, I make my way to the far end where the road to freedom is. It's there, where the parking lot meets Front Street, where I see Cy holding a bright yellow sign with the words, "Not in your wildest dreams" written on it in bold, black, block letters. Standing beside him is Aria Garcia, one of the most popular girls in the school.

  Once he knows he has my attention, he clutches her side with his free hand and kisses her hard on the mouth, just because he can. A big fuck you to me, saying he will never kiss me like that. I hate high school.

  One

  Present Day

  Eve

  "Eve, dear, will you please bring me the Winston file?" Risa asks from her office.

  "Sure. One second." Pushing my feet along the tile floor, I wheel my chair to the filing cabinet on the wall opposite my desk. I find the file and take it in to her. She's sitting behind her mahogany desk with her head down, concentrating on what’s in front of her. The light floral scent of her perfume fills the room. She thanks me before I return to my desk.

  Clarissa, aka Risa, is my boss, and we work in her home. I only travel with her on occasion. Mostly, I can do everything from here or from my apartment when she's away. She's a business development consultant. Risa provides businesses with insight on how to gain efficiency in their overall operations and improve their customer service. She helps to develop and deliver customized training content, so the companies she's contracted with can train their employees. I'm here to keep her organized.

  After spending two years in community college to become an executive assistant and bouncing from job to job for three years, I finally ended up with her. I've been working for Risa for a year and really enjoy it. The job is fast-paced and never dull. Plus, working in her home means I only have a short commute since we both live in the same town. Although, Risa lives on the wealthier side, while I'm clear on the other side in my one bedroom, one bathroom apartment.

  Risa gets on a call and I close her office door to give her privacy and so she doesn’t hear me working. My phone rings constantly. She doesn't need to listen to me talking while she's trying to have a videoconference. The next two hours are spent with me fielding calls and trying to respond to emails. Risa is highly sought after in her field, and thus, only
takes on higher profile clients who can afford her steep fees. She pays me very well, but I have my own debt to try and get myself out of. Namely, student loans, a car loan, and a credit card I use when I need to. I'm not deep in debt, but I do have bills.

  The doorbell to Risa’s home rings. That's one of the downfalls of working in someone's house, especially when the office is located right off the massive entryway. The home is huge and sound travels. I try to ignore it as it chimes again, but it's a little difficult, considering the way my desk is set up. I can see out of the office and notice anyone who comes into the house.

  Risa's housekeeper/chef/all-around amazing woman answers the door. I groan when I see who it is. Parker. Of all the guys in town, he has to show up. Of course, his eyes land on me the second he's in the door. He smiles and walks over. His long-sleeve, hunter green shirt is tucked inside khaki shorts. He's lean but not skinny. Muscular. I guess he's attractive, well, to some. Not me.

  "Eve, fancy seeing you here." He props his ass on my desk.

  "I know. Especially given the fact I'm here five days, if not more, a week when Risa is, and sometimes when she isn’t." I take one of my steno pads and swat him with it. "Get the hell off my desk." He jumps up but doesn’t go far.

  "What's the matter? Don't want Risa to see you talking to me?"

  I give him an evil grin. "She'd tell me to hit you harder." Risa loves all her son's friends, but when they start interfering with work, they need to go. If she saw him bothering me, she'd show him the door. It's one of the things I love about her. No time for bullshit. When she's working, which is almost always, she's very focused.

  The sound of heels hitting wooden stairs reaches me. Another bonus of being off the entryway; I get to hear every person who walks up and down the steps leading upstairs. God, Parker needs to get the hell out of here. I have zero interest in seeing whatever skank is coming down the stairs. I'm stuck. I can't exactly leave, plus there's nowhere for me to go unless I hide in the bathroom. I've done that repeatedly in the past, though, I'm not in the mood to do it today.

  Then I see her...and him. Her bleached blonde locks are a stark contrast to his jet-black hair. In heels, she's almost as tall as he is. Tight skirt, tighter shirt, boobs barely staying in. I will never understand what he sees in the women he brings home. He's only with these women for a quick fuck and nothing more.