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Caiden glanced over at Zayde. “As soon as we got back. Thought we might feel like playing after the food, and I didn’t want us to have to worry about moving.”
He’d known exactly what my boyfriend needed, and it made me so happy that he was surrounded by people who knew him and looked out for him.
I settled back in the cradle of Zayde’s arms as they started to play, savouring the soft kisses he dropped on my hair every now and then as he decimated his opponents on-screen. Looking around the room, it seemed like everyone else was just as relaxed. Cassius was stretched out on the sofa with Jessa in his arms, both of their heads bent over her Kindle while he read something aloud in a low voice, making Jessa’s cheeks flush with whatever he was saying. Lena was right next to Weston, both of them leaning into each other and laughing as they mashed the buttons on their controllers. Caiden was more or less losing the game at this point, too distracted by Winter, who was wriggling in his lap. One of his hands was somewhere under her top, and I quickly averted my gaze.
“What do you think?” Zayde’s voice was quiet in my ear. “Could you get used to this?”
I twisted my head to look at him. There was no hesitation in my mind. “Yes.”
THIRTY-TWO
Icould hear the thud of the music of the Guy Fawkes celebrations way before Cade, Cass, West, and I reached the top of the cliffs. We crested the hill, the castle appearing right in front of us, a hulking black shadow against a cloudless night sky dotted with stars. Spotlights blinded me as we drew nearer, cycling through a nauseating rainbow of colours so fast it made my head spin. There was the usual bar and DJ setup, and the bonfire was piled high, ready to be lit later.
The bouncers waved us in without bothering to ask for our tickets.Good. As it should be. Yeah, maybe there were one or two things I liked about my elite status.
We avoided being given the strips of fabric that were being handed out, too, and as we strolled past the people tying the strips of cloth around themselves, Cade smirked at me. “We don’t need that shit. We’ve got our targets ready.”
In reply, I yanked my skull bandana up over my nose and mouth, pulling my hood lower on my head so that my eyes were the only part of my face in view. Even so, they were shadowed by my hood.
Cade gave me a savage grin, pulling up his own bandana and hood, and Cass and West followed suit. Adrenaline thrummed through my veins in time with the dark beats of the music. We were ready and on the hunt for our prey.
The klaxon sounded, signalling the start of the games, and the four of us melted into the shadows, silent and deadly.
“Remember last year?” Cass whispered loudly, instantly ruining our deadly vibe as we hugged the crumbling stone wall, moving as one, deeper into the castle ruins, ready to lie in wait. “It was just Cade with Winter, and, uh.” He gave an exaggerated cough. “We all had to push that one along.”
“Fuck off,” Cade muttered, but he was looking at Cass with something that I thought might be gratitude. “I guess I should probably thank you for that, even though you went about it completely the wrong way. Fucking hell, the three of you…” He trailed off with a shake of his head, his jaw tightening, and I knew he was remembering how the three of us had held Winter until he’d finally seen the light. Cade was way more stubborn than the rest of us, and sometimes he needed the equivalent of a sledgehammer to the head to realise what was obvious to everyone else. This time last year had been one of those nights, but it had ended well for both him and Winter.
“You should definitely be thanking us,” West whispered back but then fell silent as we heard the sound of running footsteps. We pressed against the wall, still hidden in the shadows, as shouts echoed around us. Someone must’ve lit the bonfire because suddenly, our hidden area shrunk, the glow of faraway flames sending shadows jumping and flickering around us.
“Stay hidden. I’m gonna catch myself a snowflake,” Cade murmured, moving to the left and disappearing behind the remains of what was either a stone column or a stack of stones that had probably once held up one of the upper floors.
“I know Lena’s tracking me, but she’s underestimated me.” West slid in the opposite direction to Cade, his eyes sparkling with the thrill of the chase. Then it was just me and Cassius left.
“Z?”
“Yeah?”
He shifted on his feet, staring down at the ground. “I’m glad you have Fallon. I like her. I’m, uh, glad you’re happy.”
Fuck. “Uh. Me too,” I muttered. “Yeah. Same. For you and Jessa.” This was so fucking awkward.
His gaze swung to mine, and I could tell he was grinning from the way his eyes creased above his bandana. “We have the best fucking taste, don’t we?”
I huffed out a surprised laugh. “Yeah. We do.”
“I think we should hunt our girls down. Give them the surprise of their lives. What do you say?” Without waiting for me to reply, he moved to the corner of the stone wall we were leaning against, peering around the edge.
“I say, fuck yeah. Let’s do it.” I held up my fist, and he bumped his against mine immediately, chuckling quietly.
We both scanned the running figures for our girls, but there was no sight of either of them. Without needing to communicate verbally, we moved farther back, hugging the walls, keeping to the shadows.
“There,” Cass breathed, barely audible, inclining his head to our left. When I caught sight of our girls with their hoods up, attempting to keep to the shadows but still so obviously them, I nodded sharply.
Throwing me a quick thumbs up, he stepped forwards, keeping his gaze fixed on the two of them. “Let’s go.”
We moved in a diagonal line with the intention of cutting them off, but they suddenly swerved, heading towards the line of trees behind the castle. We weren’t going to let them get there, though. With a wild, excited look in his eyes, Cassius looked at me and then took off at a run, abandoning all sense of caution.
That wasn’t my style. I kept to the shadows, gradually drawing closer to my girl, completely silent. She was becoming twitchy, glancing all around her, shrinking into the wall. I wanted to reveal myself, to reassure her that she didn’t need to be afraid, but at the same time, I fucking loved the chase.
