Page 41 of The Betrayal You Serve

"Well, can I suggest you get one because something tells me that Kane isn't going to let this lie," Ella says, her eyes holding a seriousness I feel all the way to my toes.

"I know."

The sound of the guys barreling into the room cuts off anything else she was going to say.

They’re both joking around until their eyes land on me when they both instantly stop.

"Don't stop on my account," I bark, pushing my chair back and dumping the remains of my coffee in the sink.

"Hey, no, that's not—"

"We just didn't expect—"

"I live here, assholes," I snap, instantly feeling bad when their faces drop. "I'm sorry. That wasn't fair."

"Hey, girl. Everything's cool. We're just worried about you." Both West and Brax gather me up in a hug, squeezing the life out of me. "And if it makes you feel any better at all, you look a hell of a lot hotter than Luca and Kane this morning, even if you've been attacked by a vamp."

"Jeez, you spotted that fast," I mutter, pulling away from them.

"You've looked in a mirror, right?" West asks, staring down at it.

"Yes," I hiss. "I'm going to class." Swiping my bag from the floor, I throw it over my shoulder and head for the door.

"Wait, I'll walk with you," Ella calls.

"Okay. I'll meet you outside. I need some fresh air."

* * *

The second I step into the hallway that leads to our lit class, Leon pushes from the wall and races over.

I smile at the sight of him but his own joy soon falters when his eyes fall to my neck.

"What the fuck did he do?" he growls.

"Forget it, Lee. It doesn't matter."

His fists curl in frustration as I close the space between us.

"Forget it, are you fucking kidding. He hurt you, again."

"I deserved it," I mumble, averting my eyes from his intense stare.

"No, no, you fucking don’t."

"How's Luc?" I ask, trying to change the subject although it's not to a less painful one.

Leon lets out a long sigh. "He's… he's a fucking mess. I left without him this morning after Coach pulled him in for a chat."

"Was Kane there? Did the two of them…" I trail off, not needing to spell it out.

"They stayed away from each other, but we were just training. It might be a different story later."

"Jesus," I mutter, lifting my hands to my head.

"They need to have it out. It's the only way they'll get it out of their systems."

"You want them to fight?"