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“I didn’t do anything.” Hal’s protests were muffled as he held his nose. “You see my face? You’re taking the wrong guy.”
Security dragged him away, and the crowd around us soon lost interest now that the action was done. Kian wrapped his arm around me, my chest hitting his as another song started playing.
“Really?” I asked as we danced. “You didn’t need to do that.”
“He shouldn’t have talked about you like that.”
“I don’t need you to defend me.”
“Well, I don’t like seeing another guy touching you.”
I frowned. “I’m not yours, Kian.”
“What if life was different?”
“What do you mean?”
He kept me close, moving slowly even though there was a fast-paced song playing. “What if I wasn’t part of Grimrose? And you weren’t keeping whatever secrets you have?”
My heart thrashed against my ribs. “Then we never would have met.”
“Maybe,” he mused. “Or it would have happened anyway. Whether it be fighting or fucking or the moments we actually talk—every second I’m with you, I crave more. I don’t want the year to end.”
His words were throwing me through a loop, and I tried escaping his hold. Tonight was supposed to be fun, not a time to drudge up the maybes of a life that would never happen. He caught my wrists, tugging me back.
“If you think that’s true, then why were you trying to get me kicked out of school?” I asked stiffly.
“To get you out,” he informed me. “We wanted you out of this before it gets worse. I know we have a truce with the Disciples now, but I don’t trust Chris for anything. The peace won’t last, and one of us is taking Little Haven. We don’t want you in the middle.”
“We,” I repeated. “You and Jace have really learned to get along, haven’t you? Never thought that would happen.”
He chuckled. “I wouldn’t exactly say we’re getting along. But we agree on certain things. You being one of them.”
“Well, stop,” I snapped. “You two will never dictate my life. I’m not leaving campus—or Little Haven.”
“I don’t want to argue,” he said in a low voice. “I want to ring in the new year with you.”
“Why?”
The DJ announced that we were thirty seconds from midnight, and the screens around the club brightened, showing the ball beginning to drop. People around us cheered and began counting down, but I kept my eyes on Kian as he stared at me.
“Because I can’t see a life without you now. This could be a new start. To everything, Rynn.”
My mouth parted in shock, and for a moment, I longed for his wish for a different life. One where we were two people with nothing standing between us. I quickly shoved that thought away. It would never happen. No point in wasting time thinking about it.
“Three…two…one. Happy New Year.”
The entire crowd chanted, and yells erupted when the ball dropped. Kian kept one hand on my hip while raising the other and grasping my chin. His eyes searched mine, and when I didn’t move, he lowered his head, brushing his lips gently against mine for a second before deepening the kiss.
Blame it on the atmosphere. Or the drinks. I really didn’t care right now. I closed my eyes, enjoying the small moment before we crashed back to reality. Suddenly, people began murmuring and cheering, and when I peeked my eyes open, my blood went cold. I jerked back, looking around the room, taking in the change. Confetti fell from the ceiling, but that wasn’t what was making panic spiral through me.
All the overhead lights were off, and the room would be pitch black if it weren’t for the black lights. They were everywhere, and some were moving, shining on people.
Shining on me.
The back of my neck prickled where my tattoo was now visible, and I squeezed my hands into fists, keeping myself from covering it, not wanting to cause any more suspicion. Kian frowned, grabbing my arms when I moved to back away.
“What?” he asked, confusion in his voice.
