Page 32 of Never Look Back (Redemption Hills 3)

Like a fool, I eased lower, let my fingers toy with the necklace around her throat as the flames lapped and leapt and consumed. The demand was out before I could stop myself. “My rules, Aster.”

She stalled for a moment before she offered me a wary nod. “Okay.”

SEVEN

ASTER

“My rules, Aster.”

My chest was tight as the powerful engine roared down Main Street as what I’d agreed to ran through my mind on a circuit.

“My rules.”

Every cell on my body was edged in agitation.

What had I done?

What had I agreed to?

Could I really pull this off?

And at what cost?

Because if I couldn’t convince my father...

It was an endless cycle of dread and hope.

Dread and hope.

I glanced at the ferocity that vibrated Logan’s profile.

Hope.

It was such a reckless, heedless emotion. One I’d long since given up fighting for, succumbing to the reality of what my life would be.

But there it was, blooming like a poppy.

Quickly.

Rising up through rocky soil to become something beautiful.

The thought itself was something I should fear. It wasn’t like Logan was sweeping in to rescue me, not that I wanted a hero. But I guessed I’d always wanted a partner.

A friend.

A lover.

A home.

And that’s exactly where we were headed—Logan’s home,when it could never be home at all.

Knowing he hated me, and I hated what he’d done, the choice he’d forced me to make. I hated that every plan and promise we’d made to each other had been squashed.

I needed to remember nothing remained but tragedy and debris.

My desire for freedom and Logan’s thirst for revenge.

I peeked his way again, unable to stop myself. At the strength in his jaw. At the sharpness of his nose and the shrewdness of his eyes.