Page 59 of River of Deceit

“You aren’t going to let that go, are you?” he asks, fisting his hand in my hair to pull me closer and kiss me instead of waiting for an answer.

I moan loudly, both because of how good it feels and to give a show to any eavesdroppers. Asch is still toying with my nipples, pinching and petting and sending zings of pleasure up my spine.

I can feel it when Asch’s cock starts twitching, and I debate softening my touch to delay his orgasm, but I’m too into it, and I want to hear him, smell him.

I want to see what he looks like when he isn’t wound so tight.

He twists my nipples harder even as he throws his head back, his expression changing into something much softer than it has been when he spills into my hand with a groan. “Fuck, Pandora,” he mutters. His eyes are closed as he rests his head against the back of the chair, and he shudders beneath me as the last of his cum fills my hand.

I wait until he opens his eyes before I lift my hand and lick the cum off. His face turns red, which is weirdly cute given everything we’ve just done.

I smile at him. “You’re kind of shy, aren’t you?”

“Shy?” he repeats, then he shrugs. “I’m quiet, not shy.”

“No, I think you are,” I say, kissing him so he can taste his own cum. He doesn’t shy away from the taste, which boosts him in my book. Guys who whine about the taste of cum, especially after I’ve already gone down on them, are annoying.

“Too bad you won’t find out,” he says, a lazy smirk spreadingacross his lips.

I brush back a strand of his hair. “So. We had a deal. Where can I find the douchebag with the roofie stash?”

He stands up suddenly, and my ass hits the floor hard enough to make me yelp.

“What the fuck?” I demand.

“You’re a snake,” he says, and while his voice is calm and he’s smiling at me, he’s back to looking as aloof as he had earlier. “Blaze may not be taking you seriously, but I am.”

I try to stand up, but he grabs my shoulder and pushes down.

“So I don’t care what he says or does, youwillstay away from him,” he continues. “If you don’t…” He lets the words hang in the air for a moment before adding quietly, “You’re not the only one who knows how to hurt someone, Pandora.”

I get up quietly and pick up my knife from the bed. Asch watches me warily, clearly ready to defend himself in case I choose to attack.

I smirk at him. “Oh, maybe notshy, but protective. That’s really, really cute, Asch.” I walk to the door, keeping a healthy distance between me and Asch. “Unfortunately for you, I can’t control Blaze. If he wants to throw me down and fuck me… well, I’m just a weak little girl. I couldn’t possibly ward him off.”

Asch snarls at me, and I laugh as I leave the room, shutting the door behind me.

Fine, so I didn’t find out who hurt Carly, but I do know something.

Asch and Blaze know who it was.

And, more importantly—Asch has claws hidden underneath that mild exterior.

I’m even more interested in him than before.

12

RIVER

I stare at the Chaos frat house from across the road. Zayden is standing by the door, welcoming the new pledges. They all seem excited to be there.

Me, on the other hand? I can’t fight the sense of dread that keeps threatening to overwhelm me. I’d never planned on pledging to any frat — least of all Chaos — and I have a feeling I’m about to be reminded of why.

Pandora bumps her shoulder against mine. “Blaze has to know something about Rachel. The dahlia thing can’t be a coincidence. And they both definitely know who was going around roofieing girls at that party.”

I want to tell Pandora that they’re only flowers, that it had to be a coincidence, but I’m not sure. She might be onto something, and that means one of us has to get closer to Blaze and the others. Sure, they’ve hyper focused on her, and they want her around, but that doesn’t mean she’ll be able to get the kind of information I can from the inside.

“Maybe, maybe not,” I say, but I don’t actually think she’s wrong. “Anyway, I should head in there.” I’m not looking forward to hellweek, not looking forward to finding out why it’scalledhell week, but I’ve been through worse.