Page 345 of Hate Mates

My heart wasn't fickle, it beat for Trenton in a way it never had for anyone else. I had fleeting crushes that never amounted to much of anything. Mainly because he scared them away, but a small part was the fact I couldn't stop wanting him. It was wrong. He was my tormenter, my adopted brother. My enemy.

Pushing open the doors to the math building, I quickly hustle into my classroom. Looking over the rows of long tables and chairs, I decide the middle is the best place. Not in the back by the people who slacked off and not too close to the frontto answer questions. Even though math was my thing, it didn't mean I could handle a room full of people staring at me.

I pull my bag close to my chest as I make my way down the aisle. Finding a spot not directly in the middle and more towards the left side of the class, I take a seat.

I pull out my laptop and a pencil and notepad. I know most don’t use a pencil and pad but I’m a hands-on learner. Holding the pencil grounds me. Unlike most who will use an iPad and pen. For me, it just wasn't the same.

The chair next to me scrapes and my head swings up to take in the gorgeous man next to me. Brown tousled hair, built like a hockey player. I know exactly what they look like from growing up around them. His broad shoulders to his thick arms and thighs. Strong square jaw peppered in dark stubble. His eyes, a midnight blue surrounded by thick lashes. And when he smiles, I feel my body sag just a little.

“Is this seat taken?”

I wanted to reply but my tongue felt heavy, so I just shook my head instead.

He sits, extending his long legs and taking up a little of my leg room. “Adam,” he supplies and all I can do is blink. He smiles, his lips curving slowly as his eyes dance with amusement. “And you are?”

“Oh.” I shake my head to lose the trance I’m in. “Ana.” I hold out my hand.

His warm hand envelopes mine, bringing it to his lips. My mouth parts slightly, the skin tingling. “Nice to meet you, Ana.”

When he drops my hand, I quickly face the front, listening to the professor’s introduction on precalculus. And although I’m listening, I’m highly aware of the man next to me. His thigh slightly touching mine doesn't help.

I follow along the syllabus as the professor reads aloud. My mind works overtime as I think of examples of everythinghe talks over, by the time class is over, I’m smiling, because numbers make sense.

I pack up my things, about to stand when a hand envelops mine. I look up to see Adam with a sharpie in his hand, writing numbers on mine. When he’s finished, I look up, a wayward strand of hair hanging in my face. He grins, pushing it behind my ear causing me to blush. He nods towards the number, “Text me.”

“Okay.” I breathe out, watching him leave before I follow. I’m stuck staring at my hand when my body crashes into a hard chest. “I’m so sorry,” I begin, but stop.

Trenton glares down at me. His eyes jumping to my hand and then back to my eyes. Sneering, he pushes past me, almost knocking me down.

My body usually knows when he’s around, but I didn't this time. Adam had taken all my focus and left me vulnerable. I’d have to remember to keep my mind intact from now on.

***

The elevator dings, causing me to jump from my perch on the couch, losing my place in my book. Swinging my head up, my eyes connect with his. Jade green surrounded by purplish-blue bruises, or the right one is. His lip is cut, blood binding to the flesh. His nose has a small smear of red under it.

I drop my book as I stand, rushing to him as he drops his hockey bag. Maybe I lost my mind, but for the first time, I touch him. My soft hands grazing the stubble on his jaw as I move his face from left to right. He glares down at me but doesn't remove my hands. “What happened?” I breathe out.

“A misunderstanding,” he grounds out, opting to give me no other detail.

I sigh, allowing my hands to drop. “You’re always having misunderstandings.” I turn. “Follow me, I have a first aid kit in my room.”

At first, I don’t think he’ll listen, but then I hear his footsteps behind mine. When I stop at my door, his body is too close. Pressing into mine, the heat from his body exhilarating. I can’t fight the shiver that racks through my body when his nose brushes over my hair, but I cannot let myself get lost. I push my door open, putting much needed space between us.

I point to the bed. “Sit.”

To my surprise, he listens, his big frame dominating my bed. I retrieve the kit from under the bathroom sink and walk back to him. I open the contents on the bed, pulling disinfecting wipes, gauzes and bandages as well as ointment. I stand a little from him, leaning over to add the wipe to his bleeding lip when his fingers twist in my belt loops, pulling me between his legs. “Come on, Moth. I won't bite until you beg me to.” My breath catches as I watch him, my fingers millimeters from his busted lip. “And you will. Beg, that is.”

I tear my eyes away from his, my mouth parting slightly while I concentrate on cleaning his lip. His fingers dance up the outside of my thigh, each touch pulsing with electric shock.

“Close your mouth, Moth.” He leans closer into me, smashing his lips on the wipe. “Close it before I fill it with something much bigger.”

I swallow hard, blinking rapidly as I try to hurry the process, only it’s hard to concentrate while he draws pictures on the outside of my thighs. Once I get everything cleaned up and add ointment, I quickly throw everything back in. I didn’t need the bandages, I’m not even sure why I got them out. He halts my hand as I close the first aid kit, the hand with the number scrawled across it. I take a chance and look at Trenton. Wishing I didn’t. His eyes are murderous, his hand tightening around mine before he breathes hard through his nose.

And then he’s moving, me in tow as he drags me behind him, causing me to trip over my feet in order to keep up with him.

He throws my bathroom door open, pulling me through before slamming me up against the door. “Take them off,” he demands.

“W-What?” I stumble out, eyes wide as I search his.

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