Page 48 of Ex- Factor
My chest went hot. “Excuse me? All three?”
“At the same time if possible.” She tittered.
Everybody started laughing and hooping and hollering, but I didn’t find anything funny. She continued.
“You’re saying this because you’re drunk and being petty.”
“I’m honest.” She stretched like a cat, all lazy satisfaction. “Would’ve done West if Donte hadn’t scared him off our date.”
Something in my ribs snapped.
“Game over.” I stood so fast my chair toppled.
I now understood how Charmagne felt.
I slapped my beer down on the table, foam spilling over. “That’s it. I’m not friends with any of you men anymore.”
“Me too?” Jonas pointed at himself, already laughing.
“Yes. You. You. And you.” I jabbed my finger around the circle. “West, Cassius, Jonas. You’re all dead to me.”
Cassius smirked. “Silas, come on—”
“No, don’t ‘come on’ me. You’re on the list. Officially unfriended.”
West opened his mouth to say something.
“Shut up. I don’t even like that you exist anymore. Too tall. Too smug. Too…” I gestured wildly at his stupid symmetrical face. “Handsome motherfucker.”
Eshe’s laughter spilled over, muffled behind her cup. “Silas—”
“Nope.” I hauled her up fireman-style, her shriek drowned by the room’s roar. Glass shattered as her drink hit the floor.
Aja’s voice cut through the chaos—“But he drank too!”—as I took the stairs two at a time.
The bedroom door was kicked shut behind us. She bounced once on the mattress, still grinning, as I removed my shirt.
“Now I have to ruin you for other men.”
Eshe threw her head back and laughed. “Don’t threaten me with a good time.”
Chapter twenty seven- Silas
The fire popped and hissed, sparks spitting up into the night sky. We’d been sitting outside in the elements for a while—passing around drinks, trading stories—but my tongue felt heavy in my mouth. I hadn’t said much of anything, just watched the flames chew through the wood like it held all the anger I couldn’t spit out.
Cassius leaned back on his elbows, his eyes flicking toward me. “What’s up, Silas? You been quiet all night. That ain’t you.”
I shrugged, staring at the glow, but everybody was looking now. Angel tilted her head, Naomi leaned forward, even Eshe rested her chin on her hand like she was waiting on me to open up. The weight of their stares pressed against me until my chest ached.
Finally, I let out a shaky breath. “It’s my parents.”
The whole circle went still.
“They came back,” I said, voice low. “And it’s like… I hate them.”
My throat burned. I hadn’t planned to say this much, but once the words started, they wouldn’t stop. I told them everything I’d told Bailey.
“I knew you had issues with your folks, but I didn’t know they were straight-up monsters.”
