Total pages in book: 181
Estimated words: 181613 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 908(@200wpm)___ 726(@250wpm)___ 605(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 181613 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 908(@200wpm)___ 726(@250wpm)___ 605(@300wpm)
Aspen has stolen my gun and has pointed it right at us.
“Stop. Stop it. All of you!”
She keeps alternating her aim between the three of us, and I can’t even tell anymore who she’s mad at … or who she wants to kill.
Apollo releases the chokehold, and Levi sucks in air as he takes a few steps back. His chest is bleeding, but I only managed to add another scar instead of a kill.
Goddammit.
“I need to kill him,” I say, making a fist. “He defiled you. You have to let me kill him, Aspen. He hurt you. No one fucking hurts you and stays alive.”
“No,” she says, droplets of rain running down her gorgeous body … tainted by him.
Tainted by us.
“You think he’s the only one?” she yells.
I swallow away the lump in my throat and look at the others.
“You’re all fighting because of me!”
We stare at each other, neither of us moving a muscle as she stands before us. A pang of guilt floods my veins.
“And I’m done being destroyed by it,” she mutters, slowly lowering the gun. “Please stop fighting. For one day. Just one day … if we could just have one day without hate.”
She shivers as tears fill her eyes.
Goddammit. I failed. I failed her so fucking hard.
I immediately run off to where Levi fucked her because he left his hoodie, and I pick it up and bring it back to her.
“Here. Put this on.”
“What?” she mutters, confused, but then she looks down at her nipples and blushes heavily. “Oh.”
I tuck it over her head so she’ll no longer be naked. “You’re cold.”
“Thanks,” she says, smiling briefly.
I look up at Levi, but something metallic and warm makes me wipe my nose. Blood. Guess he’s not the only one who got hurt.
Apollo spits out some blood on the sand. “Bleeding gums. That’s a first. You trained well.” He grins at Levi.
Blood for blood. “You hurt her. We hurt you,” I say.
“I didn’t hurt her,” Levi rasps.
“You hunted her!” I yell.
“Because I had no other fucking choice!” he yells back.
“Who forced you? Hmm?” I retort. “Was it me, swooping in to steal her right under your nose?”
Levi’s fist balls. “I swear to God, I’ll fuck you u—”
“Enough!” Aspen holds up her hands, immediately quelling the fight before it starts all over. “God, I hate you all so much right now.”
“Told you,” Apollo says, laughing.
“It’s not fucking funny,” I say.
He shrugs. “She’ll get over it.”
She punches Apollo in the shoulder so hard he actually flinches. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him flinch. “You’re no better than the two of them, egging them on.”
“I wasn’t the one who stalked you or hung cameras in your room,” he says.
“No, you blackmailed me.” She shakes her head. “You’re all so, so, so … GAHHH!”
She stomps away through the sand, and we’re left staring at each other with disdain in our eyes. None of us is willing to give in. Not to each other.
But she … she is the one thing that binds us all together, whether we want to or not.
She’s beguiled us all.
I sigh and turn my eyes away from Levi even though I want nothing more than for him to pay for all the pain he’s caused her.
“Aspen! Wait!” I yell, following suit, with the two others trailing.
Aspen
“You all want to kill each other, then go right ahead,” I yell back.
What the fuck am I even doing?
I grab my bag off the ground and waltz off through the woods, ignoring the yelling behind me. I’m done trying to keep them from killing each other. I’m done trying to fight off the inevitable clash that’s coming. And I’m done with men who can’t fucking share and want to rip me to pieces so they can all own a part of me.
Rain still cascades down on top of me, but I no longer feel the cold. I shove aside some leaves in my way as I stomp out of the woods and jump into my car. Levi’s motorcycle is right in front of my car, and I pause and blink a couple of times as the filthy memories of what we just did flash through the forefront of my mind.
My chest tightens, the smell of him still lingering on the hoodie I’m wearing. His hoodie.
Still, I put the car in reverse.
Right then, my door is ripped open by an arrogant smile, the first thing I see of Apollo Torres.
“Get out,” he says.
“Let go.” I try to jerk the door, but he’s much stronger than I am.
“No.”
“I’m going home. End of story.”
“Not like this,” he says.
I frown. “You don’t get to dec—”
“Fine.” Suddenly, he leans in and wraps his arms around my waist and thighs, lifting me out of the car with ease.
I slap him on the arm. “Let go of me! I’m not going back!”