Chapter 34
“AN UNHEALTHY OBSESSION” BY THE BLAKE ROBINSON SYNTHETIC ORCHESTRA
The air between us was intoxicating.
I’d never been a romantic, never even been one to chase girls. This was different territory for me, but I was ready to claim it with pride.
When I initiated into the mob, I gave my blood oath to protect my brothers, sisters, and family of the Harrekson constellation. I never enjoyed being a member of the mob before training, and that hadn’t changed, but I liked my grandfather being proud of me.
Plus, it would be him who could convince the world to leave Estelle alone. If this was my only way to free myself and my daughter from these chains, then I had to act. I had to take this chance.
It always meant I would have to put an end to this flame burning inside me.
When I looked at her, it was hard to notice the way she made me feel until I was in deep conversation.
There weren’t many times I found myself tracing the curve of someone’s cheek or resisting the urge to fix their hair when it fell in front of their eyes.
Sometimes, I couldn’t resist.
Quinntessa flinched and looked up as my fingers brushed her ear. Her response made me feel sick to my stomach, anger vibrating through my veins.
“Your hair.” I swallowed. “You can’t read with your hair in your face.”
“Thanks.” She blushed.
I took the chance to admire her freckles as she returned to tracing each line of her book with her eyes. She slouched against the bookshelf behind us and licked her lips.
We’d been here in the back of the multiple aisles for twenty minutes. The bell could ring at any moment to signal class change. She continued to read without any worries, her arm brushing against mine each time she turned a page.
We were in a comfortable silence. Quinntessa read, and I watched the end of the aisles for anyone who might see me with her. Not that I was that worried about being seen. I was more worried about what I felt.
I watched the clock on my phone click by. Sometimes, I’d check the time three times a minute, not wanting it to fly by so quickly but hoping I knew enough about my time left to take advantage of sneaking glances her way.
Eventually, Quinntessa’s eyes flickered up the same time I turned my head.
“You don’t have to stay,” she whispered, giving me a weak smile. Her eyes fell to my phone then returned to me. “If you have somewhere to be. It’s okay. I get it.”
“Tell me.” I leaned back against the bookshelf and drummed my fingers on my knee. “Why the glitter? You’re like a fucking disco ball.”
Quinntessa blushed and shrugged her shoulders, using her finger to hold her place in her book. She looked down and opened her mouth a few times to answer before finally meeting my gaze again.
“It’s like a billion little stars.” She tilted her head and observed my reaction.
“Do you like stars?” I asked, my mouth dry.
“I think they’re beautiful,” Quinntessa told me, our eyes stuck together. “I’ve always wondered . . . Well, as a kid, I always wondered how the people who go to space return. I bet it’s beautiful there.”
“In space?” I leaned a little closer and spied the golden stars in her eyes.
She exhaled, her breath hitting my face and reminding me of cherry lollipops. “In space.”
My hand slid across the carpet behind her back so I could be closer to her. Quinntessa’s eyes dropped to my lips, then up to my eyes.
The space between us inched smaller and smaller. I was sure if I blinked, my lips would be on hers. Her lashes fluttered, and I licked the rings threaded through my bottom lip.
Did I want this? I had seconds to decide.
If I kissed her, could I still hold the gun to her head?
I imagined there was something holding me back from taking what I wanted.
The issue was, I didn’t understand if I wanted to kill her or ravish her.
She was rare. She’s the music in my haunting silence.
A girl who made me hear songs in my head and had me smiling at every Mustang model that passed through town.
A girl who made me think about football plays and Disney movies with happy endings.
She wasn’t a diamond. Quinntessa Dawson was much more valuable than that. A girl of grace and charm. A woman who didn’t understand her worth.
She had to die.
I had to kill her.
There wasn’t a thing holding me back from taking her life . . . from taking what I wanted.
My head tilted, and I leaned in, unable to hold back from kissing her a moment longer.
Quinntessa jumped away from me as the bell blared. Her chest heaved, up and down, at an alarming rate.
I sucked my teeth and looked away from her, finding an undeniable flare blazing within me. She was right there. I was so close. I almost had her lips against mine, if I would have just acted and stopped being such a damn?—
“Thank you.”
I hugged my knees and looked up to see Quinntessa’s bright red face. My disappointment swam through me, but I managed a smile as her eyes sparkled.
“For sitting with me, and for this morning.”
“This morning?” I arched a brow.
She bobbed her head and loosely chuckled.
“Duke’s a jerk to me. I usually just let him get it out so he’ll get bored eventually. No one but my dad has ever stuck up for me like you,” she explained.
“No man gets bored going after a beautiful woman.” I smirked when Quinntessa looked away, biting back a smile. “If he bothers you again, let me know. I’ll break his arm.”
“Wow, thanks.” She took a step back and motioned behind her, a silly laugh escaping her. “Class.”
“Right.” I forced a smile against the sinking feeling in my stomach. “See you around, Sally.”
“Bye, Quincy.” Quinntessa returned my smile, her tone close to singing my name.
With an exhale, I melted at the sound of my name coming from Miss Sweet Face. She turned on her toes and walked off, hovering a few steps on the tips of her shoes with a slight pep to her step.
I slumped back against the bookshelf as she turned the corner and rubbed my face.
“Damn it,” I hissed, pressing my fingers into my eyes and clenching my teeth. “Damn it.”