“Hey, loser,” I say with a smirk.
Her lips curl into a maddening smile beneath my thumb. I can feel her emotions pulsing through that simple touch—joy, confusion, surprise, excitement. My dick responds, thickening in my trunks.
She presses a soft kiss to my thumb, the blue in her eyes twinkling softly. This girl fucking wrecks me. I can’t think. Her presence blots out the world around me, muting and fading it all so that all I see is her.
Only her.
I am so fucked.
“Run, English. Run so far away from me,” I warn, my free hand curling possessively around her hip. “It’s your only chance.”
Her palm slides up my bare chest, teasing at one of my nipples. “I prefer to run into the fire, not away from it.”
“A good way to get burned,” I growl.
“After the bleak, numb year I’ve had, I like how the sting of the fire reminds me that I’m alive.”
She stands on her toes, pressing a chaste kiss to my lips before she pulls away to walk over to Roux. I stare after her, wondering when the hell she turned my world on its axis. I can’t pinpoint the moment. All I know is she did it. Everything is an upside-down Wonderland and is all fucked up, yet I can’t help but tumble down this proverbial hole with Alice.
We’re both a little mad, it would seem.
Charlotte
Numb.
For so long, I’ve been numb.
And then the night of the accident changed it all. I was torn from the arms of the monster and given a second chance. Since, everything has become crystal clear. I can feel. I’d spent so long numbing my emotions, that I now feel them with twice the intensity.
It’s refreshing.
I see everything with new eyes.
As everyone sits in a circle, eating the burgers Cal’s dad, David, made, I can’t help but drink it all in, greedy for the simple ease of it all. Everyone is laughing and happy. Roux is adorable with her cute pregnant belly and the way Jordy dotes on her. I’m upset we lost a year, but I’m incredibly thankful in that time she found him. Seeing my brother be a dad and a husband is something I’d never cared about. Yet, the genuine smile that never leaves his face makes me smile too. Even seeing Penny lighten up and actually have a friend is nice. Tierra is sassy and funny. Somehow, they connect in a way Roux and I were able to despite our completely opposite personalities.
I sneak a glance over at Cal. Roan is kicked back beside him, with Sebban in his lap as he eats Cheetos, engaging him in a conversation. When he’s with his Hoodlums, Cal is a king. Not a cruel one. The kind who laughs and smiles, gifting his royal subjects with his kindness. I’ve seen girls all but fall to their knees, just begging to see his amused eyes and smile.
I could be jealous of all those past girls, but I’m not.
I see the real him.
The angry, hurt, broken man behind the playful façade.
I know the real him, because I made him.
Pain aches through me knowing I’ve created the creature that lurks within, wanting to lash out and hunt for vengeance. I also feel a sense of protectiveness over that part of him. As though the beast I helped make needs me to stroke him and promise it’ll all be okay. Like maybe I’m the only one who can.
As though I’ve summoned the beast with my thoughts alone, Cal’s green eyes slice right to me, cutting me open to reveal my innermost ponderings. The playful king’s features darken only for me. He keeps up with his conversation, laughing when appropriate, but keeps me trapped in his lair of despair with him. The urge to crawl over to him and into his lap is strong. It’d be a horrible thing to do in front of his family, but I possess the urge to anyway.
“I’m going swimming,” Cal states, his voice thick with warning. He’s a shark inviting a minnow to play in the water with him. “Anyone coming?”
I wait until Jordy and Roan stand up to join him before also agreeing.
“I’ll go.” I tear my eyes from Cal’s hungry, approving gaze to look at the other girls. “You guys coming?”
Roux is locked in conversation with Cal’s parents, but Tierra and Penny nod. Hollis takes Sebban’s hand once he has his lifejacket on, and they follow along.
The water is cool, the promise of fall nipping at my toes with each step I take into the rushing river. It’s not until I’m waist deep that I sense his presence. The hairs on my arms stand on end and my nipples perk. I gnaw on my bottom lip, staring straight ahead to the other side of the river, trying to keep from leaping into his arms.
His hand takes mine as he walks deeper into the water. Following a shark into the deep end sounds like a terrible idea, but the prospect of his teeth excites me. He turns around when the water is just under my breasts, stopping from going too deep. I’m disappointed when he releases my hand. His eyes, however, have a hold on me. Latched onto my nipples that strain through the brown and gold fabric.
Penny and Tierra linger near Hollis and Roan as they all play with Sebban in the shallow waters. Jordy wades out by Cal and me. He’s a shark too. Thankfully, his eyes never stay too far from wherever Roux is.
“Roan tell
