Page 185 of Rebellious

He…

Light cut through the darkness, bouncing off the steel beam, then his head. He squinted at the brightness and glanced over his shoulder.

The light disappeared long enough for Ryan to turn it toward himself and reveal his identity.

CJ took a drag of his cigarette and released the smoke around the words, “What, Ryan?”

“What the fuck do you mean ‘what’, cuck?”

“I mean what are you doing here?”

Ryan leaned against the deck wall, right next to him, smelling of grass, sweat, and musk. Smelling of football. “You go missing for fucking hours and you don’t expect Uncle Christopher to tap Satan himself to search for you, fuckhead?”

CJ straightened, alarmed. “I expected him to think I was at practice.”

“Apparently, he’s been calling you and you haven’t responded.”

“I forgot my fucking phone at home.”

“When you realized that, you should’ve found one of us or gone to the office so someone could bring that motherfucker to you and avoid situations like this.”

Scowling, CJ pitched his cigarette into the water, thinking of Skye. Thinking of his pettiness. “Maybe I need time to myself.”

“You have a big ass house you can hide in, beta. Don’t be a whiny fucking baby.”

“Fuck off,” CJ scoffed, glad he’d come to his fucking senses. That bite helped things along. What girl gave a blowjob if she didn’t know what the fuck she was doing? The heat of embarrassment rushed through him. Thank fuck Ryan had turned off his phone’s flashlight. “You don’t understand the fucking gauntlet I have to go through—”

“Poor, poor CJ. He has to go in his fucking house when there’s a pool house that’s like a mini apartment. Aunt Meggie and Uncle Christopher wouldn’t disturb you and they wouldn’t allow anyone else to do so either. They just want to make sure you’re safe. Stop being a selfish, spoiled prick.”

“I fucking resent that.”

“Do you really think I give a fuck, cuck? Sure don’t. I’m not here to baby you. You don’t want to talk to me?” He paused a moment. “I don’t care about that either. I’ll let Uncle Christopher know you’re safe.”

CJ wanted Ryan to walk away. Yet…he couldn’t. He’d been the petty, unfair one. Not only to Ryan, but Skye and Harley. “Wait, Ryan. Don’t…fuck…stay.”

Silence ensued, the awkwardness because of CJ’s shitty mood.

“How’d you find me?”

A lighter flicked, the flame flaring and lighting Ryan’s cigarette. “You know, fuckhead, you have too much of a conscience to be like me.”

“What the fuck’s that’s supposed to mean?”

The cherry glowed bright red in the pitch black. Ryan blew smoke in CJ’s face.

He coughed.

“Exactly what I said, beta. I know you were at Skye’s place. Grant went there. She had a very interesting story about going down on you and biting you since it was her first time doing oral.”

CJ’s mouth fell open. “She told him that?” he gasped, appalled. No, fuck. Beyond appalled. Outraged. Disgusted. “Why the fuck would she open her fucking mouth…pause,” he snapped at Ryan’s roar of laughter.

“Apparently not wide enough.”

Blindly, CJ threw a punch, not appeased when Ryan grunted but didn’t stop laughing. “Stop with the fucking jokes, asshole.”

“Nope.” This time, Ryan turned his head to release the smoke. “This will live in infamy. Thanks for taking one for the team, bro. I will keep her mouth away from my cock.”

“You still plan to sleep with her?”