Glass Heart Hero: A Dark High School Romance by Lindsey Iler (free ebook reader for iphone .TXT) 📕

without a single word. Ginger is the equivalent of my Aunt Emily. She always has Delaney’s best interest at heart, no matter who’s writing her checks.

“Calum, relax,” Mr. Chambers says, his tone more agitated than before.

Calum.

That can’t be a coincidence. But why?

“It’s being handled. There will be no way to trace it to the foundation once you’ve gained access.” You tend to be able to tell who is in charge by the tone they take when speaking to others. Mr. Chambers is the big guns of this operation.

The floor creaks when I shift.

“Calum, I have to go.” The phone hits the receiver with a clash.

I tiptoe away, wishing myself to be light on my feet. I’m about to hit the corner when the door slams open.

“Do you need something, Breaker?” Mr. Chambers asks. “You lost?”

When I face him, his smile is forced, though he lets it fall enough to look more natural.

“Your home is beautiful, sir, but I’m a little twisted around.”

“Why don’t you come in my office for a second? Have a little chat with me, huh?” He jerks his head at the door and disappears inside. Apparently, I don’t have a choice in the matter.

I follow, sitting across the desk from him. I can imagine Delaney in this very seat as she was growing up, being emotionally battered by his standards, and then feeling beaten down when she never could quite reach them. I understand that all too well.

“Sir?” I say, hoping to remind Mr. Chambers I’m here because he’d asked me, not because I have anything to say. He’s distracted by something on his phone. Whatever he’s reading does not amuse him. He slams it on the desk screen down.

“What do you think you’re doing?” He leans away, crossing his arms over his chest. He’s built, clearly never given up the workout regimen he’d created in college. Everything about him screams intimidation, but when I sit across from him, I feel resentment.

“I’m sorry, Mr. Chambers, but I don’t understand what you’re referring to.”

That couldn’t be further from the truth. He hates the idea of me. I probably remind him of a fraternity pledge who almost stole Delaney’s mom from him years ago. I’m a representation of everything he isn’t, and he can’t fathom the idea of his daughter loving someone like me, but he already knows she does. If he didn’t, he wouldn’t be threatened.

“Don’t play coy with me, boy.”

“Boy?” I stand, pressing my hands into the top of his desk. “Who are you calling boy?”

“You may run that little ship on campus, but here, this is the pit, and you can easily be removed.”

“It must be hard, sir.” I grin, nibbling on my tongue to hold off saying what is sure to come.

“What’s that?” He sits forward. The intimidation factor he believes he holds is nowhere to be seen. Maybe on others it works, but not with me. I’ve already experienced the worst the world has to offer. He’s small fries.

“Having to see your daughter with someone like me. You probably believe the old tale that tattoos mean I’m nothing but a hoodlum, trash. You’re dead wrong. These tattoos are proof that something beautiful can come from pain. Take my precious Delaney, for instance. She’s been raised by someone so nasty, he put himself before her for his own gain, and look at her. She’s exquisite, unbroken by your words and judgment.”

“You don’t know the first thing about my daughter.”

Well, there’s where he’s wrong.

I lean forward, invading his space, ready to say words no father wants to hear about his daughter. “I know the way her pussy pulses around my dick when I’m fucking her. She screams my name, Mr. Chambers.” I’m such a prick. “I know that she’s beyond smart. Smart enough to see through your bullshit, but not smart enough to realize she’s too good for me. I know that she’s finally waking up to the fact that the man who should love her the most and protect her, has been failing her all along.” I shake my head, completely high off the endorphins I’m getting from letting this man know what I think of him. “You allowed a tattooed, trash bag to do your job, and I’ve never stopped, and I never will. Even if it means I bury you alongside everyone else that wrongs her.” I wrap my fingers around the silver handle of a letter opener and stab it into the desk. “Watch your back, Mr. Chambers. We know where the bodies are buried, and I have a shovel and plenty of time on my hands.”

“Mr. Davenport?” Mr. Chambers growls, fire in his voice. He’s ready to burn me alive. His face reddens to match his voice. “Perhaps we should worry more about our own blood.”

And there it is . . . the threat I’ve expected since I heard Mr. Chambers say a name I’d prefer never to hear again. I dip my chin, unwilling to give him another morsel of my energy and storm out of the office.

In the entryway, Delaney and Ginger are leaning against the railing.

“What did you do?” Delaney asks.

“We had a nice conversation,” I lie, grabbing her hand and drawing her tight against me.

Ginger watches us. She knows I was eavesdropping, but she doesn’t say anything. Instead, she grabs me in a hug.

“Take care of her. Whatever the cost, don’t let her be swallowed up again.” Her words are sincere. Reality hits me hard when she lets me go, and tears are begging to fall from her aged eyes.

“I got her.” I grab Ginger’s hand and squeeze it, hoping she understands how fiercely I’m fighting for Delaney.

“We better get going,” Delaney announces.

A loud crash comes from Mr. Chambers’ office. I like to imagine him feeling the walls closing in on him and his days numbered.

“Get out of here,” Ginger instructs, rushing us to the door. We are barely outside when Mr. Chambers screams for her.

The door slams behind us, the glass rattling with the