Page 209 of Vile Boys

I hold her close to me and listen to the sound of her breaths as her heart rate slows. Her body close to mine lulls my mind into a calm state, one I’ve only ever experienced when Ares hugs me.

I throw him a glance, the intrigue on his face making me question everything I thought I knew. About myself. About us. About her.

Is there a way I could love them both without being torn at the seams?

I push her away and look at her face, searching for the answers, but the look in her eyes is restless. As though her mind has already wandered off somewhere else.

Her eyes, glazed over, deeply connected with Ares’s, the air thick with poison.

A cloud has been hanging over us since we first saw her.

One that’s about to split open and rain down hell.

Crystal

I’ve givenmy body to the devil and stepped through the dark gates of hell with him. I did all he asked and more. And now I want what he promised me.

I push Caleb aside so I can focus on Ares. “It’s done. I did what you asked … I won.”

Ares tilts his head, the smug grin on his face growing deeper and deeper. “You won, little rose … And now you want to be relinquished of your deal with us.”

I swallow away all the feelings of lust I had seconds ago as Ares leans forward in his chair until he’s a mere inch away from my face just to say, “What would you do if I said I lied?”

“What?” I mutter in disbelief.

Ares’s hand supports his face as he leans down with his elbow on the armrest. “There was no deal. I wasn’t ever going to kill your mother to begin with. I never kill innocent people.”

Innocent people?

“Never?” I parrot as the darkness begins to take hold.

I steady myself against the table as my world shifts on its axis.

Break.

Break.

Break.

It’s all he’s wanted me to do … break me.

Break the glass that surrounds my heart.

Shatter the facade.

Show them what truly hides underneath.

Fine.

I’ll give him what he fucking wishes for.

Ares

The small smileinstantly evaporates from her face like it was never even real.

That’s it.

That’s the face I was looking for.

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