“I won’t evergive up,dude. If you’re not willing to help me, I’ll still find a way to do it on my own. I’m surfing Leviathans. It’s happening. Help me or don’t,” he spat, and I snarled, my fingers tightening around his throat again.
I stroked my thumb over his heartbeat, gritting my teeth in frustration.
Thump, thump, thump.
Strong. Vibrant.Alive.
“You have a fucking death wish, kid?” I snapped, and he chuckled, giving me this sly, mischievous little smile that I was sure got him out of all kinds of trouble. He had dimples on both cheeks, and I would bet money he could convince the devil to give him a hall pass with that smile.
“I won’t die if you help me.”He smirked and shrugged despite the fact that I still had him pinned to the wall by his throat. “If you don’t help me… well. I guess Iwillprobably die.” He sighed, checking his nails like I wasn’t about to crush his damn windpipe.
Little fucker.
He met my gaze dead on, and that impish smile of his spread wider. He knew he had me.
With a snarl, I released him and spun away, running my fingers into my hair and tugging at the roots in frustration.
This wasn’t heaven. This was fucking hell.
Fuck this kid.
“What iswrongwith you?” I hissed at him. “Do you not value your life at all? Did you not hear about what happened last year? About why this shack was even available for you to buy?”
He rubbed his throat gingerly, watching me with one eye squeezed shut as if it hurt to touch the bruise blossoming on his neck.
Guilt crashed through me, and I immediately regretted losing my temper like that. He couldn’t be older than what? Twenty? Twenty-one?
It wasn’t his fault he was a little prick. He would grow out of it.
I had…
I think.
“Yeah, I heard. It sucks, but I’m not that Jake guy. I’m gonna do it, and I’m gonna live to talk about it.”
I glowered at him.
Soarrogant.
I ignored the voice in the back of my head that reminded meIhad been arrogant once, too. We all had. We hadn’t had anyone to coach us or teach us.
Maybe if we had, things would have been different.
Looking at this stubborn little asshole in front of me, I knew nothing I said to him would talk him out of doing it.
I knew it because nothing would have talkedmeout of doing it.
“Fine,” I barked, and thesmilethat broke out on the kid’s face… Both his dimples popped, and I scowled.
“Really!?” he asked, leaping up in the air like a Mexican jumping bean.
I pinched the bridge of my nose and sighed.
“Yeah. Really.”
“What, like, now?”
I glared at him as I headed for the door.
