Ruthless Love (Ash and Innocence 1)

I found Abbie’s lips, kissing them and feeling revulsed at the same time. She tasted like cheap lip gloss and the sour sweetness of a sports drink. I shoved my tongue in her mouth anyway, hoping the feeling would pass.

Abbie reached for my pants, fumbling with the button and the zipper.

I thought about stopping her. Hell, I wasn’t even close to hard, but then I pictured Wheels and that guy smiling. I saw her talking to Logan. I saw the way Cassian looked at her. It felt like the entire world had realized they wanted a shot with her at the same time.

The door to the bathroom opened. I didn’t hear footsteps, though. Just a smooth, rolling noise.

What are the fucking chances?

Abbie paused, briefly. I saw her eyes shift to the side. She bit her lip, smiling. “Oh, Tristan. You’re so big.”

I frowned. She hadn’t even unzipped my pants yet.

The sound of the rolling wheels paused and there was a sharp intake of breath. A moment later, I heard the door open and close again.

I felt hollow inside. If there was any chance of mending things with Wheels, I’d probably just blasted the last of them away. I groaned, pushing Abbie back. “I need to get back to class.”

She shoved me, making me bounce against the stall door. “What’s your problem?”

I shook my head. “You don’t get me hard.”

Abbie shoved past me, storming out of the bathroom.

I leaned my head against the wall of the stall and buttoned my pants back up. I needed to clear my head before the game tonight, and I definitely needed to stop thinking about Wheels.17KennedyMarne had found her way down to where I was watching the game. I wouldn’t exactly call her a friend, but ever since we worked together on our little project, she had a way of finding me.

Her brown hair always seemed to be a little bit wild and tangled, like she’d just finished a few hours of wild game hunting in the woods. But there was a kind twinkle in her eyes that I found myself comforted by every time we talked.

“That a Canon?” She asked, taking the camera from my hands and turning it over.

“Yeah.”

“My dad has one that can capture so many pixels you could see the nose hairs on a mouse at three hundred yards.”

I raised my eyebrows. “These are just the school-issued ones. They probably tried to save money, but it’s still cool. I’ve never had a camera before.”

“Why are you just filming him?” Marne asked. “He’s not even doing anything.”

I pulled the camera down, clearing my throat. “I was hoping to catch a leadership moment. Or something.”

“Looks like you caught a moment where he pulls his shirt up and wipes away sweat. A six-pack moment, if you will,” Marne said.

I grinned. “Purely accidental.”

“So, Tristan have a thing for wheelchairs, or something?”

I frowned up at her. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

Marne gave a little shrug. “Just never seen him stay interested in someone for more than a few days. Suddenly you show up with your fancy wheels and he’s smitten.”

I laughed. “Smitten is not the word I would use. He’s… I don’t know, I’m not going to pretend to be an expert on boys.”

“No, say what you were gonna say.” Marne sounded surprisingly forceful.

“Tristan is such a good liar that he falls for his own bullshit. He thinks he can change, but he’s just… ruthless. He’ll do whatever it takes to get what he wants, no matter who he has to hurt in the process.” My thoughts went back to what I’d heard in the bathroom earlier at school. Tristan, you’re so big.

My stomach felt cold at the memory.

“I think he might have convinced himself he liked me at some point. But it was only a matter of time before he moved on from that lie, too.”

Marne made a thoughtful sound. “Too bad. Sounds like you had the bully outsmarted for a while. You dangle his desire in front of him like a carrot on a stick. As long as you can resist letting him take a bite, you get to enjoy the remainder of high school. Brilliant while it lasted, at least.”

I shifted uncomfortably. “I mean, no. That wasn’t how I was thinking about it. I wasn’t trying to lead him on or trick him. I still don’t even understand what happened to make him start acting like he liked me. But I would’ve been an idiot to trust him, even if I had forgiven him for all the crap he pulled.”

“Oh, absolutely,” Marne said. “If you had given in to him, you’d wind up pregnant and getting bullied again. Guarantee it.”

I nodded. She was probably right, minus the pregnancy part, at least. I wasn’t that stupid. I also didn’t really believe Tristan even wanted to take things that far with me. Yeah, he had kissed me, and yeah, it had been mind-blowing. But I had two functioning eyes. I knew I didn’t even come close to stacking up against the kind of girls who practically lined up for a chance to be with him. Just like whoever had been in that stall with him.