Page 165 of Their Cruel Play
“I’m fine.” I snuggle closer. “Night sky?”
“It’s the season for the Epsilon Perseids meteor shower.” Nico squeezes me against him. “It’s one of the peak nights.”
I glance up at the night sky and all the stars that twinkle above us. The glow of the town is in the distance. Out here it feels like none of that matters.
“When you were younger, you always wanted to catch a falling star, but we could never stay up late enough to see them.” Nico’s words send a burst of nostalgia through me.
“We would fall asleep before it was time to go out.” I smile, remembering. “In the mornings, we’d be so disappointed.”
“I figured if I couldn’t give you the moon, I could at least give you the stars.” He kisses my head. My heart flutters. One thing I never expected from a horseman was romance.
I sigh and relax into him. My gaze returns to the stars overhead. For a while, we’re both quiet, just taking in the night and being with each other.
“I’ve been an ass.” Nico blows out a breath. “You wanted me in your corner, and I failed you. I don’t know how to fix that.”
I rest my ear against his beating heart and breathe in his rain scent. “We move past it. There’s no more us and them. So there shouldn’t have to be a choice anymore.”
“There’s just us.” He takes my hand and rests it with his on his stomach.
“Are you jealous of Luke? Because I don’t understand why. It’s not like he asked me to date him. He claimed me and not for himself—for all of them and you.” I blow out a breath. “You weren’t there in the beginning. I didn’t want any of this. I was agame to them. Eventually, I played along, but I tried to get out of it. I never wanted to be theirs.”
“I couldn’t see that. The way they touched you. When I got there, you were with them. Luke was possessive of you from that first night. It made me wonder if I really fit in or if I just got in because of who I used to be to them and to you.”
“I couldn’t believe you were back,” I say softly as a streak of light crosses the sky. My heart races a little harder. “I was so worried about what they would do to you if they found out I was attracted to you. I didn’t want you to get hurt.”
Nico chuckles. “It’s hard to imagine what would have happened at that party if I wasn’t already a horseman. I came back ready to fight for you. Ready to win you. And then you were handed to me on a golden platter—as long as I didn’t mind sharing you with my friends.”
And there’s the rub. He wanted me all to himself, but he has to share me. I don’t know if it ever would have been an option to have me to himself. There’s a part of me that wants the others’ attention. That craves it.
Another streak goes across the sky.
“I thought you’d protect me.” The words fall out of me. Realizing he broke something in me.
“I will, but not from them.” Nico’s voice is soft, but he holds me close. “Not unless they want to truly hurt you.”
“I’m not going to lie to you. When you helped Caden with his punishment, I felt betrayed. I knew Tanner being my partner was going to get out, but I hoped you’d help make them understand why I didn’t tell them right away. Not join in the fun.”
He releases his breath. “Knowing put me in a difficult spot. I don’t know Tanner. I didn’t know what he’s capable of. But if they’re worried about him having any access to you, then Iknow I should be worried. The guys at this school aren’t normal, sunshine.”
A bitter laugh slips from me. “You’re telling me?”
“I guess if anyone knows that, it’s you.” He sighs, and his chest rises and falls beneath my head. I need him. Doing this alone isn’t easy, but having someone on my side, even a little, is better than nothing.
“I didn’t want to be anyone’s pet.” My eyes widen as more stars streak across the sky.
“You aren’t, Harper. You’re more than that to me. You’re more than that to them. We may not be written in the stars, but you were meant for us.”
My heart swells. I don’t know where this relationship is going. I don’t know if we’ll go to college together. Or if they’ll betray me like they have every other girl. And I don’t know how to find out. They want me to trust them. But how can I?
For a moment, we just watch the meteors burst into flames.
“Today, in the bathroom, I overheard some girls talking.” My voice is quiet as the night sky is painted with streaks of light.
“What about?”
“They think the guys are just building me up for a huge prank.”
“If they are, I’m not in on it.” Nico draws me tighter against him. “They wouldn’t do that, sunshine.”
