Total pages in book: 96
Estimated words: 91029 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 455(@200wpm)___ 364(@250wpm)___ 303(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 91029 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 455(@200wpm)___ 364(@250wpm)___ 303(@300wpm)
“Eve,” I warn, taking a step toward her as my eyes narrow.
She steps closer, putting us almost touching, and glares up at me. “What are you going to do, Drex? Hit me? End the charade and illusion that you truly care about me? Then fuck me when I’m begging you to stop touching me?”
I stumble back, shaking my head in disgust as she battles to restrain the tears in her glossy eyes, refusing to let them drop.
“Or are you going to promise me yet again that I won’t get hurt? That you’ll keep your father and his goons on a leash around me, then send me out to play bait at his request. Maybe next time I can run into someone who hates me because of my association with you and this fucking club, and they’ll slit my throat. That would just solve everyone’s problems, right?”
She shakes as she wipes away another stray tear that has leaked out, and her voice breaks on a sob when she tries to speak again.
“Eve,” I groan, pressing the heels of my palms into my eyes. “It’s been a shitty, overwhelming day. And you have a head injury. Lie down.”
Sitting back down on the bed, she covers her mouth as one more tear slips free, and I sit down to wrap my arms around her. She shoves me off like I’m fire and burn her on contact.
Gut punched again.
“Day? An overwhelming day, Drex? It’s been an overwhelming month. Or two months. Or year. Or however long I’ve been here. No one can touch me, yet Jessie almost—”
She swallows the words and gags like they’re acid, and my fists ball up. “I handled Jessie. I’ll fucking kill him if he even steps within a hundred feet of you.”
“And then… then your friend has the intentions of getting rid of me. I’m pretty sure it didn’t involve me taking another breath.”
“Dash was misled and completely out of fucking line. It’s been handled. He wouldn’t have killed you, either. You’re being—”
“If you say I’m being dramatic or irrational or something like that, I will lose it.”
Pretty sure she’s already lost it. Again, I don’t fucking point that out.
“Then today, my best friend for years attacked me,” she whispers, wincing as though it’s painful to say the words.
That one hurts. Not sure why, but that one really hurts.
“And you were what? Just watching it happen until it got bad enough to stop it? Until you knew for sure I wasn’t the damn spy you all think I am? Gee, I’m a damn good master of manipulation, aren’t I? Went so far that I had him betray me after years of friendship. Had him hurt me after years of trust. Why? Because I told him I cared about you. Because I told him I wanted to be with you. Because I stupidly thought you cared about me too.”
“I do,” I growl, wishing she’d go back to being the sane, calm, rational girl I’ve gotten used to.
“Oh? Be honest. Did this club really have anything to do with my father’s death? Because I didn’t believe Ben when he said it. Then again, I trusted you at that moment.”
My eyebrows go up, and I sit back on the bed a little better.
“No, Eve. We didn’t. He killed himself. Ben is just a fucking jealous prick. And apparently he’s an abusive jealous prick.”
She laughs humorlessly while running her hands through her hair. “I don’t know what to think or who to trust anymore. Every step I take is wrong or scrutinized to the point where I worry it is wrong no matter how right it is. All because you want your father’s approval. I’m the daughter of the man you all hate. The man you probably killed. And now you’ve fucked me up just for fun. Feel better? Think Daddy will be proud yet?”
I explode off the bed, and my fist slams into the wall. She doesn’t even flinch as I pull my bloody knuckles out of the busted sheetrock and turn to glare at her. Fuck this.
Spinning around, I walk through the door, slamming it behind as I try to get my temper under control. If I don’t, I’ll end up finding Ben Highland and killing him in the open instead of doing it the smart way that won’t land me behind bars.
None of this would have happened if not for him. She’d be safe and happy with some new clothes. She could have kept the lie instead of hating the truth, while my father went on with the illusion I was abiding by his rules. Everyone would have been happy and oblivious, while I was secretly working with some of the others on a way to eliminate Benny and get in a new Prez we could all deal with. Even have actual peace.