Tough Shit (Rejects Paradise 1)

“I could look after you. I told you I would. You’d have my protection and the protection of the Widows. You know the guys would never let anything happen to you.” He grabs my hands and forces my eyes to remain on his stormy ones. “You’re safer here than you are with those rich pricks. This is your home, O. Come home to me.”

“Nic,” I sigh, trying to pull my hands free. “Mom and I need to do this. We need to learn to stand on our own two feet without dad, and besides, mom is thriving in Bellevue Springs. She feels valued and important. What she does fills the void and gives her something to think about apart from missing dad. She’s been hurting so much, but there … she’s happy. I won’t take that away from her just so I can be close to my friends.”

“Friends?” he scoffs, offended. “No friends, only family.”

“You know what I meant, Nic.”

“Yeah,” he says, pulling back and averting his eyes and crushing me in the process. “I can understand your confusion. It really does feel like just friends lately.”

My glare hits him hard and fast. “You want to start on that shit?” I demand. “You’re the one who made me feel like just a friend first. Hell, you made me feel like a lot less than that, or have you forgotten the reason why we’re not together anymore?”

“Don’t bring that old shit up,” he demands, stepping into me and grabbing my chin.

I tear my chin free. “Then quit trying to use a bullshit guilt trip on me to bring me home. I made my decision. I’m living in Bellevue Springs until I graduate and then starting a life for myself. I’m breaking free of this town and building something that I can be proud of. Why can’t you get on board with that? There was once a time where you would have jumped at an opportunity for me to get out of here.”

He shrugs his shoulders, leaning back against the sink just as he was when I first arrived. “I’m a selfish bastard, and that was a long time ago, way before I fell in love with you.”

“You’re not in love with me, Nic. You just want to be because it’s the easiest option. If you were in love with me, the idea of sleeping with another woman would have made you sick, just like it did to me.”

“Don’t you fucking tell me what I’m feeling.”

I clench my jaw and watch him as his chest rises and falls with rapid movement. There’s a storm brewing behind his eyes and if I keep pushing, I’ll see the man his father has always pushed him to be—demanding, relentless, and forceful. Don’t get me wrong, he’ll never hurt me, but he sure as hell will put me in my place if he feels the need. I’ve never had a problem with it because I always give it right back, but that’s not what I want for my night here.

I jump down from the counter and step into him with a heavy sigh, putting my hands at his waist. “I didn’t come here to fight. Can we just have a good night together? I missed you guys and wanted to see you after another big week.”

Nic watches me for a silent moment before giving in and pulling me to his chest. His arms wrap around my waist as his lips press to the top of my head. “I know, I’m sorry. I don’t want to fight either. Having you so far away all the time and surrounded by those people just gets to me. It’s driving me crazy not having you close. I like to keep a close eye on you and that’s not so easy anymore.”

“Hey,” Elijah’s voice comes tearing through the small apartment. “Can I remind you that you haven’t even brought that sweet ass over here to say hello yet, so wrap up your bullshit. I have a question.”

I look up at Nic. “A question?”

A wicked grin spreads across his face. “You know when you first walked in here and said that you had our backs?” I nod, narrowing my eyes in suspicion and he quickly continues. “Well, now’s your time to prove it.”

Fuck. I don’t like the sound of that but either way, I’m grateful as the small distraction seems to have helped take the tension out of the air so that Nic and I can get on with our night and actually have a good time, rather than waste the night with scowls and snappy comments.

I pull out of Nic’s arms and walk my so-called sweet ass across the room until I’m dropping down heavily on Eli’s lap. “OH, FUCK,” he growls, pushing me off his lap so hard that I go flying across the room and slam into the wall.