Page 24 of Unhinged Obsession

“Noah Moretti, you’re the absolute worst,” I say to him playfully, swatting my hand at him. He holds his hands up, deflecting, like I could actually do some damage if I wanted to.

Elijah cocks his head to the side in the most psychopathic way before he says, “I know how we can get in to see Paris. I’ll snap your neck, and maybe your room will be near hers.”

“Elijah,” I reprimand him, but Noah just chuckles, already heading down the hallway so we can head out to the equestrian center.

Elijah pouts down at me for a moment before dropping a kiss to my lips. He slips his hand fully into mine and then guides me to follow him back into his room so he can throw a shirt on. It’s not like we would have been able to catch up with his brother, who apparently skedaddled down the hall because he’s nowhere in sight.

Elijah’s fingers close around mine with a steady pressure that makes it clear he has no intention of letting go before he brings our hands to his lips and presses a kiss to the top of my hand.

“I’m going to make sure this ends soon, and I promise you that I won’t let you out of my sight long enough for anyone to ever hurt you again,” he tells me, and I nod. I believe him. I know how sorry he is for what happened when I had to leave school, and I fully believe that he’s going to do everything within his power to keep me safe.

He doesn’t wait for a response, and only lets go of my hand so that he can grab a hoodie off the back of his desk chair and toss it over his broad shoulders.

My stomach does a little flip as I watch his abdominal muscles clench as he works it over his body.

When he’s back in front of me, I take his hand this time because I realize that even though he has apologized for everything that happened between us, he’s still carrying the guilt around that isn’t his to atone for. It’s not Elijah’s fault that The Society is fucked up. He was born into this just like I was. He’s willing to risk his life to get both of us out of this living hell, and he needs to know that I appreciate everything he’s doing for me.

I push up on my tiptoes and brush my lips against his cheek before I say, “I trust you with my life, Elijah.”

I don’t have time to prepare, because he’s picking me up off the ground and kissing me like he’ll cease to exist if he doesn’t get enough of me. I cup his face and wrap my legs around his waist as he crushes me to his chest.

“I’m going to get us out of this, little dove,” Elijah tells me when our lips finally part, and he lets me slide down the length of his body. “I promise you, we’re going to be free of The Society, and living together in complete peace with nothing hanging over our heads.”

He’s leading me out the door when I look up at him and say, “Living together?”

He smirks down at me as we walk down the hallway. “First order of business is flushing those fucking birth control pills,” he says, pulling a face like he’s bit into a lemon.

“And second order of business?” I ask, already knowing the kind of mood he’s in, and that whatever he says is going to be a real trip.

I’m right, because he tells me as he simultaneously reaches behind me and cups my ass cheek in the palm of his hand, “I haven’t decided. Either moving all of your stuff to my room, or filling you with so much cum that I get to watch it drip down your perfect thighs and then push it back inside my favorite place in the world.”

ELIJAH

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

The second I push through the door, I regret coming here. It’s a necessary means because I just got word that they moved the Choosing Ceremony up to tomorrow night. I have to see Caiden Grey and get this shit in order before it’s too late.

I’m not pompous enough to think I can go up against the entire Society by myself and hold them off. Blair, Noah, and I drove over to the equestrian facility, but Elders were walking around the property with a very pissed-off Karin in tow. We only stayed a few minutes, but we saw her point to her “Do NOT feed or touch the horses PLEASE” sign she personally nailed up herself. I think she’s a control freak, but Blair was telling Noah that horses can’t throw up or some shit. If they eat something that doesn’t agree with them, they have to wait for the stomach ache to pass. A lot of times, they’ll lay down and roll to alleviate the pain, which can be life-threatening.

One night when Blair was missing, I was feeling particularly hopeless and went to the barn to see Beau. He was already in his stall, and I took some of his treats out of Blair’s tack closet. Like an actual Phantom, Karin appeared, ready to whack me with her flyswatter. She eyed the treats and then said, “You’re lucky you pay attention,” and then walked off.

If I hadn’t been so fucking heartsick over Blair, I probably would have tossed her up on the roof or something for talking to me that way. Beau was eating his treats, oblivious to how long his mom had been missing, and his ears cocked to the side when we heard Karin yelling at a student who wandered in to feed the horses. I remember hearing her say, “Would you like it if I was hanging over your fence feeding your dog random shit?”

Blair says we knock heads because we’re alike, but I don’t see it.

Noah is staking out the equestrian center so he can hopefully check things out and see if anything has been left behind by whoever hurt Paris and attacked Serena. The worst thing that could happen in that scenario is that a note was left behind and the Elders found it.

Country music spills through the bar loud enough to rattle the bottles lining the shelves behind it, laughter bouncing off weathered wood walls while boots scrape across the dance floor in practiced rhythm. You could not fucking pay me to hang out here. Does no one enjoy the quiet? And why do they all know that same fucking dance? The whole place smells like whiskey, leather, and weirdly, peanuts. My stomach rolls at the combination, and I decide right then and there that I must have died and this must be Hell, but at least I’ve got my girl’s hand in mine. Every table is full, every stool occupied, and I fucking swear it looks like every person in here is talking at the same time.

There are too many fucking people in here, but when you’re Caiden Grey, you don’t have to worry about silly little things like room capacity or the fire marshal.

I don't have to look behind me to know Blair is hesitating. I know she’s overwhelmed, especially after everything she’s been through and now Paris being in the hospital. My brat of a stepsister gets on my nerves, but I’m not so inhumane to pretend she hasn’t been a good friend to my girl.

The subtle resistance in the hand I haven’t let go of since I helped Blair off my bike makes me angry. My little dove should not be afraid of anything ever, and I'm in an absolute rage that I can’t ease her worry fully. We haven’t talked about what we are or how things are going to be when this is all over, and that’s by my design. I want the first time that she hears how much I love her to be when her guard is down, and she can believe it fully.

I pull her toward me and wrap my arm around her, reaching down to thread my fingers through hers before she has the chance to convince herself she should run. I know Caiden is intimidating, but he owes me a favor for some things my brothers and I took care of for him. I wouldn’t necessarily say Caiden has a good side, but we’re on whatever side of him doesn’t make us a target of his.

When I glance down at my girl, she's already looking up at me, and what I see there hits me straight in the heart. Written across every delicate feature is complete trust in me. She tries so hard to keep composed. She's always been good at pretending she's fine, to the point that even Paris would believe her at times, but I always see through it immediately. She’s definitely not fine right now, but she feels safe with me, and that’s enough for my tiny black heart to grow a couple sizes.