“I’m—”
“You were so easily annoyed by everything, and then I was annoyed you didn’t give me any attention even after that time I climbed the tree and threatened to shove you out of it,” came Serena’s voice over Maksim’s phone that he held out in front of him, on speaker.
Junior let out a dark laugh. “Because boys aren’t supposed to go, ‘By the way you’re pretty, whoops don’t fall, don’t fall!’”
Her laugh was part happy, part devastating, and my chest ached.
“Oh, shit, you were so pissed at me you ran to your dad crying that boys were mean. I’m sure that didn’t help my stellar reputation with him.”
“It’s because I liked you, stupid. And you threatened to kill me!”
“Oh, hell, Serena, it was like maybe five feet.”
A few snickers erupted around the group.
“I was short still!”
“And you aren’t now?”
“Take it back, you bastard!”
Nixon stood, a ghost of a smile on his face.
“Stop moving!” Junior scolded with a smile in his voice. “And I would take it back like I stole all those kisses.”
“Hah, you think you’re sly enough to steal them, I gave those freely, willingly the day I told you I loved you.”
A few of the moms gasped, while Nixon looked ready to murder Junior all over again.
“Fifteen is too young,” Junior confessed softy.
“I argued with you until you finally gave in.” She sighed. “You looked over your shoulder for a good year every time we had family dinner. But it didn’t matter; you made me yours.”
“Yeah.” His voice cracked, “Maybe we leave all that part out, so your dad doesn’t come back and kill me a second time.”
“Let them know,” she whispered. “You were so… gentle.”
Violet covered her mouth with her hands like she was afraid she was going to scream, and I knew it didn’t matter if they saw. But I saw her, I saw the ghosts, I knew the demons.
Hell, I was her demon.
And now I was wiping her tears and holding her close.
I was no saint.
I was the darkness that chased her. I was what haunted her dreams, I was her nightmare, and yet she held me like I was the knight that had ridden in on my white horse—she was right about one thing—the horse was white, but the knight was no servant to the king—he was fallen, and she’d singlehandedly resurrected him, not realizing something was very wrong.
Violet put her face against my chest as hot tears slid down her cheeks and across my button-down shirt.
“You took your time, you kissed my mouth like you worshipped me—you still kiss me that way,” Serena confessed.
“Because I do,” Junior said in a tender voice I’d never heard him use before. “Because I fucking worship the ground you walk on. Would sacrifice my body just to honor yours.”
She sniffled. “And then the great disappointment.”
“You mean when Chase found us having sex…”
“Awkward.”
All eyes turned to Chase, who just smirked and held his hands up like he was innocent in this entire thing.
“It’s not like he watched. I mean, it could be worse. Remember Claire and Ash? He was literally inside her, ass naked while his dad came charging in like a bomb going off.”
“What?” Luc, Chase’s wife, smacked him in the stomach and somehow lived to tell about it as he pulled her into his arms for a hug.
Serena laughed. “Okay yeah, that’s worse.”
“So much worse. I mean, have you seen Ash’s ass?”
“Um… something you wanna share with the class?” Serena asked.
“I think you know one hundred percent that I’m all man, and I’ve only ever been yours.”
“Despite your attempts to make everyone believe you’re a manwhore.”
Nixon’s eyebrows shot up as he looked at the rest of the cousins. “Is that true?”
“Breaker’s the slut, not Junior,” King said in a proud voice.
Immediately Violet tensed beneath me.
Great, thrown under the bus by someone I actually liked.
“What?” He frowned. “It’s true.”
I was tempted to pull away from Violet when Chase sent a glare in my direction that promised all sorts of bloody torture. But she needed me, and God knew I needed her. And I would take as long as she would offer. That’s what sinners did when given such a perfect gift. After all, it would be arrogant to turn away something so pure when my dark soul needed it so desperately.
Junior kept talking without realizing what was going on upstairs. “You know I’ve only ever given myself to you, only you, forever you.”
“I shouldn’t have—”
“You wanted to make me jealous. That was understandable after the incident.”
“Ash turned our love to hate,” Serena admitted. “But the thing about love and hate… the pendulum often swings all the way back.”
“I couldn’t stop my heart from falling, Serena, even now, know that it beats for you, until the very last faint thump against my chest.”
Her voice caught on some of the words, and I knew without a doubt she was sobbing quietly, trying to be strong for him, for us, until the bitter end. “I love you so much it hurts.”