Ruthless Love (Ash and Innocence 1)

I said nothing, but I also didn’t punch Cassian in the face. Coach’s eyes slid between us a few times, then he nodded and headed back to his office.

Cassian’s lip curled. “Know what, QB? I think I might fuck that little crippled neighbor of yours, just to piss you off.”

I set my jaw. His words triggered an unexpected ball of rage in my chest. “Stay away from her.”

He titled his head. “Nah, I don’t think I will.”

I watched him go, then slammed the side of my fist into a locker once he was gone. Dammit. I let out a long breath I hadn’t realized I was holding. This was exactly why I didn’t help people. It was why I didn’t get close. It opened me up and made me weak—like a chink in the armor I’d been building for years.

If I’d just left her in that fucking bush the night of my party. But I hadn’t. I’d brought her into my room and accidentally planted her firmly in my thoughts.

And now she had me by the balls, whether she knew it or not.* * *I got a text that weekend from Cassian.

Cassian: Your little girlfriend has a cute room. I may have a mirror installed on the ceiling so we can watch ourselves next time.

I wasn’t proud of it, but the text had jolted me out of bed and into a fast jog toward her house. It was dark enough that I wasn’t too worried about being seen when I climbed the oak tree outside her window. When I got to the top, I saw a shadow of someone standing on her wall. My throat went tight.

How the hell had he managed to go from breaking her camera to getting in her room in just a couple days?

But before I could finish puzzling it out, I saw the source of the shadow. Wheels came out of the bathroom, clutching the wall and anything she could reach for support as she walked shakily toward a vanity and chair.

She was also dressed in nothing but her underwear.

My eyes wandered from her chest to her ass. It was my first time seeing her out of her chair, and apparently, Kennedy Stills had been hiding an absolute killer of an ass. Maybe I stayed to make sure Cassian wasn’t secretly hiding under her bed, but it was more likely for the view.

Yeah, it was shitty to peep on her, but I’d already seen, hadn’t I? Sticking around a few more minutes wasn’t going to make it that much shittier.

Once I was sure Cassian wasn’t in her room—and coincidentally, after she had put some clothes on—I hopped down from the tree, feeling like an idiot for believing Cassian’s text.

I felt even dumber when I saw him crouched by the side of the house, watching me get out of the tree.

He covered his mouth and let burst of laughter. “Shit, man. I knew you had it bad, but I didn’t think it was this bad. I timed you,” he said, not even appearing to try to keep his voice down, even though we were right below Wheels’ window. “It’s half a mile from here to your house and you got here four minutes after my text. Maybe there’s a future for you in track if football doesn’t work out.

“Coach isn’t here to stop me,” I said quietly. “You sure you want to keep it up?”

“Nah, I got what I needed.” Cassian took a few steps back, grinning. “And I have a feeling you’ll give me the fucking ball next time I ask.”

I watched after him in disbelief. Was he seriously pulling all this shit because of practice the other day? I looked up toward Wheels’ window and felt a confusing rush of anger and protectiveness swirl together. I was about to head back home when I heard muffled voices.

As quietly as I could, I headed back to the tree, then stopped at the bottom, because I could hear them clearly enough now.

Kennedy’s mom was talking. “…better find a way.”

“Mom, he broke it. It’s not like I lost the thing. If I don’t buy a new one, I’m going to fail the class. The project is half my grade.”

“This is what you wanted, remember? Real school? A normal life? Well, guess what? Normal isn’t always fair. This is what I wanted to protect you from.”

“Mom. That’s not—” Kennedy made an exasperated sound. “I could pay you back later.”

Her mom laughed. “With what? You’d better beg your teacher to give you another way to get that grade, because I’m not buying a camera. You can forget that. And believe me, if your report card comes back with failing grades, it’s back to homeschooling.”

The door slammed shut.

I chewed my lip, then sighed. I knew what I had to do.13KennedyI was almost finished getting ready for school before I noticed a camera sitting on my dresser. I frowned at it not sure I believed my eyes at first. I made my way across the room, leaning on the wall for balance. Sure enough, it was a camera.