Page 26 of Lethal Truths

Asher smirks down at me, barely moving an inch. “You certainly can,” he muses. He leans down, as if he’s going to steal another kiss, and my heart drops in panic.

Because it’s Asher. Because I came in here to hurt him… Because Creed unlocked a dark little part of me that Asher is now encouraging. And most of all, because I hate that I like the abuse of his lips on mine.

I plant my hands firmly against his chest, trying like hell to keep at least a few precious inches between our bodies. “Get off of me and go right to hell, you—“

Asher rears back and smacks his palm over my mouth. “Stop fucking talking,” he growls. “Be a good little pet and be still, yeah?” With one hand over my mouth, he smooths his other hand down my torso, teasing my breasts with a whisper of a touch on the way. “I told you what I’d do if I caught you alone in my house again,” he rasps as his fingers brush the hem of my leggings and then dive below them.

I buck and whimper, trying to spew violent words at him or wiggle my way out of his hold, but nothing works. At the first touch of his fingers against my clit, I freeze, going still just like he asked. This isn’t exactly like when Creed forces his touch. I’m not sure how to feel about Asher’s intrusion when I have so much hatred for him. Objectively, I can recognize that I’m attracted to him physically, that the weight of his body on top of mine feels good, that the heat of his fingers between my legs is exhilarating, but I can’t get past the fact that it’s Asher. Enemy number one, top spot on my ever-growing shit list.

“I won’t hurt your mom, Prudence,” Asher whispers as his fingers draw lazy circles over my clit. I’m shocked enough by the contradiction of his words and actions that I can’t find the right response. He holds my gaze as if he can see the turmoil inside of me. “I pretty much promised her the same thing, actually, regarding you,” he adds right as he slowly pushes one finger into my pussy.

I gasp, my back arching off the bed in shocked delight. Okay, maybe I can enjoy this and maim him afterward. Such bad habits Creed has stirred in me. Blinking through my mental fog, I stutter, “W-what? You told her— Why? You lied to her. All you want is to hurt me.”

Asher continues his torturous teasing, thrusting that one finger into me just hard enough to keep my squirming. His lips hook up into a soft smile, one that I haven’t seen on his face before. “I don’t know that I did lie, pet. I don’t know anything anymore, except that I thoroughly enjoy—“

“Ash!” Creed snaps as he barges into the bedroom.

I nearly die from the pressure of the immediate guilt that crashes into my chest. What the hell did I just allow to happen? Creed will never forgive me. Oh, god, he might kill Asher now and save me the trouble.

Asher rolls his eyes, but takes his sweet fucking time pulling his hand out of my pants. He licks his lips, holding my gaze for another beat before slowly turning to look at his cousin. “Yes?”

I don’t know what the hell to do with myself, so I sit up and grab the knife once more, clutching it tight as I focus on the floor. I’m sure Creed will have something to say to me the second we’re alone, so I work on preparing myself for the verbal blows.

There’s an awkward silence between the guys, and I’d bet just about anything that it’s because of me. After a few heavy moments, Creed clears his throat. “One of the freshmen just called me from downstairs, said he couldn’t get ahold of you… Your dad just showed up.”

If it’s at all possible, the air grows thicker with a suffocating kind tension. I cast my eyes toward Asher, only to find his face pale, eyes darting around as if he’s looking for an escape route, and I’m immediately on high alert.

17

Prudence

Asher transforms before my very eyes, going from an annoyingly sexy asshole pushing his luck to a stone cold robot. There’s not even a hint of emotion on his face as he pulls on sweat pants and finger-combs his hair into a somewhat neat style. He nods at Creed, who moves out of the doorway, and then Asher is gone, apparently to see his father.

I can only assume that whatever brought Asher’s dad here isn’t good. Otherwise, why show up at almost two in the morning? What the hell couldn’t wait until sunrise?

As I struggle with what to do, how to hold myself and not feel so uncomfortable, Creed is silent. I force myself to stop inspecting a torn cuticle and meet his gaze. His amber eyes are locked on me, and like Asher, there’s no emotion to be found on his face. It makes me feel worse. I think I’d prefer it if he were furious with me.

Creed raises his brows, his black hair messy and somehow deliciously sexy. I want to run my fingers through it, tug on the raven strands until he groans for me, but I don’t feel like I have the right. Not after what just happened. Christ, Prudence. Why did you ever step foot into Asher’s room tonight? Flexing my fingers around the handle of the knife I’m holding onto like a lifeline, I clear my throat and then mumble, “Please say something.”

Creed cocks his head, chewing on the inside of his cheek as he studies me. “Like what?” he eventually asks.

I wince, fighting hard not to cry. I don’t know when I became the kind of girl who cries so damn often over guys, but here the fuck I am and my emotions are yet again about to get the better of me. I shrug one shoulder, because it’s all I can manage. “Anything. Scream at me, if that’s what you need to do.”

“I’m not going to yell, Prudence,” Creed assures me with a soft smile, brushing his hand through his tousled hair. “Do you want to fuck him?”

“I want you,” I say quickly. I stand from Asher’s bed, still holding the knife in front of my chest like I can use it as a shield to protect me from any cutting words Creed might throw. “I want you, Creed,“ I repeat once I’ve stopped right before him.

His gaze sweeps over my face. “And Asher?” he asks calmly.

The first word that comes to mind is no. Of course I don’t want Asher… But is that really true? Gun to my head, if I had to shout out an honest answer or die — well, I might choose death over saying this aloud — I would say that Asher and I are locked in some kind of toxic cycle that I’m determined to see the end of. If that means fucking out our volatile feelings for each other and seeing if we can stand on the other side of that in one piece, then I may want to do just that. But it’s complicated and messy, and entirely too much to consider this very moment.

So instead, I put all of my feelings for Creed into my voice as I say, “I want you, regardless of them. Asher and Griffin, whatever fucked up things they drag me into, they can’t take anything away from what I feel for you.”

“What do you feel for me? Do you love me?” he rasps.

I blink a few times to clear the shock from my mind, trying to find the right words from the mess of chaos happening inside me. “I—“

“Because I fell in love with you that very first day in class. The day we met, remember? When you ripped me a new one for having the nerve to flirt with you,” he muses, a smile curling up his lips. “That was before everything, Ember. Before the mess with The Celestials, and all the shit I did to hurt you under their orders. That day, I just wanted you. And when you opened that perfect mouth and scolded me in the middle of the classroom, I was irrefutably yours… It just took me a while to figure that out.”

---