Page 84 of Trigger Happy Ending

She flattens her palm across the three headstones, one for each of my brothers. She closes her eyes before slowly opening them.

“I’m sorry for the things I said. None of it was true.” I can tell by the look in her eyes she means it. Raine doesn’t explicitly reference my friends by name, but I know she’s referring to the night she said I killed them. I reach my fingers up to the side of her face and do what I’ve been dying to do all night and tuck the wispy flyaways behind her ear.

I’m about to shoot my shot and just kiss her when she straddles me, pinning me to the ground.

Candlelight flickers, our shadows twisting on the wall. She takes my hands and interlaces her fingers with mine. She places them on her waist, holding them there. Green flame burns in her eyes. My heart pounds so hard, it wouldn’t surprise me if my ribcage cracks open.

“What do you see when you look at me?”

A few moments of silence pass.

What do I see?

I see life, death, and everything in between. I see a future, and it’s as frightening as it is beautiful. Because I also see the devil, and I’d burn in hell to have a taste.

But I don’t tell her that. I can’t tell her that.

The rain plummets against the windows as she leans forward and moves her mouth onto mine. But instead of kissing me, she bites me on the bottom lip, almost drawing blood.

“Fuck!” I hiss.

Before I can work out what’s happening, she cups my face and drags her tongue up my cheek. Just like she did on the plane.

Then, she’s gone. Sliding off me, strutting away without a glance back, her bedroom door slamming shut.

The rage inside me unravels.

Nope. Not again.

I’m about to show her who the fuck I am.

Chapter 36

Raine

Islam the door behind me, press my back to it, and squeeze my eyes shut, heart pounding like I’ve run a marathon. My chest rises and falls with each deep breath as I try to calm myself down. I don’t know why I crawled onto Soren’s lap like a fucking cat needing to be pat.

God, I barely recognize myself. I’m becoming unraveled, unhinged.

There are two hard knocks on my door.

My eyes spring open as lightning flashes, illuminating my room.

Another knock and then, “If you don’t open the door right fucking now, I’m going to rip it off its hinges.”

Even without the threat, I was opening it.

The door creaks open, and I’m met with the face of a man I barely recognize. It’s Soren, but a different Soren. A version that’s very, very pissed off.

“You don’t get to do that anymore.”

“Do what?”

“Play your shitty games with me. I’m not some fucking toy.”

Soren’s onyx eyes narrow and darken to depths of hell. He leans in close, dropping his head down, arms framing the door. “You think you’re a bad bitch, don’t you? You might not have chosen this life—but I did,” he says, voice threaded with something I’ve not heard before.

Oh, yes. This is a new Soren.