Chapter 21 – ELLIE #3
The SUV comes into view, sleek and black and expensive enough to make me wonder how much blood money it took to buy it. Cyrus opens the back door with his free hand, never loosening his grip on my neck.
"In."
I climb into the back seat, and Jinx slides in beside me before I can protest. Cyrus takes the driver's seat, adjusting the rearview mirror so he can watch us. I get the feeling he's keeping as close of an eye on Jinx as he is me at this point.
"Seatbelt," he orders, starting the engine.
Jinx reaches past me before I can comply, and the heat of his hands brushing over my body reignites that spark in my core.
He gives me a devastating wink before he buckles his own seatbelt and settles unnecessarily close so his thigh is pressed against mine.
The car smells like leather and Cyrus's cologne as well as his.
More proof they spend most of their time together.
A part of me wants to just come out and ask, but what would I even say? "So, are you guys fucking now?"
We pull away from the curb, and I watch the ice cream shop disappear in the side mirror.
So much for my great escape.
"That was stupid," Cyrus says. His eyes are on the road, but I can still feel his attention on me. "Monumentally stupid."
"Running or getting caught?" I ask, going for flippant but sounding defensive.
"Both." He takes a turn that leads back toward the house. "You think we wouldn't have cameras? Tracking on your phone? That we'd just let you wander around unsupervised?"
I sigh. Knew it. "You watched me climb out the window."
"Watched you, timed you, placed bets on how far you'd get." His smirk in the rearview mirror is vicious. "I won, by the way. Jinx thought you'd make it to the other coffee shop down the road before losing your nerve."
"I didn't lose my nerve," I snort. "I got ice cream."
And now I know they're watching me. Now I know the level of their security and that it's not just a bluff.
That's a victory, even if it's a small one.
"You got caught," Jinx corrects, his hand landing on my thigh. The touch is casual, possessive, and it makes my breath hitch. "Big difference."
"Speaking of caught..." Cyrus's eyes flick to where Jinx's hand rests on my leg. "Want to explain what I walked up on back there?"
Jinx's grin turns downright sinful. "Princess wanted to play chase. I obliged."
"That's not what it looked like."
"What did it look like?" I ask, the desire to be a smartass winning out over self-preservation.
The look Cyrus gives me in the mirror could melt steel. "It looked like Jinx was about thirty seconds away from fucking you into the forest floor."
Heat floods my face, but I force myself to hold his gaze. "And?"
"And," he says, drawing out the word, "Kade's going to lose his shit if anyone touches you before he does. You know how he gets about firsts."
A dry laugh escapes me. "Kade's a little late. I'm not a virgin."
The confession is out before I can stop it, and both of them go still.
Jinx's hand tightens on my thigh.
Cyrus's knuckles go white on the steering wheel.
"Since when?" Jinx's voice is neutral, but I can hear the edge underneath. He may look and act like a golden retriever, but that glint in his eyes is the look of a rabid junkyard dog about to go for someone's throat.
"Does it matter?"
"Yeah, actually." Cyrus pulls into the driveway and kills the engine, turning to face me fully. "It matters a lot. Who?"
The possessiveness in the question makes my thighs squeeze together. "Some guy at a party freshman year. It was..." I shrug, trying to look casual. "Forgettable."
"Name," Jinx demands.
"Why?"
"Because I want to know who touched what's ours first."
Ours. The word wraps around me like chains covered in velvet.
"Taylor something," I admit, because lying feels pointless. "Lacrosse player. We were both drunk. It happened once, and it was terrible."
"Taylor, huh?" Jinx asks pointedly.
I glare daggers at him and shove my thigh against his to make him move. Or try to, at any rate. "It was a fucking coincidence. Don't let it go to your head."
He smirks at me like he doesn't believe me.
"Taylor Matthews?" Cyrus's eyes narrow behind his glasses. "Trust fund Taylor with the Beamer?"
I blink in disbelief because until this moment, I'd legitimately forgotten his last name. And I've never even paid attention to what kind of car he drives. We run into each other at parties and he's friends with Heather, which makes group hangouts kind of awkward, but that's about it.
"How the fuck did you know that?" I demand. "You're stalking my friends now?"
"We wouldn't be very good stalkers if we only stalked you, would we?" Jinx challenges.
Psycho logic. Complete psycho logic, and admittedly hard to argue with.
"Taylor fucking Matthews," Cyrus mutters to himself, shifting gears like he's imagining ripping Taylor's dick off. I'm not sure if the possessiveness is terrifying or hot.
Maybe both.
Jinx leans closer, his breath warm against my ear. "Did he make you come, Princess?"
The question freezes me. "That's—"
"Did. He. Make. You. Come." Each word is enunciated carefully, and his hand slides higher up my thigh.
"No," I whisper.
"Good." Jinx's smile is sharp enough to cut. "That means we get all your firsts that actually matter."
I bite my lip because for once, I don't have a comeback. Jinx leans back in his seat, that subtle smirk still visible on his perfect profile.
Fuck me, this is going to be the longest year of my life.