Page 194 of Tangled up in You

“Stop.” I hold his arm tighter and pull until Cas stands up and backs away from Jaxon.

He grips my chin and turns my head to look at my cheek. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine. My grandmother hits harder.”

Cas shakes his head. “This isn’t a joke, Ry. That piece of shit hit you. If I hadn’t found you, what the hell was going to happen?” Cas points at Jaxon. “No one touches you.” He cups my face, and I freeze, my brain misfiring as his lips close in on mine. I want this. I want him, but I can’t be all weak in the knees every time he feels conflicted and decides he wants me.

I shove Cas in the chest. “You can’t have it both ways, Cas. We are not together, you’ve made that very clear, so I can fuck whoever I want.”

He stills, eyes darkening. “You really want to fuck that guy?”

“What I want is for you to make up your mind because this rollercoaster ride you have me on is too much.” I step back so he’s forced to drop his hands from my cheeks. “You tell me you can’t be with me, and then in the next breath, tell me that no one else is allowed to touch me.” I look down at Jaxon as he groans. Good, at least he’s still breathing. Cas in prison because of me is a really horrible first day on the road.

“But Ry, I’ll always protect you, together or not.” That statement singlehandedly warms my heart and stabs me. “God only knows what he was going to do to you. I had to step in.”

I groan in frustration. “Cas, you stopping this dickless wonder is not the problem. It’s the possessive attitude and look in your eyes. I’m not yours. Remember.” I shake my head at him. “Don’t say shit as if you’re my boyfriend when you clearly believe that my stupid brother and his bullshit are more important to you than what we can have.”

Once more, my back ends up against the wall, but this time, my body is set on fire as Cas growls against my lips. “Why do you keep making my life so difficult?”

“I don’t think I’m the problem here. I’ve made what and who I want very clear. I’m not the one conflicted. You are.”

We stare at one another, my breathing as erratic as my pulse, but I hold his steely gaze until he finally lets me go.

“Fuck.” Cas runs his hand through this hair, and I take the opportunity to slip further away.

“We should get going before he comes around,” I say and march out of the hallway. I’ve seen tennis matches without as much back and forth as Cas and his emotions. It doesn’t matter.I’ve served the ball. It’s his turn to make the next move, and this is not it.

CHAPTER 7

Caspian

The guys and Ry chat as we drive down the dark road, but as hard as I try, I just can’t get into the festive mood. All that keeps playing through my mind is hunting down Ry, looking in every corner, the girl’s bathroom, and then eventually finding her in the shadowy staff hallway with that guy. I can still hear her telling him no, and when he hit her, I’ve never been more sure that I was going to jail. It’s a good thing I don’t carry a gun.

I’m stupidly sitting in the front seat but can see Ry out of the corner of my eye. The laughing and flirting with Quinn and Finn is making me postal. It isn’t so much that they want to fuck her. I know that they both do. It’s the fact that I feel like I can’t or shouldn’t, holding myself to a different standard as her brother’s best friend. They don’t seem to care which grates me the wrong way. In my heart, Ry is mine. She’s always been mine.

“I can’t get my hoodie off. Can you two move over some,” Finn asks, and my head snaps around as Ry squeals. I watch as Quinn pulls her from the middle onto his lap, and my cock hardens. Knowing exactly how lush and sweet that ass is and how much I want her to sit on me makes my jeansuncomfortable, but I manage not to give myself away and force myself to look away and out the windshield. For all the good it does.

“Fuck you have a nice ass.” My hand clenches into a fist.

“Alright, you can move back. I’m good now.” Unable to help myself, I glance back at Finn, but the spot beside him remains open.

“Naw, you’re good right here,” Quinn says, and I’m not sure if he is purposely trying to get under my skin, but regardless, it’s working. Before I can say anything, Koa speaks up.

“Fuck, get your seatbelts on. I don’t need to have anyone dying on my watch if I slide off the fucking road.” As if to emphasize his point, the wind shakes the van as the once pretty snowflakes swirl around in dangerous whiteout conditions.

Shockingly, no one argues, and I catch sight of Ry slipping off Quinn’s lap and putting her seatbelt on. Thank you, Koa.

“How far til we reach town?”

“Too far. I’ve been doing like thirty miles an hour, and the roads are getting worse the further we go.” Gripping the steering wheel tighter as the van’s back end slides a little, Koa’s knuckles are almost as white as the snow outside.

“Why don’t we stop for the night? I know we wanted to get to Grand Rapids, but we won’t be good to anyone dead. If the conditions get worse, then we may get stuck on the side of the road and freeze to death. There’s a motel about ten miles up the road.” Ry leans forward and hands me her phone with the glowing map.

“She’s right. It’s not far, and there’s no point pushing it. This isn’t supposed to clear until tomorrow sometime,” I say, handing Ry’s phone back. “And there’s a drive-thru burger place right before it.”

“Fine by me, the sooner we get out of this shit, the better,” Koa mumbles. Driving in the snow doesn’t bother me, but thisis Koa’s van. It doesn’t take long to see the glowing sign of the burger place, and we turn in and pull up to the box. We all order two meals plus random extras, and I cringe as Finn yells that he wants the toy. Children, I swear they are easier than this lot.

“I’ll run in,” I say as we pull into the parking lot of the place that reminds me of the Bate’s Motel. The glowing red sign is half out, and the other part is flashing, so instead of reading Ruby Rosewood Motel, the strobe show loudly announces the Rub Wood Motel. Jesus fuck, now even random signs are conspiring against me.

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