Page 73 of Kade

It wasn’t normal.

Was I a psychopath? A sociopath? I didn’t feel anything about doing this to Aurelia. She was annoying, and she was a liar, and she was a problem. I was just shutting her up. Literally. She’d think twice before shooting her mouth off about my family in the future.

That’s why I was doing this.

Huh.

She kept trying to dig her nails into my hands, trying to get me to let her go. Nea and Amber were crying now. I heard a splash of water and then, “What the fuck?”

There was a pounding of feet from behind me.

My fun was about to end so I gave her a last squeeze. Her eyes bulged out, but I was ripped away. A pair of arms encircled me, lifted me up and carried me away from the table. Beltraine was at Aurelia’s side, patting her back as she slumped forward, gasping for breath. He soothed her, but his gaze was locked on me.

Everyone was watching me, different expressions on all of their faces. The girls looked terrified of me. The guys… I couldn’t make out their thoughts. Traine gave me a look as if I just turned green in front of him.

I frowned to myself, feeling like I should feel something about that. Satisfaction? Regret? I felt nothing.

Whoever pulled me off Aurelia continued to carry me a good distance away before setting me down. It was Axel, I realized when he moved to stand in front of me, a hand on my arm like he needed to hold me back. Steele moved to stand between me and the girls, blocking my view. He scowled at me.

What was his problem?“What? Is she your girlfriend? You don’t want me to harm a hair on her head?” I rolled my eyes, lifting my drink back to my mouth. Satisfaction pulsed through me becausehell yeah. I’d kept hold of my cup. That seemed like something to be impressed about.

“She’s not my girlfriend.” Steele moved toward me a step. “I don’t give a fuck if you stab the bitch. Choke her out all you want.”

A ripple moved through me, and I frowned, not totally recognizing what that ripple was. “Then what’s your problem?”

He didn’t reply.

Axel cleared his throat, letting go of me.

That’s when Aurelia decided to finally say something. “You bitch!” She shrieked. She flew at me, but the guys caught her.

Excitement raced through me. “Let her go.”

The guys’s mouths dropped.

I laughed, tipping my head to finish the rest of my drink. I flashed Traine a grin. “You’re right. This is fun.” I didn’t catch his reaction, but I eyed Aurelia’s neck. There was no mark from me. My mouth turned down.

I wish there was, just a little.

That was… Interesting.

I considered Max, the thought of leaving a mark on him and him wearing that around—holy fuck. I was drenched between my legs. Throbbing.

Yeah. I liked that idea a lot.

Maybe I was going to be into BDSM?

I had so much new stuff to Google about myself.

Aurelia was still shrieking, getting louder. She was sobbing, half clinging to Axel. “I should call the police! That was assault. You fucking whor—”

I took a step closer. “I wouldn’t.”

She stopped talking. Nea and Amber jumped at my movement. They hid behind Beltraine. His head was cocked to the side, his gaze dark. A corner of Traine’s mouth curved up. Axel and Steele shared a look. Axel’s lips twitched.

“What? Rethinking your invitation now that you’ve realized I’m a different kind of animal?” I said to him. “Found yourself in the wrong circus?”

The other end of his mouth lifted in a slow grin. “Nah. Thinking I like this circus a lot more than I thought.”

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