She pulled the rear door open, clutching her bag to her chest with the other hand. She moved in that half-frozen way people do when they expect the world to hit them at any second.
She saw me. The Ducati's headlight stuttered across her for a second as I rolled up to the light. She raised her face. Her eyes locked on the helmet, like she was trying to see past the visor and into the bone.
I should've looked away immediately. Should've ignored that stare. But instead, I watched her back, as much as the small stretch of the street allowed me while I waited for the light to turn green.
Stupid!
You don't think just because your face is hidden, she can't tell some asshole's forty-five-degree head-turn doesn't mean he's not looking at her?
Realizing my mistake, I swung my head back to the light so fast, a muscle in my neck spasmed.
Fuck.
The light flashed green. I hit the gas. The Uber moved too and she was behind me now, invisible but following for a few blocks.
My grip tightened on the throttle. There was a feeling in my chest, sharp and strange. Like hunger, or a pinched nerve. I banished it. Tried to ignore the fact we shared the road.
Instead, I shifted my thoughts to the second target—Jerico Thorne.
But the feeling came back, sooner than I expected. Sooner and stronger.
And I didn't like it. I didn't like it one bit.
9 kimmy
It was my phone that woke me.
I groped for it, eyes crusted, sheets tangled around my waist. I answered on autopilot, still somewhat asleep.
"Kimmy!" Brynn's voice detonated into the speaker, all at once. "Holy shit, are you up? Are you seeing this?"
I squinted at the ceiling and checked the digital clock in the top corner of the screen. "It's… early. What's up?"
Brynn ignored my complaint. "You know, that guy, Wick—he got perp walked out of some event in Beverly Hills last night. I almost spit out my espresso shot when I read about it. Tell me you already saw this!"
I did. Only in real life. However, I wasn't sure if it was okay to discuss this with Brynn, especially at this hour. I needed more sleep and less conversation. I'd stayed up well past midnight, trying to process everything that had happened at Windhaven.
"Yeah," I croaked finally. "I saw."
"Seriously?"
"I was there, Brynn," I said. I was weak when it came to lying. Sometimes, I did because I had no choice but sometimes I didn't because it made no sense to cover up things. And if someone's phone had caught me on camera yesterday…
There was a moment of silence. Then a slow exhale, like she'd forgotten to breathe. "You went to the same event? And didn't even tell me? That's dirty, bitch."
"It's not what you think. Geneva asked me to go in her place because ofher dad. It was a nightmare. I had a guest list and he wasn't on it. If he was, I wouldn't have gone." I pawed at my face and tried to focus.
"And you saw him get arrested? Like, did they throw him on the ground? Did he cry?"
"No," I said. "They just grabbed him and recited the charges. It was… fast."
"Oh my God. You have to tell me every detail," Brynn said. "Wait—" She stopped. "Did you actually talk to Lena?"
I closed my eyes and inhaled. I hadn't spoken to Brynn much after that coffee shop meet. We'd both been busy. Besides, I hoped she wouldn't bring up that conversation anymore. That way I could pretend it hadn't happened at all. Besides, this entire business seemed too personal…and illegal.
You can't discuss this with any of your friends.
"I don't know," I finally replied. And that was true. Although I'd given my money away, I had no idea if Ronan's arrest was the result of the service I'd paid for or a coincidence.
