RIOT HOUSE (Crooked Sinners #1) - Callie Hart Page 0,45
him, though. “Whatever. It’d be great if you finally spit it out and tell me what I’m doing here. I’d love to get back to bed, and—”
“I’ll answer your question but not until you come and sit down,” he interrupts. “With you standing over me in that giant fucking coat, this is starting to feel like an interrogation.”
I want to go. The weather hasn’t improved in the last five minutes, though. The chances of me finding my way back out of the maze are slim at this point. It won’t do me any good to get lost out there again, and I don’t think Wren’s going to help me back to Wolf Hall unless I humor him.
Swift jab to the throat.
Knee to the balls.
Elbow to the solar plexus.
I have a few self-defense maneuvers already prepped and ready to go in my head, as I skirt around the small coffee table and reluctantly sit myself down in the armchair. At least here I’m close to the fire; the warmth radiating from the flames feels amazing.
Satisfied, Wren runs a hand back through his hair, sweeping the wet curls out of his face. “I wanted you to come here because you’re smart,” he says. “You’re observant, which means you’ll have noticed me noticing you. You must know that I’m interested in you.”
I narrow my eyes. “Why do I get the feeling that being the subject of your interest is bad for a girl’s health?”
The boy with the black hair and the vivid eyes looks bemused. “Maybe I’ve been bad in the past. I’m sure Carina’s told you plenty about that.”
“She’s told me some. Mostly about your failed plan to fuck half of Wolf Hall before Christmas. A bet, right? Between you and your Riot House buddies? Or are you gonna tell me that she made that up?”
Wren’s hand stills, a tassel from one of the cushions trapped between his long fingers. He looks at me—into me?—unmoving and unblinking. “There was a bet,” he confirms. “I was supposed to sleep with ten girls between Halloween and Christmas, and I didn’t. That’s how I got stuck wearing the same shit for a month.”
Huh. I’m surprised he actually admitted it. “What happened?” I ask. “The girls start talking and comparing notes? You failed at the last hurdle after putting nine extra notches on your belt?” The comment sounded cool and indifferent inside my head. Out of my mouth, it sounds sour and silly.
“Let’s not fuck around with any of that.” Wren leans forward, resting his forearms on his thighs. “Petty quips will get us nowhere fast. Does it bother you that I haven’t been saving myself for marriage or something?”
Heat rises in my cheeks. “Why would it bother me? Your sex life has nothing to do with me. It’s none of my business.”
“And yet, from the judgmental tone in your voice, it sounds like it bothers you very much.”
“Really. I don’t care. If the girls you sleep with are consenting, then—”
“I’m not a rapist, Elodie. I’ve never done anything without a girl’s consent. Usually, I only ever indulge a girl with my affections if she’s on her knees, begging for it.”
“Oh, and I’m sure you just love that, don’t you? The begging. Must do wonders for your over-inflated ego.”
“Begging leaves no room for misunderstanding.” He rests his chin in the palm of his hand, propping up his head as he looks at me intently. “I don’t like uncertainty. I like things to be very black and white. Clear cut. What about you?”
“Yes, I like when things are clear cut. Which is why I’ll let you know here and now that I will never lower myself to my knees for you. You’re a monster, who loves to treat women like shit—”
“You don’t know how I treat women. You don’t know anything about me, remember?”
This motherfucker. He has an answer for everything. “Appearances would indicate that you chew women up and spit them out like they’re a disposable commodity. I’m sure you were furious that you lost that bet, weren’t you? It must have stung that you weren’t able to convince ten poor girls to dive into bed with you.”
My heart’s pounding in my chest, but Wren just sits there with his chin in his hand, the light from the fire still playing across the elegant, masculine frame of his body, completely impassive as he watches me rant. He seems pensive as he says, “You’ve figured it all out, haven’t you? You wanna know the truth? The truth