Total pages in book: 104
Estimated words: 102929 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 515(@200wpm)___ 412(@250wpm)___ 343(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 102929 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 515(@200wpm)___ 412(@250wpm)___ 343(@300wpm)
Tunneling my vision back to Kraven, I demanded, “How about next time you’re trigger-happy, you do it without her between us?”
With that, I stormed out of the house, slamming the door behind me, and jumped on my bike.
Isla ran after me, trying to stop me from backing out of the driveway.
“Julius, please…” she begged beside my bike, her voice trembling against the engine rumbling. “Please… just let me explain…”
God, I want to.
Every part of me wanted to listen to what she had to confess. However, I kept thinking Kraven might know it all already, and I couldn’t see straight with just imagining that, let alone it actually being true. I spent all these months being patient, thinking it’d be worth it, that it’d lead to something. Not wanting to force her, I needed it to come naturally from her. I’d hoped that, in the end, she’d turn to me, yet I was slapped in the face with it being the furthest thing from the truth.
He devoured what I was starving for and had her speaking in only twenty-four hours.
She trusted him in one fucking day.
I explained, “I can’t listen to you right now. If I do, I won’t hear a word you say. Just give me space.”
She frowned with tears in her eyes, gripping my arm. “But you’re my best friend.”
“Yeah…” I rasped with my bated breath.
* * *
“And that might be the problem.”
Chapter
Twenty-Five
Isla
I burst back into the house, roaring, “What the hell was that?”
Kraven was leaning against the sink, wiping the blood off his face.
“Bleeding over here and you’re riding my ass?”
I spat, “The only reason he hit you is because you baited him! What is up with you and baiting people to fight you?”
“Now I baited Justin?”
“You know what I mean.”
“Do you?”
“Ugh!” I exclaimed. “You’re impossible.”
“I’ve been called worse.”
“Enough!” I chimed in, my body tensing. “You had no right to treat him that way!”
“You don’t get to take sides when you don’t know both sides of the story, Kitty.”
“I know enough, and he sure as shit didn’t deserve any of that!” I jabbed my finger at him. “Especially from you!”
“What the fuck is that supposed to mean?”
“It means you’re so fucking lucky to have him!” I couldn’t stop the tears from forming in my eyes. “You have no idea how hard it is being on your own and not having anyone in this world give a shit about you! You have no idea what it’s like to have to fend for yourself! You are so damn lucky to have a big brother like him who cares about you so much that he’s willing to put all his own hopes and dreams aside for you to make yours! He’s only seventeen, and he treats you like you’re his son, you ungrateful asshole! You take everything he does for you for granted, and you don’t even realize how blessed you are to have him in your life!”
“I know what he’s doing, but it doesn’t give him the right to throw it in my face every chance he gets!”
“Why do you think he does that to begin with?”
“Oh, now this is all my fault?”
“Maybe before you start firing off at the mouth next time, look in the mirror first. It’ll show you why.”
He watched me with an inquisitive stare for a moment before he moved to grab the bag of peas out of the freezer to place on his lip, hissing upon contact.
“You need to rinse that cut with salt water to remove the bacteria.”
“You go from my lecturer to my doctor in a split second.”
“Yeah, don’t forget, nurse.” Reluctantly, I made my way to the sink and grabbed a clean cup.
Reaching for the salt next, Kraven beat me to it. He was hovering above me for a second, and the instant I realized how close he was, I backed away.
If my response hurt him, he didn’t show it one bit. He was back to being the boy with his guard up. Instead of beating a dead horse, I left and went into Julius’s room. Knowing there was no getting through to him anymore. He devoured what I was starving for.
I didn’t regret it.
Julius didn’t deserve any of it.
Starting with me…
Julius
By the time I walked back into the house, it was well past three in the morning the following night. The amount of Red Bull I drank to stay awake needed to be studied, though I managed to work and make a shit ton more money. I wasn’t ready to go back to that house and face all those demons that were adding up by the minute.
I quickly stepped inside, locking the door behind me. Isla wasn’t on the couch or on the back porch, but I did find small G.I. Joe figurines on the steps. I hesitated for a moment, like I always did when I unexpectedly found something out here.