Page 176 of Overcast

“Nothing,” she deadpans off a weak whisper. “You...don’t have to do things like that for me.”

“Do you want me to spare her life, Stormi?”

What the fuck?

Yo, I’m really starting to lose my shit.

“Did she seem remorseful at all?” My brows clench, who cares?

I shrug. “I don’t know. I wasn’t paying attention. I’ve been off my game lately.”

Annoyingly so, but it’s true.

Stormi has been on my mind twenty-four, seven, and every time I glimpse at Bianca, I’m reminded of the night in my living room. The look of betrayal that Stormi sent my way. The way she screamed at me to leave her room. Memories of all the things I’ve done to this woman crash and collide into one giant ball of regret. I rocked this girl’s world, and my dick wasn’t the main attraction or cause.

“Did she at least apologize?”

“Why does it matter?” I snap. “Go home, Stormi. I got shit to do.”

Pivoting on my heels, I attempt to ignore she’s here. If she wants to stay and watch me use Bianca as target practice, so be it. I’ve already told her to go multiple times.

“I was just trying to answer your question,” she chides at my back. “If she didn’t say sorry or appear sorry that she tried to take your sister’s life, then go ahead. Give her what you think she deserves if it’ll make you—” I spin around.

“Nothing is going to make me feel better.”

And that’s the realest thing I’ve ever told her. Nothing but her.

“You’re looking for my permission. You don’t want me to hate you.”

“I don’t care if you hate me.”

Lies.

She scoffs at my response, but I’m grounded to my spot, and I’m not going to budge from what I just said. I’ve already laid out enough of my feelings, I’m not doing it anymore.

“Well...I don’t,” she replies, reclaiming her position in front of me. “I don’t hate you, Marty. I wish I did, though. You’ve made this complicated.”

“You’ve made this complicated,” I counter back like a fucking child before I jerk my head. “Go on home.”

“Look at me,” she orders before raising her chin. “This isn’t me. I don’t make these kinds of decisions. But with no evidence, justice won’t be served. It’s your word against hers and letting Bianca go...would probably be hard for you.” I open my mouth, but she raises her hand to stop me. “Take care of your family. Who knows...maybe I’d kill for mine too if I had one.”

“I gotta go.” Bishop brushes by me, breaking the moment as the screen from his cell phone lights up his hardened features.

“What’s up?” I call out after him breaching through the woods behind Stormi. “We’re about to—”

“I’ll buzz you later,” is all he says back as he sprints through the darkness and disappears. He could’ve taken Stormi back to the house with him the douchebag.

“Fuck,” I mutter, dropping everything that I’m holding to the ground. I swear to God each time Stormi shows up, she fucks up something I’m doing.

“Will you walk me home?” I steer my attention back to the blonde turned blue-haired in front of me, and she bats her eyelashes innocently—my ass.

She knows how to play me. I don’t care how naive or guiltless she was before, Stormi has mastered the art of knowing how to make me kneel at her feet and stop what the fuck I’m doing.

“Go south,” I transmit before the worry of her going the wrong way and truly getting lost enters my brain.

My hands transform into fists at my being incapable of telling her to go fuck off somewhere. It’d save me a lot of money and time to just let nature run its course and claim her if it so well pleased.

Stormi does exactly what I instruct her to do, marching to where Bishop just disappeared and hitting the green brush. I bite my tongue to keep from calling out to her.

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