“Caz still asleep?” he asks, and I nod. He clears his throat. “There’s some pasta in the kitchen if you’re hungry. I kept you both some.”
“Sounds good. Thanks.” I jump up and walk past him.
His fingers wrap around my wrist, stopping me in my tracks. His familiar touch is both comforting and troubling. We stare at one another. “I’m glad you’re okay, Lo. I hope you know how much I care.”
I remove my hand from his grip, shaking my head as I continue staring at him, like he’s just sprouted an extra head.Does he seriously not get it? Or he thinks his words will magically make it all okay?“I know no such thing, Theo.” Remembered pain surges to the surface. “All I know is you have a habit of not being there when I need you the most.”
Hurt flares in his eyes, and his shoulders slump. “Will you ever forgive me?” he asks in a low pleading tone, and pain lodges in my chest.
I don’t reply, because I’m incapable of it, so I walk off toward the kitchen, fighting my thoughts and battling my emotions every step of the way.
CHAPTER 8
Harlow
“WHAT HAPPENED TOyour eye?” I ask Caz early the following morning as he strides into the bedroom with a towel slung low on his hips. His skin and hair are still damp after his post-workout shower, and he’s lick-worthy in the extreme.
“What do you think happened?” He waggles his brows.
I don’t even need to consider it. “He’s an asshole.”
“He’s the definition of jealousy,” Caz says. “And it won’t get any easier because that’s who he is, and he’s off-the-charts possessive with you.”
“He must learn to share because I’m not choosing.”
“Saint doesn’t know how to handle love because he grew up without it,” Theo says, entering the bedroom I shared with Caz last night.
Saint spent hours in the gym, and when he returned, he ignored me for the rest of the night. Galen stayed holed up in his room, and Theo was immersed in his tablet, so Caz and I cooked dinner together before retreating to bed for another few rounds of wild monkey sex.
My limbs ache deliciously today, but other than that, I’m well rested, and I feel invigorated as we prepare to head out to the training facility.
“What’s that got to do with anything?” I ask, packing my stuff back in my bag.
Theo sinks onto the bed beside me. “You really need to ask?”
I snort out a laugh. “Please don’t pretend like he’s in love with me. Lust maybe, but that’s all.”
Caz grabs the towel off his hips, standing stark naked in front of us as he dries himself off. I lick my lips, pinning him with a sultry look, wishing there was time to fuck.
“Saint never goes back for seconds, Lo,” Theo says, working hard to keep his gaze trained on me. “Yet he can’t get enough of you.” His eyes dart to Caz, watching him getting dressed. “What do you think that means?” he asks, swinging his gaze back around.
“I’m the best fuck he’s ever had,” I say, zipping my bag. “And I’m on tap. There are many reasons. Love is the last one.”
“We see the way he looks at you, princess,” Caz agrees, buttoning up his jeans. “He’s falling hard, and it’s fucking with his head.”
Theo stands, taking my bag. “So, you needn’t go there.” He offers me his hand. “Cut him some slack.”
I refuse his hand, climbing to my feet. “Why should I?”
“Because you have feelings for Saint too, and it’s your dynamic with him that dictates the mood within the crew,” Theo says. “Shit is gonna rain down on us soon, and we need to be united.”
“Perhaps, you should’ve had this little pep talk with Galenbeforehe tried to murder me,” I hiss, snatching my bag from him and stomping out of the bedroom.
If anyone is responsible for the current divide, it’s that asshole, not me.
“You’ll ride with me,” Saint tells me when I step outside. “The others will follow in Caz’s ride.”
I could argue, but I’d rather pick my battles, and I need intel on what I’m facing, so it requires a temporary ceasefire of hostilities.
