Page 6 of Treacherous

"Oh no," I crooned sarcastically. "Like me.Pleaselike me. Your opinion meanseverythingto me."

"It should," she screamed. "Do you know who I am?" Her lip curled up cruelly. "You're so finished in school tomorrow." She smiled darkly. "I am going to ruin you."

"I think you should rephrase the question todo I care." I smiled. "I think you already know the answer to that, but in case you've had too much sun and can't think straight I'll answer you anyway.No.No, I don't care who you are. I've taken your measure and it's pretty clear to me that you're a bitch." Probably the popular girl. The queen bitch.Be quiet, Teagan. Shh. Don't go any further."And stupid."She's right, I'm finished."And ugly." There. I'd done it. I'd ruined my social status from here on out.

"I hate you, Teagan Jones," she snarled. "You're toast."

I snorted as I stared at the brunette over the fence. "I'm toast? I have sun cream on, love, not butter, you're the one baking out here." I was probably as red as a lobster, but I refused to back down from this bully. "And my name is Connolly," I added, annoyed that she called me by my uncle's surname. "Not Jones..."

"Where's my iPad, Ellie?" a deep, throaty voice called out.

Arching my neck, I shaded my eyes from the sun with one hand as I locked eyes on the owner of the voice. I immediately felt like weeping.

Mr. Tall, dark and hated-my-guts stalked towards Ellie looking mighty fine in his navy swimming trunks and I felt my skin heat instantly.

As much of a bastard as Noah Messina was, he was still able to tick all of the man-preference-boxes I never knew I had…

Messy black hair sticking out in all the right directions? Check. Thick, sooty lashes framing eyes as dark as charcoal? Got 'em. A toned, tanned body that could make you come without foreplay? Yup.

Usually I was turned off by tattoos, but Noah? He wore his tags like a boss.

Both of his arms were covered in sleeves of intricately designed swivels and loops, and he had this really sexy tattoo of a wolf on his left calf.

"Yeah, it's right here, Noah." Ellie's eyes lit up as she spoke, her voice became husky, and her whole focus became locked on Noah.

Hang on a sec, weren't they brother and sister – at least by law?

Ellie didn't look at him like a sister should. She was looking at him like a predator would its prey.

Hell, evenIwas looking at him like a predator would its prey.

God, it was such a pity they were related. That really sucked. Poison spread in families. But damn he was nice to look at. It was such a shame we hated each other's guts, it kinda meant he was off-limits to me – even my imagination.

He's off-limits to you whether you hate him or not, idiot. You're in relationship-rebound mode. Remember Liam?

Thoughts of my ex-boyfriend speared through me, bringing with them all kinds of confusing feelings and emotions.

Shaking my head, I pushed those feelings to the pit of my stomach.

I suppose I could sit and cry over a boy who broke up with me because of my whole leaving the country issue, and I suppose I could curl up like a wounded animal and make keening noises if I thought about the fact that I put his penis in my mouth about thirty minutes before he gave me my marching orders, but what would be the point in that?

The only person I'd be hurting would be myself. Liam would still be in Ireland, living it up with all of our friends, with my oral-virginity notched on his bedpost, and I would still be here in Colorado, being depressed as well as fighting with the neighbors.

Fuck that.

I was only young once. I'd hash it out with my conscience later. Meanwhile, I had eyes and I liked to look at pretty things. Noah was an asshole, but he was a very pretty one, hence the looking part.

"Although it's probably broken," Ellie added, shooting a meaningful glare in my direction, bringing me back to the here and now. "You can forward the bill to TeaganJones." She purposefully – and wrongfully – said my name like she was naming a horrifically contagious disease. "She's the one who poured water all over it."

My eyes narrowed in outrage. She had some nerve. "You can shove your bill up the highest part of your h…"

"You broke it, bitch," Ellie shot back, waving the piece of technology around like it was a flag.

"No,youbroke it," I shot back. "When you were drooling all over your brother..."

"That's enough." The warning tone in Noah's voice broke through my thoughts, cutting me off mid-rant and I couldn't stop my eyes from wandering all over his body, drinking him in – every square inch of his body.

His jaw was rough, with a day or so worth of stubble etched across it, and his body was bronzed from the heat of the sun.

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