Chapter 62
He’s going to be disappointed.
I wipe my mouth with the back of my hand and step away, already over it. Already moving on.
Someone lets out a low whistle. A few scattered cheers rise up, but the energy is different now. Uneasy.
I glance at Becca. She’s trying to hide how pleased she is, but it‘ s all over her face.
Liam still hasn’t said a word.
Irisk a glance in his direction.
His expression is unreadable, but his jaw is tight. His hand flexes once at his side before he reaches for his drink. Casual. Relaxed. Like nothing’s wrong.
But there’s a new tension in the air, one that wasn’t there before.
I know because I feel it too.
“Well,” Becca says, breaking the silence. “That was fun.”
I arch a brow. “Was it?”
She just grins. “More fun for some than others, I suppose.”
I don’t bother responding. My job here is done.
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Zane is still watching me, but I don’t look at him again.
I don’t need to.
I’ve already moved on.
LIAM
—
The party roars on behind me music thumping, glasses clinking, someone belting out an off–key rendition of some early 2000s pop hit.
I don’t turn. I don’t care.
The ocean stretches endlessly before me, dark and shifting, waves rolling in and out as if they have all the time in the world. As if they didn’t just witness Emilia press her tongue to Zane’s skin.
My grip tightens around my glass.
It was a game. Just a stupid drinking game.
And yet my jaw is clenched,/my pulse thrumming.
I tell myself it’s nothing. A moment that will be forgotten by morning, buried under rounds of tequila and poor decisions.
But the thought still lingers – if it was just a game, why did she look away so quickly afterward?
I can still feel the heat of Emilia’s body beneath my hands. Remember every shiver a flick from my tongue pulled out of her.
Then images of her hands on Zane’s chest, her tongue against his skin.
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The way he looked at me with that look of disbelief mixed with
smugness.
I could read his mind at that very moment. He couldn’t understand how the girl he left behind could be chosen by someone else. But he was glad to have her on him, like he could still control her again.
I take in a deep breath and rein in my irritation.
What a fucktard.
I wonder what mental facility Emilia was shoved in to believe that guy was someone who could treat her right.
She deserves so much better than whatever comes with Zane.
Footsteps approach, light and familiar. I don’t even turn when she steps up beside me – I knew she would.
Emilia leans against the rail, the night breeze teasing strands of curly hair across her face. She smells like tequila and citrus and something warmer, something uniquely her.
I don’t speak. Neither does she.
She shifts beside me, like she’s searching for the right words.
But I don’t want to hear anything about how she can’t move on from him or how the body shots messed with her head so I beat her to it. “Had fun?”
She gives me an odd look. It’s obvious she’s more than just a little tipsy if all the tequila she’s been throwing back is any indication. “Yeah. I did karaoke with Tonia and a few of those tech bros. They’re actually cool. You should’ve come.”
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My lips curl, but it’s not quite a smile. “Must’ve missed the invitation.”
I say the words absentmindedly, but bitterness that takes me aback slips in.
There’s a beat of silence. Then – her smile falters.
Damn it.
—
It pisses me off more than it should.
She’s too pretty to be looking at me like that. Like I’ve ruined something. Like I matter enough to ruin anything.
“You’re acting weird,” she mutters, tilting her head.
Her tone is casual, but it grates. That easy indifference. That clueless look. Like she doesn’t know what she does to me. “What?” I bite out. “You looked like you were enjoying yourself. Didn’t seem like you needed me around.”
Her head whips toward me, eyes narrowing. “Oh, so that’s what this is about.”
I raise a brow. “What are you talking about?”
She shakes her head, a bitter laugh slipping out. “You know, for someone who claims not to care, you’re acting pretty –”
She stops herself.
But it’s too late.
I watch her, my smirk still in place, even as something coils tight in my chest.
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“Pretty what?” I press.
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She doesn’t finish the sentence. Just stares at me like she’s
trying to read something on my face.
“You have nothing to say now?” I muse.
Chapter 63
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Chapter 63
