“What about those girls?” I ask, still wondering about Mali and Holly. I remember the night of the party, Finn and Cassian were hanging around with them.
“Those are the Haven bunnies, they’re like groupies. If they can get dicked down by one of The Black Knights, they’ll do anything they’re told.” With a cocky wink, he pops a bite of pancake into his mouth.
“You mean any of the Havens or Thornes,” I say, realizing my voice is tinged with jealousy when I voice my response.
Finn watches me for a moment, leaning back in his chair as he sips the juice with a grin on his face. He’s noticed the inflection in my voice. The corner of his mouth curls slowly, just like his brother’s.
“I think—”
The footsteps that sound behind us interrupt Finn’s appraisal of me, and I’m thankful for that. When Cassian saunters in, I offer him a smile to which he tips his head in greeting.
“Family,” he says, with a swagger that belies the almost innocent expression on his face. He doesn’t strike me as a playboy type, not like Finn or Damien, but I have a feeling Cassian hides a lot of emotions under his pretty boy exterior.
Finn is outspoken, voicing whatever is on his mind.
Damien does hide certain things, but it doesn’t stop him from making his feelings known. But Cassian, he’s the silent brother, stoic and poised, but there’s also a darkness to him that lingers under the pristine surface.
“What are we talking about?” he asks, while plating pancakes.
“Nesrin bouncing on Damien’s dick,” Finn says, nonchalantly, causing me to choke on my orange juice.
A chuckle rumbles from Cassian, as he shakes his head. I’m sure he’s heard a lot from his youngest brother’s mouth before, but the fact that Finn came right out and said that has my mind spinning.
“I think Damien may lose his temper with you saying something like that about our little sister,” Cassian tells Finn, but the grin on his face belies the chastising of the youngest Thorne.
“If he can’t deal with the truth, that ain’t my problem,” Finn shrugs, pushing his chair away from the table. I watch him pull a joint from his pocket and place it between his full lips. “I’m going for a smoke,” he tells us. “Don’t talk about anything important, I don’t like missing the news.”
He leaves us alone, and I turn to Cassian who’s eating his breakfast in silence. I don’t know what to say after Finn’s blurting out about me and Damien having sex, so I fill my glass and drink down a mouthful of the cool, refreshing juice.
“You know,” Cass speaks, “my brother doesn’t really come with a filter, but if you’re going to spend time around us, you’ll get used to it.”
“I just didn’t think he’d talk about…” I wave my hand in the air, unsure of what to say, but Cass shakes his head.
“Don’t worry about that, I know Damien has a thing for you,” he says, shocking me speechless. “He’s away for a couple of days, so you’re going to spend time with me. I’m supposed to teach you the welcome dance that takes place at the ball.”
“Welcome dance?”
“Yeah, it’s all for show. Basically, it’s some form of waltz,” Cassian says, but his focus is on the plate in front of him. He seems so at ease with this, while I’m nervous, and the anxiety that’s slowly twisting in my gut has me on edge.
“I am not great at dancing,” I tell him, honestly.
He stops eating, piercing me with those blueish-green eyes, as he holds onto the silver knife and fork, and grins, before saying, “You haven’t been taught by a Thorne.” Then he continues wolfing down his food.
Guess I’m dancing today.
21
Nesrin
I haven’t needed to touch the box I keep hidden in my bathroom. Damien was right, our night run had given me a feeling of freedom from the anxiety. I can’t describe the lightness in my chest from not being able to think about anything other than making it out of the forest alive and unscathed. Even with the scrapes from the branches, I would do it again.
The moment I step foot into the bedroom, my phone buzzes. When I glance at the screen, my mother’s name glares at me condescendingly. Sighing, I answer, “Hi, Mom.”
“I’ve been waiting for you to respond all morning. It’s almost lunchtime, and I haven’t heard a peep from you.” Her voice is abnormally shrill.
“I’m sorry, I’ve been working with Cassian to learn this stupid dance,” I tell her, but if I had to be honest, I loved it. He’s fun, nothing like Damien, and I enjoyed spending time with him.
“Have you decided on college?” she asks, not bothering to check if I’m okay or what dance I’m talking about. Even if she knew what it was, I would’ve liked her to show interest.