Avalon blushed. “You make it sound…sordid.”
I reached out and squeezed my sister’s thigh. “I didn’t mean it like that,” I quickly corrected. “I’m just…I feel bitter, and I guess I’m not very good at hiding it.”
Avalon let out a sigh. “I feel the same way, Neve,” she assured me. “I mean…seriously, who messes with people’s lives like that? And your own sons?”
“Right?”
“Still, it was…it was kind of scary how quickly I got addicted to the way Griffin makes me feel,” she said. “It felt almost as if I didn’t even have a choice in giving in to him so quickly.” She let out another deep sigh. “He kissed me, and then there was no going back.”
“You’re not scared anymore?”
Avalon shook her head. “No,” she replied. “Instead of fearing the addiction, I’m basking in it.” She grimaced. “I don’t know how else to explain it.”
“I have a date with Anderson Wexler this Friday after the prep rally,” I finally told her.
Her blue eyes widened. “What?”
“I want choices, Avalon,” I told her. “I’ve always wanted them, but…but finding out that one of them was taken from me without me even knowing about it, well…I want to take my life back.”
“What about Easton?”
“Easton Keenstone can go back to his life before me,” I told her. “I’m sure he had one.”
In fact, I was positive he had.
Chapter 5
Easton~
“Plan on snapping out of it anytime soon and doing something about it?” my brother asked.
Though the nights were beginning to cool off, it was still warm enough in September for a swim. The house Severus had rented for us came with a pool and I took advantage of it often. Where Griffin was content to sit in the living room watching a movie, I liked to move around. During our high school years at Rýkr, I had played a lot of sports while Griff had fallen in love with baseball and had only played that one sport. I had played baseball and basketball, and I would have played football for the school if there’d been enough hours in the day. Instead, I had played football only during the summer for the county leagues. The only sport I couldn’t stomach was golf. While there was no denying that you needed a certain amount of skill to play golf, it was boring as fuck.
Staring up at my brother, he’d been waiting for me to finish my lap before asking me that question. I glared at him and wondered how pissed he’d be if I pulled in with me.
“Just because you got hearts in your eyes doesn’t mean I’m jumping onboard with giving up my free will, Griff,” I snidely replied. Even though I knew none of this was my brother’s fault, I was still angry, and Griffin was a safe outlet because I knew that he wasn’t taking anything I said personally. Did that mean it was okay to make him my verbal punching bag? No. But sometimes I just couldn’t help myself.
“So, then what’s your plan, Easton?” he asked. “If you’re not going to make a move, then why did you even come here to begin with?”
I placed my palms flat on the concrete and pushed my way up and out of the pool. Griffin stepped back giving me some room. I walked over to one of the lawn chairs and grabbed my towel. I dried my face and hair before answering, “I made the decision to come here when I thought my bond was here.” I shrugged. “I don’t think it is anymore.”
His brows shot upward. “How can you say that? You’ve admitted to feeling something when she’s around, Easton. That has to mean something.”
“Whatever I’m feeling, it’s not close to whatever it is you have going on with Avalon,” I reminded him.
“Maybe because you’re not trying,” he accused.
“Maybe I don’t want to, Griffin,” I replied. “Maybe I want the choice now that it is seems possible that I can have one. If Neve and I aren’t exploding all over the place like you and Avalon are, then that could be a sign that I can choose differently.”
Griffin crossed his arms over his chest and arched a brow. Though we were fraternal twins, we still looked too much alike. “Because she doesn’t meet royalty standards?” he mocked.
“Don’t be an asshole,” I snapped.
Of course, Neve Lively met royalty standards. The girl was fucking stunning. Where Griffin and I were fraternal twins, Neve and Avalon were identical twins, except for their coloring. Avalon had white-blonde hair and Neve had raven-black hair. The rest of them matched to a tee, though. However, everyone born of Rýkr descent had the same, blue-colored eyes that turned white whenever we were using our powers.
The girl had black hair, blue eyes, a doll’s face, and a tight, little body that was trim and sexy as fuck from years of cheerleading. Neve didn’t have over exaggerated curves or that fake, plastic-surgeon look to her. Her femininity was subtle and classy, and her tits would fit perfectly in my hand. I also knew she’d have the stamina to ride my dick into the morning hours if I ever got her naked and in my bed.
