Raoul steps beside me silently, his presence solid—watching, waiting.
“Staythe fuck awayfrom Effa, Jett!” I roar, my fists trembling at my sides. “Haven’t you been told to keep your distance?”
Jett chuckles darkly, rising to his feet and glaring at me through narrowed eyes. “Look, Mercury, I can’t help it if she craves my attention—”
“Jett,stop!” Effa’s voice cuts through the moment, cracking slightly. She’s hugging herself, visibly shaken.
“You think you can treat her like shit and she’ll still come crawling back?” Jett sneers, his eyes flashing.
I step forward, my muscles taut with rage, but Raoul presses a firm hand to my chest to hold me back.
Fuck! My control is hanging by a thread.
“You have no idea what you’re talking about. Get the fuck out of here before I do something I won’t regret.”
His lips twitch, unbothered. “You’re cocky, Mercury. Shit like that’s gonna come back and bite you in the ass one day.”
I raise a brow. “Is that a threat?”
Raoul’s hand tightens, keeping me planted.
Jett doesn’t flinch. Instead, he jumps down from the stage, straightens his shirt, and looks between us. “That’s a promise,” he spits, before turning his attention to Effa. “Call me when you need areal man, cupcake.” The asshole takes off down the hall, chuckling.
And it takes every ounce of willpower I possess not to chase after him and cave his face in.
But I made a promise to Effa. No violence.
I grind my teeth, the tension running through my body like electricity, and finally turn back to face her. She’s still hugging herself, her eyes wet, her shoulders trembling.
Fuck.
I rush to her, pulling her into my arms. She fits against me like she always has—like home. But there’s hesitation in the way she melts into me. I feel it, that crack between us, that doubt.
“Effa,” I whisper. “I don’t know what you heard, but it wasn’t what you think.”
She trembles in my hold, her bottom lip quivering.
“What’s gotten you so upset?” I ask, gently gripping her shoulders and searching her eyes.
She looks down, voice barely audible. “Are you going back to Lilah?”
I stiffen. “What?”
“It’s okay if you are, I understand. I know she’s your childhood sweetheart and—”
I don’t let her finish.
Instead, I crash my lips to hers, intense and hungry, trying to pour every bit of reassurance into the kiss. She hesitates at first, but then gives in, our mouths finding their rhythm. Her taste is everything—berries and breathless emotion.
When I finally pull back, I cup her cheek, brushing a strand of hair from her face. “There’s no way in hell I’m going back to Lilah,” I say firmly. “Youare my future.”
Her brow furrows, lips parting slightly. “I’m glad to hear that, but the things you were saying…‘Love isn’t the issue,’ ‘You don’t know what the future holds,’ ‘You can’t deny your feelings,’and‘It has to work this time’. How was I supposed to hear all that and not think—”
“Effa,” I cut in, shaking my head with a soft laugh as I pull her tighter. “Everything you just said? It was about you.Allof it.”
She blinks, confused.
“When I said I didn’t know what the future held, I meant for us. Because it’s unknown, but it’s everything I want. The feelings I can’t deny? They’re mine for you. And the part about it havingto work this time? That’s because the last time, with Lilah, it didn’t. But this? You and me? It will.”
