Chapter 25
CHAPTER 25
LILIANA
M y fingers are linked with Rachelle’s as we walk along the beach, the ocean water sliding over the sand as it does its thing. You’d think she’d be afraid of how powerful and dangerous the ocean is since she can’t swim, but she told me she’s in awe of how pretty it is since she has no intention of getting in.
The weather is sunny and perfect, as if it wanted to show off for my girl. While I’m wearing shorts and a tank top, Rachelle is wearing cargo pants that are rolled up at the ankle so they don’t get wet and a long sleeved top to hide the ink staining her skin still. Yesterday at her house, we spent hours attempting to get the permanent ink off her face and arms, and her skin was red for hours afterward.
At least the words are off her face now. I want to murder the boys. Mr. Emil said he’d ensure they couldn’t follow us, and then handed me a huge wad of cash. I’m not allowed to use my card while we’re gone, to make it more difficult for Theo to track us down.
Seems about right to me.
Rachelle and I are pretending to be different people today since we checked into a cute Airbnb under one of Emil’s employee’s names. It’s just us, exploring the seaside town and enjoying each other. I’m still making sure she’s taking hydration tablets in her water and antibiotics, but she said she’d much rather be here than stuck as a patient at home.
“It’s so different from Florida, but gorgeous,” Rachelle murmurs, in awe of the powerful waves. There’s nothing like the Pacific Ocean, but laying on a towel being a bum in Florida has its own charm too, I bet.
“It is,” I agree. “How are you feeling?”
We’re here for a week and a half, because she needs a complete break from the bullshit the Kings insist on bringing to her. No drama, the trip we should have just taken for her birthday. I feel awful insisting that we’d be fine with the guys on a deserted trail.
They’re not the same people I grew up with anymore. They’re the ruthless monsters they believe they need to be to get ahead in life.
“Really good,” she says, giving me this goofy, soft smile. It’s one that says she had two orgasms this morning before breakfast. I’m pretty proud of that.
Her dark, long hair is now cut into an angled bob. We found a salon with good ratings and she decided to take the plunge. The new style is adorable on her. Rachelle shed a few tears when the hairstylist made the first few cuts, but she explained they were cathartic.
A new haircut isn’t going to fix all of her problems, but it did help release some of the trauma stored away in her hair. I expect the time away, a break from everything is also going to be helpful too.
Mr. Emil thought of everything, and even gave me a burner phone so we can’t be tracked. It was eye opening when he mentioned to me that he has a tracker inserted under his son’s skin in an effort to know where he is at all times. If he’s ever kidnapped, Mr. Emil will be able to find him.
Similarly, Ignacio knows not to look for Rachelle against his father’s wishes.
Glancing at the matching bracelets she and I have, it makes me feel a little less guilty not to have told her about the tracker inside of the both of them. When I fell asleep at her house months ago and forgot to tell my father, he came up with a solution. It wasn’t enough for him to be able to track me through my phone.
Instead, he suggested the bracelet I have around my wrist now. I’m not the best at remembering to wear it, as evident in how I didn’t wear it on our hike. If I had, maybe my dad would have realized I’d been in the woods for too long and come find me.
I was dumb and reckless in my belief that I could protect her from the guys. I won’t do that ever again. Now, my bracelet is on my wrist, and Rachelle thinks it’s adorable that we match.
She doesn’t need to know how possessive, obsessive, and stalkerish I truly am because I gave her a bracelet with a built-in tracker that I can access from anywhere.
I shall live in denial on this hill forever.
“Do you want to take a drive to the next town over to check out the cute shops there?” I ask her. “I heard they’re having music outside too.”
“Mmm, that sounds like fun,” she agrees. “Possibility of food on this little trip?”
Giving the ocean one last lingering look, she turns with me to walk back up to the parking lot. She’s right, it really is gorgeous. In a few days, I plan to run the beach with her. It’s actually more difficult to run on the sand, so tomorrow we are going to begin running in the little neighborhood where our rental is located.
