Savage Little Lies: Chapter 32

Sloane

I’d woken up Friday morning to find the Legacy boys outside my house.

They’d brought a flatbed truck.

It was just after 5 AM, and I’d only gotten up to pee. I had swift plans to go back to bed after that, but after spying them all through the window, I raced downstairs. I had a hoodie hanging up on the door, and after tugging that on (mostly to account for the fact I didn’t have a bra on), I slipped on a pair of high-tops. I was rushing so damn quick, I was lucky I didn’t put my brother’s shoes on.

I bristled in the garage. All of them were in there. Wells and Thatcher were waving and directing the car Ares and I’d been painting.

The dark prince was inside it.

Dorian had his arm hooked behind the headrest, backing the car up with the guidance of his two friends. The flatbed was apparently for the car because they were having Dorian drive the thing in line with the truck. The only one not messing with the car was Ares, who was currently tethering the other part of our project to the top of his Hummer.

He’d covered it and everything, and with all the activity behind him, he hadn’t noticed me until I was all up on him.

None of them had.

All the activity stopped the moment I was in front of Ares. Wells and Thatcher were literally mid-wave, and without the guidance, Dorian himself stopped the car. He faced forward, gazing through the windshield.

He stopped on me, his big fist clenching and unclenching the wheel. He had his school uniform on, though the tie was undone and his shirt was open. Apparently, he had plans to go to class after whatever they were doing here.

I hated that I studied him as long as I did before noticing the others. Wells and Thatcher had their uniforms on too, both guys rocking on their patent leather shoes. They were obviously at a standstill on what to do like Dorian.

“Fuck, we were trying to get this done before you got up.”

This came from Ares, his hands lowering from the tethers. He too had his uniform on. Though his was minus the jacket. Upon further observation, I noticed he had it in the front seat of his ride.

The tall boy came around his Hummer, tugging his shirt down. “Shit, we woke you. Didn’t we?” he asked, and after waving off his friends, he came over to me.

I noticed right away Wells and Thatcher continued what they’d been doing. Wells proceeded in waving Dorian while Thatcher got everything going with the truck. The only person who hadn’t moved was Dorian himself.

He was at a standstill behind the wheel, his wrist resting on it. Ares caught me watching and turned toward his friend.

The two made eye contact for several seconds until the dark prince decided to let it go.

Hooking an arm around the back of the headrest again, he continued to back up the car, and the next thing I knew, Ares Mallick was waving me to come with him.

“What is this?” I asked, staring behind him. Business as usual proceeded to continue on without the distraction of me.

Ares shoved his hands in his pockets. “Well, you know we’re finished. I asked the guys to help me move everything. We’re taking the piece to the school.”

Well, it would have been nice to know that was happening. And we had finished last night, I supposed. Technically, a couple days ago. We’d wanted to make sure everything looked okay after the paint dried, and last night had just been more of a touch-up session.

I’d ended up going to bed about three hours ago, but before that, there hadn’t been any talk about moving everything right away.

Let alone who he was going to recruit for help.

This made sense since these guys were his friends, but Ares also knew how strongly I felt about one of them specifically. I growled. “You could have asked me. I could have driven the car over to the school.”

His eyes narrowed. “No offense, little. But no one is driving that thing. Not after all that fucking work we did on it.”

I got that but still.

“And if you haven’t noticed, this thing also weighs a ton.” He jerked his thumb back toward the mural. “I wasn’t going to ask you or Bru to help me with it. I think you know why. Your brother and I probably could have handled it, but I wasn’t about to risk you raging on my ass for even asking him.”

My smile started slow. We really had been spending too much time together. He was really starting to get me and how I worked. I would have raged on his ass.

He smiled too. “Anyway, we’ll be out of your hair soon. Go back to bed. We don’t need anything from you.”

Well, now that I was up, trying to go back to sleep would be hilarious.

Especially knowing Dorian was here.

He was currently out of the car, helping the guys to finish loading up, and I didn’t miss him pass a glance in our direction.

Ares hadn’t either. He’d returned back to the other part of our piece, but still had eyes on the situation. Currently, he messed with tethers while his friends completed the other job. Thatcher and Wells eventually got inside the flatbed once their group finished, but Dorian hadn’t joined them.

