The Peer and the Puppet (When Rivals Play #1) - B.B. Reid Page 0,92
that the mere thought of her not breathing the same air as me made me a little less desperate for my next breath? Could I even trust her with that kind of power?
She snorted and looked away, baring her neck to me. My lips landed on her warm skin, and her body vibrated beneath me.
“What are you doing?” she gasped.
“I’m enjoying you. You owe me a kiss, anyway.”
“You’re either bipolar or you have selective memory.” She shoved me away and sat up while I leaned back on my elbow. “What’s your problem, McNamara?” That was her second time asking me today.
Running my hand through my hair, I decided to tell her the truth. “I was feeling fucked up.”
“Obviously,” she snarled. “Why?”
“I fucked up, and I blamed you.” It wasn’t much of an explanation, but it was all I could give her.
“Why would you blame me?”
“The guy we ran into the day we took you to the city was Exiled.”
“I know. I recognized him. He was there that day I followed you.” Her lips parted as worry entered her eyes. “Do you think he made you?”
“I know he did. He followed us here.”
She gasped. “Are you in danger?”
“I can handle myself.” I waved her off even though her concern felt damn good. It wasn’t me I was afraid for. Wren knowing where I lived meant he could get to Four anytime he wanted.
“That guy seemed like he could, too.”
She wasn’t wrong, but I wasn’t afraid of Wren. He was the least of my worries. Never finding Fox was what kept me up at night but I could understand her fear. Wren Harlan was a force to be reckoned with, and anyone who had his loyalty would be unstoppable.
“He won’t be a problem as long as I stay away.” She didn’t look so sure. I brushed her cheek with my thumb, and she finally relaxed.
“What made you change your mind about me?”
“This is going to sound cliché but seeing you run out in front of my father’s car made me think twice about keeping my distance. If you had been hurt or worse, I didn’t want the last feeling you felt for me to be hatred.”
“We haven’t exactly been the best of friends.”
“It doesn’t make sense to me either, but I’ve been living without a clue since the day I met you.”
She looked as uncomfortable as I felt and quickly changed the subject. “So what are you going to do?”
“Nothing. Harlan and I agreed that if I stayed away from Exiled, he’d keep his mouth shut about who I really am.”
“But why does it matter? People from different backgrounds join gangs all the time. Who cares if you were spoon-fed diamonds as a baby?”
“Trust me, Four. It matters but not because of how much my family is worth.”
“Then why?”
I shook my head, warning her to drop it. She looked like she wanted to argue for a moment before sighing and dropping her shoulders in defeat. “Do you trust him?” she asked in a small voice.
“For now, I don’t have a choice, but if he becomes a problem, he’ll be dealt with.”
“You don’t have to be macho for me.”
I gave her my most charming smile. “Then who will I be macho for?”
“How about Barbie? Your girlfriend?” She lifted a brow.
“Bee and I are just friends.” Immediately, I clammed up. I didn’t mean to say that, and her reaction told me there was no going back.
“You call her Bee?”
“She hates her name and hates Barbie even more.” Fuck. It felt like I’d been injected with truth serum because I couldn’t shut the fuck up.
“How could she hate being called Barbie when she looks like a doll every single day? That’s obviously her own doing, right?”
“There’s more to her than what any of them sees.”
“You love her.” Her voice broke at the end. “Don’t you?”
“Of course, I do.” I quickly grabbed her before she could pull away. “But I’m not in love with her.” I stared into her pretty brown eyes while my hand on her chin kept her from looking away. “Am I understood?”
She narrowed her eyes and said, “By friends, did you mean with benefits?”
I could only chuckle at her stubbornness. Jealousy looked damn good on her.
“I mean I’ve never fucking touched her, and I never will.”
“Then why pretend? Doesn’t it get old?”
“I told you. It’s not my secret to tell. And pretending was never a problem until you.”
“And Jamie? He thinks you’ve betrayed him. How can you be okay with that?”