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Seemed she was tired of waiting for me to keep my end of the bargain, though, so she was trying to undo hers. She gave me Winter. Now she was trying to take her away.
But while I liked my games, intrigue, and going wild, I didn’t like doing it alone. I wanted someone on my side. I wanted her on my side.
Martin Scott. As in Emory Scott.
The girl with the abusive—police officer—older brother whom Kai and Will were sent to prison for assaulting as payback for beating up on his little sister. The little sister who wasn’t little anymore and whom Will was still obsessed with. He hated us and was now more powerful than ever.
“There’s Kai and Will,” she fired back. “And they’re mad at you right now.”
“You will not force her,” she ordered her terms. “You will not threaten, torture, or coerce her into your bed. You will not touch her.”
“God, you’re like a female version of me,” I said. “It’s turning me on.”
Jesus. She must be fun in bed.
“I would kill for you,” I shot back, getting in her face.
It kind of just came out, but I thought it was true. At one time, I would’ve killed for Michael, Kai, and Will. I might still.
But I’d definitely kill for Erika and Banks. They might not like me a whole lot, but they understood me.
“It’s exactly what I told you last year,” I said. “I told you I don’t lie. Evans Crist—and my father—had yours killed.”
CHAPTER 16
Five Years Ago
Time jump
Two months plus one until I was seventeen.
Two whole years.
“Do you know Astrid Colby?” she asked, holding the back door open for me. “And her boyfriend, Miles Anderson? They’re both seniors. This is his car.” And then: “You guys, this is Winter Ashby.”
Oh ohhhh not good company
That’s right. Devil’s Night was tomorrow.
I ran my fingers through my hair, flipping it to one side as I turned toward the window. Miles was the only person I’d heard of who didn’t worship at the Horsemen altar. I wondered why.
“Is that car still behind us?” I heard Astrid ask.
Please be damion
Tears welled, and I couldn’t believe I’d been so stupid. I’d forgotten to lock the back doors.
I gasped, the nickname and his hushed tone registering in one powerful, overwhelming blow, and I almost sobbed with happiness.
All of a sudden, he reached forward and took me in his arms, hauling me into the back seat. I shot my hands behind me, touching his face—the sharp nose and angular jaw—grazing the scars on his scalp, and burying my nose in his neck. Freshly showered. As always.
He was here. He was alive and hadn’t forgotten about me.
He nodded. “I show up to see you again, and when I do, I see you getting in a car with another man.”
“You’ve been gone two years,” I said. “That’s a long time.”
I took his hands and pulled them away from my body, sliding them up my thighs, just under my skirt. I wasn’t shy around him. I knew he wanted me, but he kept doing things—being bossy and overprotective—that reminded me of an older brother. It needed to stop. I wasn’t a child. I was ready.
“I waited for you,” I repeated, panting and brushing his lips with mine. “But I won’t wait forever.”
The unmistakably hard ridge of his cock rubbed against my panties through his jeans, and I moaned.
“Make you dirty.”
“Hey, man, what are we doing?” someone shouted outside. “You want us to wait or what?”
Omgi love how everything is conecting
“I don’t think I can wait for her to be legal, man,” he whispered to his friend but only loud enough for me to hear. I nibbled his mouth, playing. “Sixteen is the legal age of consent in thirty-three states,” I teased. “Just not ours. It’s a technicality.”
I brushed across raised pieces of skin under his arms and paused, noticing they reminded me of what I’d felt under his hair two years ago. I rubbed over them with my thumb several times.
He pulled away to look at me as he buttoned my top button and retied my bow tie.
“Right?” I said, my voice thick with tears. “I just wanted to, like . . . burn the whole place down.”
It was kind of weird, confirming that he was a regular guy with an everyday life. And here I thought he was a vampire, rising only when the sun set.
“Well, that narrows down your identity,” I replied. “An only child, because you never learned to share.”
CHAPTER 17
She laughed under her breath, probably thinking I was joking, and I went weak for a moment, the light in her eyes the most beautiful thing I’d seen in a long time.
“So you have a sister,” she inquired, continuing our conversation.
“A year younger than me.”
“Old enough to vote, not old enough to buy liquor,” I told her. “But I can still get liquor. If you want.”
I’d also never worn my mask, because then she would know I was a Horseman.
I wasn’t trying to get her into bed. I wasn’t trying to prove how tough I was. I wasn’t angry or weighed down or tired of my stupid fucking life. It was the only place I wanted to be.
Wait until she got older, but I just needed to get her out of that prick’s car.
And thank guck for that
Maybe someday I’d take her on a real adventure.
And all I knew in that moment was that I would fight for nothing more than to keep her like this. Innocent and happy and pure.
My chest swelled, aching like shit, and everything washed over me at once. Her smell, her warmth, her hair and body . . . My lungs caved, and I didn’t know why, but it felt so fucking good. I wrapped my arms around her like a steel band, almost feeling relief at holding something—or someone—for the first time in forever.
Yes, I wanted to see her again. She was mine. In our secluded, secret little world, she was mine.
I wanted to keep her happy, pure, and innocent, too. I didn’t want to ruin her.
