Page 80 of Dangerous Promises

How destructive are these promises we pledge to one another?

"You know an Isabelle?" I ask.

"No. But whoever she is, Chet made good on his word. He hasn't forgotten." He sighs, leaning against my dresser and folding his arms.

"Fuck, stop. You're dripping on everything," I say, shoving him up and wiping away the wet spot he's left on the dresser. When I stand up straight we are standing far too close. His eyes, also so intense, are breathing into my soul.

My breath is weak and my chest heavy. "You should… go now," I say. "You got what you came for."

I'm impressed that I manage to take steps away from him, but my unsteady feet slowly slip away back to my bed. I tuck myself under the covers and turn away from the window, unable to look but only wait to hear what happens next.

My heart beats fast as I listen to the sounds of the window opening, and then some seconds later, closing again.

He's gone, and my eyes shutter.

That's what I wanted him to do, but my stomach drops low with something that feels a lot like disappointment. Only seconds have passed and I'm about to turn over when instead I gasp as I feel the covers lift and a body slide in behind me. He's fully undressed now, his cold arms and bare skin wrapping around me.

"Fuck you're freezing!" I say, gasping at the temperature assault.

"Don't struggle," he says. His lip quivers and I realize the wet and the cold really were affecting him. I let his body melt into mine, stealing my warmth.

"Your father needs you to show him the only way forward."

I turn over my shoulder to look at him, greeted by soft eyes.

"You know itisthe only way."

His walls are still down and I can see right into his soul. I am now sure he's always been able to see into mine. Maybe he's the only person who ever has. I never let him in, really, he just always had the key.

In his eyes he tells me he won't run. He won't steal or cheat.

He won't lie.

Perhaps there's only one lie Alexei Rushkoff will ever tell me, and only one lie I will ever tell him in return.

"I still hate you," he whispers, his breath warm on my cheek.

I gulp and take a deep breath, our mouths only inches apart. "I still hate you, too."

Chapter

Thirty-Three

Alexei

My eyes are heavy but I still hear where my phone buzzes somewhere nearby. It pulls me from sleep slowly at first, but then quickly when I realize I shouldn't have been asleep in the first place. Startling awake, I rush to cover my eyes as the morning sunlight assaults me through the window. Sage's window.

Fuck.

Sage is still sleeping soundly beside me. I'm in her bed in nothing but my underwear. Damn.

I reach over to find my phone and silence the buzzing. Several missed calls. Isla's is the next to come in, I answer it before it can make much more noise.

"Alexei, shit," Isla starts. "Where have you been? We have a problem."

"What kind of problem?" I say, keeping my voice low.

"The mark beyond the ter-," she pauses, "why are you whispering?"