Page 348 of Psycho Devils: Aran's Story 2

I sucked on my pipe with so much force that it hurt my cheeks, and my lungs burned from a large quantity of enchanted smoke.

“Spit it out, dude.” John clapped me on my back, above where the wings protruded from my shoulder blades. He flashed a dimple as he grinned at me. His eyes were glassy, dark hair messy, and energy easygoing and friendly. Familiar.

“Are you sure—” I paused to grab the bottle out of John’s hands and chugged. “Are you sure you like me as more than a friend?” I blurted out.

The thighs pressed against me tensed.

Both John and Luka straightened their spines and looked down at me with similar expressions.

Eyebrows raised.

I felt a blush burn my cheeks, and I stared down at my cut-covered hands. Why would you ask them that when you still haven’t healed? What are you thinking?

They’d told me they loved me, but John had said it before with Sadie when we were talking about friendship. A marriage proposal seemed black and white on the surface, but in the realms, alliances were all about power and strength. It could have nothing to do with romance.

“Aran,” John whispered.

I couldn’t swallow around the lump in my throat. “It’s fine, don’t worry about it,” I mumbled as I stared down at my blurry pipe.

There was a pressure behind my eyes, and everything became blurry.

Somewhere among John taking care of me after the first competition, the punishment, and Mr. Hyde being Luka, I’d stopped thinking of the twins as friends. I’d started noticing how entrancing their dark eyes were and admiring their whipcord strength.

It hadn’t happened all at once; it was gradual.

But now the emotions were real. Suffocating.

My lower lip trembled.

Luka moved his hand and rested it on the back of my neck gently.

His grip tightened. He choked me and yanked my head back.

Luka’s dark eyes stared down at me intently. “I thought John made it clear what we felt.”

I opened my mouth to respond, and soft lips stole my breath away.

Chapter 49

Aran

MOMENTS

Rebirth—Day 62, hour 23

John kissed me like he was trying to crawl under my skin. He pressed me back with his punishing lips as Luka choked me.

Demon brew made my head spin.

Enchanted drugs gave me a full-body tingle.

Little zips of pain streaked down my spine, but I was so intoxicated I barely felt them. I was really glad I had decided to keep the side effect of the enchantment a secret.

The twins wouldn’t be touching me like this if they knew.

But there was nothing else in all the realms I wanted to be doing.

When John pulled his head away from mine, he was breathing heavily and his lips were deliciously swollen. I reached up and ran my fingers through his dark locks. His hair was soft as silk.

---