Twisted Sins: A Dark High School Romance (Twisted Pine Academy Book 2) Read online

  Twisted Sins

  Twisted Pine Academy, Book 2

  Kai Juniper

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Twisted Pine Academy, Book 3

  Also from Waltham Publishing

  Twisted Sins

  By Kai Juniper

  Copyright © 2019 Kai Juniper

  All rights reserved.

  Published by Waltham Publishing, LLC

  Cover Design by Marisa Wesley of Cover Me Darling, LLC

  This book is a work of fiction. The characters, things, and events are fictitious, and any similarities to real persons (live or dead), things, or events are coincidental and not intended by the author. Brand names of products mentioned in this book are used for reference only and the author acknowledges that any trademarks and product names are the property of their respective owners.

  The author holds exclusive rights to this work and unauthorized duplication is prohibited. No part of this book is to be reproduced in any form without written permission from the author.

  Chapter One

  "Rumor!" Brock bangs on the door to my room.

  I sigh as I walk over to open it. "What?"

  He's standing there wearing a dark suit, shirt, and tie. It's Friday night. Why is he in a suit?

  "What the hell were you thinking?" he yells, shoving the door open and coming in my room.

  "I didn't know she was the principal's kid." I turn to walk back to my bed, but he grabs my arm and comes around to face me.

  "It doesn't matter whose child she was! You don't punch someone. Who the hell taught you that? Your mother?"

  "Yeah." I roll my eyes. "Mom used to go around punching people all the time. It's the nature of artists. Violent. Out of control."

  "You think this is funny?" He tightens his hold on my arm. "Do you know how much this little outburst of yours is going to cost me?"

  "Don't pay it. Let them kick me out. I'll go to Legion. Problem solved."

  "You are NOT going to Legion. You are going to Twisted Pine and you are going to learn how to behave." He releases my arm. "Get dressed. We're leaving in ten minutes."

  "Why? Where are we going?"

  "We have a meeting at the school."

  "With who?"

  "Principal Edwards. He wants to discuss what happened today and decide on next steps."

  "Next steps? What's that supposed to mean?"

  "It means I'll be writing what I assume will be a very large check to make this incident go away, along with whatever he feels is a suitable punishment for you."

  "I'm not letting him punish me. I didn't do anything. Kristen's the one who did this. I was just reacting to what she said."

  "And what did she say?" Brock asks, folding his arms over his chest.

  "She called me a trashy orphan."

  "That's it? All this was caused by her calling you a name?"

  I can't tell him the other part. How she ordered me to stay away from Jackson. But that wasn't the only reason I punched her. My anger with her had been building since we met. Calling me a trashy orphan just sent me over the edge.

  "Just let me quit. It's not worth paying some stupid fine. Send me back to New York. It'd be cheaper to get me an apartment there than to send me back to Twisted Pine."

  "Actually it wouldn't, and you're not going back. You're a minor and you're my responsibility until you turn 18." He storms to the door. "We're not arguing about this. Put on a dress and do something with your hair. You have eight minutes and then we're leaving."

  He slams the door.

  "This is so stupid," I mutter as I go to the closet and take out the dress I wore to dinner with Brock's girlfriend. It's the one with the black lace that I call my funeral dress. It seems appropriate for this meeting.

  What kind of punishment is Principal Edwards going to give me? Suspension? If that's the case, I'm all for it. I'd love to get time away from that place.

  If he's expecting me to apologize to Kristen, it's not gonna happen. The bitch deserved to be punched. Telling me I can't be with Jackson? Calling me names? I'm sick of her controlling everyone and getting away with it. So what if her dad's the principal? That doesn't give her the right to do whatever she wants.

  At five-thirty, I follow Brock down the now dimly-lit halls of Twisted Pine Academy to Principal Edwards' office. The same office where I saw him fighting with Kristen earlier today. Now I get why she yelled at him like that. She wasn't being a student. She was being a daughter, fighting with her stepdad.

  "Principal Edwards," Brock says, knocking on his half-open door.

  He looks up from his desk. "Yes. Come on in."

  We go inside and sit on the high-backed, dark wood chairs across from the principal's desk. My eyes immediately go to the framed photo of him with Kristen and a woman who I assume is her mom. She has Kristen's blond hair but a rounder face and lips that look like they've had one too many injections.

  "I think we all know why we've had to gather here this evening," Principal Edwards says. "Rumor, would you like to start?"

  "What do you want me to say?" I look at him across the desk. "That I'm sorry for hitting your spoiled, rude—"

  "What Rumor means to say," Brock interrupts, sitting up straighter, "is that she is immensely sorry for her behavior and can assure you it will never happen again."

  "I'd like to hear it from her, please," Principal Edwards says, his eyes going back to me.

