Page 93 of Wicked Knight (Knight's Ridge Empire 1)

"Enough for me?" Teagan asks, sliding up to me and wrapping her hand around mine that's holding the bottle.

"No," I snap, ripping it away from her when she tries to take it.

"You know, if you're tense, I've got a great way to help you relax."

Ripping my eyes from Stella and Theo, I stare down at Teagan. I’ve always known she’s a desperate wannabe who wants a taste of our lives, but she's not the kind of girl who can actually hack it. She cares too much about her hair, her nails, everything that's on the outside. Maybe she'd be the perfect trophy wife for one of the other guys. But she certainly isn’t for me. I'm not interested in that kind of fakeness. The only reason I've let her stick around for so long is because I know I'll never fall for her, and that makes her safe.

Love makes you weak, and ultimately, it leaves you a broken-hearted shell of yourself.

All you need to do is look at my mum for evidence of that. I have no idea who the woman was before she died right alongside my father. Losing Demi only made it worse.

“Why are you still trying?” I ask her.

“What do you mean?” The fake innocence in her voice makes me cringe.

“You know full well I just fucked Stella in that bathroom. Don’t act stupid, Teag. You might be a blonde, but you’re not fucking dumb.” Her brow crinkles as I say the words, and I start to doubt whether they’re actually true or not. Is she really just this fucking dim?

“We’ve got something.”

“Something so special I just fucked someone who wasn’t you?”

Tears burn her eyes, but she tries blinking them away.

I should care, but I really fucking don’t.

She doesn’t want me. All she’s interested in is her social standing.

“Come on, Seb. Don’t be like that. It’s a party, we all do crazy shit. You clearly don’t want her or you wouldn’t be standing here with me while she’s got her tongue down Theo’s throat.”

“When did I say I wanted her? All I said was that I don’t want you,” I say, my voice cold and lacking any kind of emotion despite the jealousy that wants to bubble to the surface. “You should leave.”

Turning my back on her, I walk away with my bottle and drop down onto one of Nico’s massive sofas.

There’s a couple dry humping beside me, blocking my view of where Stella and Theo are now dancing.

“Fuck off,” I growl.

The guy takes one look at me and lifts the girl to her feet, both of them damn near running away. Anyone would think I pulled a gun on them or something.

Propping one foot up on the coffee table, I continue watching the show Stella is insisting on putting on for me.

She thinks she’s winning.

I’ll allow her to think that for a while. It’ll only make the fall all that more delicious when it comes.

She spots someone over her shoulder, and when I follow her line of sight, I find Alex at the end of it.

She gestures him over, and without a second thought, he lights up a fresh joint and walks over to her, handing it over before lining up behind her and rolling his hips in time with hers.

The sofa moves beside me as someone joins me.

I’m about to rip them another one for even thinking about it when he stretches his long-arse legs out and copies my stance.

“Thought you were working tonight?”

“Got off early,” is Daemon’s quick reply. “So that’s her, then?” I don’t look over, but I know he nods toward Stella.

“Sure is. What have you heard?”