Page 88 of Ghosts Don't Cry

I don’t rise to the very obvious bait he’s trying to set.

“What’s wrong?” He pushes away from the van and follows me toward the car. “Don’t want to talk about how you had Lily pinned against the wall outside The Flamingo like some back alley?—”

I stop walking and turn to face him, pulse kicking up and adrenaline flooding through me. “Finish that sentence. I fucking dare you.”

Dan’s smirk widens. “Would you prefer to talk about the bites you covered her in, or the part where she?—”

My laugh cuts him off. “Still jealous she preferred me over you, Dan?” I tilt my head, watching the flicker of irritation that crosses his face. “Guess some things never change.”

His grin falters for a second before he steps closer. Every muscle coils, instincts screaming at me to strike first, and put him down before he gets the chance. Prison taught me how to read a threat and see violence coming before it lands. And Dan is broadcasting his intentions in every rigid line of his body.

“You think you’re different now, because you did some time?” His voice turns sharper. “You’re still the same piece of shit you always were.”

I let the words roll off me, studying him. “Yeah, you definitely sound jealous.”

He snorts. “Of what?”

“Of the fact that I don’t have to look in the mirror every morning and see your face staring back.”

His face twists, anger bleeding through. “You really think you’ve got the higher ground here? Like anyone gives a shit about what happens to you.” He leans in, breath smelling of stale coffee. “You’restillnothing, Oliver. Always have been. The only reason Lily gave you any time at all is because she pitied you, and she always was a fucking bleeding heart for a good sob story.”

A familiar fire ignites inside me. “Better to be nothing than to be you.”

Dan’s hand twitches at his side. “Big words for someone who spent five years being someone’s prison bitch. Did you learn to take it well? Or did you suck dick every night to stop them beating you up?”

The air between us turns thick with tension. Thunder rumbles in the distance. Rain hits the asphalt around us. The parking lot narrows down to just the two of us, reminding meof how it used to be back in high school. Only now, I’m not the scrawny kid whose ribs he broke.

I don’t move, but Idosmile. “That the best you got?”

“No,” he sneers. “But this is.”

Before I can react, he shoves me.Hard.His palms slam into my chest. I rock on my heels, but I don’t stagger, and Idon’tbreak eye contact. My body screams to retaliate, but I force myself to stay still.

Dan steps forward again, close enough that I can see the veins popping in his neck. He’s daring me to make a move.

“What now?” My voice is calm, despite the adrenaline coursing through me. “You think I’m going to hit you? Or do you think if you hit me first, I won’t hit back?”

His mouth twitches. “You’re not worth the effort.”

“Then walk away.”

“I don’t take orders from prison scum.”

I shake my head, rain dripping from my hair down my face. “Is that why you’re still standing there trying to prove something?”

His nostrils flare. “You never did know when to shut the fuck up.”

“And you’ve always been all bark and no bite.” I step towardhimthis time, letting my words dig their way under his skin. “What’s the matter, Dan? Afraid you’ll lose without your linesmen there to back you up?”

His expression hardens. “You think I’m bluffing?”

“We both know that the last time you came at me, you made sure I wouldn’t be able to fight back.”

He lunges, but I’m waiting for it. I step back, staying just out of reach, and keep my hands at my side. I can’t counter. If I make the wrong move, I’m the one they’ll call the aggressor, not him. And he knows it.

Anger twists his features, frustration flashing in his eyes. This fight is inevitable, but I can’t be the one to start it. I need him to cross the line first, so I can defend myself.

A car door slams somewhere behind us. Footsteps pound against wet asphalt.