Page 70 of The Deception You Weave

Devin's eyes flicker with something, understanding, I think. He knows full well how hard it can be to do anything but his father's bidding at times.

"I failed, okay? He didn't get what he wanted from those cameras and I've been punished for it, my father too. So can we just let it go?"

Finally, Devin rips his angry eyes from mine and looks at Letty.

He might be my best friend, but the way he stares at her makes me want to pull her behind my body to protect her. It's easy to forget that Letty isn't like most girls. She grew up around some of the state's scariest men.

The Harris boys might not be their father, but his blood still runs through their veins and they can turn it on whenever they want.

"Get her the fuck out of here," he barks, his stare not wavering from her.

"Bro," I say, slapping him in the chest. "She said her piece. Let it fucking go."

"Fuck me, Legend. She fucking slipped you something?"

"I fucking wish," I mutter, once again guiding Letty toward the front door. Anything would be easier to deal with than the blow she landed me with.

She's silent as I lead her toward my car that's parked out front of the house at a funny angle, exactly how I left it when I pulled up after spending that short amount of time with her last night. I should have felt better about having her again, teaching her a lesson for thinking she could buy me off with fixing up my car. But deep down, mostly, I was just grateful to have my baby back.

"She looks as good as new, huh?" I ask, needing to know that she's okay after that run-in with Devin.

"She looks great."

I back out of the driveway and head toward campus while she fiddles with the ties on my sweats that are pulled tight around her middle in order to keep them up.

"Why did you do it?"

I notice her shrug out of the corner of my eye.

"After everything I've done to you, you got my car fixed up without a second thought for no reason."

"I know how much she means to you. And it was my fault you crashed her."

"I was the one driving, Princess. It was my fault."

She shakes her head.

"I should have told you about the cameras. Maybe we could have come up with something to pacify Victor. That way I wouldn't have all the Harrises after my ass right now."

"They're not after you. Reid brought you to the house. He knows that you didn't have a choice."

"Then I let you run off thinking the worst of me," she continues, not stopping to consider what I just said about Reid.

But the truth is, if Reid is okay with her, which I can only assume he is seeing as he was the one to take her away from Victor and any danger by placing her with me, then the others will be fine too.

The younger Harris brothers might be okay with defying their cunt of a father, but Reid is an entirely different story.

"It wasn't your fault, Letty. I jumped to conclusions, let the past cloud my judgment."

"A past that you see completely differently to everyone else."

My grip on the wheel tightens as I picture Riley's face.

"Whatever, it doesn't matter now. We're all still alive and you've got your beloved car back."

"Yeah, everything is just fucking great," I mutter, my anger beginning to resurface.

It's the easiest thing to cling to when it feels like I'm losing a grip on everything around me. When the things I let fuel me all these years start morphing into something different.