He came over to help Ares, and I twitched when I was forced to share more space than was comfortable with him. I mean, my garage wasn’t a small garage, but he was in there with me.

I shifted in my high-tops, hands clenching in my hoodie. I tried to put off disinterest, that I didn’t care one way or the other that Dorian was in my space, but who was I kidding? I did care.

I still did.

But this didn’t mean anything to me. I told him things were too late. His apology was too late, and I meant that.

I kicked back a foot against my Chevelle, making sure both boys knew I was there. This was still my space, and they were both inside it.

“D, you still got those extra bungie cords in your car?”

“Yeah, in the trunk.” The dark prince tossed him his keys. “Should be some in the roadside emergency kit.”

Now Dorian’s car wasn’t far away. But it looked like miles.

Especially when Ares left us.

The tall boy sprinted away to his friend’s Audi—also parked outside my house. Ares opened the trunk, and Dorian kept his distance while he waited. I averted my eyes, and his head lowered, a sea of perfect blond breezing in the wind.

“Hey.”

I panned in his direction, clashing suddenly with dark eyes. I was surprised he’d actually spoke to me.

I’d been more than clear before.

But here he was, hands in his pockets. His dress pants fitted tight to his muscular legs, his stance wide and his signature combat boots gracing his feet. He never did give a fuck about the school’s dress code. His sleeves were shoved up above his thick forearms. His shoulders lifted. “How you been?”

How have I been?

I wondered if I should tell him before or after he’d once again made a fool out of me. Who knew how far things would have gone in the computer lab had I not stopped it.

In fact, I knew exactly what would have happened. He would have made me his whore once again. How easy he got me to bend for him.

I looked away again, and by then, Ares had come back. He was well aware his friend had been talking to me, waving him back to help. For whatever reason, Ares “Wolf” Mallick continued to look out for me, and how weird their dynamic had changed. When I’d first met them, Ares had clearly answered to him.

Today, as it seemed, something different was happening, because not only did Dorian leave, but he also assisted Ares with no hesitation. Ares directed, and Dorian did what he asked, shocking the fuck out of me. Dorian was so crazy, his control crazy. He’d made me bend to that more than a few times too.

I watched, nearly fascinated by the dynamic. Ares tossed a tether, and Dorian secured it, doing it exactly how Ares wanted it. After the boys were done, Ares mentioned he was going to tell Wells and Thatcher to go ahead and take off, and at this point, I’d been standing idle. I mean, there was nothing for me to do.

Well, nothing but watch Dorian Prinze come back over to me.

Which he did, his advance strong and with clear intentions. I just wished I knew what those intentions were.

“Can I talk to you?” He clasped fingers behind his neck, rubbing. It was almost an awkward gesture, and the dark prince wasn’t awkward. His lips pulled tight. “I understand if you don’t want to. In fact, I fucking get that completely.”

I blinked, not expecting that. For one thing, he was asking and not being an asshole about it. I hugged my arms. “You actually want to talk?” I popped a shoulder. “Well, that’s new.”

This boy didn’t talk. He took.

His hands cuffed his biceps, his nod slow. “I deserve that.”

He deserved more than that.

And I was done with this conversation.

I started to walk away, but he called my name.

And why did I always stop?

I closed my eyes, pivoting. He hadn’t gotten any closer, but that didn’t matter. I still felt his reach, didn’t matter the proximity.

I could even smell him, taste him. His clear cool scent wafted in the air like a drug, and it was a habit I couldn’t seem to kick.

“I just wanted to say I’m sorry,” he said, frowning. “I’m sorry I didn’t believe you. I’m sorry for how I left you and how I left things.”

“You already said that.” He’d forced himself on me yet again, taken from me because that was what he did. He knew how fucked up we both were, and how I always responded to it. I lifted my chin. “In the computer lab, remember?”

I definitely hadn’t forgotten.

“Well, I’m saying it again.” He started to come closer, but his fists clenched, and he stopped. “And I shouldn’t have done that. And definitely not in there.” He cringed. “We take girls in there.”

