Page 77 of Nightmare

I shake my head at him, “I’m not ruining shit, Jax. I’m not going back, I just want to get rid of this one fucking person. For her.”

He laughs, “And then what? Admit to Olivia and Summer that we’re murderers? That we were in a gang?”

“We’re reformed.” I add.

He laughs again, nodding his head, “Reformedmurderers, right.”

“Jaxson.” I say, looking at him through the dark room, and he sighs.

He stands, stepping to me, putting his face in mine, “No, do you not remember how hard it was for us to get away from this life? I’m not being dragged back in because you’re having jealousy issues with your flavor of the month. I’m at Harvard, dude. I’m going to be a fucking lawyer, Mac is on his way to the fucking NBA, we’re not going down this road with you again.”

I pull my fist back and punch him in the jaw, his head flying back. He straightens again, staring at me, his nostrils flaring. “Do you not see what this isalreadydoing to you? You just hit me in the fucking face, Travis.”

I rub my hands down my face with a sigh, then sit down on the edge of his bed. I groan, looking at my best friend, “I love her.”

He sighs, taking a seat at his desk again, kicking his legs out in front of him. “Travis. I’m going to say something, and I need you to not punch me in the face again, okay?”

I stare at him, and he blinks a few times before I wave my hands out in front of me to get him to continue.

He leans back, “You loved Jasmine. And you let it get out of control, and they fucking got to her. That’s why we got out, so no one else we loved would get fucking hurt, so we wouldn’t end up weighed down in the fucking Hudson. So, why are you insisting we go down this road again, fucking kill someone, get a target put oneveryone’sbacks? If you love Olivia, you won’t put her in the position that you put Jas in.”

I ball my fists, smashing my lips together – my nostrils flaring when I try to control my breathing through my nose.

Whether he has a point or not, my entire body tenses when he mentions her. He has no fucking right to speak about her.

I count to three.

One.

Two.

Three.

Then I look back at my best friend, “I’m not saying go back, I’m saying get rid of the dirty fuck that’s laying hands on my girl. No one will ever find out. Eastside will never find out. One and done, drop him in the river, wash our hands and live our fucking lives.”

Jax stands, “We vote. If Mac sides with you, then fine. But if he sides with me, you drop this.”

I nod absentmindedly, “Okay.”

Then I stand, turn around, heading back to my bedroom.

Chapter Thirty-Six

Travis

three years ago

“Come on,Trav, let’s just go to the party. This is the last chance I have. It’ll be fine.” Jas bats her eyelashes at me, she knows that and the way she moans out my name always gets me to bend at the knee for her.

I wrap an arm around her neck, pulling her into me, her long hair rubbing along my skin, “You little witch.”

My lips find her head, and she laughs.

I pull back to look into her dark eyes, “One hour.”

She nods, her eyebrows bouncing, “I love you, papi.”

I release her from my hold, smacking her ass to get her moving, “Go before I change my mind.”

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