The Trouble with You (Rixon Raiders 1)

“Stop calling me that.” I couldn’t think straight when he said it.

Cameron’s mouth curved, only a fraction, but enough for me to know he was enjoying this. Asshole. He was just like my step-brother. Worse even, because there had been a time when I truly believed he was different. But I was young and foolish and I’d learned my lesson where Cameron Chase was concerned.

“What are you going to do?” He frowned at that, so I added, “Are you going to tell him?”

“Let me worry about Jason, you just worry about yourself.”

“What the hell does that mean?”

More voices pierced the air and Cameron glanced to the gate beside the garage. “Shit,” he mumbled. “You need to get out of here.”

“But what about—”

“Hailee, just go. Now.”

“Hails?” Flick burst through the trees, her eyes glassy and wide, panic etched into her soft features. Cameron cussed under his breath. “Are you both drunk?” he sounded pissed.

“I… we…” My eyes moved to the gate, the clunk of metal catching my attention.

“Get her out of here, now. And don’t come back.” Cameron wasn’t talking to me now, he was glaring at Felicity as if she was somehow to blame for all this.

“Don’t look at her like that,” I started but Flick already had her hand on my arm, trying to pull me away.

“Yo, Chase? You out here?” My step-brother’s voice was close now. “I thought I heard a car.”

“Go, now,” Cameron’s voice was a deadly whisper.

Vodka obviously gave Flick super-strength because she yanked me into the trees like I weighed nothing, Cameron’s face no longer fully visible through the leaves. “What the hell was that?” she hissed.

But I couldn’t answer because I didn’t have one.

“Motherfucker!” The boom of Jason’s voice, the anger dripping from every syllable, drowned out all my thoughts.

“Shit.” I jumped into action. “We need to get out of here, now.” My hand found Flick’s and started pulling as I moved quickly through the woods. We’d walked to Asher’s house from Flick’s. She only lived a couple of blocks over, but it was far enough for Jason to find us if we didn’t hurry the hell up.

Once we were clear of the Bennets' property, we ran. Neither of us were very athletic but we didn’t need an excuse tonight. Our feet pounded the ground, trees and branches rushing past us, shadows dancing across my vision. When we spilled out of the woods onto the street, I’d never been happier to see Flick’s house up in the distance.

“Come on,” I said breathlessly, linking my arm through hers, and glancing over my shoulder one last time. “We should probably get inside.”

Forty minutes later, we were both showered and lying on Flick’s bed in our pajamas. “I can’t believe Cameron caught you,” she said, taking a bite of Twizzler.

“I wonder what he told Jason.”

“I guess you’ll know soon enough.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” My brows crinkled.

“Well, if he does tell Jason, you can expect some awful retaliation, and if he doesn’t, then I guess you’re safe… for now.”

“You make it sound like an episode of Game of Thrones.”

“More like the Battle of the Sexes,” she joked, and I nudged her shoulder with mine.

“It was weird though, right? Cameron could have cussed me out right there, but he didn’t. He told us to go.” Flick smirked, and I added, “What?”

“Nope. Nothing…”

“Come on, tell me.”