Despised: A Reverse Harem Academy Bully Romance (Dukes of Dunwich Book 1) Read online

  Despised

  Payton Reed

  Fall Semester

  Part I

  September

  Chapter One

  Willow

  “Did I mention to you they have an Olympic-sized swimming pool?” asked Hannah.

  Willow Munroe turned her gaze from the tinted window of the long black limousine to glance at her mother. “You touched on it a few times.” She couldn’t control the sheer ennui out of her expression. Her mother kept struggling to sell her on this place, but she couldn’t say anything that made Willow want to attend Dunwich Academy. It was a fancy place for fancy, spoiled rich kids.

  Kids like the two sitting across from her. Malone and Dalton Westerly were technically her step-siblings, but she scarcely knew them. For her mom’s sake, she’d made an attempt when Hannah and Ashton first introduced their children to each other, but neither one had been receptive to her overtures, so she’d quickly stopped trying.

  Those two had pulled out of spending the last three months after their parents’ wedding playing happy family by staying with an aunt who lived in Paris and was married to some count guy. Or was it a Comte? She couldn’t remember and didn’t really care. All she knew was she’d had three blissful months of peace, other than having to deal with Ashton trying too hard to be a father-figure she didn’t want or need. Hearing that those two would be gone during the awkward transistion was music to Willow's ears, but now that school is back in session, those two monsters are back.

  The spoiled brats had come back just yesterday and then immediately locked themselves in their rooms. She hadn’t seen them until they all met downstairs to take the limo to the academy this morning. Neither one of them had looked up or spoken at all, being too engrossed in their phones. Willow pittied them. It did not bother her that those two did not even respect her to look in her direction or acknowledge her when she came down for breakfast this morning before the car came.

  That suited her just fine, and the fancy iPhone she held in her hand drew her attention. There had been a time in her life with her mom when she could never imagine owning one, especially since it cost more than what her mom used to pay in rent for their tiny studio apartment they shared. Now, it was a common luxury, and it would be easy to take for granted, but she didn’t want to be that person.

  She didn’t choose to be wealthy, spoiled, and pretentious. Snobby would be the right term, and she clearly was not that. She definitely didn’t want to go to an elite boarding school where the rich people sent their kids, so they were out of their hair and no longer their problems. If she hadn’t promised her mom, she wouldn’t be heading there right now for her senior year.

  Hannah had put forth a heavy dose of Mom Guilt, and she’d heavily played the “think about your future” card. Willow knew attending Dunwich would be good for her college applications, but she dreaded it. She wasn’t going to fit in, though she now owned designer clothes every bit as expensive as the ones her stepsister Malone wore.

  Neither she nor Hannah had an indication on how to dress when they’d first entered Ashton’s household, so he’d set them up with a personal shopper. Willow now looked the part, but she certainly didn’t feel it. To her, she was still the same kid who went to public school and lived in a sketchy area of town while her mom worked two jobs to keep them going.

  That was before her mom had taken the business administration course while still waitressing and cleaning houses. That had been a long year, but it had proven good for Hannah’s future. That was what had brought them to this point, and as much as she hated many things about her new life, she couldn’t regret that Hannah had found happiness with Ashton, who had formerly been her boss after she was promoted to his executive assistant.

  “Oh, look at that. We must be here.” Hannah sounded excited.

  Willow rolled her eyes and looked as an pair of ornate iron gates adorned with a fancy “D” swung open. It was about time they reached this place. They’d had to drive three hours from Portland up into the wilds of the Maine coastline. The last town, Farley, had been half-an-hour ago, and she already knew from reading the handbook that students weren’t allowed to have vehicles at Dunwich Academy.

  She was well and truly stuck there, with the only bright spot being she could sign up for weekend passes to leave campus since her mother had authorized her to have that ability. It was only Monday, and she was already looking forward to getting away from this place for the weekend.

  Her nose wrinkled as they drove up the long the drive, which must’ve been another three or four miles of winding turns before she got her first glimpse of Dunwich. “It’s so ugly.” She couldn’t help the statement bursting forth.

  “It’s not ugly,” said Hannah. “It’s classic. Gothic, maybe?”

  She shrugged a shoulder. “Maybe.” Whatever it was, the sprawling monstrosity of brick with a gabled roof and multiple building surrounding it was ugly. The outer buildings were clearly late add ons, but they still matched the same style of the architecture. In the daylight, it was hideous. At night, it probably looked like a Gothic mansion out of someone’s nightmare. She had to resist the urge to ask if it was haunted, though she knew it wouldn’t be. It just looked like the sort of place where one shot a horror movie—the kind where no one made it out alive.

  The car stopped a few moments later and joined a line of several others. There was a mix of luxury automobiles, along with other limousines, but certainly nothing so base as a Honda or Buick to break the monotony of wealth.

  The driver appeared at the door a moment later, holding it open for them. The five of them stepped out. The driver walked around to the back of the limousine and began unloading their luggage. Willow’s lips pursed in censure when Malone and Dalton both grabbed their luggage and took off without a word to either their dad or her mom. She shook her head in disapproval as she turned to Hannah. “Are you really going to make me do this?”