Day by day, she’s getting stronger. Rachelle isn’t a quitter, and neither am I. I’m terrified of what the future holds, knowing the Kings Society has very stringent standards for the lifespan of their bets.
Getting the guys to care about her backfired. Maybe I need to start working just on Ignacio instead. Though, I wouldn’t blame Rachelle if she wants to stab him the next time she sees him. I’ll even provide the knife.
* * *
JARED
Sleep hasn’t come easily the last few days. I keep dreaming that we killed Rachelle and that Calvin actually shed tears for a girl who did one nice thing for him once at her funeral. How dare he, when he practically raised me?
Rachelle has been on this trip with Lili for the last four days, and the guys and I have all been twitchy as fuck. I don’t know how badly she was hurt. I need to know what we did.
It seems sadistic to need this, however, the gnawing guilt inside of me is imagining wild things. If she can fuck off on a trip with her girlfriend, then she’s totally fine, right? Are the words we wrote still on her skin?
I can only imagine the looks she must be getting with the word “fail” across her forehead.
Ignacio is sleeping in my pool house for now, because Rachelle’s mother is still on a rampage. I can understand why, if I had a kid this was happening to, I would probably be very upset as well. That’s the issue with our world, you never know when you’ll be marked for a game, a plaything for someone who is bigger than you are.
It’s why my friends and I are Kings and untouchable.
“Wake up, asshole,” a voice snarls, shaking me. His large hand covers my mouth as his legs pin my thighs underneath my comforter as I try to fight him off. “Good, I’m glad you’re still just as much of a badass as when we first chose you as Kings. Don’t pussy out. We need to talk.”
His hands are removed as I sit up with a gasp, the room dark as night still.
Magnus Rothschild moves so he’s sitting on the bed instead of my body. I can see the outlines of his form, recognize his voice. He was one of the Kings who kidnapped us the summer before our freshman year to explain the tenets of the Kings Society.
It was stupid not to think I’d see any of them again now that we’ve chosen a bet. I texted one of them to submit Rachelle’s name, and that was the end of it. Feels anticlimactic in the grand scheme of things.
It’s efficient, though. I didn’t have to deal with whatever shit this is.
“What are we talking about at oh God why-thirty in the morning?” I ask, yawning wide.
To be honest, it could be any time today, and my sleep would still be fucked up. My nightmares and karma have been running rampant through my head.
“Very funny,” Magnus mutters. “Tell me what happened in the woods? Emil Reyes is speaking to the King Society, demanding that his daughter’s name be removed from being a bet. How the fuck did that happen?”
“He adopted Rachelle,” I explain, reaching for the water bottle I always keep by my bed. Opening it, I take a long sip before continuing. “I think he partly did it so that he could offer his protection to her, but none of us knew that when we chose her.”
“What was your reason for choosing her?” Magnus asks.
“She doesn’t belong in our world,” I say simply. “Rachelle is trailer trash, a cockroach under our shoe especially. Her seventeenth birthday happened recently, so we tagged along with her and Lili. They are dating.”
“The Cruzes aren’t really a family who rolls over either,” Magnus mutters. “Tell me everything. The society is worried you may not be able to complete your bet, and we know everything that’s on the line for you all.”
Something tells me he already knows what we’ve been doing to Rachelle, even if not the specifics of what we did in the woods. As for what’s on the line for us, I’m almost certain they even know the Fletchers are sex traffickers for hire.
We were chosen because we have so much to lose.
I still run through everything that’s happened over the last few months, ending with how we almost killed Rachelle in the woods and Emil Reyes’ reaction.
“I see,” Magnus sighs as I finish up. “You are being very aggressive in your work, which I generally don’t mind since you chose her at the end of sophomore year. The issue is, there’s only so much you can continue to do before you kill her or force her to do the job herself. It’s clear the girl isn’t stable.”
“She’s been in and out of facilities,” I admit. “Theo did a full background check on her life, but we are constantly uncovering new information about her.”
