Page 42 of Scavenger's Oath
Would she act scared?
Try seducing me like she did with Zane? Would I actually consider it? Or just take it before she offered?
Something tells me she hasn't made that offer to Myles. Would she choose me over him?
What a stupid thought. As if it fucking matters.
The questions burn low in my gut.
So I push off the wall and turn away before it catches fire, and burns down everything I’vebuilt.
Chapter 15
Myles
Five fucking minutes.
Five whole minutes I took stressing over how to approach her. That's five minutes more than I've ever spent thinking before doing anything.
Zane's words from last week buzz in my head like a mosquito I can't swat.
Speak softer. Move slower. Don’t scare her.
I still don’t know what the fuck any of that is supposed to mean.
The way she looked at me that night has replayed in my head a hundred times. Her eyes full of tears as she shook her head. The way she’d flinched.
That guilt has curled hot and bitter in my gut for the entire week. So I avoided her…like a fucking coward. Pretending it didn't affect me. Only going in there to feed her and make sure Zane hasn’t been touching what doesn’t belong to him.
Stepping inside now, I try to carry myself like I'm not six-foot-three of coiled aggression on a good day.
She's sitting on the bed, hugging her knees to her chest. Drowning in a new hoodie that makes her look even smaller than she is. Her eyes flick up momentarily.
Something in me claws at my precarious calm.
“Hey,” I say, too loud, too sharp.
Shit.
Softer, Myles. Softer.
Clearing my throat, I try again. “Uh. Hey… Ivy.”
Her head jerks slightly. She didn't think I knew her name. Probably figured Zane wouldn't tell.
But he did. He let it slip and I've been sitting with it ever since.
Ivy. Ivy, Ivy, Ivy.
It suits her. Delicate. Pretty. Winding its way under your skin until you're tangled before you even realise.
For three weeks this girl has occupied my thoughts, but she still hasn’t spoken a word to me. At this point, I’ll try anything to get her to open up. To flower.
How do you even soften body language? Should I slouch more? What should I do with my hands?
Leaning awkwardly against the door frame, I fold my arms in what I hope is a chill, non-scary way. But she just blinks at me.
I smile… she doesn't.