  Hannah sighed. “Just give it a chance, honey. I know it’s different, but different isn’t always bad.” Her gaze cut to her husband, and it was clear she had trouble looking away to face Willow again. “Sometimes change is really good for us, right?” As she asked, she lightly pinched Willow’s cheek before brushing back a long strand of dark hair out of her face. “I thought you were going to cut your hair before you came?”

  Willow shrugged. She’d briefly thought about it but decided she wasn’t ready to lose the heavy swath of black hair that shone almost blue in the light. It was part of her identity, and more importantly, it was great for hiding her face and eyes when she didn’t want to deal with the world.

  She turned Ashton. “Thanks for the ride.” She held out her hand, hoping to stave off the hug, but it was useless. He was a hugger, much to her chagrin.

  Ashton was a tall and fit man, and he barely looked forty, let alone his true age of fifty. He wasn’t really what anyone thought of when they imagined the word dad, but she knew he wanted her to call him that. She just wasn’t ready. There was no way in heck she was going to call him Dad after only knowing him for six months, and her mother being married to him for three. He could keep trying all he wanted, but she couldn’t imagine ever feeling that comfortable with him.

  His tall frame engulfed her medium-sized one in a big hug. She felt like she was suffocating, though that was all emotional. He wasn’t hugging her that tightly. She managed an awkward pat on his back and then wriggled free before turning to her mom. She gave Hannah a real hug, and Hannah reciprocated.

  Willow held tightly t
o her mom for a moment, suddenly realizing she had truly lost her in some ways. Not that Hannah loved her any less, but now it was no longer Hannah and Willow against the world. Hannah saw her marriage to Ashton Westerly as beneficial to them all, while Willow viewed it differently. Now she had to share her mother, and in a way, that hurt. She’d had months to come to terms with the idea, but here was when it hit her that things would never be the same again.

  She sniffed, refusing to cry about that. Maybe her mom was right, and these changes would be good for all of them. Taking a step back, she plastered on a bright smile. “I guess I should get in there. If this doesn’t work, you promise I can come home?”

  “I promise, but I expect you to give it a real effort.” Hannah seemed to have trouble letting her go, and her hand grazed Willow’s for a moment before Ashton took her other one to tug her gently toward the car.

  Hannah seemed on the verge of tears as she raised her hand. Willow waved quickly and turned away, not wanting to catch the tears that might be contagious. As she rushed toward the front, she scooped up her bags and ran up the infinite marble stairs. Seriously, how many steps did one place need? She counted as she ran, finding they had twenty-four that led to the grand entrance.

  She hoped the interior would be less gothic horror show, and it was slightly. Someone had painted the brick walls eggshell white, which seemed like putting lipstick on a pig, but at least it softened some cold atmosphere. Signs led her easily to the housing office, and she joined the line.

  There were a few people in front of her who seemed anxious or nervous, but most of them just looked bored. That was the same expression she’d seen Malone and Dalton wear all the time in the brief time she’d known them. She hoped she didn’t pick up that skill from this place. It might be cool to pretend like everything around her was boring, but that wasn’t her.

  When it was nearly her turn, the person in front of her caused a disturbance. “I requested to be with Daniel Foster,” he said harshly.

  The clerk who looked around Willow’s age, was clearly flustered. “I don’t see it in the records, and he’s already been assigned a roommate, as I said. Your only option is to talk to the roommate to see if he’ll trade. If so, he can come back here, and we can update the files.”

  “Frigging eskie. You can’t can even do this job right. How the hell did you ever get a scholarship to this place?” He shook his head at her. Then he turned to look at Willow, obviously trying to share a look of camaraderie. “Can you believe they let these people in our school?”

  She wrinkled her nose. “Are you done? I want to get my room number.” She kept her voice and expression frosty.

  With a sigh of disgust, the jerk stepped out of line and strode out of the room. With a shake of her head, Willow moved forward. She could see the girl cringing, as though prepared for another interaction with someone like that guy. Willow wasn’t normally rude or hostile to start with, but she made an extra effort to give a friendly smile and keep her tone warm when she said, “My name is Willow Munroe. Do you have my dorm assignment?”

  “Sure.” She gave her a relieved smile and turned her attention to the computer. Seconds later, the printer beside her hummed, and she took it, her hands busy on the counter. After a pause, she handed Willow a sheet of paper with a keycard paper clipped to it. “You’re in the dorm building A, on the third floor, and in room twelve. Your roommate is Isis Radworth.” She smiled. “She’s one of the nice ones,” she whispered softly as she slipped the paper to Willow.

  “Thanks. Where can I get my schedule?”

  “Just across the hall.” The girl turned her attention to the person behind Willow, tense again.

  Willow took her paper and left the office, going across the hall to Registration. She knew her classes had already been preassigned, though she’d had some input on choosing her electives. She also knew she had two extra academic classes compared to most of the students, because her public-school education hadn’t been deemed quite worthy of Dunwich Academy standards. She groaned when she saw the list, stuffing it and the paper in her backpack. She took time to remove the keycard from the front of the printout to slip in her pocket.

