Page 451 of Filthy Elites

“Why not?” he snaps, his grip tightening.

“Because I don’t stay over at her house, I’ve never stayed there because her parents don’t like me. If we have a sleepover, it’s always at my house.”

Tutting like the truth is incredibly inconvenient, he sighs. “Fine, tonight, I’ll return you to your home, we’ll have to come to some arrangement for the future.”

Relief at the fact that apparently they don’t plan to kill me and dump my body tonight makes another bout of tremors ricochet through my body.

“Are you cold? Why are you shaking?” Sebastian asks, taking off his blazer and draping it over my shoulders before he clicks my seat belt into place.

“I’m shaking because I’m scared,” I admit, the words falling from my lips before I can swallow them back.

“Scared of what?”

“You,” I say, incredulous.

His eyebrows arch and he looks down on me with shock etched across his expression. “You’re scared of me, even though I’ve told you not to be?”

“You have basically kind of kidnapped her, bro,” Hunter says, looking over at us from the front seat.

“She’s my girlfriend, you can’t kidnap your own girlfriend,” Sebastian declares passionately.

A lump fills my throat and I can’t breathe. Girlfriend. He thinks I’m his girlfriend. “I’m n-not your gir-girlfriend,” I stammer out through my tight throat.

“Would fiancée make you feel better? We can’t get married until you turn seventeen, but I’m more than happy to make it official now and then you can take the time to plan the wedding of your dreams.”

My mouth parts and a helpless gasp falls from my lips. I try to make more noise to argue, to try to escape, but blackness starts to filter into my vision as it gets harder and harder to breathe. Lifting my hand I claw at my throat, but my limbs feel heavy right before the darkness overwhelms me and I descend into silence.

SIX

Sebastian

The handI’m not holding lifts into the air, flops about uncoordinatedly, before it falls back to her lap. Her eyes widen manically and her mouth opens, but no sound comes out. Her eyes roll all the way back and she slumps down to the seat, her head rolling to the side and resting against Clay’s arm.

“What the fuck!” I shout, grappling for her face, turning it toward me.

“I think she just passed out,” Clay says, a hint of concern lacing his words.

“Starling, Starling,” I call, tapping at her cheek carefully as I pull her lax body away from my friend and into me instead. If it wasn’t dangerous, I’d unclip her seat belt and drag her into my lap, but I won’t risk her safety no matter how much I want to feel her luscious body against mine.

“Call Dr. Harris, have him meet us at home,” I shout, knowing one of my friends will do as I ask as I rest my fingers against her wrist, feeling her pulse beat steadily.

Exhaling shakily, I curl my arm around her, wrapping my blazer a little tighter around her shoulders, enjoying seeing her in my clothes despite the circumstances.

“Is she okay?” Evan asks, glancing quickly over his shoulder at us before he turns his attention back on to the road.

“You need to tone down the crazy, bro. You’re freaking me out and I know you,” Hunter warns.

“I don’t need you to tell me how to deal with my girlfriend.”

“We care about her too, Bastian,” he snaps. “We’re the ones who’ve been keeping an eye on her for the last year while you stopped yourself from going near her.”

“She’s mine,” I growl animalistically.

“Chill, no one’s trying to take her from you,” Clay says, ever the peacekeeper of our group. “She’s yours, we all get that, but you’re scaring her. She freaked out so much she passed the fuck out from fear. You need to dial it back and find some of that charm you’re famous for.”

Inhaling sharply, I nod, my fingers still at her pulse, the steady beat of her heart the only reason I’m not completely losing my shit right now.

“Doc’s on his way. Not going to be easy to explain why you have an unconscious sixteen-year-old girl at your place though,” Hunter warns.

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