The Moth and the Flame (When Rivals Play #2) - B.B. Reid Page 0,149
if he was joking or not. “Seal it with a kiss?” Jamie’s soft lips stole mine before I could tell him no, and even in my surprise, I couldn’t help but notice that he was a damn good kisser. Before I could pull away, I heard the deep rumble of an engine that sounded all too familiar.
Paula.
Heart racing, I snatched away from Jamie as my entire body flushed. Shit. What if he saw?
I forced myself to calm down, realizing that I didn’t owe Wren my loyalty or an explanation. He was the one who ruined us.
Maybe I should fuck Jamie.
Who better to exorcise Wren completely?
I peeked at Jamie and found him staring straight ahead with only a barely-there smirk to tell me what he was thinking. I sighed, knowing screwing someone else wouldn’t cure my broken heart.
I heard the Impala shut off and then a car door slam shut. Taking a deep breath, I forced myself to look at Wren for the first time since learning he was a murderer.
He lied to me.
Wren was maybe three steps away before Jamie suddenly stood, blocking him from getting to me, and Ever, to my astonishment, joined him.
I gaped at them even though they couldn’t see me with their backs turned.
So much for being a lone wolf.
Ever and Jamie had just made it clear that I was now part of a pack—whether I liked it or not. I looked around. Four, Tyra, and even Vaughn as he stood to join Ever and Jamie, wore equally hostile expressions. My gut told me that none of them were going to make it as easy to push away as the Hendersons had.
“We really need to learn to lock that gate,” Jamie muttered.
Ever grunted, his only response as he waited for Wren to make his move.
I hugged my legs to my chest and waited, too.
“Lou, come here,” Wren ordered, ignoring both Ever and Jamie. I should have known, even in the wrong, he’d never be anything else but arrogant. The ache in my belly intensified along with disgust at myself for actually wanting to go to him.
“What do you want?” I asked him quietly.
“To talk…to explain.”
Feeling rage overcome my vulnerability, I shot to my feet and pushed past the wall Ever, Jamie, and Vaughn had made. I felt the heat from their bodies on my back as they closed ranks around me. “You had the chance to explain, and you just sat there. Do you want to know why, Wren? It’s because there was nothing to say then, and there’s nothing to say now.”
“I was going to tell you, Lou.”
“When?” I shouted. “After you grew tired of fucking me?”
He shoved his fingers through his hair. “I didn’t want to touch you until you knew the truth but you—”
“Right,” I cut him off. “It’s my fault.”
“No!” His chest started to heave, and after a few seconds, he forced himself to calm down. “You convinced me that it wouldn’t matter what I did, and I was selfish enough to believe it.”
“Killing my parents and believing that it wouldn’t matter to me doesn’t just make you selfish, Wren. It makes you a fool.”
He flinched and looked away. Behind me, I heard a feminine gasp and was genuinely surprised that Jamie nor Ever had spilled the beans. They all seemed pretty tight, but Wren had just taught me that, close or not, we all had our secrets.
“I didn’t,” he said after a long and tense silence.
“You didn’t what?” I snapped.
He turned his head, nostrils flaring as he met my gaze. “I didn’t kill them, Lou.”
I didn’t react at first, but then I felt my hands ball as I turned his words over in my head. He didn’t kill them? How could he say that to me? How could he lie?
Before I knew it, I lunged forward and slammed my fist into his nose. Satisfaction and adrenaline rushed through me, so I did it again but aimed for his eye this time. He didn’t even try to protect himself when I went for a third, but a hand suddenly clamped around my wrist kept me from doling out more punishment.
“Let her go,” Wren growled to whoever held me.
“So you can get your ass kicked?” Jamie mocked. “Happy to, although I’m pretty sure she’s hurting herself more than she’s hurting you.”
I realized Jamie was right, and I grimaced. Not only was my hand throbbing from the pain but my heart twisted so cruelly seeing him bleed that I almost cried out.