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Pity’s worse than prying, and right now, Maggie’s delivering it in spades. My bitter laugh has her eyes narrowing and cheeks staining red.
“Don’t do that,” she snaps.
My hands raise lazily as I plaster on the appearance of nonchalance. “What? I’m doing nothing, Magdalena.”
Her nostrils flare. “Stop calling me that. This isn’t you.”
“This is me, sunshine. The whole fucked-up package. Like what you see?”
Her arms cross over her chest, and she takes a step away from me. Not in fear, but in anger. She’s putting distance between us because I’m being harsh and cruel.
Good. It’s working.
“Run away, little girl; there’s nothing but monsters and broken dreams around here.”
“Stop. I know what you’re doing, and I won’t let you.”
“What I’m doing?” I sneer. “It’s not what I’m doing. It’s what I did.” I motion around. “I did this to my friends.”
Her head shakes back and forth. “No. You didn’t. Marcellus’s men did.” It’s said with so much conviction that I almost believe her.
Almost.
“You’re pushing everyone away because you hurt for them. You’re scared,” she says, eyes scanning the vampires who are still watching us. “Stop the self-loathing routine, Law, and help your friends.”
“What do you think I’m trying to do?” I grit through my teeth, growing angrier and more out of control by the minute.
“All I see is a grown man acting like he can take on the world by himself, instead of allowing others to shoulder the burden with him. Let me in, Law. I know you want to.”
There she goes again, trying to subtly push me into confessing feelings. Trying to determine if I feel anything for her outside of friendship. It’s dangerous and needs to stop. We’re not anything, and she needs to understand this. I’m no good for Maggie.
I take a menacing step toward her, lowering my voice and speaking through clenched teeth. “I’m the prince of goddamn vampires, Maggie. I don’t need anyone else. Especially not some weak human.”
For every step forward I take, she moves backward. I watch as varying emotions sweep across her beautiful face. Compassion. Confusion. Fear.
My steps falter when I see the terror in her eyes, but I quickly correct myself. I’ve almost accomplished what I set out to do. I hate that she’s scared of me, but this is for her own good.
Liar. It’s for mine.
“I don’t want you here, Maggie. You need to leave now, before I do something...” My words trail off because I can’t say what was coming next. I want to push her away, but I’d never hurt her, and no matter what my motive is, I could never live with myself if she thought otherwise. I turn my head away from her. “Leave.”
“Law, I—”
“Leave!” I bellow, and the cages around me rattle at the force of the word.
Maggie gasps, and moments later the sound of her feet slapping against the concrete floor confirm that I’ve managed to drive her away.
My head hangs low as my mind wars with itself. I’m the worst kind of bastard.
“You know that it’s a lost cause. A valiant effort, Lawrence, but you won’t succeed.”
I swing around to find Shante creeping out from the shadows. “How long have you been here?”
“Long enough to know that she torments you.”
I scoff. “Maggie is harmless. It’s me tormenting her.”
She huffs. “Wasting time.”
