The Moth and the Flame (When Rivals Play #2) - B.B. Reid Page 0,40
wall, his head dipped low and his chest heaving as if he’d just run a marathon.
I ran up the stairs before I could say something brash…like showing him everything I was thinking and feeling. Inside my room, I collapsed on my bed, and as Wren predicted, I was out within minutes.
The summer was winding down, and so was my patience. I promised Wren I’d be a good girl and stay put—his exact words—and in exchange, he’d come around more, but so far, I’d been the only one holding up my end of the bargain. Okay, so he’d managed to keep his word for like a month and a half, but for the past three days, he’d been missing in action, and no amount of phone calls or texts would gain his attention.
If that was the way he wanted to play it, then so be it.
I’d been ‘missing’ for less than a day when he suddenly appeared in my camera lens. I’d been preparing to take a shot of Leo performing a Sex Change and ended up capturing Wren’s face instead. Incidentally, it turned out to be a pretty good picture. It captured his seething anger in vivid detail.
I wasn’t surprised that he’d found me so quickly since I hadn’t made it difficult. I’d been hanging out all day with Miles and Leo at Astoria, one of the local skate parks in Queens. It was only a few blocks from where I lived with the Hendersons.
Lowering my camera, I feigned innocence with a smile. “Hey, bestie!”
Rather than return my greeting, he crossed his arms and pinned me with a glare. “Why didn’t you go home last night?”
I shrugged. “I was waiting for you to give me a ride.”
“Jesus fucking Christ,” he swore before exploding. “Running away from home because I won’t cater to your every whim is fucking childish and stupid, Lou!”
Some of the skaters came to a screeching halt at the sound of Wren’s roar, and I could feel them watching. Miles and Leo were also tuned in as they approached with cautious steps. Still, I was calm and very much used to Wren yelling. I expected it. Hell, sometimes I even got a thrill from it.
“And not taking two seconds to pick up the phone and tell me you’re alive is fucking selfish and cruel, Harlan.”
He stared at me for a long while as if considering my point, but I knew before he spoke that I wouldn’t get through. We’d had this argument countless times before. No matter how fast we’d grown up, there were times like these when I was reminded of how young we still were. Our emotions and how we handled them said it all. We both knew we lacked the maturity to deal with a connection this intense, and the wise choice would be to take a step back, but we were also so very stubborn.
“Let’s go.”
“I promised Miles and Leo I’d get some shots for their Instagram. If you want to take me home, you’ll have to wait until I’m done.”
His eyes narrowed, and he stepped closer until I could see nothing else but his chest. “Did you hear me giving you a choice?”
“No.” I lifted my chin until our eyes met. “But I have one…whether you like it or not.”
He chuckled and then leaned down until his lips touched my ear. “You’re right. You do have a choice. You can leave here on your own two feet, or I can carry you.” His hands then found my hips and squeezed. “Don’t fuck with me right now, Lou. I promise you that me causing a scene will be the least of your worries.”
I was about to tell him exactly how I liked my ass kissed when I heard someone call his name. We both turned our heads, and I saw some guy who looked like Sung Kang from The Fast and the Furious movies approaching.
“Wren, bro, is that you?”
Wren let me go with a look of surprise. “Sonny?”
“Jeez, man, I thought you died or something!”
Wren laughed, and for once, it wasn’t a sarcastic or pissed off one. I blinked a few times because, at that moment, I hardly recognized him. The guys shared a manly embrace before Wren answered him. “Nah, I’m not dead yet. What have you been up to?”
“I should be asking you that!” Sonny chortled. “Me? I’ve been doing much of the same—fucking and skating,” he said with a shrug.
“You’re like thirty-five. You haven’t settled down yet?”