Page 13 of Sweet Temptation

"I'll be right with you!" Damon's mother calls, snapping me out of my trance with the whip of her harsh voice.

Margarita saunters into the hallway and faces me with the biggest fake smile on her nude-painted lips. "I can tell Damon sees you in a different way. He hasn't brought any girls to my house since Emily," she says, but it sounds like a dig toward me.

Damon's body goes rigid at the mention of Emily, his feet halting halfway out of his bedroom, and I bite my lip. "She doesn't know about her," Damon snaps, making his way into the hall with both bags in his hand.

Looking at the floor, I shuffle my feet. "Bailey wanted me to know because I was asking so many questions about you. She thought it was fitting that I knew what happened, just in case," I whisper. Damon stops what he's doing and turns to face me.

"Bailey Sanchez?" Margarita questions, her lips thinning at the name. I nod slowly before my eyes meet Damon's.

His eyes are haunted, his smile doesn't exist. He uses scowls and tattoos to cover up his demons, but I saw right through that just now. I can tell that day destroyed him. "We gotta get going, Mom," Damien says from behind her, his usual emotionless mask slipping onto his face like nothing.

Margarita nods. "Make sure to keep me updated on things in Princeton next time. I am in need of the knowledge after all."

Damon nods, pressing his hand to my spine to get my feet moving. I gently smile at his mother, but she doesn't return it. Holding in my frown, I follow Damien and Soren out to the car, leaving Damon to have a moment with his mother.

The size of this mansion surprises me. I didn’t realise Damon was rich, let alone this rich. Then again, I still have no idea what his family is known for or what they do.

"Bailey told you about Em?" Damien asks me as we put our bags in the car. I nod slowly as I set Soren's bag in the trunk. Both brothers glance at each other with raised eyebrows. "Everything about what happened?"

"She thought I was catching feelings for Damon, so she wanted me to know what happened with Emily just in case he ever looked my way. She told me Emily drowned," I reply softly.

Soren gives me a blank look, causing another shiver to run up my spine.

Damien's eyes find mine again, a haunted smile gracing his lips. "He feels something for you, and that's something because Damon doesn't feel anything," he answers the question I was going to ask Soren.

We all stop our chatting as Damon makes his way out to the car. "Is your hand okay?" Soren asks with the hint of a smirk on his lips.

Damon shakes his head slowly. "I'll go to the hospital when we get back to Princeton, but don't pretend like you give a shit," he answers, sliding into the back seat. I give Damien a smile before I slide in beside Damon on the other side.

"You got Mom to give you the money, right?" Damon asks, looking at Damien as he slides into the driver's seat. He nods slowly, tossing Damon a binding of cash. My eyes widen as I watch the exchange between the two brothers.

"It took some serious effort on my part because the witch didn’t want to give me a dime, but I got it," Damien mutters. I ignore it and look out the window, thinking about what Damien just said to me.

Damon nudges my shoulder. "Hanna, do you want us to just drop you home when we get there?"

I eye Damien in the mirror before I nod. I need some time to think about what was just said to me before I decide what I'm doing. I close my eyes and rest my head against the window, popping in my ear buds before pressing play on "Falling Inside The Black" by Skillet.

Closing my eyes, I let all the thoughts run through my head as I listen to my favourite song blare through my ears.

Someone taps my shoulder, bringing me out of my music haze, and I come face to face with Damon. "We're here," he says softly. I stop my music and check the time with widened eyes.

"It's eight p.m.?" I ask suddenly. Soren nods from the front seat and looks at Damien.

"You zoned into your music and your eyes were closed, so you didn't notice," Damien replies.

Yeah, I didn’t notice twelve hours go by. How the fuck does that happen? I nod before scrambling out of the car with my bags collected under my arm.

"Be safe," I mutter to Damien before heading to the door of my horror house. I really do wish I didn’t have to come here. The thought of being here sends chills up my spine—chills that are different from the ones I get from Damon's family.

Opening the large red door, I slip inside the house, dropping the house key into my pack before checking my surroundings. Nobody's home. I widen my eyes, astonished, as I make my way up to my bedroom and close the door behind me.

I quickly remove all my clothing and look around the room. Dropping my bags to the floor, I climb into my bed and pull the covers over me. A nap would be very useful after the weird day I have had.

Today has been so long and confusing as hell. My mind mutters for me as I curl up in my bed. I hear the creak of my bedroom door, causing my entire body to still.

This can't be happening. How did I forget to lock the door? How did I forget?

"Hanna…" Brayden's voice rings through the bedroom. I squeeze my eyes closed before relaxing them to pretend like I'm asleep. Maybe if I'm asleep, he'll leave me alone. Maybe I’ll be safe.

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