Page 10 of Crush
Huffing through my nose, I lift my robe, holding it in one arm while using my free hand to climb, slip, and splash to my shins in the growing tide. My jeans instantly become wet, cold, and uncomfortable, exactly how Aurora wants us.
With my hair flying in the wind, I hop over smaller rocks and try to ignore the waterlogged feeling of my socks squishing in my sneakers, cursing Aurora and my desire to become a Virtue the entire way.
What made me think this was a good idea? The fellowship is gone. My parents are far away and unreachable. My dreams shattered by Thorne, these Societies, and this cursed town called Raven’s Bluff. Why am I still doing this?
Because you’re curious. Stubborn. Determined not to fail. If you quit, you’re exactly who Thorne thinks you are…
I can’t stand failure, but at this point, I’m wondering if my determination is more of a flaw than a virtue.
Saltwater sloshes against my side, bowling me over as an angry wave crests over us. My robe falls from my hands, transforming into a sodden mess in seconds and dragging me deeper as the wave retreats.
No. I am not going out like this, Death by Medieval Cloak.
Clawing at the sand, I—
“I got you, little pretty.”
The voice draws my head up. Tendrils of my hair obscure my vision, but I know exactly who lifts me out of the shallows and holds me like a shipwrecked maiden.
I lift my gaze.
Thorne’s unforgettable face stares back.
5
Thorne
“Get your hands off me,” Ember seethes.
Her body stiffens in my grip, drawing my gaze down to hers. While her expression is lit by furious flames, I’m paying more attention to her wet cloak and how it clings to all the places I wish I could reveal.
“No need to thank me,” I drawl as I release her legs, and she lands in the shallows with a plop. The tide pulls at our ankles. I keep my arm around her back, unwilling to release her just yet.
“I was doing just fine without you.” Her breath scorches the lower half of my face.
“Yes, you clawing through the waves like a wet cat proves as much.”
Her plush lips form into a delicious, stubborn pout. “I would’ve made it.”
“I guess we’ll never know,” I mock, then let her go.
I leave her off-balance and hear her curse me as I turn my back and return to shore. Ember has no idea how amusing she is, especially when I goad her into a tantrum.
My smile leaves my face as soon as I notice Aurora watching me in the wings, her weasel mind probably thinking up all the ways she could make me suffer if she could only prove I had feelings for Ember.
I don’t. Twenty-four hours earlier, I ruined Ember’s life. That’s not the sign of a man’s weakened heart.
“Initiates!” Jaxon calls from his perch on a lone rock. His cloak billows out like a cape while the waves murmur beneath him.
A hollow tug occurs between my ribs at the sight. That’s my spot. If I weren’t so distracted by Ember, I’d be starting my speech to the initiates, not him.
“Come closer, please,” Jaxon continues. “So you can hear me better.”
The soaked recruits do as asked, including Ember. Her long hair hangs in strings around her chest, but her chin notches high like she’s a roughed-up princess who’s still kept her pride.
I scowl. The only royal here is me.
Jaxon jerks his thumb at me, pulling the corners of my lips down further. I can’t keep distracting myself and looking at her.