Page 100 of His To Claim

I step out of the Dahlia House and the chilly November air hits my face like an icy brick. It’s oddly cool for the West Coast this time of year, but you don’t hear me complaining.

The sun has set, leaving only the streetlamps and moonlight to illuminate the night sky. I head down the steps and see Jax, Kai, and Drake leaning on the railing below. I gasp, inhaling a breath of cool air as Drake’s eyes connect with mine. Instantly they darken, the scowl he’s mastered when I’m nearby making its appearance.

I descend toward them, and their demeanor shifts, their bodies straightening up as I approach. I’m about to walk past and ignore them when Drake reaches an arm out to me, placing it on my shoulder as I walk by. I slowly turn to look at him, his dark green eyes connecting with mine. I no longer see anger, but sorrow, resentment, and curiosity cloud them.

“Dragon,” I whisper softly where only he can hear. Jax and Kai step back giving us the space we need.

“We’ll head inside, see if the girls are ready,” Kai says, looking at me. Jax grunts mockingly as he turns away.

“Happy Birthday, Jaxon,” I say, and he freezes in place. He turns back to me, flipping me off as he heads into the house.

Drake scoffs but doesn’t tell his friend anything. Why would he, he’s probably wishing he could do the same? “Ignore him,” he says as I look back in his direction. “He’s acting like a douche. Like he’s the one who got dumped.”

“Drake,” I say, but he reaches a hand up to me, placing his finger lightly on my lips in a shushing motion.

“See you later, Scar,” Kai says from beside me, as he follows Jax and heads inside.

“So, are you skipping out tonight?” Drake asks, unable to look me in the eye.

“Didn’t think you’d want me there. Well you, or Jax, or Ruby. Figured I’d spare everyone the drama.”

He chuckles lightly but doesn’t deny it, a shy smile taking over his earlier scowl and I almost want to grab him and kiss him. Ugh what’s wrong with me.

“So you’re going to him, huh?” he asks, but it’s almost as if he doesn’t want an answer back.

“I’m going out,” I reply nonchalantly, neither confirming nor denying his suspicions. I owe home nothing and keeping this from him is for his benefit.

“It’s okay, you can say it. I know you’re an item now. A couple. I can’t say I didn’t expect it. Wouldn’t be fair if I said I didn’t see it coming, but it is what it is.” His body hunches forward slightly, his hands nervously tucked into his jeans pockets. I break the awkward silence the only way I know how.

Avoiding the issue at hand. “So, no hot date tonight?” I ask, referring to his rendezvous the other night with none other than Carrington Prescott. According to Jade, he hasn’t spoken to her since Beck’s party, and that minor mishap she blames on his lack of brain cells from all the weed he’s smoked, and alcohol he’s consumed over his lifetime.

Drake chuckles slightly, rubbing his chin with his fingers.

“Carrington means nothing to me, and besides nothing happened. She was a distraction. Apparently, she was pissed about you and the Horseman,” he says, shrugging his shoulders.

And now once again I feel like a total bitch for even bringing it up. He was only in her arms because of what I did to him.

“Drake, I…”

“Don’t, Scar. Don’t say you’re sorry, or that you never meant to hurt me. I don’t want to hear it. I don’t believe any of it. Not your apologies, or your reasons, hell, especially not your half-assed excuses. You forget I know you better than anyone else and I don’t buy it for one second. Sure, I can see why you’d like him. The power, the status, his reputation precedes him. He’s got that rich, bad boy thing going for him. Physically, I can understand the appeal. But I don’t believe that you’ve stopped wanting me.” He moves in closer to me, placing a hand on the small of my back and bringing his other behind my neck. His eyes are staring down at my lips as his tongue reaches out to lick them. “I won’t stop, Scarlett.” His hot breath burns my cheeks and ignites something deep within me. “I won’t give up until I know why you did it. You can’t fool me, Princess,” he says in a hushed, raspy voice. His scent fills my nostrils, a combination of sandalwood and smoke, and something completely him.

“Drake, please, don’t. You need to accept the fact that I chose him. I found in him something I never had with you.” My words burn my lips as they come out, but this needs to be said. He needs to back off and not go digging for answers and well, it’s not really a lie. Ace Servite awoke something within me I didn’t know existed. He fuels the raging fire within me, while Drake only lit a small spark.

A glimpse of hurt passes through Drake’s eyes but quickly fades away.

“Don’t waste your time looking for answers you won’t find. This isn’t some kind of mystery that needs to be solved. Accept it, you lost, he won. You never had me to begin with. You were my only lover, I didn’t know any better, but now, I do.”

“Keep telling yourself that, Scar. I know the truth. Your body betrays you,” he says as he looks down at my chest. My eyes follow his and I see my nipples poking through my thin sweater.

His eyes shift as he looks behind me.

“Looks like you have an admirer,” he says, smirking deviously. “Like I said before, Horseman doesn’t seem to like me putting my hands on you,” he says, as I turn to look behind me.

I see Ace standing beneath a tall tree across the lawn, the streetlight above him illuminating his ravenous glare. He’s livid as he looks toward Drake and me in this compromising position and smiles wickedly and winks at me.

“I’d say let’s give him something to watch, but if I get kicked out, which will surely happen if I put my hands on his pretty little face, I won’t be able to find out what you’re trying to keep from me. So, I’ll keep my hands to myself from now on.” He steps back, releasing me, and my body instantly misses his touch. Without another word he heads inside leaving me standing at the steps alone, Ace glaring at me from a mere fifty feet away.

I reach Ace, where he stands angrily underneath the oak tree.

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