Total pages in book: 88
Estimated words: 88305 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 442(@200wpm)___ 353(@250wpm)___ 294(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 88305 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 442(@200wpm)___ 353(@250wpm)___ 294(@300wpm)
“Whether it’s a bet or a game, it’s none of your or anyone else’s business. If I catch anyone, and I mean anyone, trashing her or bullying her, I’ll fuck them up until they wish for death. And I don’t mean physically. I’ll find the fault in their existence and screw their lives over with it so they’ll never be able to be functioning pieces of shits again.”
All the murmuring, laughter, and jabs come to a halt, and for good reason.
I’m not the type who makes idle threats.
Or any threats at all, really.
Being raised in the heart of power didn’t teach me to abuse it or to make use of it whenever necessary.
On the contrary, it made me more aware of my resources. Having that type of influence at the tip of my fingers is a guarantee, but not if exercised poorly.
I only make threats when absolutely necessary. To protect myself, for instance.
And her.
Because at some point, Naomi has become an undivided part of my being and I’d use all the power I have to make sure she stays safe.
And happy.
And fucking mine.
“Relax, dude.” Owen laughs, trying to lighten the mood. “No one will bully her.”
“Or make any bets about her again.” I meet Reina’s blue gaze.
She’s stopped drawing circles on her temple and is watching me with a slight smile. It almost appears…victorious.
What the fuck is she celebrating when Naomi is already out of reach?
“I mean it, Reina,” I say. “Fuck with me and I’ll fuck with you.”
“You can’t fuck with me, Bastian.”
“Asher is coming home this weekend, so I very much can. You’re well aware of how he loves making your life hell, so don’t put me in the fucking mood to instigate it.”
Her smile drops and she sucks in a breath. It’s not as noticeable as Bree’s huffing or Lucy’s sniffling or Prescott’s hushed soothing words, but it’s there.
Naked for my eye.
Our own queen bee has a weakness and I’ll use it to make sure she leaves Naomi in peace.
Because this might have started with a bet, but it was never the beginning of us.
And it sure as fuck isn’t going to be the end.
We have a bond now. A sacred connection that people spend their entire lives searching for.
We found it together.
I found her.
Someone who accepts me just the way I am without trying to fix me or any of that bullshit.
In fact, she gets off on my real nature as much as I get off on hers.
And there’s no way in fuck I’m letting her slip from between my fingers now that’s she’s finally close.
If I have to chase her, so be it.
I’ll run after her until she realizes there was no escaping me in the first place.
Because there’s one thing my toy doesn’t realize yet. Or maybe it’s buried too deep for her to recognize it.
She’s mine.
Body and fucking soul.
And it all started the day she got off on having me chase her in the woods.
Or maybe it started the first time I saw her three years ago when she smiled while she was crying.
31
Naomi
I foolishly believed in something.
The fact that I’m strong.
That’s nowhere near the truth. Otherwise, I wouldn’t still be crying hours after I learned the biggest lie of my life.
It’s a pain I’ve never felt before, not even during the red night.
It’s like free falling to the sun and burning before hitting the bottom.
It’s like dying while being unable to express any pain.
As I sit in my unmoving car, hugging the steering wheel, I mourn a part of me that only saw the light for a while before it was snuffed out.
A part that wasn’t even supposed to see the light. Sebastian wrenched it out just so he could burn its wings and leave it to drop to its death.
But what I mourn the most is my naivety. Since I was a kid, I’ve made it my mission to build a wall between me and the world. And yet, I let him sneak in ever so easily.
I didn’t fight him enough.
But it’s not because I didn’t want to. It was more because I couldn’t. We share a twisted relationship, after all, and not in my wildest dreams did I ever think that type of connection could be faked.
Apparently, it can.
And I’m a fool for believing otherwise.
By the time the afternoon rolls by, I’m done having a pity party on one of the forest’s secluded roads.
I’ll have to get past this somehow.
I need to. Otherwise, it’ll break me beyond the point of no return.
After cleaning my face with some wipes, I hit the gas and head home.
Every time I think of the scene in the cafeteria, a fresh wave of tears assaults me, and I have to take deep breaths to stop them from flooding my face.
Maybe I was only ever meant to be alone and I’m just fighting a losing battle.