Page 22 of Toxic

"Listen, about the whole ‘Kingdom of Promises’ thing—I’m ready if you’re still into it."

He said it in a weird tone, kind of annoyed but also unexpectedly submissive. A peculiar mix.

So, I turned to face him, and our eyes met.

"I know you don’t like me and think I’m ugly. I don’t want you to force yourself. No need for a pity fuck."

Soren rolled his eyes and sighed. "I don’t think you’re ugly! Seriously, you believed that, dumbass? And I’m not doing you any favors. I get paid for it; it’s a job. Just letting you know if you still want it, I’m down, and I’m sober," he added bitterly. "Standard rates, just business."

There was a moment of silence. Well, damn, I didn’t expect him to follow up on what he said yesterday. Even after sobering up and having time to think, he still wanted to do it? But why? Maybe I shouldn’t ask… But I had to let him know about the texts I got from Sean. So, I pulled out my phone and showed him the first message.

"Soren’s gonna try to talk you into the bj tomorrow. He bet he’ll succeed. Just saying."

Soren stared at the screen for a while, pale and frowning. His body stiffened.

Since he didn’t seem eager to say anything, I made my point clear, "As I said, I don’t need pity, or to be some bet for you. And by the way, Alvin told me this morning that he kicked you out of the ‘Kingdom’. So, you’re on your own."

Soren still didn’t say anything, just kept staring at the screen like he was in mild shock. Suddenly… I noticed his eyes got a little watery! Then he let out a shaky breath and quietly said, "Sean wants you for himself. He told me he made a move on you, and you turned him down. He asked if he could try again today, and I said… no."

This was totally unexpected, and I just stared at him for a while. The guy had pushed me away and ignored me for almost two months, and now this?

He was very pale and seemed kinda devastated… It looked like Sean’s betrayal hit him hard. But why did he say no to Seanmaking a move on me? That didn’t make sense. No fucking sense at all.

"Are you pulling a ‘dog in the manger’, Soren? You don’t want me, but you don’t want anyone else to have me either?"

To make things even clearer, I swiped to the second message from Sean and showed it to him:

"I think Soren intends to make you his next paypig, like Don was before. Take your money, give you shit."

Soren looked at it, still in shock, maybe even a bit nauseous.

Honestly, I felt bad for him. I noticed Sean’s text came after my fight with Don, so I could piece together what probably happened.

First, I turned down Sean, then rejected Soren’s offer. They must’ve talked about it afterward, and Soren must’ve said something about a bet. But I clearly remembered he made the bj offer before they talked. So it couldn’t have been a bet; it was just an impulse after I saved him from Don. It was more about gratitude than anything else. Even if he said something weird to Sean later, the initial offer was spontaneous.

"Sean’s being kinda bitchy to you. I’m sorry if this situation messed up your friendship," I said calmly, feeling genuinely sympathetic for him. "That wasn’t my intention, Soren. Listen, I left you alone like you wanted. I stopped pursuing you because I felt like you truly didn’t like me. Yeah, I wanted to use your service before, but I don’t want you to feel like you had to do it out of gratitude. You don’t owe me anything. We’re good. You really don’t have to do it, Soren."

Soren’s eyes lifted to mine. They were beautiful, light gray, crystalline, like the sky over a stormy sea. I could drown in them. I wished he actually liked me, not just forced himself because of feeling grateful or for the sake of winning with Sean. But that wasn’t the case.

"But I’m not forcing myself," he choked out, as if reading my thoughts.

I shrugged and turned my gaze back to the class board, choosing not to respond.

Soren kept staring at me.

"If you’re worried, I want to turn you into another Don… I don’t, Skye. You can believe Sean if that’s what you decide, but I’m telling the truth. I don’t need your ‘friendly support’, and what I offered is more than I’ve ever offered any alpha besides Anton… my ex-fiancé. I’ve never blown any other alpha, surely not Don. You can take it or not. It’s not a bet, I don’t give a fuck what Sean says. It’s business, nothing more. Yeah, Alvin kicked me out, but I can offer what I want… to whoever. It’s a paid service, exactly like you wanted at the beginning. It’s still on the table."

I stared at him for a bit, kinda reading him. There were two Sorens in him, like two layers of images, one imposed over the other. One was vaguely hostile, bitter, and provocative. The other, under it, much more vulnerable… on some level, I knew Soren genuinely wanted it. The other part of him was almost scared I would reject the proposition, and—shockingly—NOT because of the bet or Sean’s involvement.

My gaze slowly shifted across his face. He hadn’t cleaned off his makeup from yesterday too well, and there were still dark smudges and shadows around his eyes, making him look kinda emo, pretty dramatic. I looked down at his lips, and they were… Damn. Soft-looking, slightly wet, plump, tempting, fuck. His lip ring shimmered slightly. I had to tear my eyes away from the view, fighting the waves of strange excitement.

I knew if I said no now, Soren would never make this offer again. He was too proud for that. So even though I was sooo tempted to refuse… after all that, it wouldn’t even be weird, but on the other hand, I really wanted him. I’d wanted to touch himfor more than two months now. He was giving me consent… maybe I shouldn’t throw a fit?

For some reason, these words tore out of me: "The dance. You know, the one you did yesterday. Was it for me?"

Soren's lips parted slightly in surprise, and then… did I notice a blush?

"Yeah," he murmured so quietly I could barely hear it.

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