Page 68 of Vengeful

"That didn't sound like a no, did it Park?" Hunter asked.

"No it didn't, Hunt," Parker agreed. "Hey, Reuben, what do you think?"

Reuben raised an eyebrow, clearly not caring one way or the other. "I think you two have too much time on your hands. I can easily remedy that."

The twins grinned more broadly. "By making Caleb give us a hockey team?" They high-fived each other.

Here we stood, wet, muddy and covered in blood, and the twins were still having the time of their lives.

"If you'll excuse us, we need to get Slade to a hospital," I said. Evidently I was the only one who remembered he had a knifesticking out of his shoulder. Apart from him, of course. He was clearly in a great deal of pain.

"I'll drive you," Frankie said. She ushered us toward one of the cars as more students started to stagger out of the trees. It seemed more had survived than hadn't.

That was one small mercy at least.

CHAPTER 24

LILA

"I can't decide if I should laugh or cry," I said. "Maybe a whole lot of both."

I stood beside the window, glass of vodka and lemon in hand. Below, the lights of Dusk Bay twinkled. Yachts worth a good chunk of my trust fund bobbed on the water. From here, it looked like the world didn't have a care. Like the trials never happened. No one died. No one's life was changed forever.

"Definitely laugh." Hunter stood behind me and wrapped his arms around me. "You survived the first year of Brutal Academy. You survived the trials. Only four students died, which is probably a record. You made up with your sister, and you don't have to worry about meeting your father's expectations anymore."

"I don't know about the last one." I leaned back against him and inhaled his clean, masculine scent. "I still have to pass the next two years of study. With good grades. And you and Park only have one more year. What am I supposed to do there by myself?" I downed the last of my drink and let Parker take the empty glass from my hand.

"You won't be by yourself, and I can think of a few things." Slade grinned. He moved to stand beside us and leaned hisshoulder against the glass. His stitches were removed a few days ago. According to the doctors, he'd regain full use of his shoulder as long as he did the exercises they told him to. He was no longer in any pain and the scar the knife left behind was pretty fucking cool.

"Hunter and I have no intention of leaving you and Slade there alone," Parker said. "I'm thinking of doing postgrad. At least for a year."

"Me too," Hunter said. "A guy can never have too much education. Besides, I'm not ready to hand Kink Or Drink over to anyone else. I might even get a job teaching there, so I can continue to supervise my favourite game."

"Did you just suggest you'd corrupt your students?" Parker asked. His reflection in the glass beside us grinned.

"Firstly, yes," Hunter said. "Secondly, you make that sound like it's a bad thing. It's not, is it Slade?"

"I wouldn't know," Slade said innocently. "I think you three corrupted me."

I snorted a laugh. "Hardly. I don't think any of us have been innocent for a very long time."

"We wouldn't want it any other way." Hunter squeezed me tighter, then ran a hand down my side and up under my skirt.

"Of course you wouldn't." I placed my palms on the floor to ceiling window and leaned against it as he tugged my panties off my hips and let them fall to the floor. My skirt joined it a moment later.

He grabbed the hem of my shirt and pulled it up over my head, to my elbows. I removed one hand from the glass so he could slide it off, then swapped to the other hand. He unhooked my bra and let my breasts fall free.

I lowered my hands long enough to let it slide off my wrists to join the rest of my clothes.

Hunter ran his hands up my stomach and over my breasts. "Have I told you lately how fucking beautiful you are?"

"Yes, but I don't get tired of hearing it," I said with a slight laugh.

"You're the most gorgeous woman I've ever seen," he said. He palmed my nipples until they were stiff peaks.

"Me too," Slade agreed. He placed a couple of fingers on my cheek and turned my head so he could kiss me.

"Me three," Parker agreed. He stood on the other side of me and tangled his fingers in my hair. "So fucking gorgeous."

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