  "I'm not sorry," I say, folding my arms over my chest. "She was threatening me. Calling me names. I wasn't just going to stand there and do nothing."

  Brock's brows draw together. "Threatening you? You didn't mention that earlier."

  "You didn't give me a chance."

  "How did she threaten you?" Principal Edwards asks in a condescending tone, like he doesn't believe me.

  "She told me to stay away from her friends. And if I didn't, she'd make me."

  It's not entirely true. She didn't say that last part but it was implied. She made it clear I wasn't to see Jackson anymore and she said it in a threatening way.

  "And how would she make you?" Principal Edwards asks.

  I shrug. "Spread lies about me? Get people to hate me? Who knows? The point is she was trying to tell me I can't be friends with certain people and I don't put up with that."

  "What people?" he asks. "Who specifically are you referring to?"

  "Braden's friends," I say, lying, although technically, Jackson used to be Braden's friend so it's somewhat true.

  "The football players," Principal Edwards says. "Is that who you mean?"

  "Yes. They invited me to sit at their table, which Kristen didn't like. She didn't want me there. Apparently I haven't earned my place."

  "Is that what she said?"

  "No, but she kept making comments about me being there, like I shouldn't be."

  "It so
unds like you're assuming a lot of things that aren't actually true. Perhaps you misread the situation?" he asks, his brows rising.

  "I didn't misread it. Kristen doesn't like me. She doesn't want me in her group with all the popular people so she told me to get out. It's as simple as that."

  "That's not a reason to punch someone," Principal Edwards says. "You could've discussed this with her, especially given all the assumptions you're making. Kristen is a very nice girl. Ask anyone at Twisted Pine and they'll tell you she's very pleasant. She has many friends here."

  He can't be that stupid, can he? Does he really believe she's a perfect little angel? He lives with her. She was fighting with him just this morning.

  He knows what she's really like. He's just saying all this to make it seem like I'm the problem, not his stepdaughter.

  "If she's as nice as you say, she wouldn't have called me a trashy orphan," I point out.

  "If she did indeed call you that, she certainly didn't mean it," he says. "Words tend to come out unintended when tempers flare. But words don't inflict physical harm the way a fist does."

  "How is Kristen doing?" Brock asks. "What was the extent of her injuries?"

  "We don't know yet," Principal Edwards says. "For now, the doctor bandaged her up enough to stop the bleeding. In the morning, her mother will take her to her plastic surgeon in Los Angeles to assess if she'll need surgery."

  "Surgery?" I huff. "Are you kidding? I barely hit her! At most, she has a bloody nose. She's making up fake injuries so everyone will feel sorry for her."

  "Rumor," Brock scolds.

  "What? It's true. I didn't hit her that hard. There's no way she needs nose surgery."

  Brock clears his throat and turns to Principal Edwards. "I think we can move on to next steps."

  "Of course." He takes something from his desk. It's a sealed envelope with nothing written on it.

  Brock takes it and slips it in his suit jacket. I'm guessing it's a bill. A bribe to allow me to stay at this overpriced, psychotic school. It's probably enough money to put a down payment on the land they need to build a new school in LA where they can turn more students into lying, manipulative Kristens who use their power and money to do whatever they want without consequence.

  "And for Rumor?" Brock asks reluctantly.

  Brock's usually against me, but in this case I think he's on my side. He doesn't think I need a strict punishment. He might even think I deserve to get off since it's a first time offense.

  Principal Edwards sets his eyes on me, his hands folded and resting on his desk. "I'd like you to see a counselor."

  "A counselor?" I say like he's crazy. "No way! I'm not going to counseling for hitting a girl in the nose. That doesn't even make sense!"

  "It does when you consider all you've been through."

  "Meaning what?"

  "The loss of your mother. Having to move across the country. Start a new school. It's a lot for someone your age. Perhaps your outburst today was based more on your anger over all you've lost than on what Kristen said."

  "No. Trust me. It was definitely Kristen."

  "Sometimes we don't realize what's causing our anger." He glances at Brock. "I think your uncle would agree that counseling would be a wise option, given your circumstances."

  I look at Brock. He just raises his brows, which I assume is his way of saying he agrees. Guess he's not on my side after all.

  "What if I refuse?" I say to Principal Edwards. "What happens then?"

  "This isn't an option. You'll see the school counselor starting next Monday." He stands up. "I'm sorry to rush you but I need to go home before for tonight's game and check on Kristen and her mother."

  I shove my chair back and stand to face him. "I'm not doing this. I don't need some stupid counselor, or this school. I quit."

  I go to leave but Brock yanks me back, putting his arm around me. "Rumor and I will discuss this at home. I'm sure we can come to an agreement."

  "I'm sure you will," Principal Edwards says, picking up his laptop bag and putting it over his shoulder. "I assume you'll both be at tonight's game."

