I recoil at her words. I’m not a freak. Just quiet. I don’t have friends, though. My stepbrother made sure of that. There’s no telling what he whispered in everyone’s ears to make them treat me as an outcast. I don’t exactly help the situation. Rather than trying to prove to them I’m someone else—someone better than he says—I turned into a silent ghost who quietly haunts the hallways and classrooms, mostly keeping to myself.

Except for yesterday.

Except with Mr. Park.

Callum.

I actually worked up the nerve to speak to him. To attempt to be playful and flirting. All because I caught him staring at me with an intensity I couldn’t ignore even if I’d wanted to. It emboldened me. For once in my powerless life, I felt like I held the hand with all the cards.

But I was wrong.

He snuffed out the flickering fire all too easily and I’ve been obsessing over it since.

Mr. Park’s deep voice cuts through my self-deprecating thoughts. “Grades are important, Gemma.”

Dempsey cackles, playfully tugging on his sister’s long, silky mahogany-colored hair. “Did you hear that, Gemmy-Lou?” He lowers his voice, mocking their brother. “Grades are important.”

Mr. Park stalks over to them, jaw clenching. Dempsey, despite being half his size, doesn’t back down. Gemma’s face is red from humiliation. Whatever Mr. Park says to them is in a low tone and through gritted teeth. I can’t make out what he’s saying, so I take a second to admire him before I have to actually face him in class.

The man is a mountain.

Not some burly guy with a thick neck and thunder thighs. No, Mr. Park—Callum—is like a castle wall. Firm. Solid. Impenetrable. Power and authority are cut into every sculpted muscle on his body so that his presence is not only felt but also seen in the way he carries himself. Expensive suits are always molded to his fit body, the fabric stretching slightly over his biceps and back. On the rare few times he’s removed his suit jacket, the entire class is rewarded with the way his slacks hug his tight ass.

He’s just so…manly.

Arrogance and confidence war for the lead. I think, deep down, he’s more than some rich prick whose name this city was built upon. I can see it in the gruff, yet concerned way he deals with his younger siblings. There’s more to Mr. Park than a sexy body and heart-stopping face.

I thought…

I thought maybe I was going to learn what all lurks beneath him.

I thought maybe I was special.