  As she left the administration building, she saw a stack of maps, and she grabbed one. She paused outside on the steps, out of the way of the door, and stared around her before looking down at the map again so she could orient herself. When she was confident, she knew where she was going, she walked down the twenty-four steps and turned to the right, following the paved path that cut through the perfectly manicured grass.

  There were rosebushes every few feet, along with high hedges of roses that defined the boundary of the property. This place didn’t have a fence to keep people in. Just massive rose bushes taller than her. From what she could see from the distance separating her from the bushes, they also had wicked thorns. No wonder they called this place Dunwich Academy.

  It didn’t take long to reach her dorm, with more of the ostentatious steps, but only twelve this time. She walked up them and entered through the ornate double doors that were currently propped open.

  Within seconds of stepping inside, noise and loud voices assailed her. Their origin was a large rec room just a few steps to the left after the entry. The right side of the room held several couches and chairs, along with bookshelves. It appeared to be intended to be a study nook, and she questioned the brain of whom ever had placed it across from the rec room, which was lively with people talking over each other.

  As she walked past, she noticed there were boys and girls mingling in there and recalled the dorms were coed. The floors were separated by gender though, and with a resident advisor on every floor, it was supposedly impossible for boys and girls to sneak into each other’s rooms. If they were caught, it was definitely a big deal and could lead to expulsion.

  Briefly, she toyed with the idea of sneaking in a boy to her room just to get caught and expelled, but she let go of the fantasy quickly. She couldn’t imagine finding anybody at Dunwich that she’d have anything in common with to begin with and deliberately trying to get expelled wasn’t honoring the spirit of the promise she’d made her mother.

  There was an elevator, but she chose the grand staircase instead. It was wide enough to allow six people to walk up, standing side-by-side and still have room to avoid the banisters. The gleaming white marble stairs only showed on the sides, due to the long gold rug draped down them.

  At least the inside of this building was more attractive than the administration building, which was clearly the original house that had been donated along with the land by someone whose name she’d seen in the handbook but had already forgotten.

  She climbed the three flights of stairs and walked down the hallway, seeing a plaque for Edna Grimley, Resident Advisor, on the first door to her right as she did so. No wonder they considered it too difficult for someone to sneak past. She was the guardian of the stairway. She grinned at that thought, imagining a troll slipping out from under a rock to guard the passageway to the staircase.

  Letting go of the fanciful thought, she kept walking and found room twelve halfway down the hallway. It was on the left, and she used her keycard to slip in.

  The dorm room was everything the rest of the college thus far had not been. It had soothing light-blue walls and black hardwood flooring underneath her feet. Whoever had designed it hadn’t skimped. This was real wood, not the fake laminate she and her mom had put down in their old apartment one weekend a few years ago after Hannah had given up on the superintendent actually getting around to fixing the water damage.

  One half of the room was already occupied, and she raised a brow at the sparkling pink, purple, and silver décor. It looked a bit like a unicorn had thrown up in there, but who was she to judge? She was far more interested in what kind of person her roommate was than her taste in décor.

  A tall black girl stood near the desk on her side, and she was looking at Willow with interest. She didn’t walk forward, and she didn’t rea
lly smile, but she did say, “Hi. I’m Isis.”

  “Hello.” She set on her bags on the currently bare bed and walked over to hold out her hand. Isis took it after a moment of hesitation. “I’m Willow Munroe.”

  “Is it okay if I call you Will?”

  Willow shuddered. “Please don’t.”

  Isis gave her a small smile, and that was the most blatant sign of friendliness she’d displayed thus far. “Duly noted. Willow it is. I’m going to the dining hall, since I’m already settled in. I guess I’ll see you later then.”

  Willow nodded as Isis moved to toward the door and disappeared from the room a moment later. She wondered if Isis hadn’t invited her to come along because she assumed Willow would need to unpack, or if it was because she had no interest in getting to know Willow. It didn’t matter. They’d find a way to coexist even if Isis never warmed up. Willow had survived public high school for three years, so she could survive sharing a room with someone who was only lukewarm.

  She unpacked her bags, finding the rest of her things had been delivered to the academy already. They were stacked neatly in the corner, so she unwrapped her new bedding and made the bed before hanging her clothes in the closet and folding them in the dresser.

  She’d brought to her what seemed like a silly number of garments, especially considering her uniforms were already neatly pressed and hanging in the closet, but she’d only followed the academy’s list of suggestions.

  There were knee-high socks in the drawer where she placed her underwear, and she found a sensible pair of brown shoes sitting atop the dresser. They were clearly new and her size, so it didn’t take a genius to figure out they were meant to go with her uniform.

  Uniforms. That was a horrible idea to her. At her old school, she could wear whatever she wanted. In junior high, she’d gone to school that required them all to wear polos and khakis, but even then, there’d been some freedom to choose the color of their shirts.