Deviant (Boys of Winter #3) - Sheridan Anne Page 0,78

I can’t keep pushing a relationship between us when he’s clearly told me time and time again that he doesn’t want it. It’s just confusing because he tells me no, and then he goes and does shit like this. He didn’t want me in that way. He should have let King, Gray, or Cruz comfort me, but deep down, I know he needs me just as much as I need him.

I pull back a little further and look away, knowing that if I keep looking into his eyes, I’m going to end up kissing him and right now, that’s the last thing any of us need.

I slide off his lap and drop down onto the couch beside him as Cruz stands across the room. “I’ll go and pack your things,” he tells me, not wanting me to go back into my bedroom upstairs. “Then we’ll go down to your place and figure out where to go from there.”

I nod, and just like that, the boys all get up and leave me sitting in the living room while they grab all of their belongings, preparing to leave the home that they’ve all lived in for the past few years.

The sorrow and grief quickly start to take over again. I shouldn’t have been left alone, but I can’t expect the guys to be on top of me every minute of every day. I’m the leader of the biggest secret society in the world. At some point, I’m going to have to learn how to handle my emotions.

Just as Carver had taught me, I close my eyes and take slow, deep breaths, trying to find that calm that I’d felt sitting on his lap.

My phone screeches through the silence and I jump, my eyes flying open as I look down to find Ember’s name flashing across the screen. My lips press into a hard line. I haven’t talked to her in a while and I messaged her in the car to tell her that I’d be home today, but I can’t bring her into this right now. She was just as much in love with Lady Dante as I was. This would crush her, and after the bullshit she went through with Jacob, she shouldn’t have to be exposed to this. Besides, she’s doing well with Corey. I should leave her to bask in her happiness.

I hit ignore on her call and just as I put my phone back down, the boys come back with bags full of their things. “Come on,” Grayson says, walking deeper into the living room and offering me his hand. “Let’s get out of here.”

My fingers curl into his and he pulls me up, wrapping his arm around my shoulder in the process. We start making our way to the door as I let out a sigh, thinking way too hard about our situation. “So, assuming it was London, how the hell did she know that you guys were planning on leaving? Did you tell anyone or talk about it publicly?”

All four of the boys come to a sudden stand still, meeting each other’s horrified stares before rushing back through the house and into the living room. They start searching, looking everywhere as I watch in confusion. “What’s going on?” I ask, standing at the entrance of the living room and watching the chaos around me. “What are you looking for?”

Cruz sweeps his fingers across the mantlepiece of the fireplace while Carver kicks over the couch and tears the fabric right off the frame. King pulls out the drawers of the coffee tables and dumps them out on the floor while Grayson starts pulling the priceless artworks off the walls.

“Got it,” Cruz calls out, making the guys stop what they’re doing and all rush into his side to look over a piece of … I actually don’t know what the fuck it is. I start creeping into the living room, pushing myself between King and Grayson to get a good look at the little piece of technology in Cruz’s hand. “What is that?” I question, looking over it closely but not being able to determine a damn thing about it.

“It’s a bug,” Carver says with a frustrated sigh. “Every fucking conversation we’ve ever had in here is no longer private. She’s been listening in on us this whole time. The entire fucking estate is going to have to be swept.”

Well, shit.

Carver groans and kicks the couch he just flipped over, sending it soaring across the room. “Your place