  Brock hesitates, then says, "Of course. I always enjoy seeing my son play."

  He wasn't going to go to the game. He was supposed to go to LA tonight and spend the weekend with Morgan. I was looking forward to having him gone, but now he'll be stuck here.

  "One more thing," Brock says as we're leaving.

  "Yes?" Principal Edwards says as he locks his office door.

  "Would it be possible for Rumor to see a counselor I choose rather than the school counselor?"

  "I'm afraid not. We prefer our students see someone who is familiar with the school and her peers. It makes the most sense in these types of cases where a student is taking her anger out at school."

  "I'm not—"

  "I understand," Brock says, interrupting me. "Oh, and I'll have the check to you on Monday."

  Principal Edwards smiles. "We appreciate your support. Enjoy the game this evening. I'm sure Braden will do us proud, as always."

  Brock and I leave as Principal Edwards remains behind to lock up.

  "How much?" I ask when we're driving home. "What's it going to cost to keep me there?"

  Brock sighs. "More than I was expecting."

  "Then don't do it." I turn to him. "It's wrong, and probably illegal. He can't bribe you like that."

  "He can do what he pleases. He's the principal and it's a private school. There's no public governing body deciding how things are done. He has the final say."

  "But he can't risk pissing you off. Your Braden's dad. If you take Braden from Twisted Pine, they won't have a winning football team."

  "And if I take Braden from Twisted Pine, I'll have a son who won't be going to college."

  "What do you mean? He doesn't need a football scholarship to go to college. You have plenty of money to pay for—"

  "It isn't about the money," he says.

  "You're saying Braden's not smart enough? He says he gets good grades."

  "He does." He glances at me. "He'll be fine. I shouldn't have said it. I just get frustrated with him sometimes." He slows down as we approach a red light.

  "They fix his grades. That's why he can't switch schools. If he did, he'd flunk out and—"

  "Stop it!" Brock says, raising his voice. "Stop it right now! That is NOT what I said. And don't you go telling Braden I did."

  I shrug. "It's not like it's a secret. Everyone knows teachers go easy on the football players. Dante told me all about it. He said he could skip half his classes and still get an A."

  "Enough about that," he says as he turns down the street that goes to the house. "In regards to your mandated counseling, I want you to tell me what she says."

  "The counselor? That's private. And I'm not going so it doesn't matter."

  He pulls into the driveway. "You ARE going, but I don't want you seeing Ms. Adams."

  "That's the counselor? You know her?"

  He clears his throat. "Yes."

  I sigh. "You slept with her, didn't you?"

  "She's far too young and inexperienced to offer you any actual help," he says, not answering my question. "If you're going to see someone, I want to choose someone I know. Someone who has dealt with these types of issues."

  "You mean the counselor you sent Braden and Trystan to?"

  Brock looks at me. "They told you about that?"

  "Braden mentioned it. Said it didn't help."

  "They weren't at a place where it would. They were still too angry about the divorce."

  "And I'm still too angry about being here and being forced to go to a school I don't want to go to. Counseling will be a waste of time."

  "You don't have a choice in the matter. It's the only way you'll be allowed to stay there."

  "Then I'll—"

  "You're not dropping out and you're not going to public." He shuts the car off.

  I try to open my door but he locks it before I can.

  "Let
me out," I say through gritted teeth.

  He turns to me. "Rumor, I know this is a difficult time for you, but things will eventually get better. As reluctant as you are to try counseling, I think it might actually help."

  "Talking about my dead mom?" I huff. "I guarantee that'll only make things worse."

  "You don't have to talk about your mother. You can talk about anything. Missing New York. School. Your cousins. Whatever's on your mind."

  Actually, I could use someone to talk to about that stuff. I can talk to Jackson, and I do, but we never have enough time. And I can't talk to him about Axl. It feels wrong to do that, and yet I feel like I need to talk about what happened. I still haven't accepted that Axl cheated on me, or that he never loved me.

  "What if they won't let me?" I ask.

  "Won't let you what?" Brock says.

  "Switch counselors. You heard Principal Edwards. He said it had to be the school counselor."

  "If she's not helping you, or if you're not comfortable with her, he'll have no choice but to allow you to see someone else. This was his idea, after all. There's no point in doing it if the counselor is ineffective."

  "How do I convince him she's not working?"

  "Keep quiet during the sessions. Don't answer her questions. Or if you do, keep your answers vague or outlandish. Either of those will clue her in that you're lying. If she can't get you to open up to her with the truth, it's no use continuing the sessions."

  Another acting job. I feel like that's all I do around here. Pretend. Be someone I'm not. Lie. Just like what I'm doing for Jackson to get info on the football team. Playing people to get something in return. It feels wrong and I'm tired of it, but apparently it's the only way to survive around here.