Page 46 of The Darkest Prince

“Don’t play games with me, Drea.” He cups her cheek, but it’s not a sweet gesture. His thumb digs into her cheek, pushing into the bone. “I don’t like when you act like a brat.”

“Well, I don’t like when you fuck with my head. So I guess we’re even.” She stands on her tippy toes, tightening her grip around his neck. “Kiss me, Luca. If you don’t, I’ll never let you touch me again.”

Luca hates ultimatums.

He’s always the one in control, but with Alex, he often concedes without admitting defeat. He stopped fucking cheerleaders after she challenged him. And if the past is any indication of the present, he’s going to kiss her now.

And he does.

Luca clutches her face, licking along the seam of her mouth until she opens up for him. Her tits mold to his chest, and I love how much weight she’s gained since high school. Now, she has the body of a woman and nice, big tits that I can’t wait to fuck.

As expected, Luca is aggressive and kisses her like he’s in physical pain. Maybe he is. Because I can see the hesitation on his face with each kiss. But he’s not pulling away, not showing her how this much intimacy is killing him.

I wonder if I will look the same when I finally kiss her. Will it seem like I hate it? I can’t imagine kissing her would repulse me. Not after seeing how she made Bash feel.

I want to know how she tastes. She always smells good enough to eat.

Sweet like candy.

Luca pulls away first, and they’re both breathless, gazing into each other’s eyes as if seeing each other for the first time. Does he feel it now? The strong pull each of us has felt toward her since day one. It’s taken Luca much longer than the rest of us.

He still hates her for what happened in the past. But Alex is not her mother, and she didn’t kill Evangeline Franco. Even Marcello has let go of his anger toward her.

“Was that so bad?” Alex asks Luca, clinging to his chest like a koala.

I can tell she doesn’t want to let go of him.

Luca doesn’t answer her. Instead, he takes her hand and drags her away from the bar. “It’s time for bed.”

She’s slightly drunk and wobbling. Her hand crashes into my chest to brace her weight before she falls on her ass.

“You drank too much, Cherry.” Bastian strokes her cheek with his fingers. “You need to eat.”

“Are you staying in Providence for the night?” Alex asks no one in particular as we leave the bar together.

Luca shakes his head. “We’re going back to Cambridge.”

“No,” she says, slurring her words. “Stay the night.”

Alex is always desperate for more of us. But we need to leave, and she’s not going to like it when we do. Because this is the last time she will see us for a while.

Without us nearby, it will keep the target off her back. She’s in more danger around us, so we’ve left her alone. Let her have a normal college life.

Years from now, she may hate us. She may even blame us for a lot of things that are out of our control. But in the end, she will be ours.

I know it.

My brothers know it.

So until then…

We wait.

ChapterNineteen

One year later…

I’m never farfrom Alex. Hunting is my specialty, and when I set my sights on my prey, I have laser focus.

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