Page 10 of Deceiver

I stare down at my hand in shock. I didn’t see that one coming, hell, she moved so quickly even Western didn’t know what she was about to do. I look to her, my mouth slightly agape. “Luna ...”

Western jerks his arm, which only causes me to stumble forward and crash right into him. An angry growl leaves his throat as he shoves me back and barks, “Get this motherfuckin’ shit off me, right now.”

Luna shrugs, giving him a smile. “Once you’ve talked to her, I’ll tell you where the key is. It’s pretty simple. Before any of you think you can force it out of me, just try it. I’ll never tell you where it is.”

Colt looks slightly impressed.

Western doesn’t give her a moment more of his time, instead, he jerks me in his direction and begins walking through the crowd that has now stopped to watch. “I’ll do it my fuckin’ self.”

Desperately trying to get my footing, I have no choice but to follow him, my little legs barely keeping up with his big strides as he storms toward his shed, Hazel running after us.

“You stupid—” she begins, but Western pauses and spins on her.

“Fuck off, Hazel.”

My eyes widen and so do hers, but she doesn’t fight him. She scowls at me and then turns and walks away. Western continues his mission to the shed, where I have no doubt he is going to try and find something to get these cuffs off. I have minutes, and I’m not going to lose my chance to speak when he can’t get away from me.

“Western, I know right now you hate me, and I understand why, but I need you to hear me out.”

He doesn’t answer, he just keeps charging toward his shed.

Panting, I pick up the pace to keep up with him as I continue.

“When I started writing that article, I honestly had no idea what I was going to find. I just wanted the truth for a stranger who we all knew about, a stranger who spent his life in prison and, yet, none of it made sense. I never thought I would uncover what I did. I never expected to care about you. When I realized what was happening, I called it off. You have to believe that I told my boss we weren’t going to release that story.”

No answer.

He reaches the door to the shed and swings it open, pulling me inside. I gasp as I see the mess covering the floor. It’s not trash, or clothes, no, it’s his beautiful bike. The one he was painting. The perfect reflection of Braithe and everything he stood for. It is broken into a few pieces, and they’re all crumpled. The masterpiece, ruined. I don’t know what he used to destroy that, but it has left a crumpled mess in its wake. I try to stop, but he doesn’t let me, and I tumble, falling to my knees.

“God dammit,” I cry out. “Slow down.”

He comes to a stop, panting with a rage I didn’t think was possible coming from just one person, and as he looks down at me, his voice comes out hard as stone. “Get. Up.”

With my spare hand, I reach for a piece that is lying on the ground. What once was a beautiful bike has just been destroyed. He has smashed anything he possibly can, crushing every single bit of it. That is an anger I could never understand. I lift the large piece of metal into my hand and see it has some of the painting on it. I narrow my eyes, and notice that the eye on this piece looks a whole lot like mine ...

Western was painting me on there.

Oh god.

“Western ...”

“Get up,” he bellows.

I push to my feet, fighting my tears as he pulls us toward his workbench and begins scrounging around to find something to disconnect us.

“Please, just give me five minutes. I’m begging you. Then, you won’t hear from me again.”

He looks to me, his nostrils flaring. “Five minutes? You want five fuckin’ minutes? To tell me what? That you’re a fuckin’ liar? That I gave you somethin’ and you stomped all over it? Not a single thing you can say will ever make me see you differently. You’re just like everyone else.”

Those words hurt, they hurt because he’s so wrong.

I’m not like everyone else. He should know I’m not like everyone else. I’m the first person outside of this club, in a long time, to even look in his direction. Did I make a mistake? Yes. Does it mean that I’m a monster? No.

“I’m nothing like everyone else,” I say, my voice a low whisper. “I believed you. How many others can say the same?”

His eyes flash as he steps up close to me until our bodies are slammed together, the hard ridges of his muscles warm against me. I suck in a breath, all thought leaving my mind as I look up at him, trying hard not to reach up and run my fingers down the chiseled planes of his jaw. I’m in love with him. I’m terrified of that. I know it’s going to get me hurt. Between us, his cock hardens, an almost immediate response, and my lips part on a gasp.

“I can’t stand you,” he growls, his eyes never leaving mine.

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