Page 123 of Barinov

The world goes quiet, save for our now crashing breaths. I pull out slowly, my muscles turning to lead, and collapse onto his chest. The sticky mess between us fusing our skin together as the high begins to fade.

I bury my face in the crook of his neck, breathing in his cedar and ink scent now mixed with lavender soap and sweat. “I love you, babe.”

He wraps his arms around my back. His touch is light as he runs a finger up and down the length of my spine.

“I love you, too.”

My breath finally calms the fuck down as Cade shoves up from the bed to start getting ready for the game.

“You know,” he says while striding toward the closet. “That game you were talking about is actually called Mortal Kombat. So when you thought that shit in your mind, you were literally thinking about Lain—”

“Baby don’t you dare say Tattooed-Dragon-Dick’s name right now, I swear to fucking God.”

He shrugs. “Just saying.”

Chapter 28

LEX

Wexley University

Being forced to hop on my apology train.

34 days since Bella’s kidnapping

“This is a terrible idea,” I mutter to Cade as we start down the stairs of the gym, heading into my soon to be public execution. “The girls aren’t exactly my biggest fans right now.”

I shift the stupid sling digging into my neck, adjusting it for the hundredth time tonight. The strap’s all twisted. My shoulder aches and itches like hell. I’m also pretty sure that my dignity’s filed for legal separation and is no longer residing in the state of New York.

Lucky me.

This has got to be what rock bottom fucking looks like: showing up at Wexley for a basketball game over an hour early with one working arm and a deck full of regrets.

Down on center court, I clock Ellie and Haley stretching with the Trifecta stunt dudes. Thankfully, they haven’t noticed me yet. Not really sure how to face them after I turned into a raging, injury-riddled asshole and snapped at anyone with a pulse.

“You have to talk to them sooner or later,” Cade says over his shoulder. “Might as well just bite the bullet so we can all move on with our lives.”

I fight the urge to push his ass down the stairs. “Easy for you to say,” I shoot back, adjusting the sling again like it might buy me some time.

“Stop being a baby. It’s just Ellie and Haley.”

I scoff. “Yeah well, they still love you.”

“Of course they do,” he says, smirking. “I’m not the jackass who nearly ripped their heads off the other day. That was all you, babe.”

I groan, rubbing my neck with my free hand trying to ease the tension as we step out onto the court. “Let’s get this over with.”

My dick of a boyfriend laughs at me like this is some fun little errand and not one of the top five most humiliating moments of my life. I knew I should’ve stayed at the fucking hotel.

Cade lifts his hand and calls out, “Ellie! Hales!”

Both girls glance over and immediately do the thing. That thing where they share a look like they’re telepathically deciding the best way to murder me without going down for the crime. Ellie crosses her arms. Haley just looks like she wants to castrate me with her high heel.

“Yeah, this is a big mistake,” I mutter under my breath, halting my steps. “I’m goin’ home.”

Cade grabs my arm before I can bolt. “Knock it off.”

Not to anyone’s surprise, they head for Cade first. The girls both smile and fling their arms around him like he just came back from war. He grins at them, clearly mocking my existence with all that sweet, golden-boy charm of his.