Even better. I nodded. “Nice.”

“But that’s…” He cut around, finding my eyes. “That’s not what I wanted to do that day.”

“What had you wanted to do?”

“I don’t know.” The words were low. “I guess I just wanted to be close to you.”

Why did he keep saying things like this?

He was making this so much worse.

I didn’t want to push him away. He’d made me. “You’re an asshole.”

“I know, and I’m not trying to be. Fuck, it’s driving me crazy. You drive me crazy.” He shook his head. “I hate what I’ve done to you and how I made you feel. I hate that I didn’t believe you—”

“Why didn’t you?” I’d never given him a reason to think he couldn’t trust me. “I never said a word about where you were that day. I’d never do that to you. I…”

I stopped myself before I said something stupid, and what did I really know about feelings and bullshit anyway?

Let alone anything deeper.

The one time I tried he’d done what he had to me.

His jaw moved. “I know. I know. I just…” He stared away. “I’m not good at this.”

“Good at what?”

He put a hand out. “This. This shit. Us.”

“This shit?” A perfect sum-up of what we were or were not. I squeezed my arms. “I don’t want you.”

“Well, I want you.” He closed the distance, disappeared space, and I thought he’d do what he always did. He’d take.

He waited.

He stood there waiting, and the side of his neck flushed in so much color. His nostrils flared. “Sloane…”

“I told you it’s too late.” My throat tight, I tried so hard not to fucking blink, cry. If I blinked, I knew the tears would come down. “I can’t do this anymore, Dorian. We’re so bad for each other.”

It used to be a joke, our madness. We were hate-fucks and anger.

We were aggression and heaven.

Combined, it just made for a recipe of chaos and disaster, and my heart couldn’t physically take anymore.

“We aren’t, and it doesn’t have to be how it’s been.” He wet his lips. “I know I screwed up with you. I know I’m fucked up, and everything you said was right. It’s always been right, but I want to try to not be so fucked up.” His throat worked. “I want to take you out. On a date. A real fucking date and not me being an asshole for once.”

I twitched.

He smiled. “I want to show you I’m serious. Serious about this, and that I’m not afraid to admit when I’m wrong. That I have faults, and I’m human.”

Blinking, I noticed Ares over Dorian’s shoulder. At this point, he’d gotten in his car, but he was still looking at us. He’d obviously gone into detail with Dorian about conversations Ares himself and I’d had.

I mean, those were my words coming out of Dorian’s mouth.

For some reason, Ares was going to bat for us. He was rooting for us.

As my thoughts mulled over that, Dorian managed to advance closer. I could make out every various shade of brown in his eyes now.

“Please give me a chance to show that,” he continued, and he was really pleading here in front of me. He grinned. “I’m not a complete asshole. I swear, I’m not.”

There were these moments, a time or two. Sometimes that dark filter would slip, and he let a part of himself out. A part that wasn’t so cold and thorny.

A part that wasn’t so distant.

He let me get close, but so quickly he’d pull it right away.

“It’s…” I started to say. “It’s not that easy. You’re not that easy.”

His head lifted, his nod firm. Ares’s window pulled down, and Dorian and I both angled around.

“You coming, D?” Ares tipped his chin. “Probably should get this thing to school. Wells and Thatch will wonder what’s up.”

They’d apparently left while Dorian and I were talking. The flatbed truck was gone, and it was only the three of us now.

“Two seconds,” Dorian said, facing me. “What do you say? It doesn’t have to be what you think. You and me?”

But it very well could, and he hadn’t given me reason enough to go that way and take the risk.

At least, not yet.

“You should probably get that stuff to school,” I said. “You go do that, and I might think about it after that.”

His eyebrow rose slow. “You might?”

I couldn’t help but smile, shaking my head. Why did this boy get me like this? In my head and girly. “I might.”

His grin was wiry, and completely knowing. My poker face completely sucked, and he knew it.

He laughed, rolling his shoulders back. “You’re not going to make this easy, are you?”

Probably as easy as he’d made it for me since I got wrapped up with him. He’d put me through hell.

Maybe it was time he went through a little of his own.