Deviant (Boys of Winter 3)

Satisfied that he hasn’t woken me, he gently pulls the door closed behind him and I sit up a little straighter as I hear King’s deep voice in the hallway. “She good?”

“Yeah, sleeping like the living dead,” Grayson mutters, keeping his tone down and making it nearly impossible to make out what he’s saying. “After the night she had, she’ll probably sleep well into the afternoon, but she’ll be fucking pissed so we probably won’t hear from her.”

A breathy laugh sounds through the door. “It’s fine. She’ll cave and text Cruz to let us know she’s alive, but only to get him to leave her the fuck alone.”

“Too right,” Grayson murmurs. “Are we good to go?”

Good to go? What the fuck? Where do they think they’re going? I push up onto my hand, hating the way that my head spins with the movement. Maybe I’m hearing them wrong. Glancing across the room, I focus on the digital clock that sits on my desk. It’s only four in the morning. It doesn’t make sense.

“Yeah,” King grumbles, his words distorted by a loud yawn. “Carver’s already downstairs packing the car and Cruz said some shit about writing a letter for Winter so she doesn’t freak the fuck out if she were to wake and we were all gone.”

All gone? Have I missed something? Why the fuck would Carver need to be packing the car?

I hear the guys move away from my bedroom door and anger instantly starts pulsing through me. These motherfuckers aren’t going anywhere without me.

I throw my blanket back and swivel until my feet are finally on the floor. My head aches. I clearly partied way too hard at last night’s graduation party. Fuck, I don’t even remember how I got home and in bed, but I’m definitely going to be paying for it today.

I quickly hurry around my room, grabbing some clothes and pulling on a pair of sweatpants and a hoodie. I stuff a few things into a backpack and double check that I have my phone before slipping out of my room. I mean, if the boys are going somewhere, then so the fuck am I.

My eyes practically scream at the brightly lit hallway, and for a second, I curse the boys for leaving it on, but at the same time, if they hadn’t, I probably would have walked into the hallway and fallen right down the stairs. Not only injuring myself but giving myself away. There’s no way I would have been able to fall down the stairs while keeping my goddamn mouth shut.

I tiptoe down the hallway, being careful to step around all the creaks in the floor, and now that I’ve visualized falling down the stairs, I have no choice but to hold onto the railing and creep down them like a fucking cat. Besides, stairs and I have a love-hate relationship. I mean, I’ve been fucked on them, but I’ve also been fucked over on them.

I get halfway down when I hear the boys moving around downstairs. I crouch down and peer through the balustrades to find Cruz leaning against the hallway table with a pen and paper. I watch him write, taking in the pained look on his face. My stomach twists. Something tells me that he doesn’t want to go without me, or maybe doesn’t want to go at all. Either way, I’ve got to get my hands on that letter.

King walks past with a bag and heads toward the internal door for the garage, and as he opens it, I hear the soft rumbling of the Escalade.

These assholes really are about to leave me here in the middle of the night.

Fuck that.

I hurry back upstairs and dart into my room to fill up Lady Dante’s automatic feeder and make sure there’s enough water in her bowl to last a few days. I grab my phone charger, my makeup, and a few more changes of clothes. I have no idea what was in the bag that King had packed, but it didn't look light and if we’re going for a while, then I want to be prepared.

I start making my way back down the stairs to find Cruz gone and an envelope with my name resting on the table beside his pen. I grab the envelope and shove it into my bag despite how desperately I want to read what’s in it. I can’t risk getting caught just yet. I have to play it smart. If they find me, the game is over and I’ll be fucked.

The light in the foyer is dimmed and I dart across to a massive vase and hide behind it while being able to see directly into the garage. Just as King said, Carver is in there, shoving bags into the back of his Escalade and looking pissed about it. Though, when does Carver ever not look pissed?