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)
No one can know how deeply I crave him and how badly he wrecked me.
Not even when my fingers desperately want to reach out to his.
Our secret will have to remain just that.
A forbidden secret.
After all, we’re not ever allowed to even talk. Our families hate each other.
And if my parents ever found out that I fell in love with my sister’s killer … they’d kill him.
So I turn my gaze away and bolt through the front door under his yearning gaze because I must. Because it’s my turn to protect him, even if it makes him hate me.
CHAPTER 58
Grey
I’m just eating a snack at a table in the cafeteria during my short break between classes, when Xavier, Aspen’s twin brother, sits down at my table and stares me down like I have something on my face.
“What?” I take a sip of my Coke.
“You let her fuck with Apollo?”
I nearly snort up my Coke. “What the—How the hell do you—”
He slams his fist down. “The entire fucking campus is talking about it. Don’t hide it. Are you fucking for real? I told you to fucking protect her.”
“Listen bro, what we do in private is none of your business.”
“It is when the dude is a Torres. And I can’t fucking believe you took her to the Phantom Society.”
“You think I can stop her?” I snort. “Good luck trying.”
“You swore you’d protect her from Levi,” he growls.
He’s madly protective over her, and I get it, since he’s her twin and all, and they’ve all been through enough. But I’m not the one he should be mad at here.
“She’s as safe as she can be,” I reply.
“At the Phantoms?!” he rebukes. “With Apollo fucking Torres slobbering on her lips?”
I put down my drink. “You make it sound gross.”
“Because it is! You don’t even care that he’s basically staking his claim?” He scoffs. “He kissed her. Right in front of every Phantom.”
I raise a brow. “You think I don’t know?”
He narrows his eyes. “You’re into this, aren’t you?”
I shrug. “Like I said, what we do is none of your business.”
He folds his arms and stares at me. “That’s why you let him have his way with her.”
I lean over the table and hiss, “Can you not be so loud about it? Jesus Christ.”
He laughs out loud. “Oh my God, so that’s it? You have a sharing fetish? You’re a certified cuck.”
I slam my finger in front of his mouth. “The entire fucking campus doesn’t need to know.”
“Too late. They already know because those Phantoms told them what they saw when you both kissed her,” he says. “And what the fuck was she doing in Levi’s room anyway?”
“Nothing,” I reply, trying to douse the flames of whatever the hell this fire is.
“Snooping around? She must’ve been searching for something,” he mutters to himself. “Did he notice?”
“No,” I quickly answer. “He wasn’t there.”
“Good. You’d kill him if he tried to hurt her, right?”
“Oh yeah, definitely.” I nod a few times even though I’m lying through my teeth.
She’d kill me if I tried.
“What’s this about?” Apollo’s deep voice makes goose bumps scatter on my skin. He places his hand on my shoulder, and I gulp. “Talking about me again?”
“I know you smooched my sister,” Xavier says.
“And what about it?” Apollo rebukes.
“Everyone’s talking about it.”
“And?”
I guess he really doesn’t care what anyone thinks.
“Don’t you think the gossip is hurting her?”
“No. She can handle it.”
“You’d better treat her right or else …”
“Or else what?” Apollo snorts, leaning over me as he plants his hands down on the table, the viciousness on his face making even me freak out. “You’ll hurt me?”
Xavier picks up his fork and skewers his potato salad. “She’s my sister. I’m going to protect her. She’s been hurt enough,” he retorts, grinding his teeth.
“You know, you’re not the first to threaten me,” he replies, smiling. “But I appreciate the effort. It’s admirable you wanna protect her. But let’s be real, you don’t stand a chance in fighting me.”
“Whatever. A Torres can’t be trusted,” Xavier says as he shoves some potatoes into his mouth.
“Keep going, you almost sound like your dad,” Apollo says.
“Good. He knows a threat when he sees one.”
“A threat?” Apollo laughs. “The only threat I’ll pose is to anyone who dares to get between me and the things I want.”
“And what’s that?”
“Her,” he growls back.
Suddenly, Apollo grabs my face and slams his lips onto mine. And when his lips unlatch, I’m dizzy just from the way he claimed me … right in front of the entire cafeteria.
“And him,” he adds.
“Wow,” Xavier mutters as the potato salad slowly drops off his fork.
Apollo smirks and glares at Xavier. “Any other questions?”
“Did that just happen?” Xavier mutters.
A thick, warm blush creeps onto my cheeks. “Yep.”
Everyone is looking at us, whispering words I can’t hear, but I know what they’re saying.