Page 100 of Ride or Die
“Layla. No. I can’t. Just fucking leave it, okay? Do your shit, get out of here. For what it’s worth, I’m sorry. But I still fucking hate you,” she says, turning away from me.
I stare at her for a moment, remorse for all my actions towards her over the past year hitting me strong. Seeing her like this, depleted in a park in her pyjamas all beat up, is breaking my heart.
She looks back up at me and rolls her eyes, then glares, probably hating the look of sympathy I’m giving her. She never liked to admit weakness or have people pity her.
“Gooo awaaayyy,” she says, her tone full of hate and exasperation. At a loss, I nod, and she gives me an annoyed wave as I turn to head back to Colt.
I take a few steps and stop in my tracks, looking back at her once more. Seeing her bare feet, I take my shoes and socks off, tossing the pair of socks onto her lap before putting my shoes back on. She looks up at me, and a small smirk of thanks pulls at the corner of her mouth. With a final nod, I walk away for good.
“Is she okay?” Colt asks, looking past me as I approach him. I turn around to see her in the same position as when I arrived.
“No. Someone beat the shit out of her. I know she’s been such a bitch, but something she said back there just doesn’t sit right.” He puts his arm around my shoulders and we start walking back to the car.
“What do you mean?”
“She said 'everything I’ve done since we moved here was to protect you'. I think that night in the garage she came to warn me, not hurt me. I also feel like maybe all her actions to keep me as ‘the good girl’ were her attempt to keep me safe and get me out of here.”
“You think she thought that far ahead? Had that kind of plan in place? She talked shit about you for years.”
“Yeah, to keep me down. Away from all the popular kids who end up in bad shit in The Shores. Before we moved here, everyone knew I was smart. She always told me I’d make something of myself one day. Then we moved here, and everything changed. She was instantly pulled into it. She became angry, started being mean to me. I don’t know, Colt, she’s still my sister. I told her to come with us, but she said Franky owns her now and basically told me to fuck off.” He sighs as we get back to the car and opens the door for me.
“I told you as soon as we found out about Franky that she chose the wrong path. She’s not wrong, she can’t leave. He willfind her and kill her if she does. Franky is fucked in the head, possessive of his girls.” he says quietly.
We both look back at the park and see she’s still sitting there, swaying as she stares down at her now sock-covered feet. I fucking hate her for what she’s done, but I love her, and I feel a pang of guilt and sickness hit my stomach knowing I am leaving her here.
We pull away and drive past my parents’ house. The place looks like shit. They are standing on the front lawn having cigarettes and drinks with some questionable people, arms flailing as they discuss something heatedly.
I wonder if they’re the ones who fucked up Simone.
As we pull past, my parents stop and watch us drive by. They can’t see through the tinted windows but the hate from their stares penetrates through the glass. I look at their frail bodies, stressed faces, and bruises from the track marks on their arms. The drugs have taken full hold of them.
“Jesus fuck, I’m so glad you’re out of there,” Colt says under his breath as we pass.
I look in the side mirror as they step out onto the road and watch us drive away. Everything about my family life is so fucked up. Thank god Colt brought me into his life and I'm away from that situation. Even if I had stayed there and continued paying them, once in the throes of a serious addiction, god knows what they would have done to me.
When we get back home, Colt makes us a late dinner. He eats like a beast, making three sandwiches for himself. I chuckle and shake my head, watching him devour his food.
“What?” he asks with a mouthful. “I’ve gotta eat a lot to keep this form.”
“I wasn’t judging,” I defend. “I love your muscles, so eat all you like as long as you keep looking like that.” My shamelessflirting sparks a sexy grin as he chews, and his gorgeous eyes stare into mine.
After we’re done, Colt clears our plates and starts washing the dishes. Watching as he cleans without hesitation, I think of all the years I cleaned up after my family, and never once did I get a thank you. All the years I tried to make things easier on them, it was never enough. All they did was put me down, nice gestures were never reciprocated.
And then there’s Colt. He cooks and cleans for me, he does things out of the goodness of his heart just to make my day a little bit easier, he builds me up every day, hell, he just threatened a mob boss in my defense.
He is the epitome of love.
Watching him put Constantine in his place for threatening me made me swoon. I had to refrain from attacking him the moment we got in the car. Even though we fucked all afternoon, I still want more.
I stand from the table and saunter up behind him, wrapping my arms around his waist. He leans into my embrace, and I rest my head on his back as he keeps washing, running my hands up and down those washboard abs. His muscles twitch under my touch as my hands creep down, stroking his massive package over his jeans.
A little moan escapes him. “What are you doing, babe?”
“Taking what’s mine,” I whisper against him as my hands undo his pants, sliding in effortlessly. I cup his balls and drag my hand along his shaft, his cock hardening by the second under my touch.
“Fuck,” he mumbles as I begin to stroke him from root to tip with one hand while my other fondles his balls.
“You’re so fucking hot, Colton. Telling off Torres like that, taking care of me the way you do.” He stops washing, leaning hishands against the counter as my grasp on him tightens and my pace quickens.
