Page 68 of Burning Embers
A tiny kernel of electricity manifests in my lower belly and then flares outwards, engulfing me in a strange, prickling heat.
“You’re acting like an asshole.” I scowl at him, but some of my anger is already fading—a wave battering against the shoreline before retreating, returning to the more peaceful part of the ocean.
“And you’re acting like a stubborn bitch,” he retorts. “Now, are you going to tell me what has your panties in a bunch?”
“Stop thinking about my panties, perv,” I say lamely, but secretly…I wish he would think about my panties a little more often.
Is that too much to ask?
But god help me, I feel the last of my ire recede. If anyone else were to call me a bitch or speak to me in such a manner, I’d stab them. But Grayson is…well… He’s my best friend. He’s probably the only person alive who can talk to me like that. He doesn’t make it sound like an insult or a slur. It’s more…teasing and lighthearted, almost reverent. He could swap out “bitch” with “baby,” and I wouldn’t even bat an eye.
It’s just the way we work.
It’s the way we’ve always worked.
I fork a hand through my blonde curls and puff out a breath. “Look, I’m sorry for being cranky. I’m hungry and about to start my period soon?—”
“Same,” he deadpans.
I snort on my laughter. “Yeah, well… You’re right. I was being a stubborn bitch. I was just feeling…”
Insecure?
Helpless?
Pissed as hell that I’m in love with a guy who has a girlfriend?
All of the above?
I’d rather carve my own eyeballs out with a rusty spoon than admit any of that to Grayson.
“Why’d you leave?” he grunts out, shoving his hands into his front pockets and rocking back on his heels.
I know he’s asking about why I left the barn last night without him, but the answer to that question is just another secret I’ll take to my grave, thank you very much.
So instead, I settle on a half-truth. “I ran into Justin.”
A dark, bloated storm cloud passes over his face, and that grumpy scowl returns with a vengeance. “You went home with him?”
He sounds almost…jealous. Insanely so. If I didn’t know he had a girlfriend, I would’ve thought he was upset at the prospectof me having sex with another guy. But alas, reality is a cruel bitch, and I know he probably just wants to protect me from entitled rich boys the way an older brother might.
Either way, I can’t help but ruffle his feathers.
I arch an arrogant eyebrow at him and cock my hip to the side. “Does it matter?”
His eyes narrow, turning to thin slits. “Izzy…” His voice is a low, rumbly growl that I swear reverberates through my entire body like an earthquake.
“Someone is feeling rather talkative today,” I taunt, already reaching for my water bottle.
I hand it to him without a word, and he takes it and swallows quickly to soothe his frayed vocal cords. Still, his glower doesn’t fade, doesn’t dissipate.
“You need to tell me,” he finally manages to bite out, though I notice his voice still sounds raspy and distorted.
“Why the fuck do I have to do that?”
“So I can kill him.” He says that last statement without any inflection whatsoever, his stare hard on my face.
I scoff. “Yeah. Sure.”