Page 87 of Heartless Heathens

I wanted to live through their stories so that I could forget about my own. Read their pain, pick at their wounds to relieve the itching that came with mine. I’d lost track of time when I’d wandered into a dark little corner and found myself reading a paperback about a toxic spill in a small town.

“Romance?” Corvin’s husky voice whispered in my ear from behind, goosebumps prickling along the back of my neck and my arms from feeling the heat of his body behind me.

I could smell the leather of the jacket he wore mixing with the scent of old tobacco from his cologne.

“I want to get lost in someone’s happiness.” I turned my neck slightly to look back at him, his head towering over me as he looked down into my eyes.

“Little lamb, love won’t make you happy.” He dropped both his arms over me, lacing his hands together and using it to bring me in even closer to him. “Love scars. Love leaves you half the person you were before and twice as eager to take your life when it’s all over.”

“Does it have to end?” I breathed out a shaky breath, feeling the weight of his hands still pulling tightly against my heart.

“Everything ends, Romi. The sun guarantees it.” I frowned and looked back down, eyeing the pile of books in my arm and then glancing over at the second pile stacked at a nearby table.

“I’m ready,” I told him, breaking out of his hold and walking towards the rest of my chosen books.

“You don’t have to stock up for the year, I can bring you back next week.” He chuckled, and my eyes widened at his offer.

“I’ll be ready for more then.” I smiled and pushed the first pile towards him and he looked at me with a face full of shock.

“You’ll read all these books in a week? You’re just like Santorini.” He made the comparison and my smile faded.

He noticed, shook his head and nodded towards the older lady standing behind a counter. She seemed to know Corvin, making small talk and asking about Felix. Actually, it seemed like everywhere we went, people knew Corvin.

He gave her some money and told her we’d be back next week and she clasped his tattooed hands inside her wrinkled, spotted ones.

“You’re a good boy Corvy.” Her hands trembled a bit before she let him go and we walked out of the massive building.

“How do you know so many people?” I asked him.

“I don’t know that many people. They know me though.” He scratched the back of his head while we walked down the steps. “My mom was well known. People respected her, they still do. Up there not so much, but down here, they know the truth.” His face turned sad, and my heart pinched inside of me.

“Because of Frollo’s lies?” I asked, he nodded.

“What do you want to do now little lamb?” He pulled out his phone to check the time, “We still have some time before Sonny’s class ends and he notices we took the Ducati out.”

“Will he be very upset?” I wondered out loud, knowing the answer.

Corvin shook his head. “So we better make it worth it, don’t you think?” He pointed to the ice cream shop.

Iwaslosingmyhold on what mattered.

Deflecting Arlan’s calls nearly every single day and pretending like there would be no consequences to it. Jerking off angrily in the shower over a girl who should have been nothing but a bump on my path to claiming what was mine. Now I’d found this bump was becoming a hill, and somehow hills always turned into fucking mountains, didn’t they?

It was bad enough that Corvin was lying to us now, and putting himself and her in danger out there. He’d been down at the Court of Miracles a whole two minutes before Dera texted me to let me know but I’d been too tied up in class to leave. I was waiting on Felix to get back from his class and I paced back and forth in front of the pew, wondering if I should just leave him behind and go collect them both on my own.

There was a weak knock out front, and I could see the annoying friend lurking around through the stained glass that decorated the front door.

“What?” I opened the door a mere three inches and waited for her to answer.

“I brought some books for Mina.” She patted the tote bag that hung from her arm.

“Don’t call her that.” I warned her. She wedged herself in the opening and somehow pushed past me into the chapel.

“What? Sonny Santorini is too good for nicknames?” She mocked me and I narrowed my eyes at her, wondering how dumb she really was.

“Obviously not.” I didn’t hide my annoyance.

“WAIT! Your name isn’t Sonny?” She looked so shocked that I had to fight the urge to not tear into her ignorance.