Caught In The Middle

Don't ignore me

As Quinn walked to the café on campus to get a coffee during a break in her class schedule she received a message and pulled her phone out.

She saw it was from Antonio and felt her stomach drop and roil in uneasiness as she opened and read the message.

- I’ve bought a dress for you for Saturday night. You will come here to get ready. Danny will pick you up at 4, make sure to book into Patricia’s Beauty Salon.

She sighed out a heavy breath, feeling sick as she wandered into the café. She didn’t feel right about going to some high society event with Antonio, he had never taken her out anywhere, ever, now suddenly he wanted to show her off in a fancy dress that cost thousands…she was uncomfortable about it given everything that had happened over the weekend together in that room of his. He had turned things up a notch and quite frankly she was scared by it all.

“Quinn! Over here…”

She looked to see a couple of girls in her classes. She smiled at them and stepped over.

“Hey…” She replied awkwardly.

“Hi, we were just grabbing coffee before Prof Leinster’s class too, join us.” The girl that had introduced herself the other day as Lizzy and handed Quinn the invitation that had saved her from Reese called her over in a jovial tone.

“Thanks.” Quinn said gratefully, looking at the other girl with Lizzy.

“I’m Emma.” She said with a smile. “I’m in Leinster’s class too.”

“Quinn, nice to meet you.”

“So are you going to come to bowl’s night?” Lizzy pressed.

“Well, I…”

“Oh, come on, it will be fun, just us girls.”

Quinn could probably do with some friends now the popular girls on campus had chosen to outcast her thanks to Curry and Rice.

“Yeah, sure…I’ll come.” She was sure it would be fine with Antonio if it was a strictly girls only invite they could be her future study partners. She decided she would take a pic of the invite later and send it to him to ask permission.

“Awesome!” Lizzy exclaimed enthusiastically.

“Heads up, the prince is here.” Emma said under her breath, looking down at the table then glancing up with just her eyes.

Quinn shrank into her seat and peeked around behind her seeing Reese with a couple of his mates walk in like they owned the place as everyone in the café hushed and moved back.

“Wow, he’s really scary, but so hot!” Lizzy whispered, looking at Quinn.

Quinn looked back at the table keeping her head down looking uncomfortable.

“You know, Quinn…he asked me about you yesterday.”

Quinn looked at Lizzy with a frown. “Is that how he knows my name?”

Lizzy looked apologetic. “Yeah, sorry…”

“I’m going to go before he turns around.” Quinn announced.

“Why?” Emma asked. “If he likes you, stay. My god, he’s so hot!”

Quinn’s expression looked like she was going to be sick as she stood up, slinging her bag over her shoulder and as discreetly as possible made her way to the exit as Reese was at the counter ordering a coffee to go.

He turned just as she made it to the door and saw her.

“Quinn!” He yelled out in a deep authoritative tone that silenced the entire café.

She flinched but kept going through the door and ran.

“f**k!” Reese spat and ran off after her.

“Oh my…” Lizzy breathed. “What’s going on there?”

.

Quinn was spun around by a forceful hand on her shoulder, lucky it was gripping her hoodie otherwise she would have probably reeled backwards and fallen on her ass.

“Quinn, wait.” Reese growled as he steadied her on her feet.. He looked pissed, those pale hazel eyes looking dark. “Haven’t I already told you about ignoring me?”

Quinn calmed her rapid breath and shook his grip off her clothes causing her oversized sweatshirt to fall off her shoulder and show skin as she was wearing a string strapped singlet underneath. Reese’s eyes were drawn to the skin that was exposed and Quinn yanked her sweatshirt up again indignantly. Her skin wasn’t the usual pale white you would expect from a girl with red hair, her skin was golden and sun-kissed, but then her hair wasn’t the normal red either it was dark and lush and her ponytail looked like the tail of a chestnut horse…she was an exotic creature and just as flighty it seemed. It infuriated him but he really didn’t know why and that pissed him off even more.

“What do you want?” She demanded, yanking her sweatshirt back up.

“I just told you…” He smirked, clearly amused to be teasing her.

Quinn huffed, blowing her hair from her forehead, it wafted up and then settled back down. Reese’s fingers twitched to touch it and brush it away. “Don’t you have enough girls hanging around you to annoy? Leave me alone.”

“None of them are as beautiful as you though.” His smirk turned into a sexy smolder as his gaze intensified and seemed to darken and become more golden at the same time.