“People have many layers,” he says. “It’s impossible to learn everything from a computer screen, which is why many of us would befriend our bets before ruining their lives.”
Well, that ship has sailed.
“It’s a little late to be her friend,” I admit. “Sometimes, sex will loosen someone’s lips by forcing them to catch feelings. I’m unsure if that’ll work either.”
“What is Ignacio’s relationship with his stepsister?” he asks. “They’ve been living together for months, he kept her from jumping once from the terrace. Any chance he can get closer to her?”
“He’s not currently allowed in his own home due to the woods incident,” I mutter. “He’s sleeping in my pool house for now. The little mouse’s mother slapped Nacio the moment she saw him.”
“Little Mouse, cute,” Magnus says with a smirk. Leaning over, he turns on a lamp on the table, the shadows making him appear even larger and more cruel. I don’t know how he was ever able to get his bet to trust him.
They killed her after kidnapping her from her bed, blindfolding and tying her arms behind her back before telling her to run. She understandably couldn’t go far. They lied and said it would all end if she let them fuck her.
Finally, the bet agreed after being pushed to the ground over and over and told to get up and run. Metal music echoed through the trees of Magnus’ grandparents’ estate further up the mountains. They didn’t even take her very far.
Once they’d all used her over and over, they pulled the blindfold off and told her to make sure to scream for them. They tossed her over the cliff’s edge, ensuring no one found her. Marigold Uair’s disappearance was closed after a month, her parents deciding that she must have run away.
There was also a boy she was secretly seeing, one of the past Kings, and pictures of them were taken. They were found on her phone in compromising positions. It was easier for her parents to pretend she ran away than push the issue. It was open and shut, with only the Kings Society knowing what happened.
The way the Uairs behaved is what rich parents are supposed to do. It’s why it’s so frustrating Mr. Reyes is refusing to do the same.
“The Kings Society has decided to allow you to move up your timeline, in fact, we are insisting that you do,” Magnus says. “October thirty-first is when you must complete your work.”
“That’s soon,” I murmur, thinking about it. “We can do that, and it’ll keep us from keeping her from killing herself because we’ll be busy doing it for her.”
“Exactly,” he agrees. “Don’t fuck it up. Everything you need is within your grasp. Things are getting harder to control, but we’re going to replace Mrs. Hartwell with a King. He’s nearing retirement, and doesn’t mind a quieter role while he straightens out some of the bullshit that’s been occurring at the school.”
“Good, Mrs. Hartwell isn’t very effective,” I say. “She only refused to overturn Rachelle’s grades because she could tell there was something bigger than her pay grade happening.”
“Agreed. The road is paved with everything you need,” he says. “I may work on a way to get Emil Reyes out of the picture. Not permanently, just make him a very busy man in his occupation.”
Holding back a wince, I realize that means there will be some mafia shit going down soon. Hopefully, Ignacio won’t get tied up in that. I can’t voice any of my thoughts, because it’ll seem ungrateful. They’re doing us a solid to help us.
However that ends up manifesting itself, will have to be enough.
“Thank you,” I say. “This will be a great help.”
Nodding, he gets up.
“Seriously, we’re all pulling for you. Don’t fuck it up,” he says, moving over to push open the window to my room.
Ironically, I sleep on the first floor of the mansion, so he simply hops out of my room and walks away. Dropping onto my pillows, I think about how exactly we’re going to accomplish killing Rachelle Reyes.
* * *
RACHELLE
“Pick up the pace, Reyes!” Lili calls out like a drill sergeant, smirking as we run along the sand on the beach.
We’ve been here almost a week, and while it’s very different from Florida, it’s done me a world of good to be away. I’ve used the burner phone to check in occasionally with my mom and Emil, but I’ve largely just spent the time enjoying myself.
Even though I hate running. The way the air feels like sandpaper as I struggle to breathe, my lead filled legs as I yell at them in my head to keep moving, all of it. However, it’s necessary. I need to have stamina to run when it counts.
