Page 85 of Pretty Little Psycho

A twinge of guilt gnaws at me. I am not like them. Not anymore. The old me would have blown off boys for a girls’ night without batting an eyelash. But what I have with Riot, Atlas, and Valentin is serious. Sacred. And the longer I’m away from them, the more it hurts to breathe.

I give them each a hug before I leave and do my best to lighten the mood with a joke about how they should change the name of the bar to Choke instead of Swallow. They laugh with me but I can still see the worry in their eyes.

When I step outside, the guys are already waiting for me. The three of them lean against Valentin’s black sedan. A flood of emotions hits me like a tidal wave as soon I lock eyes with each of them. And I can’t stop the grin from spreading across my face.

“Feel like taking a little drive, Firecracker?” Riot holds the door to the backseat open for me.

Butterflies dance in my belly as I gaze back at all three of them. They are torturously sexy. “Only if I get to drive this time.” I quip back.

Valentin narrows his eyes at me for a second before flashing me a devious smirk. He towers over me, his gaze hungry and wild. “Only if I get to sit next to you and play with your pretty little pussy.”

I’m instantly wet and tingling. I swallow hard. “Fuck.”

Atlas howls with laughter. “I hope we don’t crash.”

Valentin hands me the keys and we all climb in, laughing.

I turn the key and flip on the headlights. The snow is coming down hard and the road is icy. Maybe it’s not such a good idea for Val to finger fuck me while driving through this.

I shudder and check the mirrors. “So, where am I taking us?”

“To Val’s cabin,” Riot murmurs. “We need to regroup and figure out our next move.”

I nod and pull out of the parking lot. As we sail through the wintry countryside of Raven’s Gate, away from Tenebrose, my uneasiness dissipates. I’m safe now. I have my three psychos with me, and nothing can hurt us as long as we’re together.

As if they can read my mind, Atlas and Riot each grab one of my shoulders, squeezing them gently. Valentin rests his hand on my thigh. “We got you, firecracker. No one will ever hurt you again.”

It’s a promise I’d like to believe, but I know our world is uncertain, and evil is everywhere. But at least for now, we’re safe. We’re together.

As we round the last bend before reaching Valentin’s cabin, an unkindness of ravens flies past and settle into the treetops. A chill creeps into my bones under their watchful glares.

Ugh, these fucking birds.

I shake it off and turn up the music. No Mourners, No Funerals by Victoria Carbol blasts from the speakers. Valentin inches his hand up my thigh. “Shall we play in the crypt tonight?” he asks with a smirk.

I arch an eyebrow at him. “Oh, you want to lock me in a coffin again?” I tease.

“A coffin? What the hell did the two of you get up to last time you were here?” Atlas blurts out.

Valentin snickers. “At least I didn’t try to feed her to my fucking snake, asshole.”

The three of us burst out laughing. I lock eyes with Riot in the rearview mirror and he gives me the first genuine smile I’ve ever seen from him. I smile back. He leans forward and whispers, “Welcome to the family, Maur.”

My heart swells. His words send a ripple of tingles across my flesh. It doesn’t matter where we are or where we go. With them, I’m finally home.

We’ll figure the rest out later…

And murder anyone who tries to come between us.

The end… for now.

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