"Fine," Violet said, but not without stepping away from Roman.
Why was he so touchy-feely with her? It felt good—too good—and that was exactly the problem. He was messing with her head, and making her feel things she had no business feeling.
Roman didn’t follow after her this time. He simply stood there, waiting patiently as if he already knew she’d come to the conclusion he wanted.
Violet told him. "I’ll leave the Cardinal Alphas."
Roman smirked, looking far too satisfied. "I knew you were a smart one."
"But only on one condition."
The smirk on Roman’s lips thinned in an instant, and he muttered under his breath, "And I knew you weren’t going to make it easy either." He ran a hand down his face and sighed. "Fine. What’s your condition? State it."
Violet didn’t hesitate.
"Get Elsie off our backs. She is not to touch me, nor my roommates. Keep your bitch on a leash. That is my condition."
Whatever happiness Roman had felt at first vanished. His jaw ticked as he rolled his shoulders back, cracking his neck stiffly. For the first time that night, his expression looked pained.
"You know that’s a tall order. Elsie’s had it out for you from day one."
Violet stepped up to him, tilting her head up with a sharp glare. "And getting Asher to stay away from me isn’t hard? You know that too."
A muscle in Roman’s jaw twitched. Violet saw it and so she pressed her advantage. "If Elsie’s after me, I’m not stupid enough to let go of Asher, who at least shields me from your fiancée’s evil ways."
Roman growled at the mention of that word, but Violet stood unflinching.
"Pretending doesn’t fit you Roman Draven. You know what your beloved Elsie is but you turn a blind eye and defend her because you want the throne. But that’s none of my business. So about the deal, what do you say?"
He exhaled through his nose, his nostrils flaring. His voice was tight as he said, "You know nothing about Elsie or why she does the thing she does."
"There’s no excuse for bad behavior." Violet said simply.
"You —"
"Deal or not?" She demanded.
"I’m going to try." Roman said.
"That’s not enough," Violet countered, her tone laced with fire. "If Elsie comes for me or my friends tomorrow, or Monday, we can consider this whole agreement off." She stared him straight in the eyes. "And I promise you, Roman Draven, I will come full force."
"Fine," he gritted out the words. "I’ll handle her. But in return, stay out of the spotlight. Don’t provoke her. Don’t engage her. Just be a quiet Rogue for the rest of the school year, and we’ll be good to go."
The ’quiet’ part would be difficult. But if it meant avoiding an all-out war with Elsie, then so be it.
While Violet loved a good fight, she was outnumbered and she had her roommates to consider. Elsie would fight dirty and surely hurt them. She couldn’t let that happen.
Roman extended his hand. "Deal then?"
Violet eyed it with suspicion but still, she shook it.
"Deal."
Roman smiled, his fingers lingering over the top of her palm and caressing it slowly.
Violet tried to pull away but he wouldn’t let go.
Then without warning, the idiot yanked her forward, making her stumble into his chest. His tactics was beginning to get boring.
Violet scowled. "What is it now?"
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