She nods and as one, they all take off down the hall. Knowing we probably won’t come back here, I scoop up Tanner’s things he left on the seat and stride to the exit, wondering where the fuck he could have gotten too.

  I walk out through the automatic doors and out to the hospital parking lot before stopping and quickly scanning, trying to remember where the hell we parked. We were in such a rush that the finer details of our night quickly escaped my mind. Luckily, there aren’t too many cars here tonight, and it doesn’t take long to find the tail end of Tanner’s Mustang.

  As I make my way toward it, slipping through the other parked cars, I hear Tanner’s muffled voice from the other side of the Mustang. I pause, not liking the sound of it. “Come on, man. Don’t be fucking stupid,” Tanner says, a strange hesitation in his tone. “It’s not worth it.”

  “Oh, I think it is,” a voice says, pulling at something inside me. There’s a strange familiarity with the voice, though I can’t figure out where the hell I’ve heard it before. “You see, maybe you could have persuaded me, but then you went and fucked up my boy, and now you leave me no fucking choice. An eye for a fucking eye.”

  A chill sails down my spine as goosebumps spread across my skin. Something warns me to keep quiet, that whatever is going on isn’t something I should be involved in. I should tuck and run, but not when Tanner is involved.

  I hold my breath, my heart racing erratically in my chest as I slip through the parked cars, walking on my toes to keep as quiet as possible.

  The closer I get, the clearer their voices become. “An eye for an eye?” Tanner scoffs. “Man, it’s too fucking late for that. He raped my sister, attacked her in hospital, then tried it all over again at the track. Should I go on?” he demands. “Because there’s a whole fucking list of people he’s hurt.”

  “You don’t know what the fuck you’re talking about,” the voice says. “From what I heard, your sister is a fucking whore. She wanted it. He was doing her a favor.”

  My blood runs cold, and I cut through the cars a little faster, not knowing what kind of position Tanner is in, but the fact I haven’t heard this guy getting the shit beat out of him yet is challenging everything I know about Tanner.

  I reach the back of the Mustang and creep up beside it before having to slam my hand over my mouth to keep me from making a damn sound, seeing my whole world about to crumble. Tanner stands in the vacant parking space in front of the Mustang, his eyes locked on Roxten Hargrove, Colby’s best friend.

  They stand facing one another, with Roxten’s back mostly to me, but there’s no mistaking the gun held firmly in his hand.

  Fear rocks through me as my hands shake, desperate to do something … anything that will get that gun away from Tanner’s chest. Tears well in my eyes, quickly falling down my cheeks as I keep hidden, having no idea what the hell to do.

  “Would you be saying that if it was your little sister who’d been raped? What about your mom or your girlfriend? Would you have their backs or would you call them whores and tell them they asked for it because of the clothes they were wearing or the way they smiled at him? Or would you go to the ends of the fucking earth to destroy the bastard who violated them? Because I know I sure as fuck would.”

  “It’s too late to plead your fucking case, Morgan, so save me the bullshit. I’m not interested.”

  Oh fuck.

  Oh, fuck, fuck, fuck. He’s going to shoot him.

  Tanner shakes his head. “Walk away, man,” he says, his tone dropping dangerously low. “Otherwise you better shoot to kill because I will come for you, and when I do, I will slaughter you like a fucking animal.”

  Ahh, fuck. FUCK. Why does he have to go and provoke the bastard?

  Desperation courses through my veins, and without thinking, I slip into the open driver’s seat of Tanner’s Mustang, the adrenaline gripping me by the balls and convincing me I’m braver than I really am. Finding his keys and phone still in the center console, I grab the key and shove it into the ignition. The engine roars to life and regret pours over me, knowing my cover is well and truly blown.

  Roxten whips around and I blind him with the beaming headlights, the gun now trained on me as Tanner stares with wide eyes, shaking his head. I rev the engine, giving the bastard one hell of a warning as Tanner takes a hesitant step back, putting distance between him and Roxten.

  “Don’t be fucking stupid, bitch,” Roxten roars over the sound of the engine. “I’ll fucking shoot you both.”

