I stand up and hold out my hand. She stares at it for a few moments before slowly slipping hers into it. We stare at one another before I nod my head and lead her back over to the car. Next stop, the hangar. I have one hell of an activity planned for us.
It doesn’t take long to get there and once the forms are filled out, we’re pretty much good to go. Her eyes are like saucers as we go through the safety lesson and our instructors talk us through what will happen and what to expect.
“Are you scared, Little Mouse? Do you want to wait in the car?” I say with a laugh and her cheeks turn bright red as her tongue darts out across her lips.
“Can I ask you something before I tell you my answer?” she asks quietly, and I nod my head. I mean, she’s probably going to ask if I’ve done this before, which is a resounding hell yeah.
“Thallon, why did I become Two when you claimed me? That didn’t happen with Aeron, and Maddox didn’t land D with the Two spot.” Wow, okay, that’s unexpected. “You know, just in case you or I die on the way down.” Her eyes trail over to the plane, but I can’t see any obvious fear.
“Because, Arthur will never let his other sons be in charge of his ‘legacy’. If Emmet doesn’t fit the bill, then I’m the stand in. My father holds the highest share after Arthur, and it was stipulated in my grandfather's will if Arthur’s kids did not take control of the business, then it would go to Marcus’ children. I’m his only child, therefore, the next in line. There you have it, so what’s it going to be, are you going to go up?” I raise my brows, just daring her to say no.
“You know what? Screw it. Let’s do it.” She fist pumps the air, and then slips her harness on and waits for her instructor to tighten her straps and ensure that everything is good to go.
“You heard the lady, let’s go.” I whoop as we walk over to the plane and take our seats. Skydiving, here we come.
The rush is insane. This is my fourth time doing this and it’s as exhilarating as the first time. I stare up at the dot in the sky that I know is Luna and I’m interested to see what she thinks. I feel bad for the girl, and I don't want to feel bad for her.
Damn it, Allie! I don’t know how to do this. It’s easier to be a bastard and cruel. I don’t want to move on from you. It’s only been two years.
Sure, I’ve fucked my way through so many women, but why not? No, I will be nice today for Aeron and because Tom really fucked up and then all deals are off. I’ll go back to ruining her life, and irritating the living shit out of Emmet.
“Wooo.”
“She seems to be having fun,” Zeke, my instructor, laughs as he taps me on the shoulder and we watch as they land, before we make our way over to them.
Declan helps her up and unclips her and I watch as she sets her eyes on me. They’re shining bright, as she spins around and throws her arms around Declan.
“Thank you so much! That was insane. I can’t believe how fast we fell! You have the best job ever!” She’s talking so damn fast and Zeke and Declan are both laughing at her excitement.
“Come on, it’s time to go.” I grab her hand as we set off for the starting point so we can grab our things and then we get back into the car.
“I know you don’t like me, Thallon, but thank you so much for that. I’ve never experienced a rush like that before, it was incredible. And the view, I just…”
“It’s fine, maybe next time we’ll go bungee jumping.” I smile, getting caught up in her excitement and forgetting that I hate her for a minute.
“Next time? Before or after you make me sit on the floor and bark like a dog?” She bats her eyes at me and my mouth drops open.
“I really don’t like you, but this version of you is less annoying than that meek shit.”
“I don’t really know what to say to that, but thanks for the honesty. At least you are honest, it’s one of the things I value most. Even though some people never are.” Her smile drops and her eyes cloud over.
I’m supposed to be distracting her. Shit, I don’t know what to do now.
“No, don’t start thinking about him again. Come on, there are fourteen guys in the Academy.” I hold my hands out, as if to say, ‘see my point’.
“Yeah, fourteen guys. One who hates me.” She points at me. “One who lied to me and recorded all our conversations. One who can’t even wake me up before he leaves, and another who apparently can only be with a legacy. Then again, that did come from Tom, so I’m going to presume that’s another lie.” She folds her arms across her chest and my eyes travel across her form.
“Well, not everything he said was a lie.” I roll my bottom lip between my teeth. I promised Aeron I’d take her mind off Tom, I never said what methods I would use. Oh yeah, this is going to be fun.
“Come again?”
“I didn’t realize I’d come a first time.” Oh yeah, steam is going to come pouring out of her ears in a minute.
“Seriously, what didn’t he lie about?”
“Who knows? But I mean, really, did Tom lie to you?” Okay, I may be enjoying this a little too much. Plus, I keep bringing him up, that isn’t going to distract her from him now is it?
“Of course he did. I mean he… well he…” She looks up at the roof of the car, and I can’t stop smiling. Yeah, I really do get my kicks in the weirdest ways.
“Come on then, Little Mouse, tell me one of the lies.” The car comes to a stop but I don’t open the door. I want to see what she comes up with.
“Well, he hinted that you were in love with Rosalyn. But I guess that doesn’t really count as a lie. Fish sticks, he must have lied to me. Otherwise, am I in the wrong for being so hurt?” Her eyes swim as she stares at me, and I think this may be backfiring on me.
“Right, come on. Don’t get sad, get mad. Trust me, it feels so much better.” I open the door and offer her my hand. She stares at it and I laugh as she ignores the gesture and gets out by herself.
“Where are we?”
“It’s a fight ring. We go in, have a few fights, and get all of the aggression out of our systems. Trust me, it helps.”
“Why do you need to fight?” She cocks her head to the side, I step into her, and watch her throat move as she swallows hard.
“Because I am angry every damn day, and it’s fucking tiring trying to come across as fine all the time. Besides, it makes me feel alive driving my fist into someone. Making them bleed, getting covered in blood, mine, theirs, it doesn’t matter. And I think you know exactly what I’m talking about, I think there’s a part of you that is as fucked up and twisted as I am. So, we’re going inside. You can fight or you can watch, but you’re coming in.” I grip her arm and pull her behind me. She isn’t even trying to resist.
I lead her into the changing rooms once we get inside, and she stands there mute as I strip off my shirt and unbutton my trousers. I place my clothes into a locker before pulling on a pair of loose, knee length gym shorts. I’m not going to bother wrapping my hands up, I want to feel the bite and the sting of my skin splitting. The wraps will just delay the inevitable.