Razor's Edge (Underworld Kings)

My father thought being a man meant being tough and macho, beating the underdog and taking shit from no one. But to me, being a man was sacrificing for those you loved, standing up for and helping those less fortunate.

“How’s the coffee? I’m not sure how they drink it in South Vale.”

“Me either, I don’t drink coffee. I just took it to be polite. Is it supposed to taste like dirt? If so, excellent job!” I told her.

She shook her head and smiled at me. “Jerk,” she said under her breath.

You knew you were in trouble when it made your chest bubble up with warmth when a girl called you a jerk and you loved it.

Looking at Ellison made me want to break all of my self-inflicted rules just to get to know her. I’d throw ‘no dating’ and ‘no girls’ clear out the fucking window if it meant I got to talk to the angel in front of me.

“Are you okay?” I asked again. “That was kind of intense there.”

“Yes, sorry, it’s so embarrassing.” She smiled at me sheepishly and blew her bangs up toward the ceiling as she pulled her scarf from her hair. Her raven-colored locks tumbled down around her shoulders. “I’m ok now. Somehow, it’s always scary, no matter how many times it happens. Thanks for coming to my rescue though. Calvin, right?” She added more cream to her coffee from the small carton in front of her. “Did you grow up here in South Vale or are you a transplant like me?”

She took a sip from the mug and cast her gaze down. God, she was so beautiful, and the way she said my name had my body reacting in all kinds of insane ways.

“Yeah, born and raised.”

“Honey, do you feel all right? Do I need to call the doctor or anything?” Mrs. Kraft opened the kitchen door slightly to check on her daughter. She had the same big blue eyes and dark hair that Ellison had.

“She’s in good hands. Cal’s really responsible for a kid his age—too responsible sometimes,” my mother said.

How true her statement was. My whole life I’d taken care of her, every single time my father had broken her heart, I’d been there to pick up the pieces. I wished she would have left him years ago, but she was loyal to him to a fault—no matter how shitty he treated her.

I don’t know how appealing “responsible” sounded to Ellison. Maybe she was into the rebels and guys who treated women like shit. My mother certainly was, hell, half the women in the club were.

“I’m all right, really, I’m okay,” she said to anyone who was listening. She fidgeted with a lock of her dark shiny hair, making me want to run my fingers through it.

“So Calvin, what is there to do in this town?”

Of course, it wasn’t suggestive, but the way the words hung on her lips had me thinking about all the things I wanted to do to her.

“Depends what you’re into.”

She opened the fridge and took out a pitcher of iced tea and a plate of grapes. I watched her drop ice cubes into two tall glasses and then set her shockingly blue eyes on me.

“I won’t force you to drink dirt water, Calvin. Especially since I already subjected you to enough drama. I’ve been unpacking all weekend and haven’t gotten the chance to look into anything. Are you at South Vale High?”

She was speaking fast and looked like she wasn’t even taking any time to catch her breath. I couldn’t tell if she was nervous or affected by me. I hoped for the latter because what she was doing to me felt like the best kind of suffering. Just looking at her produced this longing in my chest. I stood from the kitchen island and walked around to where she was. She passed the cool glass to me and I immediately set it down.

“Do you always pass out like that? Isn’t it dangerous?”

I didn’t know why I was so upfront with her, so assertive. I felt this drive to know everything about her. Along with it came a possessiveness that felt an awful lot like jealousy. But I didn’t even know the girl, she was new to town, yet the recognition of how special she was, deeply impacted me.

“More than anything else, it’s super annoying.” She lifted a silver medical alert bracelet into my line of vision and slid it up and down her pale arm. I noticed the scars right away, but I pretended not to. Nobody wanted to lay bare their soul over iced tea, with a guy they had just met, in their mom’s kitchen.

I turned over the bracelet and read what it said, “Epilepsy. So you didn’t pass out?”

“Nope, it’s a seizure, but most people do think I’m fainting when it happens. I take daily meds to regulate it, but sometimes I get breakthrough seizures, especially when I’m under stress.” She shrugged her shoulders and took a sip of her tea. I couldn’t tear my eyes away from her lips as they caressed the tall clear glass.