Good idea Luna, do not speak. Whatever you say will only be used against you and you will live to regret it.
“You can’t touch me.” I swear, I don’t know why I bother sometimes.
“Last time I checked I was a Harkwright and you are just another one of the whores put here for my amusement. Now take my cock into your mouth and you better fucking deep throat me you little bitch,” he grips my hair again and slams my face against his fly, and all I can think is how relieved I am that his cock isn’t hanging out.
“E-e-emmet s-s-said not t-t-to t-t-touch me.”
“Fuck me, you’re more pathetic than I first thought. Good thing I’m not looking for a conversation it’ll take you too fucking long to say anything. And in case you haven’t noticed, Emmet isn’t here and it will be your word against mine. Besides, you’ll be the one doing the touching. Now be a good little whore, pull my dick out and fucking swallow it down.”
I push back against his grip, my shaking fingers moving towards his zipper, my stomach threatening to spill its contents all over him. The fucker deserves it too. I connect with the metal and I can’t even bring myself to look at him as I try to pull it down, but my shaking is making it difficult and his hand connects with my face, knocking my mask off and across the ground.
“Useless little bitch,” he spits to the side of me before popping open his button and making quick work of his zipper. I swallow hard trying to prepare myself, when a fist connects with the side of his head, sending him sprawling with his hand still inside his boxers.
I look up to see Tom offering me his hand while Emmet and Tucker deliver blow after blow onto Shane. I watch as they tear their masks off but Tom leads me away before I can catch sight of Emmet properly. But I’ve seen enough, I just can’t get my heart or my mind to connect what I saw with the cold hard truth. Denial, my new best friend.
Tom carries me back to the ball, much to my dismay and it isn’t long until Aeron is lifting me up onto his lap and Maddox is pulling out a first aid kit to remove the stones from my skin. Not to mention the band aid on my face from where Shane split the skin when his hand connected with me. I don’t know why he’s cleaning me up or why I’m sitting on Aeron’s lap but what I do know, I just want to go to my room and forget that any of this ever happened.
Twenty minutes until the stares stop being so obvious and Daria has managed to get Bradley to find us a private room to sit it out in. I’m not sure what we’re waiting for, but clearly they aren’t going to let me tuck tail and run until they’re good and ready. I don’t even know what’s happened to Tom, he dropped me off and then disappeared into the fray. Although I’m guessing that’s the least of my worries.
No one has asked me what happened and I’m thankful for that, but I know I’ll be expected to tell them soon and the worst part, according to the rules Shane didn’t do a damn thing wrong. It’s these moments that make me want to beg Tom for a pass and risk the punishment for even attempting such a thing. I don’t think I will, but that doubt is screaming volumes at me right now.
“Can’t we just take her back to her room?” Daria asks and Bradley pulls her even closer into his side, almost as though he can’t bear not being able to touch her. I’m not sure if it’s sweet or obsessive, but hey to each their own. Who am I to judge?
I could very well be in love with a man who is willing to wait three years just to be with me, while also falling dangerously close to the edge with a guy who I know I will never see again. Cole I saw coming a mile away, the feelings that is, I just never suspected that he could feel the same way. But Liam, damn he just came right out of the blue, when did my feelings for him start to change and why didn’t I realize soon enough to stop it from happening?
“We have to wait for Emmet and he will not want her to be alone tonight,” I hear Bradley say in reply and I don’t like the sound of that. What if Emmet wants to stay with me? Good lord, please anyone but him, I don’t want to be alone with someone who I know nothing about and clearly had someone following me!
“I could stay with her.”
“Dar, you know that’s not allowed, it has to be one of us.”
I don’t know what she’s muttering but I want to high five her in solidarity. The door opens but it’s Tucker who comes in and not the elusive Emmet, Aeron holds me tighter against him and I don’t miss the way Tucker’s eyes track every movement.
“Shane is in the medical center and Emmet is making sure he doesn’t get anymore idiotic ideas about coming near her anytime soon. Although we do have a slight issue that we will need to talk about when there’s less of a crowd.”
“I see, can I g-go back t-t-to my r-r-room please,” I don’t need it to be explained that they won’t speak until us girls have left them to it.
“You’ll be staying with one of us tonight, we can’t trust Shane not to try something if you’re in your room alone,” Bradley says as he crouches in front of me and I don’t miss the way Daria is staring at him, like he hung the sun, moon and stars just for her.
“I’ll do it, I haven’t got a regular for tonight and I’ll be leaving after the assembly tomorrow,” Aeron states and Tucker looks as though he’s about to blow at any second.
“Not happening, you can’t be trusted.”
“Now, now Tuck. I’m as trustworthy as you are,” I can’t help but look back and forth between them, the glint in Aeron’s eyes and the grinding of Tucker’s jaw. Any minute now and I’ll have to climb off before the next fight of the evening begins.
“Enough, I’ll stay with her. I think I can handle one night on a damn loveseat.”
Everything stops as we all turn our attention to Maddox and surprisingly, no one argues with him.
“Why don’t you just get Darius to do it? No one will have to be put out then,” I say quietly but Tucker is already shaking his head.
“No, Senior won’t allow it. It’s one thing protecting you from a fellow girl, but he won’t interfere when it’s one of us. The only reason we are is because Shane broke our own set of rules, don’t worry Thirty-Four it has nothing to do with you,” his eyes burn right through me and as it always seems to end up, I find myself hating Tucker all over again. Every time I do, it’s always a little more than before.
“Mad, you are probably the best person but Shane will annihilate you. Let’s not give him more reason to do the stuff he already does, I can do it. I’m invested enough to keep her safe and far enough removed that Emmet won’t go on the rampage when he hears about it. Have no fear, I’ve got us covered,” Bradley offers and Daria beams up at him.
Someone help me, because I don’t think I can take much more. Even as Aeron lifts me off him and storms out of the room and Tucker is fast on his tail, all I can think about is how Bradley is going to be staying in my room and I really hope this won’t put me on Daria’s shit list.
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