Page 26 of Unmask
Carson rose from the couch and crossed to the window, his arms folding across his chest. “I don’t like this.”
“When do you ever like any of our plans?” Kenny pointed out.
Carson glanced over his shoulder, the flickering of the TV hitting the side of his handsome face. “They generally suck, as does this one. Several things could go wrong.”
I gave a ghost of a smile. “That’s why I have you guys.”
“We can’t be there with you at school,” Carson said, the helplessness in his voice a slow punch to the gut.
“No,” I admitted. “But Poppy will be.”
Kenny raised a brow. “You trust her?”
Before today, I would have answered without hesitation, but her blindsiding me with Kreed gave me pause. Her intentions were good, but I just wish she hadn’t brought him here. Now I had to worry about Kreed showing up whenever he damn wellfelt like it, which I feared would be more than I liked. He wasn’t someone who was easily deterred when he wanted something, and somewhere along the way, Kreed decided that what he wanted was me.
The idea shouldn’t make my stomach feel funny. I shouldn’t feel anything but disdain.
If only I could control the way I reacted when it came to Kreed Corvo.
“Areyou sure you’re okay with this?” I asked, crossing and uncrossing my legs for like the tenth time.
Carson drummed his fingers against the steering wheel, his eyes flicking between the road and me like he wanted to say something but kept swallowing it back. “It’s more than okay. I’ll swing by after school and pick you up. It will hopefully give you enough time to get all your missing assignments together.”
I took my cousin’s advice and decided to go back to school. I couldn’t hide out in his house forever. Carson and Kenny weren’t keen on the idea when I brought it up a few nights ago, justifiably worried about me, but seeing Kreed made me realize I wanted to get on with my life. He tortured me, and I planned to return the favor every day at school until I graduated, and then I’d never have to see his damn face again.
Except in my dreams.
Which happened far too often. Last night had been the worst, filled with restless sleep, twisted blankets, and dreams that started with Kreed’s hands on me and ended with the sound of a girl screaming in the distance.
I cursed him for showing up and reminding my body of shit I wanted to forget. Dreaming of him was preferable to livingthe nightmare of my parents’ death, but only marginally, as it reminded me of what we could have had.
“I don’t mind waiting. Seriously,” I assured Carson, not wanting him or Kenny to worry more than they did. “I wouldn’t be able to do this without you.”
“Are you nervous about seeing him?” Carson asked, his left eye twitching as if the thought of Kreed made him agitated.
“Yeah, but not as much as I thought. Seeing you guys really helped.” I felt stronger. They reminded me of the girl I’d been before my life got blown up.
“I don’t like this, you going back to Public withthem,” Carson said finally as we pulled into the lot behind Elmwood Public. The vein in his neck pulsed.
My stomach turned at the unspoken names—Kreed, Mason, and Maddox. “I’ll be fine,” I said unconvincedly, but I was committed, so I continued the facade. “I swear. Plus, Poppy will be there to keep me from doing anything stupid.”
He shifted into park and turned toward me, his jaw working like he was trying to bite back another dozen words. “I’ll be here after school. Right here. Don’t wait around. Just come straight to the car, okay?”
I nodded, clutching the strap of my bag tighter. “Thanks for the ride.” I moved to get out of the car, but Carson’s fingers wrapped around my wrist.
“Kay, I…”
With my hand on the door, I glanced back at Carson, waiting for him to finish.
“Just be careful.”
I leaned over the center console and hugged my best friend before stepping out of the car. He might have held on a few seconds longer than necessary, but he was worried. So was I.
Here fucking goes nothing.
7
KAYLOR
