Page 31 of Her Devils

I offer her a noncommittal shrug. “Yeah, I’m concentrating on competing at the highest level this year, so I’m going to have an early night. But have you seen Darrius in there?” I lower my voice as I whisper into her ear. “It looks like he’s the most popular diver of this entire event, and he isn’t denying the groupies. He’s partying in there while his very serious girlfriend is working right outside.” I point out the Angels’ booth a few yards away.

“Oh my god!” Tori exclaims. “It looks like the Angels’ captain is no angel. I was about to leave, but I’m going to go take a look inside. My followers would love a scoop like that one! I owe you one, Peyton, thank you.”

I smile as I see the hotel shuttle stopping at the pickup point.

Tori was single-handedly responsible for a huge number of the posts and articles that cemented the Devils’ reputation as the bad boys of skydiving. She was the one who came up with the heartbreakers moniker for the first time, and it stuck when other sites and even the mainstream press adopted it.

Maybe pointing her in Penn’s direction wasn’t my finest moment, but I’m sick of him being untouchable. He’s treated with white gloves by the press because he’s diving for Patrick DeLaurent’s team, and he’s called a champion when he hasn’t personally won anything. I think it’s time the world, and Lenley, gets a glimpse of who Penn really is—a shrewd attention seeker who’s using his father’s friendship and position with the biggest skydiving team in the world to get ahead, and a man who isn’t afraid to lie and cheat to get rid of his rivals when his talent and his hard work aren’t enough.

As I sit in the almost empty shuttle, I feel a pang of guilt. It’s just for a second though. I know Lenley didn’t see that side of her best friend for a long time. When she realized how Penn really is under the veneer of the respectable golden boy he built for himself, she was devastated.

I hate the idea that she’ll have to deal with the fallout from whatever Tori will write and that I’m responsible for it.

No, wait a second. I’m not responsible for Penn’s behavior, I think as I step into the hotel lobby.

If he just bought Starla a drink, Tori wouldn’t have anything interesting to report on, so it’s really up to Penn how much of a shit storm he’s going to find himself in.

After all, he was already cheating on his girlfriend by kissing that groupie—a girlfriend who’s hurt Lenley just as much as Penn has.

My guilt turns to elation as I press the elevator button for my floor. What I just did will be another step toward Lenley’s revenge on Penn and her ex-bestie. I’m excited to tell her what happened as I knock on her door.

“Lenley, where the fuck are you?” I murmur when there’s no answer.

She might be hanging out with Channing in his room, so I move down to my brother’s door.

At first, the noise that makes me stop with my fist hovering in the air is very faint, and instead of knocking, I put my ear to the door.

Fuck. That’s definitely a moan, and it sounds like Lenley’s voice.

I’m tempted to knock anyway, but then I decide to let Channing have tonight.

Our deal means that we’ll eventually share, just like we did when Lenley gave J and me blow jobs for the first time, but barging in on them now wouldn’t be fair, not after I asked my two brothers to give Len and me some space to figure out the whole stepsibling situation.

I sigh as I walk back to my room, groaning at the raging hard-on that’s straining against my jeans. “Well, fuck,” I mutter, looking at my left hand. “It looks like it’s you and me tonight.”

***

Jameson

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KEN AND GINA’S MARRIAGEis making my life hell.

The problem isn’t just that Ken decided that we aren’t worthy of Lenley, so we have to sneak around like teenagers—I can understand his point of view and don’t entirely blame him—it’s this new “cooperation and friendly rivalry” thing with Cove Angels.

Sure, being allowed to use the Angels’ wind tunnel and their state-of-the-art training facility is cool, and I’d be a total hypocrite if I denied it.

However, aside from concern about what kind of changes could be around the corner, traveling to competitive events together is already putting my concentration and my fucking nerves to the test.

Anna Penn is back from Harvard and now works full time at the Angels’ HQ.

If her constant remarks of heralma materweren’t obnoxious enough, the woman is fucking obsessed with me. Last night she tried everything in her power to get an invitation to my room, or at least to dinner once we’re back in Star Cove, and shaking her off is becoming more and more difficult.

I told her that I’m not the dating type, and I’m not a nice guy, but she didn’t get the message, and last night, I had to sneak out from the men’s room to get back to my room without her following me.

I’m not interested in Anna, and I never have been. Even without the deal we have with Lenley—and the fact that Len made it clearbeforeaccepting the deal that if we fucked Anna that would be a deal breaker—Anna isn’t my type, not even for a hookup.

My alarm goes off at 6 am, but I’ve been awake for at least an hour, tossing and turning, so I’m out of bed and in the shower pretty much straightaway.

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