Page 50 of The Villain

“Because I’m a fucking idiot,” I hiss back, taking my anger out on her. She doesn’t deserve it, but she’s my only outlet. I can’t be myself with anyone other than her. I don’t want to think about Andi right now.

“Obviously,” she snaps back, making my lips tilt in a smile.

Tera has no fear of me. Even knowing all of the things she does, her behavior towards me has never changed. I thought at first she didn’t believe me. Then I thought she was just incorporating my life into one of her we’re living our own book theories. Now that I’ve met Evie, a lot of things have come into view about Tera that I never would have seen coming.

Her oldest friend is literally a psychopath.

I fit into Tera’s world perfectly.

“How do I pay?” I ask with a clenched jaw.

“Pay?”

“I owe,” I spit back.

“Wait. What do you mean?” She sounds confused.

What the fuck does she think I’m talking about? With Tera, who knows.

“I mean I told her I would be ten minutes and they dragged that shit out for as long as they could. I autopiloted my way through it and when I realized it she was gone.”

“Oh. So she misunderstood? Or is she right? I’m confused now.”

“What are you talking about?” My feet stop as dread creeps into my gut. It’s weird that I felt a light sting at the reveals from a second ago and now my heart is hammering as if I’m about to have a panic attack for the first time in my life. I know the signs from Tera.

“She thought you were falling back into old habits and gave me a heads up so I could support you.”

“She thinks what?” I yell. Nevermind. I’ll have a rage meltdown instead.

“She thinks you’re getting back together with them. Like I would ever support that. Anyway, you don’t owe for choosing your own way.”

This owe and pay back shit is confusing.

“You did the old Shade act and she left you to it. No biggie.”

“No biggie? I’m trying to fuck the woman, not watch her walk away.” Not all I want from her but Tera doesn’t need to know how bad I have it for her best friend. She might warn her away from me.

“Ew! No! You can’t talk to me about this. Call Max.” She hangs up on me.

I call back. Like the sweet person she is, she picks up.

“Don’t,” she says warily.

I stay silent so she’ll get on with advising me how to get out of the hole I just dug myself.

“Anyway, you don’t owe anything to Southie. She’ll make sure nothing happens to you no matter what you choose to do. I still think you’re a jerk, but she’s fine.”

She’s fine with it? She better fucking not be!

Shit. She won’t listen if I tell her I’m not interested in them anymore. But she will listen to Tera.

“Tera,” I grit out, “Tell her I want nothing to do with them anymore.”

“Don’t you?” She asks slyly.

“You know I don’t.”

“No. You haven’t used words to tell me.”

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