Total pages in book: 111
Estimated words: 108656 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 543(@200wpm)___ 435(@250wpm)___ 362(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 108656 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 543(@200wpm)___ 435(@250wpm)___ 362(@300wpm)
“Or I could stay here. Do you think they’re going to let Sean leave? It’s late and I can already see them pushing the two of you together.”
“I will never love Sean or be with him. He was my best friend.”
“Was?”
“I don’t know how I can be his friend after what he’s done. It’s not fair.”
“I hate to break this to you, sweetheart, but life isn’t fair.” He pushed some of her hair back.
“I know but friends shouldn’t do that to each other.” She put her hands on his chest, feeling his heartbeat. “I don’t think you’d understand.”
“I have friends.”
“Friends don’t sleep with each other’s friends, and they don’t step out on you like that. There is a code.”
“Ree’s not your friend then.”
“I don’t want to know what happened between you and Ree.”
“Nothing happened because she wasn’t important to me. You are. You matter to me.” He pressed a kiss to her lips. “I love being with you and I had no idea I could feel this way. To think I could have fucked this all up with how much I’ve been mean to you.”
She smiled. “You don’t have to go. Sean’s not coming in here. I don’t want you to leave.”
“I don’t want to go.”
She wrapped her arms around him, holding him close, and he pushed off his shoes.
He removed his jacket and she put it in her closet in case her parents walked in. She doubted they would.
Chapter Twenty-One
Never wanted to leave
Drake knew deep down this thing he had with Pru would be coming to an end. All his life, he’d bullied her. Pushed her around, and for what? To fall in love with her and to lose her just as fast. He’d been a complete dick to her, and there was no turning back from what he’d done.
Stroking back her hair, he watched her sleep, knowing there was no way he was ever going to stop loving her. She was everything he had ever wanted in his life and only realized it recently.
“I want to love you for the rest of my life,” he said. She was fast asleep and wouldn’t be waking any time soon.
When she did wake, he’d need to leave. Her parents had already gone to bed. He’d been frozen in place as one of them had lingered outside her door, but they had clearly thought better of entering. They had left her alone and he didn’t know if it pissed him off more to know they weren’t even going to try to make things right. No one had a right to speak to their daughter like his parents had, but they’d been too cowardly to speak up.
This was all his fault. If he hadn’t taken her away, or if he’d been even more careful in seeing her, she would still be in his world now.
He held a piece of her hair, running it back and forth through his fingers.
“I never thought I could care for anyone the way I do you.”
She let out a sigh and snuggled up closer to him. He pressed his lips against her head and knew he couldn’t fall asleep. Not yet. After another hour of holding her, he finally eased out of bed. He got dressed, all the while watching her as she slept through his movements. He didn’t want to wake her up.
With his clothes back on, he walked over to the window, lifted it up, and climbed out. He had to find a way to get his parents off his back and away from Pru. They could run away, but it wouldn’t work. They would find some way to manipulate all the people around them, and have Pru pay the price. He wouldn’t allow her to be hurt any more than she already had.
Dropping to his feet at the bottom of the tree, he then walked off her property and headed home. Once he arrived at the gates of his house, he stared at the large building, hating it on sight.
People always admired the large mansion, but it was all lies. His life wasn’t easy in this place. It was a fucking nightmare, and it was only now he realized how much he hated it. Shoving his hands into his pockets, he entered his home.
No one was waiting and he listened. There were no cars parked out on the driveaway. His parents weren’t home. They’d given him an instruction and expected him to abide by their rules. He would never do as he was told again. Instead of going to his room, and as there was no way he could sleep, he went straight to his father’s office.
Entering the room, he glanced around at all the traditional décor. His father had always been a little bit of a traditionalist. It hadn’t stopped him from screwing the women in charge of decorating, though.