  I rev the engine again, daring him to fucking come for me, and I see the very second he goes for it. I duck down just as the bastard pulls the trigger, the loud bang echoing through the parking structure. Rage burns through me, and the second my head comes flying back up over the dash, my foot slams down on the gas.

  The tires screech and the car lunges forward as Roxten’s eyes widen with fear. He lets off two more shots and as Tanner dives for cover, the car takes off like a fucking bat out of hell, flying across the short space and slamming directly into Roxten.

  The momentum lifts him off the fucking ground and he slams against the windshield, cracking the glass, but I hit the brakes, throwing him off. He’s launched into the air before violently smashing against the side panel of Logan’s RAM, caving in the back door.

  Roxten drops lifelessly to the ground, the gun clattering against the pavement as I sit wide eyed, my heart pounding in my chest. “BRI?” Tanner roars, racing toward Roxten and grabbing the gun, his eyes coming right back to mine. “Killer, baby, tell me you’re okay.”

  I swallow hard, nodding. “I, umm … yeah, I think so,” I say, my hands shaking on the steering wheel. “Is he dead? Please tell me I didn’t kill him.”

  Tanner bends down, checking Roxten for a pulse and relief shines through his eyes. He blows his cheeks out wide before walking around to the driver’s door and opening it. He crouches down and takes my hand in his. “He’ll be okay,” he says, forcing me to meet his eyes. “He’s just knocked out cold. Maybe a few broken bones, but nothing permanent.”

  I let out a heavy breath, unable to believe that shit just happened. “I ran someone over,” I mutter, trying to come to terms with what I’ve done.

  “And you saved my fucking life,” Tanner says, squeezing my hands and silently willing me to come back to him. “I saw it in his eyes, babe. He was going to pull that fucking trigger. If you didn’t show up when you did …”

  Tanner trails off, the same thoughts reflected in my own head. “He shot at me.”

  “Trust me,” he grunts, a strange tone in his voice. “I fucking know.”

  A small smile pulls at the corner of my lips as people start to come running out of the hospital, Riley and Hudson right in the front. “You’re mad at me, aren’t you?”

  Tanner smirks and rolls his eyes before reaching into the car and pulling me into his arms. “So fucking mad,” he tells me.

  “Just to clarify,” I tease, already knowing the answer as Tanner reaches into the car and cuts the engine. “It’s because I put myself in a dangerous situation, not because I just messed up your car.”

  Tanner shakes his head and stands up before pulling me out of the car. “We better find a doctor for this asshole,” he tells me, glancing over my head at the people coming to see what the fuck is going on out here. “I’d suggest we run, but I think we’ve already had enough trouble with the cops lately.”

  “Shit,” I gasp, my gaze snapping up to his. “What if they think I did it on purpose?”

  Tanner shakes his head, tucking me back into his chest. “They won’t,” he tells me. “The fucker chose the worst possible place to do this. I can count at least ten cameras, and that’s only in this section of the parking structure. You’re good.”

  Relief blasts through my chest as I crumble against him. “Thank fuck,” I say before remembering the reason I was out here in the first place. “Oh, umm, by the way, Jax woke up, and if and when it comes up later with your mom, I only now just realized I told Riley about your little exhibition kink of watching me through your window while jerking off, and she definitely wasn’t asleep.”

  Tanner gives me a tight smile, “Well, shit,” he breathes. “Thanks for that.”

  I beam up at him as the crowd finally reaches us. “Anything for you, Tanner Morgan.”

  Chapter 28

  TANNER

  Jax is a fucking idiot. There’s no other way to put it.

  He was released from the hospital less than an hour ago and instead of lying in bed, recovering from surgery, he’s hosting a fucking party, and judging by the scowl on Logan’s face, this party definitely didn’t get cleared with him first. Though, we shouldn’t be surprised. This is nothing but typical Jax behavior.

  I sit with the boys around the fire pit, watching as more and more guests arrive, each of them beelining straight for Jax to check he’s still alive. After all, when Bradford’s poster boy for a good time goes down in front of the whole school, his recovery is guaranteed to generate a bit of interest.

