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“Only the bad ones bite, and I promise you, Neopolo, Scar’s not one of the bad ones.”
The perk of this staring contest with Neo: he’s fucking beautiful. Like a piece of art you pass by in a museum and can’t help but backtrack to it, just to steal another glance. And once you do, you’re lost in it. It’s grungy with torn corners and splatters of nothing—but everything at the same time. Alluring and dark. You can’t make out the story of the piece, but you know it’s been to hell and back. The only difference is, Neo’s been to hell, but I’m not sure he’ll ever get out. He enjoys living in misery. He’s comfortable there.
“My god,” Riley bellows, “would you two just fuck already and get it over with?”
“If I remember right, we have a mystery to solve with the rest of the Scooby squad.”
Out of nowhere, Neo sweeps through the crowd, bumping into me, then Jagger. “The fuck you are,” he gnashes at Scar, before grabbing her by the waist from behind.
“I. Will. Never. Not. Hate. You, Scar. Do you understand me?” I inhale his hot breath, my limbs quivering. “Nothing you do or say will ever change the sheer agony I feel in your presence. I despise you. Your touch repulses me. Your existence makes me sick. You are toxic. A poison I refuse to ingest. Crew and Jagger can drink it up, but not me. I’d die first.”
“It’s a shame, really. I’d love nothing more than to watch you suffer a slow, agonizing death while my venom eats away at your dejected soul.”
Why do I look at her with Crew and Jagger and want nothing more than to decapitate my own friends, just so they can’t look at her or taste her ever again? Why does the thought of any guy looking at her and undressing her with their eyes make me want to put her in a cage and keep her as my own little pet? I hate her. Everything about her repulses me. So why do I want her so fucking bad?
As my mother always says, if you live your life to please everyone else, you’ll die a lonely old hag.”
He leans closer, his mouth ghosting over mine as he whispers, “I wanna fuck you, Scar.”
Teeth bared, she slams my face into her sex. “You wanna play, asshole. I’ll play.” Holy fuck that was hot.
A feeling I don’t get often. This feeling of dread. The thing is, if I can’t have her, I don’t want anyone else to have her either.
Maddie doesn’t have my heart, Scar does. I need her like I need air.
Well, I’ll be damned. Crew told me the same thing. If I can manipulate two people I care about into staying in a lengthy relationship, then I sure as hell can keep Scar out of one with my two best friends.
Your life’s a mess, but all messes get cleaned up eventually.”
“Neo isn’t going anywhere, and neither are we. We’ve dealt with that fucker for years and will continue to until we’re all six feet under. Hell, the way fate plays its cards, we’ll probably all make our exit at the same time. We’re boys. We fight, and we make up.”
“I want you to be mine, Scar. Let me protect you and your secrets. Only me. No one else.”
He kisses my lips softly then says, “I want to be better, and it starts with you.”
Crew: My childhood crush whose hugs feel like home. He’s the one who I know will always be there for me no matter what. Jagger: My first kiss, who makes me feel adored and wanted. He’s got a smile that lights up a room and eyes that melt my soul. Neo: My villain. The bruised and battered guy who hates everyone, but for some reason, decided he doesn’t hate me. I want to fix him. Show him what love can feel like. Then I want to keep him, just the way he is. Dark parts, scars, and all.
“Neo,” she whispers. “This is going to sound insane, after everything we’ve been through, and all the hurt I’ve felt, but…I think I love you. I think maybe, I always have.”
“Not crazy at all, babe. When I woke up in this bed and your face was the first one I saw, I knew I didn’t want to go a day without looking at it again.” I tuck her hair behind her ears. “I feel different. I feel new. And it’s because of you. All these wasted years, I fought against my feelings for you because he made me, but now, I think I was just scared because I knew I loved you and I wasn’t sure what that love would cost me. But now, I’ll pay that price with my life if necessary.”
Before these guys came back into my life, I was a shrinking violet, barely getting by. From one day to the next, my petals dropped. They broke me down, just so they could pick me up and make me stronger than ever. And here I am, unbreakable. I played their games, and I won. My prize: them.
Is Neo Saint being…sweet? Neo: What can I say, you wrecked me in the best possible way.
