Page 99 of River of Deceit

When she goes to the door, Blaze moves aside for her.

She pauses, then says, “I had fun, Asch. Blaze, you can join us next time instead of lurking around like a perv.”

With that, she disappears.

Blaze moves to the bed and sits down. I join him, never mind that there’s blood everywhere.

“What happened to staying away from her?” Blaze asks.

“I toldyouto stay away from her,” I mutter, running a hand through my hair. I lick my lips, which still taste of blood, and I shake my head. “I thought I could…”

What?

Distract her?

Scare her?

I don’t even know what the goal was, but it had ended with me fucking her into the mattress with her blood all over both of us.

Now I feel like we’re more tied together than ever — and Blaze is right there with us.

20

PANDORA

River’s fingerbones dig into my palm, warming me.

These are mine.

Nobody else gets to see them, touch them.

He gave them up for me.

I storm through the upstairs hallway of the frat, my combat boots thumping hard on the old wood.

One of the doors opens, and somebody peers out. I want to ignore him, but he leers at me with a smile that begs to be carved apart.

“Hey. Pandora, right?” he says. “Asch couldn’t satisfy you?”

I stop and put my hands into my hoodie pockets. I grip my knife tightly and wonder how many slices it would take to give him a permanent scowl. The lips need a downward curve, and maybe his eyebrows need to be cut up too.

“I forgot your name,” I tell him bluntly. “But I’m in a hurry.”

“Declan.” His eyes flick over my face. “Trying to leave the scene of the crime?”

I stare at him, uncomprehending, until he reaches up to gesture to his chin. I mimic the movement, and I feel the tackiness of bloodon my face. I look down, where my hoodie is half unzipped to expose my bloody, cut-up chest.

Oh.

If I go back like this, my roommate will have a fit.

So would half the student body on the way there, probably, and they’ll call campus security or the pigs. The last thing I want to do is have to explain that I had amazing sex with a guy who thinks he hates me.

“Yeah,” I answer. “Don’t worry, it’s mostly the other guy’s.”

Apprehension briefly tinges his expression, but then he asks, “Do I need to call the cops? We take crimes against women very seriously at Kappa Alpha.”

Yeah, so seriously that their first party of the year included drunk and passed out girls who are now being threatened with expulsion.