Page 80 of Prince of Pain
I put my hands up, taking another step back to make sure she knew I’d heard her. “Sorry.”
There was conflict and panic written all over her face, and it only got worse when Tempest spoke from close by. “Is she coming home with us or not?”
“No,” I said before Raven could freak the fuck out. “Temp, fuck off for a minute.”
“Why? It was just getting good,” she huffed, but she did as she was told when I shot her a glare.
I sat on the grass, making it even more obvious that I wasn’t going to touch Raven again so she didn’t run off screaming assault or something. “You’re not ready for guys like me. I was being pushy, I’m sorry.”
She sat down with her back against the wall, eyeing me with frustration. “Why can’t I just fuck you and get it out of the way? It’s not special to me or anything.”
“You don’t trust me, that’s why.”
“Should I?”
“Absolutely not. I’m obviously on a path of destruction, and it’s selfish dragging you into it. Never trust a junkie,” I laughed bitterly, wanting to punch myself in the face.
What the fuck had I been thinking?
“Recovering addict,” she corrected, tilting her head. “Or are you no longer recovering?”
“I need a fix that fighting and fucking don’t seem to be giving me. That’s why I came here tonight, to race and get an adrenaline rush in hopes that it helps. You’re insanely hot though, Raven. I wasn’t joking about that.”
She chuckled quietly, giving me a soft smile. “Thanks. It’s an honor to know the infamous Ryder Donovan think’s I’m fuckable.”
“No offense, but I fuck anything,” I joked, not surprised when Zavier appeared. His body language relaxed when he saw us just sitting on the ground talking, but his tone was blunt.
“What are you doing?”
“Nothing, man,” I answered, getting to my feet and offering Raven my hand. She took it and let me pull her up, but she let go fast. “I need to go and race. I’ll see you around.”
“Wait,” she murmured, her fingers brushing my arm. Zavier was definitely watching our interaction, and I was pretty sure he was seconds away from beating me up. “Keep fighting. You’re stronger than your demons. Want me to ask Reid to race you?”
I snickered. “If Reid and I get on a track together right now, it won’t end well. I’ll race Jett.”
She nodded, watching me as I walked away, but Zavier grabbed my bicep on the way past, speaking quietly in my ear. “Touch her again, and I’ll end you. I don’t care what your demons are doing, don’t let them near her.”
“I won’t go out of my way, but if she shows up at my house, I won’t turn her down,” I said, loud enough for Raven to hear me, then I shook him off and walked away, not surprised when Tempest appeared and clung to my arm.
“We’d probably scare her anyway. It’s probably for the best. Bet your dick’s hard from having her innocent little hands all over you,” she hummed, making me snort.
“My dick’s always hard.”
“I’ll deal with it for you,” she cooed. “Since Logan doesn’t want to join us, I say we race then go home. I want you naked again.”
“You always want me naked,” I grinned. “Get in the car. I’ll go find Rick with his fancy clipboard to make sure he’s got me and Jett down to race.”
She happily wandered off towards my car, knowing everyone was watching her and wondering if we were together or not. Being the center of attention was kind of her thing.
I found Rick, who confirmed our race was after the next two, then I walked back to the car where Logan waited with his arms crossed. Tempest had apparently given up with him because she was sitting in the car on her phone.
“I could kill you,” he said bluntly, my eyes flicking over to where Raven was now standing between Zavier and Reid by their cars. “I know you fucking kissed her.”
I slid my gaze back to Logan and smirked. “At least I’d give her an orgasm if you let her off her leash long enough to fuck someone.”
“An orgasm with a side dish of every STD in existence,” he deadpanned.
“I’ve never had a permanent one I couldn’t cure.”