As I watch the seconds tick by, I have to resist the urge to rub one out. I’ve already come three times today, and I need to save myself for what I have a feeling is about to be a really good fuck. Or two, or three. Why the hell have we never played in the woods before?
At last, I decide I’ve waited long enough. My cock feels like it’s going to explode by the time I stand up and make my way outside. It’s too bad I let her get dressed. But I guess she’s right. It often feels like we’re entirely alone, but who knows? Someone could be watching.
The thought makes me more than a little nervous. I realize that there’s no way Carmelo’s just… given up on getting Lia back. Damien might have some pull, but there isn’t a person on Earth who hasthatkind of pull. Still, I haven’t heard from either one of them since we’ve arrived, and so, I push aside the nagging worry, determined to cross that bridge when we get there.
“Hope you found yourself a good hiding spot, Lia!” I chant. “I’m coming!Fuck.”
My cell phone is vibrating in my pocket. Talk of the fucking devil—it’s Damien. Initially, I plan to ignore it. But I realize that if I do, I’ll be torturing myself about it when I get to Lia, and I won’t be able to fully enjoy it.
So, hissing out a string of curse words, I pick up.
“Yeah, man? Can this wait? I’m kind of busy.”
“Hello to you too,” comes the drawling voice of my bestfriend. “Long time no talk. How aboutyouwait to shove your cock up your girl’s pussy until you’ve heard what I have to say?”
I pause, clenching my teeth. If anyone else were to refer to Lia in such a crude way, I’d kill them without a second of hesitation. With Damien, I’ll let it go, but that doesn’t mean I’m not seething. I punch at the tree beside me, the roughness of the bark bruising my skin and calming me.
“Yeah? What?”
“Nice. Is that really what you were about to do? Say hi to Lia from me. Anyway, shit has hit the fan.”
“What else is new?” I grunt.
“Well, this is new. No, not new. But the cute little mutiny has turned into an all-out war. And Moretti’s debt has an expiration date.”
I tense all over, my now bleeding fist pressing into the tree trunk. “What do you mean, Damien? I’mnotgiving her back.”
“Okay.” He takes a deep breath, and I detect a nervous edge to his voice. “Right, I get that.”
Fuck.Damien never sounds nervous.
I lean back against the trunk, willing my racing heart to calm down. “Where are you going with this, man? Spit it out.”
“So it’s like this.” I hear his breath on the other end of the line as he opens and closes his mouth repeatedly. “It’s like this. I’ve just found out who’s behind the mutiny.”
“You have?” I frown. “But that’s… that’s good news, isn’t it?”
“In a manner of speaking, yeah. I mean, I guess it’s good news. It’s what I set out to find out, and I found it out. So I guess that’s good, yeah.”
“Damien.” I grit my teeth, my fist digging harder into the trunk. “Stop with the games, bro. Just say it. What’s going on?”
“Fine, fine. Well, it’s like this.”
Goddammit, I wish I could reach through the phone and strangle the fucker. If I hear him say those three words oncemore time…
“It’s like this.”
“DAMIEN!”
“Right. Well, the thing is, I didn’t exactlyfind it out,if you catch my drift.”
“I fucking don’t!”
“I mean, it’s not a mutiny anymore. And it’s not a secret anymore. Like I said, Logan, it’s war. Over the weekend, shit hit the fan, and it turns out… well, Moretti’s dead.”
I freeze. Damien’s words reach me in slow motion, strangely distorted. “Moretti… Moretti, as in… thedon?”
“Yeah.”