  “JAXON MORGAN,” I hear Brielle from across the party as she storms toward us, her glare locked on Jax and unintentionally sending a wave of relief pounding through my veins. She’s been with the cops all afternoon, discussing her little accident in the hospital parking lot with Roxten. If it didn’t go well, I’d be able to see it all over her face, but she looks fine. In fact, she looks fucking perfect. “What the hell is this? You’re supposed to be in recovery, locked in your room watching porn for the next few weeks.”

  Jax groans, glancing over all the girls as they trail in behind Bri. “Shit, you really are a killjoy, aren’t you?” he says, a cocky smirk pulling at his lips, one I have no doubt Bri could knock right off his face in two seconds flat. “If I wanted to chill with the fun police, I would have asked my parents to stick around.”

  “Ha-ha,” Bri says, stepping between my knees and dropping down on my lap as the rest of them make themselves comfortable around the fire pit. “I’m just looking out for you. It wasn’t that long ago Addie and I were going through the same thing with you. I remember the pain as though it happened yesterday, so quit trying to fool everybody. I know you’re hurting, and if it weren’t for the painkillers you’re strung out on, you’d be in a ball, crying on the ground.”

  Jax rolls his eyes before staring across the fire pit at Arizona. “Yeah, well I’d rather be messed up over this, than anything else.”

  His words are loaded with accusation, and Arizona couldn’t miss it even if she tried. Her head snaps up, and she shoots a venomous glare at Jax. “What the hell is that supposed to mean?” she demands, her hands balling into fists as she flies back to her feet. “You’re not the one who’s been messed up, you’re not the one who’s not enough, and you’re not the one who’s had to watch the person you’re crazy about fuck around with every bitch with a pulse. So sure, go ahead and boast about how you’d rather get stabbed than have to deal with me and my bullshit feelings.”

  Ari goes to storm away when Jax clenches his jaw, knowing damn well he said the wrong thing. “Fuck, Ari.” He pulls himself up and everyone’s eyes widen with fear.

  “Holy fuck, Jax, don’t,” Ilaria rushes out, but Jax isn’t having any of it. He’s too determined to say what he needs to say.

  He curses with the pain but doesn’t stop going after her. “Ari, stop,” he says, each step taken with an agonizing cringe, but his pleas fall on deaf ears. “For fuck’s sake, you stubborn bitch. That’s not what I meant and you know it. Now, turn the fuck around so we can talk this shit through.”

  Ari stops, more than ready to beat his ass to a pulp, but as she glances back over her shoulder, tears already staining her cheeks, she sees Jax on his feet. Her eyes bulge out of her head. “What the fuck are you doing?” she spits, racing back to him and grabbing his waist, certain he’s about to fall flat on his face and tear his brand-new stitches. “Go and sit your stupid ass back down.”

  “Fine,” he mutters. “But only if you come and sit with me and talk. I’m done with this bullshit between us.”

  Ari clenches her jaw as everyone seems to watch with bated breath, more than ready for them to just kiss and make up, but it’s really not that simple. There’s hesitation in her eyes and I see the exact moment she’s about to cut and run when Jax grunts, exaggerating his pain and making a show of needing her help, not only pulling at her heart strings, but successfully pulling off the best guilt trip known to man.

  She lets out a huff before rolling her eyes and giving in. “Fine,” she mutters, tightening her grip on Jax and helping him back to the fire pit. She holds onto him so he can sit slowly, but the second his ass is in the chair, he locks his arms around her waist and pulls her down onto his lap.

  Ari squeals and tries to scramble off him, but he holds on to her legs, keeping them hooked over his knee so she can’t get too far. “Are you a fucking idiot?” she demands as he rests his hands on her thigh. “Are you trying to break your stitches?”

  “Maybe I am an idiot, or maybe I just miss having you close.”

  Ari shakes her head as Logan rolls his eyes. “Don’t,” she warns him. “I’m happy to talk, but don’t lead me on and make me think there’s a chance when we both know there’s not.”

