Page 13 of Don't Let Me Go (Don't Let Me 2)

“Why? So you can enjoy your party and hook up with whoever you want instead of babysitting me?”

“Exactly.”

“Fine.” I slip past him and head toward the front door, unable to stay in his presence for a second longer.

I’m sure there’s an Uber close by. It’s Friday night in a college town. There has to be. If not, I’ll call Colt. Or maybe I’ll just walk. Maybe the cool air will finally clear my head. Honestly, I don’t know. But I need to get the hell out of here.

I hate this. This rollercoaster. I feel like I’ve been on it with Theo since the moment I turned fifteen and he saw me in a dress on my birthday. A freaking dress. It was the first one I’d worn since I was a toddler and decided shopping in the boys’ section was more fun than anything pink or frilly on the girls’ side.

But the stupid dress changed everything, and until tonight, I hadn’t worn one since. He saw me differently that day. It was like I’d popped the proverbial one-of-the-guys bubble I’d been wrapped in for years. Which is what I thought I’d wanted. Maybe not fully. But a little bit. Unfortunately, it had the opposite effect I’d been hoping for. Afterward, I was Colt’s little sister instead of Blakely Thorne, girl next door, and I couldn’t erase the title no matter what I did.

Seems tonight isn’t any different.

His heavy footsteps follow me down the hall before he twists me around, his silence more telling than any words he could utter in this moment. His gaze is frustrated but impenetrable, his protective walls higher than ever as he glares at me. Like I’m the problem. The one who ruined his night. Who forced him to kiss me. In reality, he’s the one who leaned in first and crossed the line. Him. Not me.

“What do you want, Teddy?” I demand, ignoring the warmth from his hand or the way his calloused fingertips tickle the inside of my arm, causing goosebumps to spread along my flesh.

“I want you to stop calling me Teddy and to walk your ass up the stairs so we can both get some sleep.”

“And I want you to drive me home,” I counter.

He lets me go and pinches the bridge of his nose. “I knew this would happen. I knew you’d be a pain in my ass if you decided to come to LAU. I fucking knew it.”

Arms crossed, I spit, “You wanna talk about being a pain in the ass, Theo? All I want is a normal college experience without you babysitting me the entire time. Because guess what? It isn’t your job. I’m allowed to get drunk. I’m allowed to lose my virginity and to have sex with random guys. Including hockey players, I might add, and it’s none of your business.” I jab my finger at his chest. “None. Of. Your. Business. Do you understand?”

“Fine.”

“Fine.”

He stares at me, his molars practically cracking. “Now, get your ass upstairs and go to bed before I make you.”

He’s serious. I can see it in his eyes. Feel it in his tense muscles. Hell, it’s tainting the air around us. Stealing all the oxygen in the room until I’m lightheaded and dizzy.

Without a word, I turn on my heel and march up the stairs toward his room. I don’t say anything when I slip beneath his bedsheets. I don’t utter a single syllable as his scent rolls over me, tickling my senses and making my mouth water.

I don’t say a damn word.

Because he doesn’t deserve them. Not my voice. Or my thoughts. Or my feelings.

After tonight, he’s made one thing very clear.

He doesn’t deserve a single piece of me.

Not anymore.

And I’m too stubborn to ever forget it.

4

BLAKELY

Two months later

Sweat drips down my back as my feet pound against the pavement while Eminem blasts through my AirPods.

Push it, I remind myself. Almost there.

I race around the corner and down the sidewalk toward my street, my muscles burning in the most exhilarating way possible. I mean, yeah, it hurts. But exercise is a good hurt. It makes you feel alive. Like you can do anything. If you’re willing to put in the work.

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