Page 21 of All Hallows' Maze
“And Victor?” His fingers intertwined with mine and stepped closer until our noses brushed.
“You think I’d allow him to tell you how to live your life?”
“No,” I started. His proximity clouded my thinking. “But what if he doesn’t want—”
“Oh, am I fucking Victor, too?” My laughter carried down the street and he pulled me against him tighter. “What Victor wants or doesn’t want is none of our concern. Our friendship has lasted nearly a decade, and if it means anything to him, then it will continue.”
“So, you’re not gonna run if he objects?”
“Oh, I’ll run—into your bed, silly girl.” He tugged my hand and led me up the steps, stopping before he fully opened the door. “Nothing, and no one,” he promised with a quick peck.
Dakota
The November night was cool as I walked next-door to Vera’s. To everyone’s assumption, it was just for my night with Victor. A subtle vibration in my pocket stopped me at their porch.
BunnyBaby: *sent a photo*
BunnyBaby: goodnight, sweet boy
I opened the first message and was greeted with a photo of Vera in a purple lacy lingerie set.
Wild: Oh, I plan on one. Pull those down a little more?
BunnyBaby: Goodnight, Wilder
Pocketing the phone, I stepped through the door. After ten years, the Hart family treated me like one of their own and let me come and go as I pleased. My parents took frequent trips back to London and during those times, they kept watch over me. In the foyer, I saw Victor walk into the hallway with an armful of snacks heading to his room.
“Hey, man,” I called after him. He met me with a grunt since a bag of chips sat between his teeth.
Up the stairs, I casually looked toward Vera’s room. The door was slightly ajar, and I caught a glimpse of her bundled in the comforter. Just moments ago, that comforter had been bunched around her near naked ass and I bit my lip to hide the grin.
Victor dumped everything onto his dresser and turned toward to me.
“New DLC just dropped, you ready?”
“Ready to whoop your ass, you mean?” I laughed as he tossed my controller.
I didn’t find myself enthusiastic as the clocked ticked on. We went back and forth winning rounds. The graphics and gameplay were great, but I had my attention set on something else.Someone else.
Victor dropped popcorn in his mouth as he flipped through various streaming apps. Usually, I didn’t mind his indecisiveness, but right now I wanted to leave him to his night and never leave Vera’s bed. An hour had passed since we started, and I didn’t have the patience to sit through several episodes or a full-length film before finding an excuse to step out.
“Anything in particular you want to watch?” He didn’t take his eyes off the TV.
“Nah, I’m down for anything.” He nodded absentmindedly so I pressed my luck. “You know, I didn’t see her earlier. Is Veradis home?”
“You know she doesn’t like her full name, and one of these days she’s going to kick your ass for saying it.” He laughed it off, but if only he knew that her full name made her so— “I’m pretty sure she is, though,” he said, interrupting my thoughts. “She was with Sienna earlier, but I heard the door. She could be in her room?”
Victor was oblivious to my intentions as I stood and tossed my controller onto his bed.
“I’ll go see then. She stole my jacket a while ago and I need it back.” In that moment, the bastard seemed to catch a clue.
“I have a question,” he said, sitting up. “Do you have…like feelings for her?”
“What, like romantic feelings?” I wanted to lie. I wanted to tell him anything but the burning confession that sat in my chest and clawed up my throat. But I couldn’t. “It’s Vera, dude. I’ve alwayslovedher,” I said, throwing as much nonchalance into the word as I could.
“Right,” he said, drawing out the word and nodding. It felt like he could see right through me, and after all these years, maybe he could. No one would be shocked, that was a given, but the question of him supporting it was different.
I stepped out and left no opportunity for him to continue questioning me. My footsteps were quiet across the carpeted floor as I made my way to her door. She was still curled up in the covers.
