REPUTATION

CHAPTER FIVE

CHAPTER FIVE

Elijah

I've been at Ewanshire for just over twenty four hours.

And so far, I've managed to do exactly what my mum didn't want me to do. I've made quite the mess of things.

Lorelei's pissed off. Her roommate, Evelyn, has been avoiding me like the plague. And I'm mentioned in three trending articles. Damn.

I rub my fists into my eyes, stumbling down the staircase and into the dining hall. I'm greeted by a sea of plaid. Plaid pajama bottoms, plaid tablecloths. Bloody hell, this is England. Not Scotland.

Leo stands on the bench, his dark hair tousled, cheeks flushed with excitement. He cups his hands around his mouth. "Prince Elijah. Your presence is requested."

No one even turns.

Wow. I see.

I'm used to bows and roses being thrown at my feet, not whatever this is. 

They don't even care that I'm a prince.

I'm not quite sure if I like that.

Or they're all just too self-involved to care.

I trudge over to the table, running a hand through my hair. Evelyn is the first person I see and....how??? Her blonde hair is swept off her face in a braid, and a cashmere sweater hangs off one shoulder, exposing tan skin and a black bra strap. She notices me staring and narrows her eyes. I grin. Tormenting her is going to be fun.

I sit beside her and her lips turn down in a scowl.

I lean into her, reaching for the pancakes.

Leo's chuckles sound in the background as she inhales a sharp breath through her nose.

"I'm wearing Polo by Ralph Lauren if you were wondering." I offer, a smirk playing on my lips.

She cocks her head. "Are you trying to flirt with me right now?"

"Is it working?" I arch a brow.

"Your roommate is my girlfriend." She whisper-protests, her voice steely and kind of scary the backbone this girl has. "I'm already worried about her killing me, do not give her more reasons to want to."

Leo spews orange juice all over the table. "Okay, ew." Evelyn remarks.

I choke on my own orange juice and she pats me on the back.

I finally manage to catch my breath, biting back another round of laughter. "Lorelei's not going to kill you, Evelyn."

Her eyes flicker over to where my girlfriend sits, pretending she's not watching us. "Even so, I'm not quite ready for hell yet. I've still got some trouble I need to stir up."

"Not heaven?" Leo asks, leaning his forearms on the table.

She smiles, and it's truly a beautiful thing. "It's too late to fix me, honey."

Leo winks at her. "Well, luv. Sounds like we're going to have some fun."

She grins from behind her glass. "I can't wait."

She stands, tugging her pajama shorts down, and I watch her as she leaves the dining hall.

Leo reaches over the table and tousles my hair, I shove his hand away and glare at him. "You know when little boys tug little girls pigtails on the playground?" He starts.

"Shut-up, mate. I have a girlfriend." I shove a bite of bacon into my mouth.

"Yeah, Leo." I freeze as Lorelei's voice sounds behind me. "He has a girlfriend."

And that's when the table falls silent.