Quinn stared at him for a moment lost in those eyes then looked away with a small sardonic chuckle. “I’m already taken, okay, so stop.”

“You have a boyfriend?” Reese asked with a dark tone.

Quinn paused. “Not in so many words…look it’s not any of your business, I’ve already been hassled by the queens of campus, I don’t need trouble in my life and you…” She looked him up and down with a haughty glare down her nose as she pointed up and down at him. “…are all sorts of trouble.”

His chuckle in response was the sexiest damn thing Quinn had ever heard and the fact that his tongue licked out over his teeth and he raked his hand through his raven locks all at the same time made her body react and melt inside. f**k he really was hot.

“Any other complaints while you’re at it?”

“I hate to damage your over inflated ego but just because you have a fan club of fifty girls following you around that call you the prince does not mean I should automatically want to join them and fall faint at your feet.” Quinn stepped up to him grabbing the open edges of his leather jacket collar and pulled him down to her height to be face to face with her aggressively.

His eyes widened, the pupils contracting in surprise and Quinn got an all up close and personal look at the gorgeous golden color of them. She lost her momentum and stared, hypnotized as the amazing scent of his cologne drifted into her nostrils and made her skin goose bump.

Reese recovered his shock and found himself staring into the most beautiful light green eyes he had ever seen, they looked unreal...they were so pale and flecked with gold but had a deep sea green depth to the middle of them that surrounded her pupils that he felt like he was falling into them, pity she was doing this to obviously yell in his face.

Wait, why wasn’t she yelling?

Quinn blinked as she noticed the slow sexy smirk curling up Reese’s lips and snapped out of her reverie, shoving him away. “I’m not interested!” She yelled and stormed off feeling flustered and hot.

Reese straightened up, putting his hands in his jacket pockets and leaning his weight back on one leg. “Bullshit you aren’t!” He yelled back at her. “f*****g hell…what was that?” He muttered, raking a hand through his hair feeling a little flustered himself, his heart was thumping, this had never happened before. “What was that connection just now?”

.

Later that day Quinn was out on the large grass quad in the middle of the three main buildings finally enjoying some quiet time to have a look at the chapter of the law book she was supposed to read before tomorrow’s class when two girls came over and plonked themselves down either side of her.

“Quinn, I’ve been looking for you.”

She looked at the one who spoke and cringed inside to see it was Vanessa. “Why?”

“Look, we got off on the wrong foot…I would like to rewind back to our first meeting and the offer I gave you.”

Quinn closed her book and gave Vanessa a strange, confused look. “I said I wasn’t interested in being a cheerleader for some mid football team.”

Vanessa’s face contorted into a sneer before changing back to a smile as she laughed. “Yes, I remember, silly…no I wanted to ask you where you’re staying, because if you’re having to rent some overly expensive tiny apartment in some godforsaken surrounding town miles away might I suggest to you that we have a room available in our house right here in Scarsdale.”

“Ah…why?” This was out of left field.

“Because you’re obviously what we look for, like I said…you fit with us, so I’m giving you another shot at joining us.”

Quinn looked dubiously at her. So I’m rich enough, was that it? I’m not though…I don’t have a penny to my name.

Vanessa rolled her eyes at Quinn’s suspicion. “Look, you’re really cute, the boys obviously already think so, you’re fit, smart and obviously fairly well off…you did say to Lila’s sister that you’re from Zortex Industries, didn’t you?”

Quinn couldn’t help but laugh. “So I fit your criteria to be a part of you clique, is that it?”

Vanessa grinned, completely unashamed. “Exactly, we’re not above putting our differences aside for the greater good, girls like us should be together on the same side. So, will you move in to our house, it’s really big and has a pool?”

“So, you’re like a sorority?”

“Yeah, we’re with the AOII, founded at Columbia...”

Quinn stifled a laugh. “Look no offense, but my brother bought me a nice place in an apartment complex on the north side of this ‘godforsaken town’ and he provides everything I need, so I’m good, I prefer to be able to study quietly by myself anyway and I won’t have a lot of free time to spend doing whatever with you guys. Thanks anyway.”

Quinn got to her feet, grabbed her book and bag and walked off.

Vanessa clucked her tongue and looked at the other girl. “What a b***h, well can’t say I didn’t try.”

“s**t, she has a townhouse on the north side…how rich is this brother of hers? That would have to be a couple of million, right?”

Vanessa folded her arms in a huff. “Shut up…this is war! Did you hear, Reese f*****g ran out of a café chasing her this morning!”