The Entitled Read online

  He shrugs. “You saved me. I will be forever in your debt.”

  “Stop it. I hardly saved you. I almost tripped over you. By the way, you could have a concussion.” I chew on my bottom lip.

  “Don’t worry. I have a whole team that will fix me up. Do you know who I am?”

  “Kind of, I mean when you came here a couple months ago, I heard the rumors.”

  Nodding, he says, “Well, they are mostly true, so you can see why I don’t want a hospital. But if I can use your phone? I should probably call one of my guys before I pass out.” He rubs his wounded head.

  I must be pale because the guy tells me to breathe.

  “I’m kidding.” He chuckles, gently taking my phone from my numb, cold hand.

  He speaks what I think is Spanish into the phone, then hands it back to me.

  He stares silently at me for a moment. “I’m Brance. My people are on the way.”

  “Good, that’s good. Who did this to you?” Looking toward the door, I wonder if I should lock it. “Should we call the cops? I saw the guy leave here, but I didn’t see his face.”

  “Fuck no, definitely no cops. I will have one of my dad’s guys take care of him, maybe.” He snorts as though disgusted. “He begs me to suck his cock and afterward freaks out because he loved it.”

  “Oh my God… that’s well… I don’t know what to say.” I have my hands on my cheeks because they’re on fire.

  He smiles. “Come on, Pretty Girl, help your new friend to the curb. One of my bodyguards should be waiting.”

  “Oh… okay, are you sure I shouldn’t go get them? I mean are you all right to walk?”

  “I can make it.”

  I nod. “I’m Tess, by the way.” Biting my bottom lip hard, I taste coppery blood.

  “I know who you are.”

  We walk slowly as curious looks are thrown our way. But no one approaches us or asks if we need help. Jesus, this school. The rich are grotesque and that includes their offspring—our oh-so-elite student body. We make it outside and two men are waiting. One of them gently takes Brance, then turns toward me.

  “Thank you,” he says, getting into the driver’s seat.

  “Wait!” I call out, needing to make sure they take proper care of him. “Listen… he hit his head on a sink. Please make sure he doesn’t have a concussion.”

  The man cocks his head at me confused and turns to listen to Brance from the back. His brown eyes take me in. “Mr. Martinez is inviting you over to his place. That way you can tell his physician exactly what you saw.”

  “Oh, well…” Hesitating, I look toward the gymnasium. “My boyfriend is inside,” I say, pointing behind me. Reed will freak if I’m gone. But poor Brance needs me, and for the first time, the thought of having my very own friend, besides Reed and Jax, is almost too intoxicating. Without thinking of the consequences, I open the door to the limo and climb in, sitting opposite Brance.

  He is leaning his head back, his eyes closed.

  “So, you decided to be your own woman, huh?”

  “I have no idea what you mean.” Pulling my phone out, I text Reed. “Where are we going? I need to tell him.”

  He sits up and motions for me to give him my phone. I do. His graceful fingers glide over my phone, like a concert pianist as he texts Reed his address and phone number.

  “There.” He smirks. “He should only go slightly insane when he realizes that his kitten is with me. The son of one of the biggest Colombian drug lords.”

  “Oh,” is all I can say. He is so right—Reed is going to go insane. “You shouldn’t admit that about your father. People might take it the wrong way.”

  He snorts bitterly. “Pretty Girl, this is my life. Why lie?”

  He surprises me with that. It’s not often I hear blunt honesty. Needing to change the subject before I regret my rash decision, I ask, “How do you know Reed calls me Kitten?”

  “Everyone knows. It’s pretty obvious that he is obsessed with you. I hope he’ll be cool about us being friends.” He says this like it’s a done deal. The contract has been signed in blood. In a way, it has: his blood.

  “Well, he doesn’t have a say. He has tons of friends, and I never say anything.”

  He simply looks at me, and I fidget with my nails.

  “I am being honest, Tess.”

  I look up to find his face full of lonely sincerity. “My dad seriously is a drug lord in Colombia. And when you see where I live, it’s a fortress rather than an apartment.”

  “Is that supposed to scare me?” I smile bravely. “We all have crazy parents.”