  “I’m not trying to lead you on, Ari. I’m trying to be honest,” he says. “You’ve been one of my best friends for the past … I don’t even know how fucking long, but I miss you. I hate not having you around, and I hate seeing you at school every day and not being able to drag you into the stairwell. Not to mention, watching you try to chat up random fucking losers at parties is driving me insane. It’s a fucking miserable life without you in it, Ari. I want you back.”

  “You can’t have something you never had, Jax,” she says. “You want the easy fuck, someone to drop to her knees every time you glance her way without the worry of a stage ten clinger, but you don’t want me. You’re too fucking scared of your own heart to want anything that could potentially be real.”

  He shakes his head. “But maybe I do want something real.”

  Ari narrows her eyes on him, anger burning within them. “Really?” she challenges. “I. Am. In. Love. With. You. Do you understand that, Jax? I’m in love with you. You have my whole fucking heart, every last piece of it. Are you ready for that? Because that’s what it means to have something real.”

  Jax clenches his jaw and reaches across to her, gripping her waist and hoisting her toward him until she’s straddled on his lap, the two of them facing off in the greatest war this town will ever see. “I. Want. You,” he says, articulating every damn word so she understands him clearly. “I don’t want some other bitch on her knees for me. I want you, and only you. Am I in love with you? I don’t know,” he says honestly. “Maybe I am, but I’m fucking willing to find out. The question is, are you?”

  Arizona hesitates, everything she wants sitting on a silver platter, just waiting for her to grab it with both hands. “You’re going to hurt me, Jax,” she says, her voice soft and filled with pain. “You’ve already destroyed me so much. How can I just willingly offer myself up to you like that again?”

  “Because I was a fucking idiot then,” he insists. “I didn’t know how much you meant to me until I didn’t have you there, and I don’t ever want to feel that way again. But you’re right, I am fucking scared. I’m terrified. The thought of hurting you kills me, which is what I meant before. I’d rather deal with this fucking stab wound than deal with the fact I’ve been hurting you.”

  Ari cries as she takes Jax’s face and leans forward. She kisses him, and watching it almost kills me. This isn’t the holy shit, we’re about to be the happiest couple in the world kind of kiss. This is something else.

  Bri grips my hand, glancing at me for a moment, the look in her eyes telling me she’s seeing what I’m seeing, and as I look around at our group, I see nothing but sadness for our two friends. “I’m sorry, Jax,” Ari whispers, gently pulling back from him as he grips her waist tighter, silently begging her not to say what she’s about to say. “I have to think about this. You might be scared to let yourself feel something real, but I’m terrified of handing myself over for you to break me. I wouldn’t survive it, Jax. These past few weeks have taught me that much.”

  She pushes off him and goes to walk away but Jax catches her hand. “Ari,” he whispers, the silent plea for her to stay shining through his tone.

  “I’m sorry, Jax,” she whispers, letting her hand fall away. “I just … I need to think about this.”

  He nods and lets her walk away, the girls all getting up to follow her, probably to get blind drunk.

  Logan nudges his brother’s foot and lifts his chin, demanding Jax’s attention. “You good, bro?” he questions, knowing from experience just how much that kind of rejection hurts. Though luckily for Jax, it wasn’t a flat-out no. “That was rough.”

  Jax shrugs his shoulders. “It is what it is,” he mutters, switching out his bottle of water for something a little stronger, despite the painkillers he’s on. He doesn’t expand on that, but I don’t expect him to. Though the pressure dissipates when Riley throws himself to his feet, gaping at his phone.

  He jumps right up onto the edge of the fire pit, holding his phone and flipping it around so we see the screen. “HOLY FUCK,” he blanches, panic in his eyes. “She responded. Zoe fucking responded. What do I do? What do I do?”

  Jax grunts, not able to be happy for Riley right now. “Fucking message her back, dickwad.”

  A smirk pulls at my lips as I try to get a closer look at the screen. “What’d she say?”

  Riley grins. “Not much.”

  My brows furrow. “Huh?”

  “To the message you sent,” he tells me, shoving his phone closer to my face so I can scan over it properly.

  Riley - Hey, what’s up?

  Zoe - Not much.