Page 45 of Slay Ride

As I dress in a pair of jeans and a snug sweater, she fills me in on the change in plans for the day. The outdoor activities have been canceled due to a coming snowstorm, so we’re all gathering in the rec room for a little fun and games.

“Just keep Bennett far away from me,” I say as I step into a new pair of knee-high leather boots. I really should have broken these in before the trip.

“Is he that fuckboy with piercing blue eyes and the badass tattoos?” she asks, and I nod. “He actually tried to bring the muffins to you, but Ezra plucked the plate from his hands and placed it in mine.”

Now that I know they’re safe, I grab a muffin and shove it into my mouth. “Figures,” I say through a mouthful of warm blueberry goodness. “Fuck, these are good.”

“That chef is pretty talented.”

“He is, but mind the meat. He likes to cook with people.”

Eve grimaces. “Thanks for the heads-up.”

She stands and makes her goodbyes, then tells me to be in the rec room around ten. When the door closes behind her, Shorty slinks out from the shadows.

“You aren’t very good at playing welcoming committee,” I say.

He blinks up at me.

I hurry to the bathroom mirror and slap on some makeup after I scarf down another muffin. When Bennett sees me, I want him to regret every mean thing he’s ever said or plans to say to me.

That’s going to be hard when one of my eyes looks like it has a contagious infection. How do I even have skin left on my face if my cleanser is this strong?

I scrounge through my toiletry bag, searching for a bottle of Systane. My fingers fumble through a graveyard of expired Dramamine, faded packets of Advil, and the crushed Tums tablets that escaped their container. The eye drops are AWOL.

Maybe no one will notice the highway of inflamed capillaries sprawling across my sclera. I stroke my mascara wand over my lashes a few more times and hope for the best.

“Guard the palace while I’m gone,” I say to Shorty, though I know he’ll probably just spend most of the morning cleaning his asshole and clawing the curtains. I’m surprised Kindra didn’t notice his artwork last night.

Fate is not my friend as I step into the hall. As soon as my door closes behind me, Bennett’s door flies open. He steps out of his room and nearly knocks me over.

His hand wraps around my arm as I try to hurry past him. “Hey, you got a second?”

“Maybe,” I say as I turn to face him. I should have snatched my arm away and kept walking. My brain searches for something mean to say, but I can only think of the way his hands felt on my naked body.

At least the lights are dim. He shouldn’t notice my bloodshot eye under these weakly glowing sconces.

“Look, I just wanted to apologize for last night,” he says.

“If you want me to apologize for keeping you awake, you’ll be waiting for a while. I’m not sorry at all.”

Bennett looks around. “Drop the act. No one’s here.”

“It’s not an act. The night in the cabin changed nothing. In fact, I?—”

He steps into me and walks me backward until my ass hits the wall. Judging by the fire in his eyes, he’s about to silence me. Permanently. Then his mouth falls on mine, and before I realize what’s happening, I’m kissing him back.

My stomach dips and rolls. A whimper slides out of me. I can feel how much he wants me through my jeans, and if he could feel my panties, he’d know how badly I want him, too.

“I thought we weren’t doing this anymore,” I say when I pull away.

“Because of what I said at your door?”

I nod.

“Kindra was sitting right behind you. I couldn’t exactly ask what was wrong without drawing suspicion.” He leans down and nips my neck. “But either way, I’m not exactly a nice guy, kitten. Not even your incredible pussy can make me into something I’m not.”

He speaks the truth, but his tongue is useful for so much more than hurting feelings. Like right now, it’s making me feel pretty fucking good as it drives circles over my pulse point.

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