Chapter 170
Chapter 170: How Dare You Disgrace Me?!
Catherine’s POV
“Catherine! Is there a problem over there?”
I looked up toward the main building. Gabriel was standing on the elevated running board of his SUV, his hand shielding his eyes as he looked directly at the cluster formed by Julian’s car, Dante’s car, and me. He looked like he was seconds away from jumping down and intervening.
I swallowed hard, the gravity of the situation crashing down on me. I could practically hear the notifications pining on every phone in a five-mile radius. By tomorrow morning, the narrative would be set: Catherine, the Vaughn ward, had three of the most powerful and attractive men on campus wrapped around her fingers, each of them waiting at her beck and call like a royal court.
I didn’t want that. I never wanted to be the center of this kind of attention. Right now, I wanted nothing more than to just turn around and run. It was even better to walk home on my own. If only I had hopped on Tessa’s bike; by now, I would be halfway home instead of standing in the middle of a three-way standoff.
“Babe?” Dante’s voice was low, drawing me out of my spiraling thoughts.
He was still holding the door open, his eyes fixed on me with a steady, expectant look. I realized that, logically, he was the only person I could follow. If I ditched my “boyfriend” to ride in my brother’s car after that public kiss, the rumors would turn from gossip to a full-blown scandal about the possibility of it being a “fake” relationship. But going with Dante when I Gabriel myself would undoubtedly make him feel sidelined, especially since I knew he despised Dante with every fiber of his being.
I stood there, confused by the choice, until Lucy appeared, drawing everyone’s attention to the stairs.
She began to catwalk her way down the stairs with a smirk, heading straight for Julian’s car. She acted like she was the one Julian had been waiting for.
But what Julian did when she was still ten steps away made my jaw drop. I wasn’t the only one; a collective gasp rippled through some of the onlookers.
Julian threw his car into reverse and backed out of the space with reckless speed. Before Lucy could even reach for the door handle, he slammed the car into drive and zoomed off, leaving a cloud of exhaust in her face.
As usual, the gossip mongers exploded with deafening murmurs.
In a desperate bid to save face and hide the humiliation of being ditched by her own “fiancé”, Lucy turned on her heel and waved at Gabriel. I couldn’t hear or see if she said anything to him but she marched over to his SUV, opened the passenger door, and stepped in. Gabriel didn’t waste a single second, he gunned the engine and zoomed off.
This little drama made the decision for me. With Dante’s car being the only one left and my other options literally driving away, I forced a smile onto my face, walked toward him with as much grace as I could muster and got into the passenger seat. He closed the door firmly, walked around the front of the car, and climbed in.
For the first few minutes, I just stared out the window, watching the campus fade into the distance.
“How are you doing?” Dante asked, his voice breaking the silence. He glanced at me, his expression unreadable. “That was quite the scene back there.”
“Isn’t it obvious? I feel like exploding,” I said, turning to face him. “Why did you really transfer to our school, Dante?”
He let out a short, dry laugh, tapping his fingers against the steering wheel. “Huh? I just wanted to go to the best school in town. Isn’t that what everyone wants?”
“Cut it out,” I snapped. “When Kiera said she had a plan to help me deal with Lucy, I didn’t expect the plan to be you becoming a full-time student.”
Dante let out a small sound of realization, a smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth. “Ah. Well, if you must know, Kiera was very specific. She wanted me to come here and make everyone realize that you have it all. She wanted the world to see that you are not just a ward; you have a rich family backing you and a wealthy, handsome boyfriend who is obsessed with you. She wants to shift the power away from Lucy.”
I scoffed and gave a slow nod, leaning back into the expensive leather seat. The plan did make sense, in a twisted, Kiera-sort of way. It was about optics. It was about making sure Lucy couldn’t claim the title of “Queen Bee” without a fight.
The rest of the drive was quiet. Dante finally pulled up in front of the mansion gates. He walked me to the front door, but I didn’t wait for a goodbye. I stepped inside, only to be hit with a wall of noise.
Lucy was inside, having a full-blown tantrum. She was shouting at the top of her lungs, her face red with fury as she targeted Julian.
“You disgraced me!” she screamed. “In front of the entire school! You left me standing there like a fool while everyone watched!”
She was physically blocking Julian’s path to the stairs, her arms crossed as she stood on the bottom step to stop him from going up to his room. Julian stayed completely quiet, his face a mask of cold indifference as she ranted on and on, but I could see the muscle jumping in his jaw.
Gabriel was standing a few feet away, looking exhausted. He tried to step in to ease the tension. “Lucy, calm down. Stop shouting—”
It was as if he were a ghost. Lucy ignored him entirely, her eyes fixed on Julian.
As for me, I chose to stay by the side, leaning against the doorframe to watch the collapse of their “perfect” engagement. That was when my mother returned from the garden or the back of the house. She walked in, her brow furrowed as she looked at the chaos.
“What on earth is the problem?” Lisa asked, walking over to them. “Why is there so much shouting in this house?”
Lucy turned toward my mother instantly. Her lip curled in a sneer, and she didn’t even try to hide her contempt. “None of your business, Lisa.”
“C’mon, Lucy. Tell me what’s wrong.”
“Oh please,” Lucy scoffed. “Don’t try to act like a mother, you are just Richard’s step wife!”
I felt the blood boil in my veins. My vision blurred with a sudden, sharp fury. I took a step forward, my hands clenching into fists. How dare she?! My mother had done nothing but ask a question, and Lucy was treating her like something she had stepped on in the street.
I walked over to her, my voice low and lethal. “Lucy. Say one more word to my mother, and I promise you, Julian’s car ride won’t be the most embarrassing thing that happens to you today.”
Lucy moved her head to face me, her eyes widening. “Oh, look, the stepdaughter is back. I have nothing against your mother, save that anger of yours and maybe tell her to learn to mind her business.”
My teeth clenched hard against each other.