No.
Her looks weren’t the issue.
My bastard of a father was the number one issue here.
My string of bad choices was second in line.
When Astra had told us about the girls, I had been determined to make him pay for fucking with our lives. Griffin and I had been fourteen when we’d been told about our father’s fucked-up experiment and I had been determined to ruin it for him.
I had been on a rage-fueled mission to make him pay.
So, while Griffin had accepted that there was nothing to be done about what Astra had done to us, I had gone to the other extreme. Griffin had accepted his fate and had waited for Avalon. He had chosen to stick out the remaining years simply waiting for her. Never having touched or kissed another girl in all his life, Griffin had saved himself and all his firsts for Avalon.
And it had paid off.
His bond with her was every bit as strong as if she had she been raised in Rýkr with our beliefs, our rules, and our traditions. In Rýkr, once you were bonded, you knew nothing else. You were raised with your partner and your commitment to each other was respected above everything else. No one batted an eyelash if you were only fifteen and already having sex with your partner. As long as you were bonded, the expectation was that marriage came at the age of eighteen when your powers matured, and you were considered fully grown. Eighteen-year-olds in Rýkr were quite different from eighteen-year-olds born of the normal world.
So, in my quest to ruin everything that Astra had tried to accomplish with his manipulations on all our lives, I had forced myself to endure the most hellish experiences in the name of anger and revenge.
I’ve kissed other girls.
I’ve felt up any number of sets of tits.
I’ve even had my dick sucked enough times to know what to expect out of the ordeal.
And though none of those experiences happened without a certain amount of pain and uncomfortableness, I had pushed through them and had lived with the discomfort that always lasted for weeks afterwards.
And while I’ve never had sex, it wasn’t for lack of wanting to. There were countless times that I had just wanted to rip a girl open, but I could never be sure that it wouldn’t kill me afterwards. If the horrible feelings I had experienced after all the other stuff I’d done was any indication, I couldn’t imagine what I’d feel afterwards, after actually having sex with someone, so I had never gone through with it.
“I’m not being an asshole,” Griffin replied, defending himself. “I just don’t want to see you doing anything you can’t come back from, Easton.”
I let out a sigh. I knew Griffin was just worried about me and the hole I’ve been digging myself in since we were fourteen. “I don’t feel it like you do, Griff,” I told him. “I’m pretty sure our bond is severed.”
His arms dropped to his side. “Really? You really believe that?”
I nodded. “It explains why everything is so…lukewarm with her.”
“So, if she had a date this Friday with some guy from school, that wou
ldn’t bother you at all?”
I looked down at my hands as they started shaking. That low hum wasn’t feeling like a low hum anymore. That tightness in my chest no longer felt mild. Now it felt like I might be suffocating. I could also feel my eyes giving way, turning white, though I was starting to only see red.
“Easton? Hey, Easton?”
I pulled myself back from wherever the hell my emotions had tried to take me, and soon, Griffin was standing in front of me, my hands no longer shaking, the hum back to a low simmering, the tightness in my chest still there, but not binding.
“Who?” I snapped, the aggression in my voice surprising us both.
“Why?”
“So you can tell me what you see,” I replied.
All Rýkr royalty had more than one gift, whereas everyone else had only one or none at all. Neve could read minds and her sister could move objects. However, Griffin could see the future, move objects, and had sonic hearing. His greatest strength was seeing the future, and he got that from our mother, Calliope Keenstone.
I was able to manipulate other people’s emotions, control the weather, and see random visions of other people’s thoughts or actions. My greatest strength was the emotional manipulation, and I had inherited that from our father, Astra.
And while our abilities were rare, amazing, and unfathomable, we couldn’t use them on blood or our bonded partners. By association, Griffin couldn’t see Neve’s future, but he could see what the fuckface she had a date with was up to. He could see how the date would pan out if I didn’t interfere.
“Jealous?” he taunted.
“Yes,” I admitted. I mean, what else could it be? All this time, I haven’t even felt one flick of a flame where Neve was concerned, but now, at the simple mention of a date, my entire body reacts?
Yeah, I was jealous.
Griffin smirked. “What do you want to know?”
“Everything,” I answered.
