“Now!” Deke shouts, making me jump.
Cole steps up to us, grabs Austin by the arm, and pulls her away from me. “Don’t you fucking hurt her, Deke!” she screams at Deke as Cole drags her out of the room. The front door slams shut moments later.
We stand in silence, facing one another with only a few feet separating us. He stands, shoulders pulled back, and he’s breathing heavily. He looks like a storm about to drown me before carrying me out to sea to never be found.
I swallow nervously. “I don’t know what he said …”
“Enough,” he says in a clipped voice.
“Deke, let me explain,” I growl, tired of this shit.
“How you played me?” He quirks a brow.
My jaw tightens. “This has nothing to do with you.”
“Bullshit!” he shouts.
I step into him. If I’m gonna go out, I’m gonna go out with some fucking balls. Men aren’t the only ones who can have them. “I did what …”
“Needed to be done.” He nods. “You said that before. And Seth obviously feels the same.”
I slam my fist in his hard chest. He doesn’t budge, but he grabs my wrist, and I whimper when he squeezes it tightly. “I never did anything to you against your will,” I shout, feeling the tears begin to burn my eyes. Once again, my sister wins. She fucked me over. I tried to do something to piss her off, and it burned me. I should have never let Deke touch me.
I hit him with my other fist, and he grabs that one too. I cry out when he holds them both captive. His long and strong fingers digging into my bony wrists.
He leans down, placing his face in front of mine, and whispers, “Two can play that game.”
“Deke … what …?”
“Seth told me that he helped you set me up. That first night I fucked you.”
My eyes widen. That sorry little bastard. I will out him. I will no longer keep his fucking secret.
“I’m guessing this is just another game you two are playing.” He spins around, drops my wrists and grips my neck, slamming my back into the wall by the TV. My vision blurs for a second from his force. When it clears, I see his murderous eyes stare into mine. “You asked me before if I wanted to hurt you.” He growls, tightening his hand.
I try to shove it away, but he’s too strong.
“The answer is that I want to fucking kill you, Demi. You’re a fucking pain in my ass. Your sister may be a fucking slut, but you are nothing to me. Do you understand that?” He shakes me and dots take over my vision. “Nothing.”
Panic sits in my bones as my body screams for a breath. To survive. I kick my feet, but all I hit is air. I slap at his face, but I don’t think he even feels it. My already bruised cheek throbs, and my head pounds. When that gets me nowhere, I scratch at his arm and try to shove his wrist away, but he’s just too strong. Tears run down my face, and he watches them as if fascinated. I’ve heard of the sharks and how ruthless they can be, but I’ve never seen one firsthand. Until now. He doesn’t care about me or my life. I’m a problem for him, and he’s going to make me go away. My lips move, but nothing comes out. I try to beg him to stop, but it’s pointless. My head pounds so hard it feels like it’s about to explode. I’m losing mobility, my body becomes heavy.
I reach out to the mantel below the TV and wrap my fingers around the first thing I feel, swinging it into the side of his head with as much force as I can manage.
“Fuck!” He lets go, stepping away from me, and I crumple to the floor.
I gasp for breath. My chest is tight, throat burns, and tears run down my face.
He stands before me, reaching up and wiping his fingers through the trail of blood that runs down the side of his gorgeous face.
I stay on my knees with my head bowed for a few seconds, trying to catch my breath. I don’t have much time before he comes at me again. I can’t swallow without it hurting and gasping for air. When I look up at him, I blink, allowing fresh tears to run down my face.
His blue eyes tell me he’s not done with me. That was just the beginning. I’m a toy he wants to play with. There’s a promise there that I will die, but not yet. Maybe he’ll make me beg first. Men prefer a girl on her knees.
He kneels in front of me, and I push back away from him, falling to my ass. I had dropped the object I had hit him with, so nothing is in my reach now. My back hits the wall again, and I whimper when he reaches out, pushing my hair behind my ear. His bloody fingers graze the bruise on my cheek from Seth, and I swallow a sob. My body shakes, and my heart pounds.
“It’s a shame, Demi.” He sighs as if he hates to do what he is about to do. As though he doesn’t have a choice to kill me or not. “You are very beautiful.” Then his soft blue eyes harden, and his pouty lips thin. “But …”
“I set you up.” My voice is rough, and the pain makes me flinch, but I need to explain it to him. My life depends on it. “We set you up,” I say honestly. It’s time to fill him in because there’s obviously bigger shit going on right now. And I need to know what it is. “I wanted you to fuck me to piss off Becky.”
He pulls away from me and stands. I look up at him through watery eyes, placing my shaking hands on my thighs. “But you already knew that. What you don’t know is that Seth is gay, and I’m his cover. We pretend to be a couple because he is fucking his professor. And if it got out, he’d get kicked out of school and lose his scholarship. Not to mention, Hayden would lose his job.” I’m panting, trying to catch my breath.
He stays looking down at me for a few seconds before spinning around and giving me his back. Running a hand through his dark hair, he lets out a growl. “There’s a video. That’s what he doesn’t want to get out,” he mumbles to himself.
I pull myself up on my shaky legs, having to use the wall for help. I can finally breathe a little better, and I suck in a long breath. He turns to face me, and I square my shoulders. “Decide right now,” I demand.
His baby blue eyes glare at me. His jaw sharp and nostrils flared. I think he’s debating on whether to let me live or just finish me off. I deserve all his anger, but I’ve had enough tonight. I’ve reached my breaking point. “Decide!” I shout, but my voice cracks. Obviously, I’m not back to myself just yet.
“On what?” He growls.
“Whether you’re going to kill me or not,” I answer with a huff. “I’m tired of this fucking game, Deke. Make up your fucking mind. Either you want me dead or not.” I’m not dumb. Deke will be harder to fight, especially considering I’m still a little lightheaded from his hand being around my throat, but I’m fucking done.
He takes a step toward me. I glare up at him, muscles tight and ready to pounce on him with everything I got. Shit will get broken in this house, but I will fight until my last breath.
Reaching out, he runs his knuckles softly down my sensitive neck. I tense, expecting him to pull on my hair and throw me to the floor like Seth did. “What have I told you before?” he asks, and I don’t say a word, not sure what he’s talking about. “If that were the case, then you would already be dead.”
I shove him away from me. I have a feeling if I hadn’t hit him, I’d be lying dead on his floor right now. “Then stay the hell away from me, Deke.”