by K. G. Reuss
I hugged myself, wanting something like what Rosalie had. Maybe not so many, but there had to be at least one guy out there who wouldn’t wreck my life. God knew I’d been duped in high school by Ian Hall who turned out to be a hideous monster that later died in an accident, to Spencer Callaghan, the guy I fell for senior year of high school. We’d pledged our love, but when he left to study aboard, distance definitely did not make the heart grow fonder. In fact, it broke my damn heart, and he walked on me.
Since my shit track record with men, I’d sworn them off. I spent my time alone in my apartment with my cat Darkness, a black, long-haired cat who hated men as much as I did. To be fair, maybe Darkness hated all people, but I liked thinking she was on my side. Sometimes, I’d go out with a few college friends, but this was mainly my life. I was safe in my apartment where no one could bother me or hurt me.
After hours slaving away in the student bookstore, I finally went home to leftover pizza and Darkness.
“Hey, Darkness,” I said, scratching her behind the ears as she greeted me at the door. She let out a meow and rolled around at my feet before running off to stand in front of her food bowl which was still half-full. I’d never understand why cats needed the damn food dish always full.
I dropped my bag on the floor and poured more food into her dish before heating up my leftovers and flopping down in front of the TV. I had a bit of studying to do, but I liked to keep my C average where it was, so I brushed it off to watch reality TV.
I was just dozing off when my phone buzzed. Grumbling, I searched the cushions for it while yawning.
Unknown: How are you?
I frowned down at the unfamiliar number before tossing my phone aside. The last thing I felt like doing was talking to someone I didn’t know. I did that shit all day at work. That was enough for me.
Unknown: How’s school?
I snatched my phone up and text back.
Jamie: You have the wrong number.
A return message followed immediately.
Unknown: That’s a lie, Jamie.
I sat up and licked my lips, my heart thrumming hard. Who the hell was this? I had a few friends at college, but they were probably out partying it up since it was a Friday night. I was the lame ass who stayed home and talked to my cat.
Jamie: Who is this?
Unknown: A friend.
Jamie: Cole, is this you on a new phone? I swear I’ll tell Rosalie you were messing with me. She’ll kick your ass.
Unknown: *laughing emoji*
The texts stopped coming, but my anger was bubbling over. I hated being scared. Quickly, I thumbed to Rosalie’s name and hit CALL on it. I’d show Cole. Rosalie would take care of him. Or maybe Fox or Enzo would.
The phone rang four times before the deep tenor of Ethan’s voice came on the line.
“Hey, Jamie.”
“Ethan. Hey. Uh, is Rosalie available?”
I heard him rummaging around for a moment like he was going through the fridge. “No. She left her phone. Fox just took her to the studio, though. You can call his phone and reach her. You probably have about ten minutes before she goes in. She hates being bothered once she’s in her zone.”
“Right.” I fiddled with a string on my t-shirt before taking the plunge. “Uh, is Cole there by chance?”
“Cole?” Ethan sounded confused that I’d asked for the dark prince of all things scary and terrifying.
“Yeah, I mean is he with you?” I twirled a piece of my dark hair, ready to lace into him. Why the hell did I need to be nervous? Because it’s Cole-freaking-Scott. The memory of him telling me he’d tear my still-beating heart out of my chest and eat it when he’d left Rosalie at my house for a girls’ night ran through my mind. Yeah. Cole Scott was a whole other creature.
“One sec.” The line became muffled as Ethan called for Cole. A moment later, Cole’s smooth voice greeted me. I wondered which Cole I’d get. Sometimes he seemed playful. Other times he was sullen and dark. With him, I never knew what to expect.
“Jamie,” he said.
“Hey, can you stop texting me? That shit’s not cool. I live alone and —”
“What are you talking about? I didn’t text you.”
I paused. “Are you sure? I’ll tell Rosalie you were trying to scare me—”
“Listen, Jamie. I didn’t do shit. I was chilling on the couch getting a foot rub from Enzo.”
The moment the words left Cole’s mouth, Enzo’s voice boomed out in the background. “The fuck you were, Scott. Stop telling people that shit.”
“Then stop doing it,” Cole retorted, completely ignoring me as they poked at one another.
How the hell Rosalie did it, I had no idea. They’d drive me nuts with their bickering. Half the time I didn’t know if they were serious or not. I assumed there had to be some sword crossing in their relationship, but the one time I asked, Rosalie’s face reddened and she went silent.
“Jamie, he wasn’t getting a foot rub from me, nor was he texting anyone,” Enzo’s silky voice came on the line as Cole’s laughter boomed in the background.
“Really?”
“Really. If anyone is getting a foot rub, it’ll be me.”
“I meant about the texting,” I said, biting back a smile despite my nerves.
“Yeah, that too. No one here texted you. Do you want me to have Sunshine call you back when she gets home?”
I licked my lips. “If she wants. I know she’s busy.”
“She’s not so busy she’d duck out on calling you,” Enzo said. “But back to the main topic, if someone’s bothering you, I can take care of it.” His voice grew softer and darker. I swallowed. I’d be stupid to not fear Lorenzo De Luca. He was a mob boss’s son, and despite the fact he was fairly easygoing most of the time, I knew not to underestimate him. I was almost positive he had something to do with Juliet and her friends’ disappearance in high school. Even Ian’s dad came up missing. That shit was too much of a coincidence given they were all giving Rosalie shit and had even tried to kill her and Fox.
“No.” I cleared my throat. “It was probably just a wrong number.”
“I can find out who it is.”
“Really, Enzo, thanks, but it’s OK.”
“Fine, but if it happens again, call me. You have my number.”
“Right. Yes. Thanks, I will,” I stammered.
“I’ll let Sunshine know you called. Stay safe,” he said in that deep purr of his. I thanked him a third time like a bumbling idiot before saying goodbye and flopping back on the couch.
Darkness nuzzled against me as I let out a breath.
“That call may have been scarier than the text messages,” I said, kissing Darkness on the top of her fuzzy head.
I wiped my forehead. Yep. Sweat. Definitely scarier.
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Acknowledgments
First off, I do appreciate giant, cocking swinging alpha males. They helped make this story possible.
So did your love of them.
Big shoutout to my alpha readers for this: Mahida, Crystal, Erika, Terra, Valarie, Sarah—You guys rock.
The biggest thanks of all goes to my editor. Charlotte. . .you are amazing. We were on a time crunch and you came through like a champ for me.
Finally, thanks to you for taking a chance on Dom, B, Vincent, Levin, and Fallon. It means the world to me.
Also by K.G. Reuss
May We Rise
Double Dare You
Barely Alive
Church: The Boys of Chapel Crest
Emissary of the Devil: Testimony of the Damned
Emissary of the Devil: Testimony of the Blessed
The Everlasting Chronicles: Dead Silence
The Everlasting Chronicles: Shadow Song
The Everlasting Chronicles: Grave Secrets
The Everlasting Chronicles: Soul Bound
The Chronicles of Winterset: Oracle
The Chronicles of Winterset: Tempest
&nb
sp; Black Falls High: In Ruins
Black Falls High: In Silence
Black Falls High: In Chaos
Black Falls High: In Pieces, A Novella
Hard Pass
Kings of Bolten: Dirty Little Secrets
Barely Breathing
The Middle Road
Seven Minutes in Heaven