In Control (The City Series) by Crystal Serowka Read Free Book Online Page A

idea of not having to share my space with moving boxes or scary bugs had me jumping for joy. I kept asking her if she was sure. Are you sure there’s no one else moving in? I get the entire bedroom to myself? Trish just laughed, answering each question with, “I’m positive,” and, “yes.” After I got over the shock of having so much space for myself, I was able to paint my walls a deep purple. The same color as Ms. Cole’s ballet studio.
    “Wren, what are you doing?” I sat down on the end of my bed, crossing my legs.
    “We leave for the Hamptons in two days. We need to get you packed before you change your mind.” Wren didn’t look my way as he spoke. He was cleaning out my luggage, taking out a stray sock, an old plane ticket, and a hairbrush that I thought I’d lost.
    “Can you just stop for a second?” I said, crawling over the clothing on the bed. I placed my hands on top of his.
    As he held a pair of my broken earrings, he looked at me. His eyes told me everything. Wren needed a few minutes to reset. I had to give him some time to calm down.
    I walked into the living room and lay on the couch. It was brand new and it still smelled like the warehouse Trish purchased it from. I moved onto my back and stared up at the recessed lights. When they were the only lights on, the ceiling resembled the night sky. The lights almost looked like stars, and anytime I was in a bad mood, I’d always lie in that exact spot. I’d focus on each light until my eyes went blurry, and then moved onto the next one. One night, I counted them, hoping it would lull me to sleep. I counted up to twenty before I couldn’t keep my eyes open any longer.
    Wren walked into the living room and sat down in the small space left over. “Your feet are filthy,” he said as he lifted my legs and placed them on his lap.
    “That’s what happens when you get a girl to run after you without any shoes on.”
    A small smile crept onto his lips. His fingers moved across my toes lightly, and I quickly jerked my body away. There were two things I absolutely hated in this world: clingy men and being tickled. Wren was aware of both.
    “Don’t you dare!” I yelled, backing into the corner of the couch. I liked his face a lot, and I’d feel really bad about bruising it, but if he came any closer, I wouldn’t hesitate to strike.
    Wren slowly crawled closer to me, looking as if he were a wild animal stalking his prey. “C’mon, K,” he sang, reaching for my foot.
    “Get away from me.” I showed him my clenched fist, hoping he’d give up. “I mean it, Wren. I’ll hit you.”
    “You wouldn’t hit me. You like my face too much,” he challenged.
    He grabbed onto my ankle just as my fist met his bicep. At first I didn’t feel anything, but then all at once, pain shot through my hand. I cradled it against my chest, jumping off of the couch and running toward the kitchen, where I rummaged through the freezer, grabbing the first cold thing I touched. As I held frozen steak against my knuckles, I sank to the floor, all the while screaming at Wren to get the hell out of my house.
    “Kingsley,” Wren walked into the kitchen and knelt down in front of me, “I’ve been working out a lot lately, so I guess that extra gym time has really done my arms some good.”
    Without thinking, I threw the piece of meat at Wren’s face. I realized where it hit him when he began screaming in pain.
    “What the fuck!” He threw his hand over his left eye as he felt around with his free arm in search of the culprit.
    “Here, baby,” I teased, handing him the steak.
    Wren snatched it from my hands and positioned it over his eye. I grabbed an ice pack out of the freezer and joined Wren on the floor. I could barely wiggle my fingers, and every time I tried, I felt like puking.
    “Fuck, this hurts,” he said as he lay down on the floor. “My eye is going to be black and blue tomorrow. My mom’s going to think you’re abusive.” Wren laughed, grabbing my