So I force myself to move my legs faster, my lungs to inhale air, and I pick up the damn pace. Three miles is the goal. My girlfriend is insane and has decided to increase every day by half a mile. There’s no plateau or easy day.
It’s all hard.
After this, when my legs feel like jelly and I collapse onto the sand with a fake sob, we’re going swimming in the pool in our Airbnb to strengthen my skills. Floating, treading water, and swimming.
Did I say this was a stress free vacation? Maybe I lied a little bit. I’m with Lili, though, so none of it matters.
“Drama queen,” Lili teases me, holding out her hand to help me up from where I’m sprawled out on the cool sand.
It feels good on my body, even though I’m still wearing long sleeves and leggings. The words are slowly fading away, and everyday, she and I attack my skin with cotton balls soaked in acetone. It sucks that I’m so sensitive, turning red and angry quickly.
Who the fuck uses permanent marker? To be frank, if they'd had access to a tattoo gun, there’s no doubt in my mind they would have used it on my skin.
“I really am,” I groan, flopping onto my back to grab her hand to pull myself up. “Swimming now?”
“You know it,” she says with a nod.
I think I’m dreading the swimsuit more than the actual water at this point as we walk back to our rental. The slow walk and sips of water help as the blood thunders in my ears. I didn’t die on this run, so maybe the trend will continue.
I know my thoughts are morbid, but the last few days have changed me. It’s hard to find many reasons to be lighthearted. Time with Lili helps, it’s simply not a cure all. I didn’t expect it to be, either, I just feel much older than my seventeen years.
This town is idyllic and beautiful. I love how close we are to the beach. My legs still feel like lead, but I’m slowly beginning to feel better with each step.
“What are the health benefits of running again?” I ask. “I heard it was supposed to make you happy.”
Grinning, Lili shrugs. “The endorphin release is what makes people feel happy, yes. I gather you haven’t experienced it yet?” she teases me.
“Nope, I want a refund on my sweat,” I announce, enjoying her laughter.
I live for her happiness, even when mine feels a little out of reach. There are moments where I feel it, but my brain enjoys lying to me, so it never seems to last.
“I’ll make a snack first, then we’ll get in the water. It’s really just about trusting the water to hold you up in a pool. Later, the way your arms move and your legs kick will command the water to get the fuck out of your way so you can get from one point to the other,” she says. “It doesn’t have to be pretty initially, baby.”
“I just need to be able to do it,” I sigh. “I know having my hands tied didn’t do me any favors, but I can’t imagine that I’d be here at all if Jared decided to tie my arms behind my back.”
“He is a swimmer, Rachelle. Jared should have known better than to have tied you in any way that would have kept you from properly swimming,” she growls. “I’m so fucking disappointed in them all. Especially Ignacio.”
The thought of him makes my chest hurt. Sometimes, there were moments where he seemed nice and protective, but they were lies. The things he said to me, wrote on my body, none of those are things you do to someone you care about.
Our rental is adorable, a little house with a pool, lots of plants, and a swing in the backyard. I love everything about it. My stepfather did an amazing job choosing it. Lili opens the front door while I walk through the house to change.
It’s going to take me a second to get in the mindset to bare my skin as well.
“Rachelle, I think we should try baby oil on your skin next after the pool,” Lili calls after me.
“I’m going to need more context, baby,” I say, a laugh finally bubbling out.
“It’s supposed to help with the permanent marker,” she says, laughing with me. “First of all, baby oil is absolutely not lube!”
Shaking my head, I pull my shirt over my head, sighing as I look at how one quarter of my skin is still covered in permanent marker. Lili has tried rubbing alcohol, makeup remover, and acetone in the last week. While it’s helped, the evidence of our time in the woods is still prominent on my skin.
I’d like to wear something pretty to go out to dinner with her, but instead I’ve been making excuses to stay in and cook with her. We’ve hit up some cool summer festivals too, which has all been fun.
