Page 21 of Make Me Beg (Rich Demons of Darkwood 2)

“You don’t have a new roommate yet?” I asked quietly, and she paused in brushing what looked like black glitter on my eye for a long moment, a look of shame crossing her features.

“I don’t think I’m getting one,” she finally said, just as quietly, before resuming her work.

I let the awkward silence sit for a moment, because hell, she had been awful, and I was petty like that.

And then I started talking about the fight. “At some point, we’re going to have to run,” I warned her, and she smiled nervously.

“I’m ready.”

I went over the plan and showed her my “artwork”, and she gasped when she saw it.

“Um…is that real? Because I’m not sure what to think right now, but I’m getting a little horny.”

“It looks pretty real, doesn’t it?” I said proudly as I looked over my handiwork. “I think it will definitely get Paxton’s attention.”

“What will you do if he doesn’t notice…or doesn’t care?” she asked curiously.

There was no way that he wasn’t going to notice. He’d been very much aware of exactly where I was at all times during the last fight.

He could say he hated me, but that wasn’t going to stop him from acting almost the same exact way tonight…with the exception that I didn’t expect that he would be dedicating his fight to me.

But that was fine. I didn't want someone to dedicate a fight to me. I wanted someone to actually fightforme. And that was clearly not Paxton Jones.

"That's not gonna be a problem," I told her confidently.

I glanced at my phone. It was time to go. Butterflies shot off like rockets in my stomach as I prepared myself for what was to come. Up to this point, Paxton hadn’t really been my enemy. He’d just been there, following the rest of them. But that was definitely about to change.

I’d told Jenna I would drive–we were likely to be leaving in a hurry–but when we reached my car, all four tires had been slashed. I stared at the deflated tires, which looked as if they’d melted into the pavement.

“Do you think the guys did this?” Jenna asked.

“No. I think this is the work of regular old assholes who are bored with their own lives so they bully me and pretend they’re some kind of great vigilantes. It’s sad.” I crossed my arms, genuinely feeling sad no matter how little I thought of those people. “The guys would’ve come up with something more exciting. Like blowing up my car in front of me.”

Jenna took a stutter step back. Then she asked, “Want to take my car?”

We decided to take Jenna’s practical little red Honda rather than call for an Uber. The drive was silent except for the sound of Jenna nervously tapping against the steering wheel. I resisted the urge to reach out and silence her hand.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" I checked again. Actively participating in this was a whole lot different than just being my friend.

She gripped the steering wheel tightly and then unclenched her hands before answering. "I want to do this."

Jenna took a breath. "I still owe you so many apologies for what happened when I learned who you were. I was scared. And I was weak. And you didn't deserve that."

Something that felt way too much like tears welled up in my eyes, and I blinked rapidly to push them away.

"I forgive you. It's a lot to ask someone to look past," I told her softly. "But you should know…not all the rumors about me are false." I heard the sharp intake of her breath.

"Which ones are true?" she finally asked.

"Maybe someday I'll tell you," I answered. “I’m not ready yet.”

We didn't talk for the rest of the drive.

* * *

The fight was in a different warehouse than the last time. I assumed that they had to move around quite often to try and prevent raids like the one that happened during the last fight.

I wasn't even sure how everyone found out about it. I'd heard people whispering about it in one of my classes, and Jenna had heard the same thing. Probably the smart thing would've been to ask Cain where the fight was, but I doubted he would tell me. He probably would've just tried to force me into his car again, or perhaps it would be his trunk this time.

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