  “No, I hope it doesn’t scare you.” His dark eyes search my face as if looking for answers. “But it scares most people, that’s all.”

  He closes his eyes again and leans his head back on the leather seat.

  “Brance,” I say firmly. “I’m not a doctor, but I’m pretty sure you’re not supposed to go to sleep. As a matter of fact, that would probably be the worst thing you could do.”

  “I’m not asleep.”

  My phone starts ringing. I don’t need to look down to tell me who it is. I can feel him.

  “Reed, Don’t frea—”

  “Tess,” he cuts me off, “what the fuck?”

  “Reed, I’m fine.” My voice remains steady as I try to calm him. “God… it’s a long story. Anyway, I’m going to Brance’s to help make sure he is okay. Can you guys pick me up?”

  “Tess, that kid ‘Brance’ is Mateo Martinez! Do you have any idea what the hell his father does?” His breathing is harsh, and I hear him bark an order to Jay.

  “Reed, stop it. He got beat up. I found him lying in his own blood in the gym bathroom. Thankfully, I was there to help.”

  “Listen to me, Tess. Jay and I are on our way. We’ll be there soon.”

  “Reed, for once, trust me. He’s hurt! I had to help him. I’m not in any danger with Brance. He told me right away who his dad is.”

  Glancing over at Brance, I make sure he hasn’t passed out. His eyes are clear and he’s watching me, a small smile on his lips.

  Lowering the phone, I say, “Is it all right if I have Reed come to your apartment? I would love for you to meet him.”

  “Absolutely.” He shrugs. “I will tell the guards to let him in.”

  “Are you shitting me, Tess?” Reed screams. “Did you even hear what he said? He has guards!”

  “So, what? We have Jay! Look, I’m going to lose you. It looks like we are here. We’re pulling into underground parking.”

  “Fine.” He hangs up on me.

  I force a smile at a very curious Brance Martinez. “He gets a little domineering at times.”

  “Of course he does. He’s the Great Reed Saddington!” His voice is getting dramatic, and there’s a spark of mischief in his eyes. “Heir to one of the biggest shipping companies in the world. He can have anything he wants, and he wants you, Tess.”

  “We’re soul mates,” I whisper.

  “Are you always so submissive with him?” What the hell? Is that what everyone thinks about me?

  He holds up a hand. “I’m not trying to be an ass. Look, if I had Reed Saddington as my boyfriend…”

  The limo door opens, and our conversation is brought to an end, thankfully. A bald Hispanic man leans in to help him out, then pulls back a fraction to look at poor Brance. He’s a mess: his clothes are covered in blood, his head looks awful, and his eye, which is seriously swollen and red, is rapidly changing to black.

  “Jesus, Mateo, who did this?” Brance groans as the man helps him out. “I talked to your father. He wants me to see to it,” he says quietly, looking over at me curiously.

  “Thanks, Alejandro, but it’s kind of my mess to clean up. This is my new best friend,” he says, winking at me with his good eye. “Tess Gallagher. Her boyfriend will be arriving soon. Reed Saddington. Let him up.” Brance kind of spits this out as he straightens himself up. Slowly, we walk into the building. “My apartment is the penthouse.”

/>   “Wait, this whole building is yours?” I turn to face him, which makes him sway a bit. “Sorry,” I say, grabbing on to him. I’m used to extravagant wealth, but Brance has a giant building only for himself?

  “Yeah, my dad is big on security, so all the guards and their families live here too.”

  The building is ultramodern. Gray is the main color theme, making the outside seem cold and unfriendly.

  “So, you live all by yourself?” It’s hard not to feel sorry for this guy. My life is not perfect, but at least I have Reed and Jax. Poor Brance has no one but staff and this building.

  “Yeah. Miserable, huh?” Maybe he can feel my compassion. Because it’s truly there. This place might be someone else’s dream apartment, but my gut tells me it’s his nightmare. A tomb making him an outcast. A lavish prison, secluding him from human touch.

  He straightens up. “When I turn eighteen, I’m walking away from all this shit. Moving to LA. Starting fresh.”