I’m not comfortable wearing something outside of here that shows off the nasty shit written on my skin. It would bring too much attention and pity. I don’t want that.
Toeing off my shoes, pulling down my leggings, I can’t help but hiss at the words I reveal.
They’re not true. They don’t know you.
Over and over, I say the mantra in my head as I undress, though my fingers move over my hip where the word “weak” was written before. Thankfully, Lili was able to get that off yesterday. I’m reclaiming my body. It’s mine, the words other people put on me don’t define me.
Even if they are difficult to look at.
Taking a breath, I stand in front of the mirror, gazing at my cute, short hair in a bright scrunchie, to my skin with its patchwork marker art. I gaze at it for as long as I can stand before turning away, only to find Lili at the door watching me.
“You’re beautiful,” she says, making me blink my eyes rapidly.
“I was trying really hard not to cry,” I whisper.
“I didn’t mean to make you cry with the truth,” she says, smiling gently at me as I grab my bathing suit.
“I know, I just really hate that this is still on here,” I mutter.
Pulling off her clothes to put on her own suit, she shrugs.
“They’re ugly words on a beautiful body that belongs to a person with a gorgeous soul,” Lili emphasizes.
Moving to the mirror, she fixes her boobs in her top, making me smirk. She’s the beautiful one, fierce too.
“Let’s eat and then make that swimming pool our bitch,” she says, smirking.
Every small success is still a success.
“Let’s,” I agree, walking out of the room.
I’m not a victim just because bad things have happened to me.
* * *
I’m dreaming, but it feels too good to be a dream. Whimpering, I writhe as someone licks my clit like an ice cream before sucking on it. I don’t feel uncomfortable or unsafe, I’m warm and feel really good.
My core is tight, my pussy is clamping down on fingers slowing fucking me, and I’m starting to wake up.
“Are you going to be asleep when you come on my face, sweet girl?” Lili asks, making me huff out something that sounds between a whimper and a laugh.
My fingers twist the sheets as I gasp next, opening my eyes to find Lili between my thighs, her caramel eyes sparkling. Pushing my thigh up to the side before she pins it down, she goes back to licking, sucking, and rubbing as she eats me out. It doesn’t bother me to be pinned down by her, and I’ve come a long way since being woken up by someone like this would usually be a trigger for me.
Lili mentioned a week ago that she’d like to do this and I agreed, but that doesn’t mean I couldn’t have freaked out on her. This was a gamble, but, oh God, one that feels incredible.
“Lili,” I moan, my pussy clamping on her fingers, greedy for more. “Please.”
“You’re in control,” she murmurs. “Come for me.”
A little more coaxing has my toes curling as I silently cry out, shuddering through my release. Breathing hard, I smile as Lili crawls up my body to lay beside me. I slept in a pair of panties and a long sleeved shirt last night, not wanting to wear pants. I’m taking full advantage of knowing no one will be walking in or knocking.
It’s just us here.
“Was that okay?” she asks. “I know fantasy and reality are very different things…”
“No trigger, and it felt really good,” I whisper, turning to face her. “I didn’t once feel panicked, either.”
“Good,” she says with a happy sigh. “It’s our last day here. Can you believe a week and half passed so quickly?”
It’s really difficult to believe, actually. The permanent marker is finally off my skin, and I can thank the baby oil for that. Not only does my skin feel super moisturized, I feel like myself again.
“Are you going to make me run today?” I tease her.
Lili has been having me run every day, which feels excessive, but there’s been a purpose to it. We run to breakfast, the beach, or once to the movies. Having a destination helps me keep my legs moving, and it’s improving my pacing as well. For example, I no longer sound as if I’m dying from oxygen deprivation.
“No, I think we’ll take a break today,” she says. “I do think we should meet before school every day to run, though. Maybe two times a week we can go to the pool at the country club? I can reserve it for an hour.”
“I clearly haven’t seen very much of Portland yet,” I tell her.
