Page 52 of You Belong With Me

There’s no response from anyone, and Lucas laughs, the sound vibrating deep in his chest. He releases me, and takes a dramatic step back, turning to address the party.

Pulling his phone out of his pocket, he holds it up. “Who wants to call the police? I’ll even lend you my phone.” He spins around slowly, looking for volunteers. But no one steps up. No one will even look at him. As his gaze slides over each face, they look away. Every. Single. Person.

Fucking cowards.

When it’s clear no one is brave enough to stand up to him, he shoves his phone back into his pocket and steps up to me with a smirk on his pretty-boy face.

He’s just proven exactly how fucked I really am. We’re standing in the middle of two dozen people or more, andnoneof them are willing to challenge a Sacred Son.Jocks that could twist someone into a fucking pretzel are studying their shoes. And the sorority chicks that talk about being empowered girl bosses? They’re looking down at their phones like this shit isn’t happening right in front of their faces.

Fuck them. For real. If I’m getting out of this, it’s clear I’ll have to do it on my own.

Lucas slides his hand around my hip and pulls me more tightly against him. “You, see, baby? I can do whatever I want in this town, and no one’s going to say shit.”

It’s true. He just got away with murder, didn’t he?

I try to separate myself from him, pushing my palm against his chest, but trying is so pointless, it’s comical. He’s not moving unless he wants to.

“Ifuckinghate you,” I spit.

He laughs again. “I know, baby. That’s what makes this so fun.”

Then he takes my face in one hand, and squeezing, forces me to look at him. Lowering his head, he kisses me, his tongue pushing into my mouth deep and forceful. Our teeth gnash together, and I moan.

Not because I want to. God, no. But because mystupidbody is a treacherous whore. I have to mentally separate myself from this kiss, which is the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do. One thing I’ll give Lucas—he’s a damn good kisser. For a split second, Ialmostforget he’s a murderous psycho.

When he finally pulls back, I suck in a breath and lift my knee to pulverize his balls again, but he anticipates me this time and puts his hand down to block my knee.

Those beautiful lips stretch into a wickedly beautiful smile. “Fool me once…” he says.

God-fucking-damn. Even as hate and fear course through me, that smile…I swallow and squeeze my eyes shut, tilting my head back. Tears prick the backs of my eyes, but they are tears of frustration. I want to claw my own fucking skin off, becausewhy?Why am I attracted to someone who is so unbelievably toxic?Whyyy?

I feel like I’m slipping into the quicksand of insanity, clawing at the surface, trying to pry myself out of its hungry jaws.

Maybe it’s already too late.

Abruptly, he pushes me back, separating us. I stumble over the uneven sand, colliding with someone behind me.

“Tell you what.” He shoves his hands into his pockets, head tilted downward, his eyes locked on me. “I’ll let you run. I’ll even give you a head start, ten seconds. If you get away, I leave you alone. I walk away.”

“And if you catch me?”

He smirks, the light from the fire casting shadows across his face. “Then I get to keep you.”

He looks way too sure of himself, which means this is a trick. His legs are longer than mine, and we’ve already seen how quickly he can catch up to me. So why this whole charade?

And do I really believe he’d walk away if I managed to run fast enough? No way in hell. I know he wouldn’t. But, honestly,it’s the only option I have right now, so I have no choice but to go with it.

“Sixtyseconds,” I counter.

He tilts his head to the side. “Now you’re just being greedy.”

“Thirty.”

He hesitates, his gaze flicking over me as he weighs my counteroffer. Finally, he nods. “Okay.”

“Turn around,” I demand.

He lifts a brow, but with a shrug, he does as instructed. I’m amazed, actually. He rarely takes direction from anyone else.

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