  A man in a dark suit helps Brance into the elevator, and I follow. It’s superfast, like Reed’s, and opens to a sleek, white hallway. Orchids sit on a glass table. The whole idea of less is more applies to this building. It is almost too clean, too white, too perfect. He doesn’t want to be perfect—how could he? Again, my heart swells with kinship for this stunning boy.

  Yet another man is waiting for Brance. This one is apparently his doctor. My dislike of all this is new for me. Okay, I know I’m somewhat selfish, but this protective feeling I have toward Brance is startling. He has strength that I’m not used to.

  No one says anything, so I perch myself on the edge of a red couch, one of the few things of color in this sterile tower. The doctor examines him with a detached, bored manner but seems to be thorough from what little I can see.

  Clearing my throat, I pipe up, “Um, excuse me?”

  Ignoring me, the doctor says something to Brance.

  “Doctor?” I’m using my bitch voice. “He was out cold when I found him. I’m worried he may have a concussion.” Again nothing. I’m beginning to wonder if I should call my doctor. This man might be insane.

  At last, after Brance’s ribs are taped and his head gets some stitches, the doctor turns to me. “He is fine.”

  That’s it. Three words. Realizing this is what Brance is surrounded by makes me want to hug him.

  “So, no concussion?”

  “No,” he snips. Turning back to Brance, he tells him to rest.

  When I glance down, my phone is vibrating in my hand. Thank God.

  “Hello?” I whisper, not sure why, except that the room is so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

  “We’re downstairs waiting for you.” Reed’s strong voice vibrates through the phone.

  I can tell he is furious and I honestly don’t need any more drama. I like Brance and want Reed to like him too. And, Brance is hurt and needs to sleep, I think, watching as his doctor hands him some pain pills.

  “I’ll be right down.” Turning to Brance, I half smile apologetically. “I need to go. I will call you tonight. You gave Reed your number, right?” He looks disappointed but recovers quickly.

  “Yeah, I gave him my number. I would love to talk later on. I never sleep well when I take pain medication. I’ll probably be up all night.” Nodding, I’m surprised at my connection with this guy.

  “Well, if you are feeling better tomorrow, maybe we can hang out? My mom is picking me up in the morning at Reed’s. She’s recovering from another round of plastic surgery.” Reaching over, I give him a hug. He clings to me for a moment then backs away.

  “I would love that. Alejandro, please see Tess down.” He grabs the remote as he slowly sits on the couch.

  “Perfect.” I wave at the scowling doctor as I walk by. The whole ride down in the elevator, I can’t stop smiling. I’ve found my new best friend.

  TESS

  Past – fifteen years old

  Today is my fifteenth birthday, and I wake to find my mother sobbing at the edge of my bed.

  “Mom,” I groan, barely opening my eyes, “what time is it?”

  “We have to cancel your party!”

  Sitting up, I blink away the sleep. “What are you talking about? It’s only us, Reed, Jax, Brance, and Brad and Caroline.” She continues to sob.

  “What’s wrong with you?” I’m getting aggravated until she raises her face, and I gasp in shock.

  “Holy shit! What have you done to yourself?” Her left eye is literally drooping shut.

  She wails again. “I went to get my monthly Botox and look what happened.”

  I’m horrified and genuinely sorry for her. She looks like she had a stroke!

  Crawling over to her, I rub her back. “Mom?” I keep my voice calm, trying to be soothing. “Did you call the doctor? I mean… it won’t stay like that, will it?” I have never understood my mother and her constant need to get plastic surgery, collagen, Botox, whatever new thing that comes out. She has made herself look like an embarrassment.

  I don’t even remember what she originally looked like. Her puffy red eye looks at me; the other, well…

  “You don’t understand, Tess. All I have ever wanted was to be beautiful.” She throws her arms in the air. “I was always plain, and then I had you, and you really were beautiful. I wanted to be someone you could look up to.” Throwing herself dramatically on my bed, she covers eyes with her arm.

  “Okay, let’s not panic.” I jump up, trying to find my phone. My mom is whimpering on my down comforter.

  “Mom!” I clap my hands to get her attention.

  “Focus. We need Brance. I’m sure he can fix you.”