“Junior year will be busy, but not like last year,” she promises. “The new people will still be in place, I’ll open the Newspaper Club to replace those who graduated. This way, I’m no longer the gopher. I want to take you out to football games, on dates, show you more of Portland.”
“I’d love that,” I admit. “Here’s to hoping junior year brings better things.”
A knock on the door of our rental makes me jump, glancing at Lili.
“I got it,” she says. “Your dad asked me to bring my knives and a gun. Get dressed and we’ll go to breakfast.”
Getting up, she walks out in her adorable shorts and top, but not before pulling a gun from her backpack and a magazine clip which she smoothly slides in. I swear, I’m dating Mafia Combat Barbie.
Sighing, I stand up and walk to my bag to change, since my panties are now lost somewhere in the sheets. Dressing in a cute sundress now that I finally feel comfortable enough to do so, I walk to the door where I hear Lili arguing with someone.
“Lili, I’m sorry!” Ignacio yells, stopping my feet in their tracks.
“No,” I whisper, drawing my girlfriend’s attention.
Still watching Ignacio with a gun drawn on him, she shakes her head.
“Come here, Rachelle. There’s a stun gun hidden in that front hall table if you want it,” she says.
Moving closer, I open the drawer slower to find that she’s telling the truth. Lili hasn’t ever lied to me that I know of. Lifting the weapon in faint amusement, I walk over to see Ignacio standing on our cute front porch. He looks really out of place there.
“You’re not supposed to be here,” I say, my voice raspy and ruined.
I’m holding onto tendrils of myself right now. My anxiety is spiking hard, and my voice is the first place right now that it’s showing. I didn’t expect to see him.
Fuck, it’s really throwing me.
“Rachelle,” he says, his gray eyes moving over every inch of me. It’s as if he’s surprised to see me.
Or maybe he didn’t believe Emil when he said I was alive. It’s too bad the shotgun didn’t blow his foot off. Yes, my stepfather made sure to tell me all about that encounter.
“How did you find us?” I ask him.
“You love the beach,” he says. “I got in the car and started driving. My father has left me forty-five voice messages. I haven’t listened to a single one.”
“My car,” Lili says, shaking her head.
Ugh, we should have driven something much less recognizable. We suck at this disappearing thing.
“That’s how I found you,” he says with a nod. “It took three days, though.”
“Why was this so important to you?” I ask. “I just needed space from the Kings.”
“I’m not here as a King,” he says, swallowing hard. “Every time I close my eyes, I dream that you’re dead, Rachelle. Cold, blue lips, and never coming back.”
“Isn’t that the eventual point? I’m marked to die, you miserable asshole,” I say, my fingers holding onto the stun gun so tightly the tips turn white. “Why does it matter if it’s now or later?”
“I don’t want you to die,” he says, blowing out a breath. “I don’t want to do this bullshit with the Kings, either. I’m just in a really bad spot.”
“Fucker,” Lili snarls. “You’re not the one in the bad spot, she is!”
“If we do this, the Kings get the guys out of all of their responsibilities,” he says.
“I still don’t see the appeal,” I say. “Boohoo, poor little rich boys don’t want to do what their parents want them to do.”
“Elijah’s parents are sex traffickers,” Ignacio whispers, the tone so low, I have to lean forward.
“They’re… no,” I say, shaking my head.
“Don’t they run a shipping container company?” Lili asks before paling. “Well fuck a duck. That works perfectly. Poor Elijah.”
“He can’t just say no?” I ask.
We really shouldn’t be having this conversation like this, but I don't want to allow him inside yet or ever.
“Elijah was kidnapped this summer by his parents,” he says. “He’s still pretty fucked up about it. We, ah, planned to mess with you on your birthday to make him feel better.”
I swear I blacked out. I don’t remember turning on the stun gun, walking over to him, and frying his nuts. It just happened. Nor do I remember shoving it into his neck when he drops to his knees screaming.
