Page 71 of Crave

Tonight, I’d be heading to LA. I’d have three months to rebuild myself, though I’d only be a shadow of who I was meant to be.

It was over.

Chapter Forty

Landon

Listen to Greedy

by Tate McRae

Istared at the phone in shock. Max approached me slowly, as if trying not to startle a scared deer. I looked at him through a veil of fog because even though my mind kept telling me it would all be okay, my heart knew it would not.

I think I’d lost Adam.

The breath that he’d ordered me to take wheezed from my lungs. Nerves raw, I leaned forward and started to hyperventilate.

“Landon, what’s wrong? Holy crap, are you having a panic attack?” Max asked sharply.

His voice came from far away. What had happened? I thought we were agreeing that each of us experienced drama but we didn’t have a choice. Our careers were forcing us to deal with situations we rather not. But we trusted each other and would move forward. Right? Hadn’t that been the conversation?

“Landon, I’m going to count and you’re going to focus on your breath, okay? I got you.”

His grip tightened as he held on to me, but nothing mattered except figuring out how everything had gone wrong.

Max. Adam had said Max paid a guy to attack me in Red. Adam wanted me to believe him. Was that all? He’d hung up and left me with a gut instinct I’d done something horrible; something that had changed us. Imagining Max committing such a betrayal was against everything inside of me. To even accept such a fact would put me on a road I didn’t want to travel. A road where the man I’d once loved was really a monster.

Adam had needed me to say I believed him. Why? Why was he pushing this so hard? I’d imagined it was because he needed to win over Max and prove I loved him more. But now, I wondered if Adam had seen my refusal to accept his truth as a betrayal.

My vision cleared. I heard Max’s soothing words in my ear. His arms held me in support. A terrible instinct washed over me. Slowly, I straightened, my lungs finally allowing me to receive precious air.

Max stepped back but kept his hand on my arm. “Do you feel better? You scared the hell out of me. You never had attacks before.”

“I’m okay. My conversation with Adam was intense.”

His eyes dimmed but he slowly nodded. “I can imagine. It looked intense. He’s pissed I’m here, right?”

I eased away from his touch and gained precious distance. “Of course. You shouldn’t have come, Max.”

Pain reflected on his face. I stared at him, trying to sync up with the idea he’d sunk to new depths in order to gain what he wanted.

Me.

I always knew Max was selfish. It was a part of him I understood as I owned my role as the pampered princess—the Queen bitch. I’d been playing it most of my life, and no one had ever dared to try and tame me until Adam. With Max, I was able to flourish, but eventually, such selfishness would have strangled me alive. I owed myself better. I owed myself the truth.

And suddenly, I was beginning to see things crystalize before me, whether I liked it or not.

Adam’s voice echoed in my head. I glanced through his texts and studied the picture Adam snapped. Gio. He didn’t look familiar. I hated what I was about to do. Accusing Max broke my heart. But I’d be more broken if I lost Adam and didn’t listen to his warning.

“Max, do you know this guy?” I asked casually, holding up my phone.

A tiny frown creased his brow. He squinted at the picture for a few seconds, then nodded. “Sure, that’s Gio. You met him once at one of the clubs.”

“I don’t remember.” I paused, waiting, but he remained silent. “He a good friend of yours?”

Max shrugged. “Nah, it’s casual. We don’t hang out one on one. Why? He dating one of your friends or something?”

I knew the next few seconds were crucial. Max had taught me a few things about himself over the year. It was possible to scent a lie, but I needed to open up and separate myself from the outcome I wanted. I needed a calm, clear mind. So, I took a deep breath, slowly let it out. And asked the question.

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