CHAPTER NINETEEN
ATHENA
“You’ve got to be kidding me.” Standing over him next to the couch with my arms crossed, I stared down at Damon. “You need to leave. I am beyond finished with this night and with you.”
He rolled his eyes before picking up the TV remote from the coffee table. “Yeah, yeah, I’ve heard that one before. Sing me a new one some time. You have Netflix, right?”
He turned on the TV, searching through the apps section with the menu guide. I gaped at him in disbelief. This man really had some nerve. Although I knew that already.
“So you’re staying?” I awkwardly shifted from foot to foot. Clearly, he seemed to be making himself at home.
“Looks like it.” Damon partially sat up, patting the couch next to him. “Come. Sit. I’m starved. What do you feel like eating?”
Pulling his phone from his pocket, he turned it on and started surfing through a delivery app.
There was a change to his vibe, like he was more relaxed than usual.
I studied him with curiosity and a little disdain.
When he continued to pat the cushion next to him, I let out an annoyed huff and grudgingly sat down.
“I suppose I could go for Chinese,” I muttered, snatching the TV remote from his grasp.
He nodded, still staring down at his phone. “Sounds good to me. What do you want?”
Since when did we hang out together on the couch and share a meal?
This whole scenario felt completely out of character for Damon.
Maybe it wasn’t. Maybe I just really didn’t know him that well and this was a side of him I’d never seen before.
A more relaxed, normal side. If a guy like Damon could ever be considered normal.
We placed our meal order with Damon covering the bill. Even though I offered to pay for my share, he waved me off. “It’s cool. I’ve got this. Should be here in about half an hour.”
Great. Half an hour of awkwardness to sit through. I sat stiffly, perched on the edge of the couch, unable to relax. Damon had no such problems. He plucked the remote from my hand, settling back against the couch cushions as he opened the Netflix app and began to scroll.
“What do you want to watch? Looks like you’ve been watching a lot of K-dramas. Interesting.” Damon paused to read the description of one particular show before moving on to another.
I stared at him in stunned silence before saying, “You really are crazy, huh? What makes you think we can simply sit here and watch a movie while eating Chinese food like it’s no big deal?”
“Because it is no big deal. Would you prefer that we do something else?” His gaze swung my way, his intent clear in the devious look he shot me.
“How can you sit there so unbothered? You dragged me out to a serious crime tonight. You were injured, Damon, and the cops are probably looking for you right now. Doesn’t any of that concern you?
Not to mention that you and I are not exactly friends.
” I had great difficulty understanding how he remained so calm at a time like this.
Tension held me tight in its grasp. I kept expecting the police to storm in any moment.
Damon turned to better face me, propping himself up with an elbow against the back of the couch.
He studied me for a moment. “Don’t tell me that you didn’t have fun tonight.
I’m not sure why you’re being so uptight now.
That’s not like you, Athena. You’re usually much more go with the flow from what I’ve observed. ”
Against my better judgment, I asked, “And how much observing me have you done?”
“Enough to know that I’m exactly what you need right now.
Stop fighting it. We make a good team. We did the job, enjoyed the rush, and now we can sit back and relax.
We’ve earned it.” He turned back to the TV, continuing to scroll through Netflix.
His next question surprised me. “What made you want to become a teacher anyway?”
Of all the things Damon had done so far, this had to be the most disturbing.
Sitting in my living room like he belonged here, asking me questions about my life.
Engaging in this conversation would change our dynamic.
Turning it into something more than the situation he’d forced upon me.
Answering his question would destroy the imaginary boundary line I’d created in my mind.
“When I was in eighth grade, I struggled with some of the material. Mostly math. I had this teacher, Mrs. Fontaine, she took the time to sit with me and understand where I was going wrong and why. She helped a lot.” I paused, not sure if I wanted to continue.
I forged on anyway. “When my dad died later that year, she was the one who noticed something was off with me. She hooked me up with the grief counselor, and even when I wasn’t in her class anymore, she always checked in with me.
I guess that’s why I wanted to be a teacher. ”
Telling Damon this deeply personal stuff about me felt uncomfortable but strangely good at the same time. Only Storm knew my entire history. The other girls knew bits and pieces. When I glanced over to find him watching me with this strange expression on his face, I had a moment of regret.
“Stop looking at me like that.” I gave him a shove, unable to budge his heavy frame.
“That’s pretty deep, cream puff. I can respect that.
” Damon’s expression softened into something calm and reflective.
“My dad died too, or at least that’s the story my mother stuck to.
I always had a feeling she lied. It doesn’t really matter though.
I never felt like I was missing anything growing up. ”
“Are you an only child too?” I asked, starting to relax.
Damon shook his head. “I have a younger sister, but we’re fourteen years apart. We don’t really have much of a relationship. She and my mom live with my mom’s husband in Vancouver. They moved there a few years ago when his job transferred him.”
I’d never had the sibling experience. The closest thing I’d had to siblings was when I became close with Storm.
Her brother Chase had been a real handful, accepting me into the family like I was his sister too.
Thinking about him made me sad. What happened to him was beyond horrific, and Damon was part of the group responsible for that.
A surge of anger hardened my tone when I snapped, “Storm and her brother were like siblings to me growing up. But you and your friends killed him. Cut his life short. Do you expect me to just forget about that?”
Damon appeared unaffected by my sudden outburst. Shoving a hand through his unruly black hair, he gave a half shrug. “I had nothing to do with that. River was behind all of it. He confessed to Rebel and he paid the price.”
“You were River’s friend.” My voice shook. How could I have possibly started to let my guard down with this man? He was a murderer. “You knew about it. You probably helped him. You are not a good guy, Damon. I will never forget who you really are.”
As I moved away from him on the couch, he moved toward me. Grabbing me by both arms so I couldn’t escape. I watched with horror as his pupils dilated dangerously.
Damon spoke between clenched teeth. “River killed Chase. River plotted the entire thing, hoping to pin it on Rebel. I had nothing to do with that situation. Yes I knew about it, but I wasn’t there, and I do not have Chase’s blood on my hands.
Do you think that I don’t know I’m a bad man?
Trust me, muffin, I know exactly who I am.
You don’t have a problem with that. You have a problem with the fact that you love it. ”
“You’re fucking delusional if you believe that,” I spat. The more I tried to escape his grasp the harder his fingers dug into my skin. “I don’t love anything about you. You’re a criminal. A killer. I could never—”
His lips were on mine before I finished, silencing the rest of my claim before I gave it life.
I’d been about to tell him that I could never love a man like him.
Something I continued to tell myself every day since he barged into my life.
There was no future with someone like Damon.
Only danger and the possibility of prison. Who wanted to live that way?
My entire body lit up as he devoured my mouth. Kissing me with an intensity I felt in every fiber of my being. Sending shockwaves of excitement into the pit of my stomach. The way he so masterfully took control, sliding his tongue between my lips, it left my head spinning.
I didn’t want to kiss him back. In fact, I tried to resist participating at all. I failed miserably. Once he slid a hand around my throat, I was done for.
Gripping hard enough to cut off my breath, Damon pulled back to murmur against my lips. “Be careful what you say, beautiful. You can’t lie to the devil himself. You should know better than that.”
We were interrupted by the arrival of our food. There was a tense moment where I sensed that Damon didn’t want to stop. That he wanted to push me further than he had before. Part of me wanted that too.
Reluctantly, he released me and pulled away. “To be continued.”