Page 53 of Burn With Me

Hel crosses her arms over her chest and tilts her head to the side as she takes in my haphazard appearance, from the club heels I wore last night to the new—and definitely borrowed—hoodie I’ve got on over my dress. I’d almost rather it were Selene. Selene would be easier to fool. I glance at the floor as the door closes quietly behind me and snicks shut.

“What happened?” she finally asks.

I blow out a breath and scrub a hand down my face as I move further into the kitchen, tossing my keys onto the counter. She moves to the side as I kick off my heels and then sink onto the couch of our combined living space.

“I made a mistake,” I say honestly.

“You fucked him.” It’s not a question, but a damn good guess. One I can’t hide from.

“Yeah…”

Hel is quiet for a moment and I sink my face into my hands, bowing forward over my knees as the gravity of my actions finally slams into me. It isn’t until I feel the couch cushions sink beside me that I realize she’s taken a seat next to me. Warmth hovers over my spine for a split second before I feel her press a palm to my back.

“What are you going to do now?” she asks.

After everything Isaac told me? I’m not sure. There’s so much I don’t know still. What I do know, however, is that I have to warn Marcus. I’d like to tell my mother, but she wouldn’t believe me. Once she’s in a man’s clutches, she likes to remain there until she comes to her senses on her own. Nothing I can say will make her see the truth until she’s ready. Isaac thought that I could get her to leave his father, but that’s not true. My mother never listens to me. The only one who might be able to break through to her is Marcus.

“I don’t know, Hel…” I blow out a long breath. “But things can’t go on the way they have been.”

“Are you two…” I lift up when her voice wavers, hesitating. I meet her curious gaze. “Together?” she finishes.

Are we?I open my mouth except no words come. There’s no answer. Instead, I’m left with only more questions. “How would that even work?” I ask.

She shrugs. “I don't know, Rori,” she says. “What does he think?”

“I…” I lean back and she withdraws her hand as my spine hits the back cushion with a thump. “I didn’t stick around to ask.”

“You snuck out?”

I gesture down at my appearance and give her a half-hearted smile. “Does this not look like the outfit of the walk of shame?” I answer before groaning. “I fucked this all up so bad. I should’ve never gone with him last night.”

“Selene came home and said that you disappeared with him,” Hel states. “I was worried.”

“I’m glad she made it home okay,” I say.

Hel sighs. “Does this at least mean that he’s going to stop torturing you?” she asks.

“Maybe?” Hell, I don’t fucking know what’s going on in Isaac Icari’s head. Having his dick inside me doesn’t necessarily mean that suddenly he’s become an open book. What terrifies me, though, are his words from last night. The claiming.

You’re mine, Sunshine.His words echo through my skull like the ringing of a bell announcing the plague has arrived. The plague of the Icari family. His father. Him.

“He wants me to leave,” I admit. “He wants me to go to Eastpoint with Marcus.”

Hel frowns and leans forward to take a good long look at my face. My expression, whatever it is, must only confuse her even more as her brows draw down lower and lower over her big eyes. “What does that mean?” she demands.

I lift my shoulders and let them drop back down. “I have no clue,” I lie. “But I’m not doing it. There’s no way I’m going to tuck my tail and run away now.”

She eyes me for a beat. “There’s more you’re not telling me, isn’t there?”

Damn it.I press my lips together, but she’s not an idiot. My lack of answer tells her everything she needs to know.

“You need to be careful, Rori,” she warns me, pushing up from the couch. “You need to be incredibly careful with him. Whatever is going on between the two of you, I doubt it’s over.”

She’s right. It’s not over. Not by a long shot. I didn’t realize it until after the fact, but Isaac is obsessive. The way he looked at me when he laid down his claim. Even now, I can recall the heat and intensity of his gaze. He meant it. Every. Fucking. Word.

As Hel shakes her head at me and moves back towards the hallway, I let my head drop down to rest against the back of the couch and curse to myself. I have a feeling that once Isaac latches onto something, it’ll take an act of God to make him let go.

Right now, I’m his newest focus and the only god around is the God of Hazelwood, himself.

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