“Rachelle, come on. We don’t need the cops called on us,” Lili reminds me, forcing me to step back and hide the stun gun behind my back.
“Fine,” I mutter, glaring at Ignacio who is twitching on the ground, sprawled out.
“Goddamn, little sister, why is my cock so hard right now?” he groans.
Heat rushes to my cheeks at his words, because I can see the entire outline of his cock in his gray sweatpants as he pants for breath.
“You’re kind of fucked up,” Lili says, smirking. “You want to fuck your sister, don’t you?”
“Lili,” I hiss, eyes widening. “What are you doing?”
“I need to see something,” she mutters. “You have a thing for pain too, huh? Does that get you off?”
“If you’re asking if I’ve come yet, not quite,” he says. “I may have if she’d held it to my neck a little longer.”
“Ahm, I…”
“Speechless isn’t something I get the honor of making you, Rachelle,” he says. “Look, I deserve everything you want to throw at me. I really don’t know how to get the fuck out of this, except to do what I can to protect you.”
“That feels like a poor man’s apology,” I tell him. “No, thank you. Go away.”
“I’m going to have to agree with my girl here, Romeo,” Lili says, shrugging.
“Why are you answering the door in your pajamas?” Ignacio asks, grunting as he rolls onto his side.
“We’re just getting up,” she says. “I left Rachelle to get dressed while I answered the door. It’s that simple.”
“It’s not safe to open the door like that, even if you are armed,” he says, finally pushing himself to a sitting position.
“Fuck off,” she says, stepping back into the house. Following her in, I watch as she closes and locks the door. “I’ll get dressed and we can go out the back. We’ll just walk to breakfast. That’ll work as cardio.”
Smirking, I nod, putting the stun gun where I found it as I walk to the bedroom.
“I should have known you’d get some in somehow,” I say.
Lili puts the gun safely away before she dresses, and I watch while I put on my socks and shoes. She’s dressed in a cute saddle brown romper and tennis shoes, an outfit I would never think of wearing, but is perfect for her. Sliding past her, I use the restroom and brush my teeth, exchanging places with her once I’m done.
Idly brushing my hair, I walk through the house, freezing as I see Ignacio climbing in the window.
“Dude, what the fuck!” I yell, throwing my brush at him. It hits him in the forehead perfectly, making him curse under his breath as he climbs the rest of the way in.
“These locks suck,” he says. “I unlocked it way too quickly. I think I should stay the night here.”
“Over my dead body,” I seethe. “There’s no way otherwise. I’ll never sleep.”
“Don’t say over your dead body,” he says, blowing out a breath. “That’s what I’m trying to avoid. I can’t sleep without being in the same space as you.”
“I’m alive, you saw proof, I don’t want you bringing your little friends down here with you,” I say.
“They started practice for their respective sports, so they’re a little busy,” he mutters.
“Shouldn’t you be starting with them?” I ask. “I’m only asking so I have another reason to kick you out.”
“I start next week,” he says, closing the window behind me.
“ Aye, mas pendejadas, Ignacio?” Lili complains, walking in to join us. “Your lock picking abilities aren’t appreciated.”
“Liliana, you love my bullshit,” he says smugly. “The only reason you didn’t learn is because you weren’t hanging out with us that day.”
A look of nostalgia crosses over her features before they harden.
“Get out of the house,” she says, grabbing her purse. “Rachelle and I are leaving, which means you’re going back to Portland. Vete al carajo, Nacio.”
“It’s very warm in hell,” he says. “I’ll pass on that. Where are we going?”
“Nowhere with you,” I tell him, ushering him out the door.
The only reason I’m able to is because he comes willingly. He’s too damn stubborn and large to be manhandled by me. Lili locks the door, and we attempt to leave him on the porch as we begin walking, only to have him dog our steps.
“If we yell at him, I feel like it’ll be worse than having him follow us like a stray dog, right?” Lili asks.
“Does that mean we can drop him off at the pound?” I grumble.
What is it with the Kings crashing my dates?!