Page 129 of Anger

I slap her ass and grin when she glares at me over her shoulder.

“Best get moving, Blue. Time’s wasting.”

I nod at Ezra to tell him we’re leaving then lead Blue to my bike, making sure she doesn’t drag ass long enough for her to get a good look at Jase and Sawyer after they pull up. The less she knows, the better.

After this last stunt, I hope I’ve managed to keep her as far away from the Inferno as possible. She doesn’t need our problems on top of her own.

I hand her the extra helmet I brought for this event then tug on mine.

She’s hesitant to climb on the back of the bike behind me but gives in without a fight. Her body presses to my back, and her arms wrap around me.

It shouldn’t feel this good to have her so close, but I take a moment to enjoy the way our bodies touch before turning the bike on and starting our drive down the road.

Blue clings on for every curve on the road, every turn, every full stop when we finally reach the congested part of the city where red lights hold us hostage for a few minutes or so.

She doesn’t need to cling on so tight, but she rests her helmet against my back, her fingers entwined where they come together across my chest.

Believing this means she forgives me is hopeless.

After what I did, and the way I went about it, Blue will hate me for eternity.

But in the end, that’s what I wanted and why I was such a dick to her.

I want her away from this.

From the Inferno.

She’ll never be my escape again because my words ruined that.

But for the first time, it wasn’t an accident.

I’d carefully selected every word, every barb, every insult I knew would cut her deep.

I need her to hate me because that’s the only way to protect her from my life.

Pulling up to her apartment, I grind my teeth so hard my jaw tics.

This place is a fucking dump and it’s dangerous for her to be here.

From my bike, I see used needles on the pavement, some junkie simply tossing another one aside before passing out on the sidewalk.

Garbage bags spill over the dumpster with a cloud of flies buzzing around it. And as we pull up to the stairs that lead to her apartment, I see a drug deal occurring in the shadows beneath the stairs, both of their shadowed faces turning to look at me without concern for being caught.

If this is what occurs in the daylight, how much worse is it at night?

I know Blue’s work schedule. She comes home at late hours when anybody could be lingering about, searching for a victim.

My shoulders tense as we turn into a parking spot.

Blue jumps off the bike immediately, as if she can’t wait to let me go and move away.

I push the bike on its kickstand then climb off. I’ve barely pulled my helmet from my head when she shoves hers against my stomach.

“Thanks for the ride. Now stay the fuck out of my life.”

She storms away, completely done with anything to do with me.

Shaking my head at her behavior, I take her helmet and put it on the passenger seat, while still holding mine.

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