She wasn’t going to argue with him. The last place she wanted to be was in this room with Donnie. Saying goodbye to her teacher, she didn’t even acknowledge Donnie, making her way out of the school. No one was around apart from his three friends.
Donnie followed her out.
“What are you doing?” he asked.
“I’m walking home.” She didn’t slow down her walking. Jake joined her for the walk home. “Why are you back here again?”
“I take my orders from Donnie. He wants you to be safe, so I stay here and make sure you’re safe.”
“I hate this. I hate you being around me. He’s my damned tutor, and he’s dangerous. You’re all dangerous, and I just can’t handle this.” She’s stopped and started yelling at him.
Someone caught her from behind, placing his palm over her mouth. She fought her captor and was shocked when Jake walked away.
“You’re right. We are all fucking dangerous, Paige, and you need to know the kind of fucking danger you’re in.” Donnie held her against his body. She tried to fight him, but his touch was strong and she didn’t even have a chance. He was the one in charge, not her. “I’m going to let you go and you’re not going to scream or yell.”
She nodded her head.
He dropped his hand, and she took a breath, trying to pull out of his arms. Donnie didn’t let her go. He held her tightly to his body.
“You need to learn to keep your fear locked up tight, Paige.”
“I don’t want to be near you or your family. I want to stay away from you.”
“That’s hard to do when we’re all a family. We’re expected home tonight. Dad’s got a few visitors, and I’ve already talked to your boss at the diner.”
She shook her head. “I can’t do this. I can’t handle this kind of pressure.” Paige placed a hand over her heart, which was racing out of fear.
“I’m prepared to help you.”
Glancing over her shoulder, she bit her lip. “Why would you help me?”
“Because I want to. You’re right, you didn’t ask for this, and I’m more than willing to help you.”
“Let me go.”
“If I let you go, you’re not going to run, are you?” he asked.
She shook her head. “I won’t fight.”
“Good. You need to stop fighting me, Paige.”
“I still don’t understand why you would even think about helping me.” She didn’t get it. They’d never spoken to each other, and now, he was helping her. None of it made any sense to her.
He released her, and she turned around to look at him. “I’m helping you because you’re different.”
She raised her brow at that one. “Different?”
“You’re not like your mother. She’s sleeping with my father for an easy ride. I expected you to have a bunch of friends suddenly rushing around me.”
Paige couldn’t believe what she was hearing. “You’re really up yourself, aren’t you?”
“How was I to know that my new stepsister wasn’t going to have any friends?” He smiled, and something finally twisted in her stomach. Licking her dry lips, Paige stared at her feet, not liking the direction her thoughts were going. Life was a lot easier when she could ignore everyone and everything.
“Can I go home now?” she asked, pointing toward the alleyway that was a few feet away.
Donnie looked toward the car. “I’m driving you home.”
She released a sigh, and her shoulders slumped as if they had a mind of their own. “You’re going to fight me every step of the way,” she said.
“You’re the one fighting.”
“Are you really the mafia?”
He let out a breath, clearly pushed to the limit. “Get in the car, Paige. Don’t ask questions you’re not ready to know the answers to.”
She pushed past him, going toward the back of the car where Jake was waiting with the door. Climbing in, she moved right up to Luiz, who was also sitting in the back. Neither of them spoke to her, and she was more than happy with that.
Biting her lip, she focused on her breathing, and to keep moving forward. In her mind, there was nothing else she could do. Her life was being taken out of her hands by her stepbrother.
You’re not related.
The guys talked amongst themselves, and Paige tuned them out. The last people she wanted to be listening to were the guys who’d just seen her breakdown.
When Donnie pulled up in front of their house, Jake didn’t waste any time getting out of the car. She whispered him a thank you and made her way up to the house. Her mother was waiting, wringing her hands together.