My hands find my hair and I drop to my knees before letting out another ear shattering scream as though the sound will help let out all of the emotions that keep building inside me.
I don’t bother trying to hold back the tears, instead opting to let them fall freely, hoping they’ll somehow ease the ache that’s been building inside me since I first heard Noah murmur those words.
Seconds.
Minutes.
Hours.
I’m not sure how long I sit here, crying silently as my body wracks with tremors, but once I finally come back to myself, I’m filled with steely determination.
The feelings I had for Noah are a thing of the past. They have to be if I have any hopes of holding onto my sanity.
Thoughts cascade around my mind. His reasons and expectations for the shit he did unknown, but I keep coming back to the way he treated me.
He’s been messing with me this entire time and every time I try to figure it out, my mind comes back to one thing.
He wants me.
Sure, he went about it completely the wrong way, and it’s entirely fucked up and makes no goddamn sense as to why he would do it, but I know that for sure, at least.
Cole, Harley and Logan would lose their minds if they found out about it, and I have a feeling that the guys don’t know their best friend nearly as much as they think they do, because they all see him as the sensible, dependable one.
In reality, he’s freaking insane.
Before, I was torn about the growing feelings for Noah and the fact I liked what the masked stalker was doing, which I guess makes me as messed up as he is.
But now… well, now they’re the same person.
Do I want him? I shouldn’t.
Can I get past the lies and the secrets? I doubt it.
He’s spent weeks torturing me, and so long as I can keep him in the dark about what I know, I can do the same to him.
I can play it to my advantage and mess with both sides of him and then we’ll see how he likes it.
I can fuck with him in much the same way he’s done to me, see how he likes being fucking manipulated like that.
I doubt anything good can come from this entire thing, and I honestly don’t know if Iwantanything to come from it, the only thing I’m sure of is like fuck am I just going to lie down and let Noah walk all over me in the way he has been.
No, I can give as good as I get, and that’s exactly what I’m going to do.
Noah White might think he’s clever for what he’s been doing, but I’m an Aston, goddammit, and I’m going to fight fire with fire.
It’s the least he deserves.
THIRTY-FOUR
NOAH
Ipull up outside of Gracie’s building and text her to let her know I’m here.
I have no ideawhyI’m here, since all I know is that she texted me last night saying she needed me to pick her up at eleven and for me to make sure I had the day free.
It’s fair to say that I cancelled my plans with the guys, apologized to Logan about not being able to make it to the game since I had to head home for the day and then evaded their questions as to why.
It’s fair for them to be confused, since I don’t even go home for the holidays usually, so why would I go home on a random Saturday during the school year? It makes no sense at all, but it was the best I could come up with since I’m not sure if Gracie wants the guys to know that we’re going… wherever the hell were going.
