The Moth and the Flame (When Rivals Play #2) - B.B. Reid Page 0,72

me,” she whispered, giving me the courage to speak what was in my heart.

I was lying on my back, so I let my head roll to the side so I could see her, too. “Because I-I think I’m meant to protect him.” At that moment, it felt like someone had taken hold of my soul as if it were my hand and squeezed.

Yes.

I heard the confirmation and felt the determination to do so rise. I bit back a curse.

I always knew Danny Boy didn’t belong in my world. I’d been keeping my eyes open for any opportunity to get rid of him. I never suspected the world he did belong in, however, and it pissed me off to no end to know that he risked his life for a fucking thrill. My mind raced, unable to accept the answer as fact. It just didn’t fit. He was too goddamn smart.

“Why?” Lou questioned.

“I don’t know why. I just…know.”

“Is it the same feeling you had when you met me?” There was no jealousy in her tone, only curiosity. She’d cut out her tongue before admitting it, but I knew Lou hated sharing me with anyone as much as I hated sharing her. We only had a limited amount of time to spend in this life, and I wanted every second of hers.

I averted my gaze until I was staring at a hole in the ceiling. “It’s different.”

“How?”

I took a deep breath, knowing I was about to step back on dangerous ground. Too late to turn back now. “Because even though I know you can take care of yourself, I’d never let you.”

I listened to her release a breath before her timid voice broke through the dark. “Why?”

Against my will, my gaze found hers again. “You know why.”

My tone left nothing for her imagination to figure out. Judging by her wide eyes and gasping lips, I knew my eyes had conveyed more than I’d intended. I was just grateful the dark concealed my painful hard-on and the hand I used to grip it as I, hopefully, stroked it back into submission. I, however, didn’t miss the full-body shiver she tried to hide under the soft light of the lamp bathing her.

And just like I’d always known, she retreated, not as ready for the full force of my desire as she believed herself to be.

“Good night, bestie.”

“Good night, little Valentine.”

She was dead to the world when my quiet groan pierced the silence, and I used my T-shirt to clean away the evidence of what she had done to me.

OKAY, SO, WOW. AND BY ‘wow’ I do mean holy fucking shit!

I was starting to believe Wren when he said I was too innocent for him.

I couldn’t get the way he looked at me out of my mind. A week later and it was all I could think about it. It was searing hot, anxious, and full of promise. The image I had of him ripping the clothes from my body for the unfettered access his lips and hands would require still plagued me. It was so vivid, enthralling really. Better than high definition porn.

“Are you okay?” Eliza questioned warily as we walked home.

School had let out early today so teachers could have extra time for professional development. I had no idea what that meant, but I had to be the only one in my entire school not happy about it. That was just two hours without distraction from my thoughts. Although, if I were capable of being rational right now, I’d accept that it wouldn’t have mattered. School or no school, Wren and the hard cock he’d tried to hide a week ago were the only things holding my attention at the moment.

“Fine,” I lied. Horny as hell wasn’t exactly a medical condition. Just a frustrating one. “Why do you ask?”

“Because you’re sweating in the middle of October, and you’re breathing hard even though you’re a pencil.”

“Hey!” I barked, a little miffed.

“A very sexy pencil,” she assured me with a wink. “Definitely hotter than a number two. And lead pencils got nothing on you.”

“Now that’s better,” I grumbled even as I laughed at her ridiculous analogies.

“So what’s up, buttercup? I know something’s on your mind,” she prodded. She even put away the book she’d been reading to give me her full attention. The guy with sweaty abs on the cover gave me a pretty good idea what it was about.

Wren’s are better.

“Nothing major. I haven’t seen Wren in a couple of days, and he’s not