Page 55 of Serpentine

The red lights above flick on, and Miles’s steps halt.

He’s looking me over, indeed. But I can’t see him. I can’t even turn to watch his face take me in.

“What in the hell did you do?” he asks me, coming to my right side.

I bite my lip as tears trickle down my face like rain in summer.

“Aw, now, it can’t be that bad, can it?” A slight smirk lifts the corner of his lips, and his eyes have a rueful look.

He thinks Braxton is playing with me and that he’s tied me up for some sick, sexual reason.

“It can,” I mutter through my broken sobs.

His eyes then turn, just as his brother’s had. “What did you do?”

“Braxton caught me breaking into his computer, but it’s not what it seems…”

The look on his face and how he backed toward the wall in disbelief cuts my words off. “What else could it be, then? You break into someone’s files, especially those of the Cobras. You’ve got an angle. I’ll give you five fucking seconds to explain, princess, and only because of the way you kiss me. It can’t be fake. It just can’t.”

He doesn’t kiss.

It’s a reminder that I’m a weak spot for him because he’s kissed me. I wonder how far I can exploit it if he lets me free of this gadget.

“Whitney called me bait last night at the party. She said you two were only using me. While I knew it had something to do with my father, I wanted to know more. I wanted to know why,” I yell quickly.

He nods along, taking in my words. All the while, his eyes have a battle within them—one where he hasn’t chosen a side yet.

“And…did you find what you were looking for?” he asks.

I nod, swallowing. “I did. While I hope he didn’t do it, I can’t give you any answers because I don’t know him. I don’t know him at all,” I admit.

He bites his lip, fists clenching at his sides. “We wanted to use you as a bargaining chip, princess. Now you’ve forced our hand. I know by the look on your face you found not only what you were looking for. You saw too much.”

Oh, dear God. They’re going to kill me.

The realization hits me like a ton of bricks, and more sobs choke out of my throat.

“I’d never say a word,” I tell him, shaking my head frantically.

He runs his hand through his hair. His shirtless muscles are rippling, making the massive Cobra tattoo on his stomach come to life.

“I can’t trust you now, princess. Do you realize that? I was stupid to trust you in the first fucking place.” In the last part, he mutters more to himself. “Whitney will pay for what she’s caused. That, I can promise you.”

I shift on the bench. “Please, I don’t think she meant it the way I took it. Leave her be, please. I’ve caused enough bullshit.”

He eyes me. “You’re taking up for her now?”

I nod. I don’t know why I am, but I liked her. She was looking out for me, in a way, and giving me the spark I needed to wake up and ask questions.

“What did you intend to do with all this information you gathered?” His eyes are calculating, just as his brothers were before he left me here.

“I didn’t know what I would do if I’m honest. I know what I want to do now that I know it.”

He eyes me sternly, waiting for me to go on.

“I’ll go undercover in my dad’s company. I’ll find out who he is for you and me. Find out where your mother went or where she is.”

“She’s not alive. If she were, she’d have found her way to us.”

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