chapter 3

Chapter 3: The Library Trap

POV: Chloe

I checked my reflection in the restroom mirror for the tenth time. My hair was a perfect platinum curtain. My lipstick was a shade called ‘Siren Red’—bold, expensive, and a lie. My wrist felt naked without my Cartier bracelet, a constant, stinging reminder of the backseat of a rusted sedan.

"You're fine," I whispered to the glass. "You're Chloe Montgomery. He's a ghost. Ghosts don't have voices."

I walked into the hallway, my heels clicking like a countdown. Every person I passed was a potential threat, every whisper a possible joke at my expense. When I reached the library for my free period, I headed straight for the restricted archives in the back. It was the only place quiet enough to think.

I didn't even see him until I was between the high mahogany stacks.

"You're late, Princess."

I jumped, my bag sliding off my shoulder. Elias was sitting on a low table, his long legs stretched out, blocking the aisle. He wasn't wearing his glasses today. His eyes looked sharper—darker.

"What are you doing here, Elias? This is the senior honors section."

"I'm on scholarship, remember? I have access to everything." He stood up, closing a heavy book. The thud echoed in the silent room. "Including you, apparently."

"Don't," I hissed, stepping back until my spine hit the cold wood of a bookshelf. "We talked about this. The night is over. It’s dead. Bury it."

"Is that why you’ve been looking at me in the hallway like you’re waiting for the floor to swallow you?" He moved closer, invading my space with a terrifying lack of hesitation. "You're not scared I'll talk, Chloe. You're scared that if I don't talk, you'll have to find another reason to come near me."

"You're delusional. I loathe you. I’m disgusted by the fact that I let someone like you even look at me."

"Someone like me?" He laughed, a low, rough sound that vibrated in my chest. He leaned one hand on the shelf next to my head, pinning me in. "Define that. Go on. Say the words."

"Low-class. A charity case. A nobody."

He didn't flinch. Instead, he leaned down, his mouth inches from mine. I could smell the faint scent of peppermint and that woodsmoke that seemed to have stained his skin. "If I’m a nobody, what does that make you? Because you didn't seem to care about my bank account when you were begging me to take your dress off."

"I was... I was caught up in the dare."

"Liars get caught, Chloe. And you are a terrible liar."

POV: Elias

She was trembling. Not from fear—from the sheer force of trying to hold her "Ice Queen" mask together while it was cracking right in front of me.

"Get out of my way, Elias. Jax is waiting for me in the courtyard."

"Jax?" I smiled, but there was no warmth in it. "The guy who spent all morning bragging about how he almost burned my textbook in the fire? That Jax?"

"He's my boyfriend. Or he will be."

"He’s a child playing with fire. I’m the one who actually knows how to keep you warm." I reached into my pocket, the cold gold of her bracelet clinking against my keys. I didn't pull it out yet. I wanted to see her break first. "Does Jax know about the birthmark on your left hip, Chloe? Or is he still stuck on the first base you let him reach?"

Her hand flew up, her palm connecting with my cheek in a sharp, stinging crack.

The sound rang through the library. I didn't move. I didn't even blink. I just turned my face back to hers, a slow smirk spreading across my lips.

"Feel better now?"

"I hate you," she whispered, her eyes brimming with frustrated tears. "I wish you had never come to this school. I wish I had never looked at you."

"Too late," I said, my voice dropping to a growl. I grabbed her wrists, pinning them against the shelves above her head. The 'disgust' she claimed to feel was being drowned out by the same frantic pulse I’d felt in the car. "You wanted to play a game with the nerd? Fine. But here are the new rules. You don't get to pretend I’m a ghost anymore. Every time you see me, you’re going to remember exactly how it felt to have me touch you."

"You're insane. They'll ruin you if they see us."

"Let them. I have nothing to lose, Princess. You’re the one with the crown. You’re the one with the reputation." I let go of one of her wrists and reached into my pocket, finally pulling out the Cartier bracelet.

The diamonds caught the light, sparkling mockingly between us. Her breath hitched.

"My bracelet..."

"I found it in the back of my car. On the floor mat." I dangled it in front of her face. "I was going to give it back. But I think I’ll keep it for a while. A little collateral."

"Give it to me, Elias! That was a gift from my father."

"Then you should have been more careful with it." I leaned in, my nose brushing hers. "If you want it back, you’re going to have to earn it. And I don’t want your money."

"Then what do you want?"

"I want you to admit it."

"Admit what?"

"That you didn't do it for the dare." I pressed the bracelet against the hollow of her throat, the cold metal making her gasp. "Tell me you wanted me, Chloe. Say it, and I might consider giving this back."

"I... I can't."

"Then I guess I’ll just have to keep it as a souvenir of the night the Ice Queen finally melted."

I started to pull away, but Chloe’s hand shot out, grabbing the front of my hoodie. She pulled me back, her eyes wild.

"Fine! I wanted you. Is that what you want to hear? I wanted the disaster! I wanted to see if the Ghost was real! Are you happy now?"

"Getting there," I whispered.

I was about to kiss her—to prove to her that she was still lying about the 'hate'—when the sound of heavy footsteps echoed from the main aisle.

"Chloe? You back here?"

It was Jax.

Chloe’s face went white. She looked at me, then at the bracelet in my hand, then at the entrance to the stacks. If Jax walked around the corner and saw the school's "Ghost" pinning the "Queen" to a bookshelf, it was over.

"Hide," she hissed, her voice a terrified whimper.

"Make me," I challenged, leaning back against the shelf and crossing my arms, the gold bracelet still glinting in my hand.