  Her face lights up at the mention of Brance. She has become a Brance groupie. From the moment I introduced him to my mother she loved him. He encourages it too. I think it’s because Brance’s mother died when he was five. So, he has basically moved in with us. He dresses me and picks out how I should wear my hair and makeup. It’s like having my own personal stylist, and I love it. After he discovered that my mom was completely hopeless at making herself look good, he took it as a personal challenge to help her. We have done more shopping and spent more time together than I have ever spent with my mom before. I guess I have Brance to thank for that. Unfortunately, besides shopping and spa days, I have nothing in common with her.

  At long last, I locate my phone at the bottom of my purse. Dialing his number, I try not to look at her.

  “Pretty Girl.” His gravelly voice indicates I’ve woken him up. “Happy Birthday.”

  “Thanks, Brance. I know it’s early, but we need you. Mom got Botox yesterday and her left eye looks like she had a stroke.” I wrinkle my nose as I look at her. She sees me and starts wailing.

  Sitting up, she grabs the phone from me. “Brance! Oh God, I need you! When are you coming over? You will?” She sighs, her face relaxing, well, as much as her face can. “Okay… Okay, I will stay calm.” Then she smiles, actually smiles. Who is this person?

  “Absolutely… I will stay lying down until you get here.” She hangs up, tossing the phone back to me.

  “Well?” I demand. “What did he say?”

  “He said he can fix me and it will get better each day. Nothing to worry about.” Waving her hand, she looks like a queen.

  My phone beeps, and I look down at my incoming text.

  I don’t know how you survived without me!

  Love you, Pretty Girl.

  Smiling, I shake my head. He’s right. My life has become a whole different experience. Before, all I had was Reed and Jax, but now I have Brance. And he is all mine, loyal only to me. And I am loyal to him. We’re like peanut butter and jelly.

  Reed has been surprisingly good about sharing me. I think it’s because Brance is gay. He is happy to let Brance take care of all the things he hates.

  The doorbell rings. I glance over at my mom who has passed out on my bed. Obviously, she was up all night, hysterical about her face. Now that Brance is on his way, she seems at peace.

 
Grabbing one of Reed’s sweatshirts, I pull it on over my black sleeping slip. When I call down to the front desk, I’m informed that there is a delivery guy with flowers.

  Fighting my way past shiny balloons and decorations, I can’t help but smile as I open the door. The delivery guy stands there with a flower arrangement that is almost as big as me. Well maybe not that big, but it’s impressive. There are numerous long-stemmed red roses in the middle with white and pink hydrangeas surrounding the bottom. The vase alone probably cost as much as a cheap car. I hold out my hands for it and thank the delivery guy.

  “Holy shit, heavy!” I say, barely making it past an onslaught of silver and gold streamers to place the vase on the table. My stomach has butterflies as I search for the card. Hmmm, no card? A knock at the door makes me jump. Skipping over to the door isn’t easy when I’m swarmed by a jungle of ribbons hanging from balloons, but when I answer at last, I discover the frazzled-looking delivery guy, who stands holding a red card.

  “Sorry. I have never had to deliver anything this expensive. My boss made me a nervous wreck. Here’s your card.” He shoves it at me.

  “Oh, perfect I was looking for that.” I laugh.

  “Hold on.” Grabbing my mom’s purse, I pull out a hundred and hand it to him. “You deserve it.”

  He grins, handing it back. “I got a huge tip already.”

  He turns, then stops. “Wait, you’re right. I do deserve this.” He takes the hundred. “You have a great birthday. Someone really loves you,” he says over his shoulder.

  Shutting the door, I excitedly open the card.

  Kitten, Happy Birthday!

  You are my everything!

  I love you, Reed.

  I sigh and clutch the card to my chest. Best birthday ever! Well, aside from my mom’s face. Twirling, I know two things: Reed has money and I love him. But at this moment, the emotion almost takes me to my knees. He is my everything. It’s almost impossible to breathe as I run to my room for my phone. Glancing at my mom, who is still in the same position as earlier, I roll my eyes, and my hands slightly tremble as I push on Reed’s name.

  “Kitten.” My stomach flip-flops at the sound of his rough morning voice.