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“Needed to check you were still alive,” he says casually.
“I’m not.”
The thing with Caden is that he has his own manner of caring for someone and taking care of them. He is not the kind of prince charming that comes with sweet words and gestures when his princess is in distress.
I don’t want him to take pity on me, even though I also don’t have the strength to pretend I’m tough right now. I want to fall into a dark abyss and never come back out. I want to sleep forever so I can keep dreaming of leaving the North Shore and everything in it that has broken me.
And Caden is one of them.
He’s the man who took a piece of my soul and crushed it under his stupid boot. The man who took a chunk of me for himself and never intends on giving it back. And when I tried my best to protect myself from him, he shattered my safe space and forced himself into my life. The worst part is that I’ve been stupid enough to enjoy it.
I stopped focusing on training. I betrayed my family. I thought myself invincible because Caden King had chosen to give me more than momentary attention, and he never does that. No, he fucks girls and throws them away. He tortures his enemies, kills them mercilessly. Only he didn’t do that withme.
I thought I was special.
And tonight was a massively humbling experience for me.
I am not special. I’m just another girl from the North Shore who was born here and will ultimately die here.
“Do you need a magic kiss?” Caden asks me in that mocking tone he uses. Like my entire life falling apart is a little funny thing.
I don’t reply. I stand up and walk over to my bag. I need out of his vicinity.
“Don’t ignore me, Billie.” His voice is turning that shade of dark that always makes me writhe with pleasure when it should remind me of the true monster he is.
I pack up my stuff and grab my gloves but stop myself. They won’t be of any use to me anymore. Ever.
I hook my bag up my shoulder and turn around. Startled, I realize Caden is right there. His tall body is towering over me, a harsh frown hardening his features.
“Have you eaten anything today, little bee? Apart from that banana you threw up and the half-eaten energy bar.”
“Get out of my way,” is my only response as I try to walk around him. He steps to the side, and I try again and again, until he’s got me cornered between two walls.
“Get out of my way, Caden,” I repeat to his chest, not having the mental strength to stare into his soul-sucking eyes.
“Are you sure you want to push me away when I’m trying to help? Because there’s no option in your life where I’m not part of it. Accept that I’m trying to care for you or be forced into accepting it. No promises that I’ll be gentle for the second option.”
“What a surprise,” I say bitterly. “Caden King can’t promise he’ll be gentle. Tell me something I don’t know, yeah?”
“Tsk, tsk,” he tuts me mockingly. “Sarcasm surely doesn’t suit my girl.”
“I’m not your fucking girl.”
I try to push past him again, but he grabs my ponytail this time, forcing me to look up before he talks again. “Look me in the eyes when you talk to me, Billie. I need to see the lies in them when you say you don’t want me.”
“Take your hands off me,” I growl low, trying not to wince at how harshly he’s holding me.
“You’re upset, and I understand. But you can’t push me away. This isn’t my fault, and it isn’t yours either.”
“It’s not your fault,” I spit. “How dare you say this to my face?”
I put my hand on his that’s wrapped in my hair, trying to loosen his hold.
“You fucking ruined my entire life, Caden.” I twist, but he doesn’t let up. “The illegal shit when I should be focusing on my career. The bullying like we’re in fucking high school. Demanding every single one of my waking minutes. Demanding my mind and my body. You play me like a game, use me like a toy, and now look at me. I’ve got nothing.”
The tears start falling again, waterfalls of pain draining my energy as I slowly give up on making him let go of my hair. “I’ve got nothing,” I repeat. “Isn’t that what you wanted, after all? For your lifelong enemy to lose everything.”
“I’m not the reason you lost your fight. You were drugged and assaulted. I had nothing to do with it. I helped you today.”