Ten minutes later, the decision was made.
Neve Lively was mine.
Chapter 6
Neve~
With Griffin picking Avalon up in the morning for school, I was able to use our car without having to worry about matching up our schedules. However, it’s never been a big deal before. Avalon didn’t have a lot of activities going on, so it was easy for her to catch a ride with Gale or Bonnie, though I knew she wasn’t entirely comfortable riding on Gale’s motorcycle.
And while Gale and Bonnie were Avalon’s only real friends, I had more than a few friends I liked to hang out with. It was hard not to know a lot of people when you were a cheerleader and involved in so many school activities, and that popularity was what had brought me to Anderson Wexler.
Anderson Wexler was pretty much perfect. He had light brown hair with hints of blonde in the strands and a pair of kind hazel eyes. He had that All-American look to his face and his body was in prime condition, what with being a basketball player and all. Our love for the excitement and energy of school sports has pitched us together often along with every other sports fanatic at school.
And while he’s asked me out before, this crap with Easton and Griffin and Rýkr was what had pushed me to say yes on Saturday when Anderson had texted me, asking me out again. Now that I knew we weren’t dying of the mysterious unknown and Avalon was safe with Griffin, it was time to get my shit together and see where all this left me. If my bond with Easton was broken, then I needed to know that. If it wasn’t, well…I needed to know that, too.
However, I had no idea what I was going to do if the bond was still intact. It was clear Easton Keenstone didn’t want to be with me any more than I wanted to be with him. I mean, he was armed with information that I wasn’t and still kept his distance, unlike Griffin practically jumping Avalon’s bones.
“Hey, Neve.” I jumped at the sound of my name and I looked out the car window to see Anderson making his way towards me.
I pulled the keys out of the ignition, grabbed my backpack, then got out of the car. “Hey, Anderson.”
He glanced around. “No Avalon?”
I shook my head. “Her…uh, boyfriend is giving her a ride to school.”
Surprise flashed across his face. “Boyfriend?” It was no secret my sister didn’t date.
Since the truth was out of the question, I said, “There’s a new guy named Griffin that she sort of hit it off with and now they’re dating.”
Anderson barked out a surprised laugh. “Love at first sight?” he asked. “Because I know lots of guys have tried to date your sister over the years.” He shook his head. “She’s never given any of them the time of day.”
I tried not to wince and shrugged instead. “They say chemistry packs a hell of a punch.”
He smiled. “Well, I can tell you that he’s not going to be making any new friends if he’s managed to snag Avalon Lively after only a couple of weeks.” Letting out a low whistle, he added, “I see lots of jealous guys in his future.”
“Something tells me that Griffin Keenstone can take care of himself,” I replied, and I wasn’t quite sure why I was feeling a bit defensive of Griffin, though. I didn’t owe the guy anything, no matter what he had going on with my sister.
“Maybe,” he allowed. “But he’s the first guy to ever get his hands on the untouchable beauty every guy here has been trying to date.” He shrugged. “I can’t see it being easy for him.”
I cocked my head and arched a brow. “Every guy?” It wasn’t that I was jealous. I’ve never been jealous of my sister or liked a guy enough to be jealous over him, but I also didn’t relish being a consolation prize, either.
Anderson stepped to me and smirked. “C’mon, babe,” he said lazily. “I have no interest in your sister.”
The first warning bell rang, and I hadn’t realized how much time we’d wasted talking. “We need to get to class,” I said, ignoring his comment. I hiked my backpack over my shoulder, and when I turned from him to head to class, I felt his hand grab my arm to stop me and pain ricocheted down my entire left side.
“Neve, I-” I yanked my arm away with enough force to surprise the both of us. Anderson paled a bit. “I…I’m sorry, I didn’t mean-”
I threw my hand up to stop him, even though the pain was almost unbearable. “It’s okay,” I lied, doing my best to mask the pain. “You just caught me by surprise.” I took a deep, calming breath. “I wasn’t expecting you to grab me.”
Anderson threw his hands up in a surrendering motion. “Oh, hey,” he rushed out. “I didn’t mean anything by it. I thought…I thought you were walking away from me because of what I said about your sister. I-”
“Is there a problem here?”
I whirled around at the sound of a voice I didn’t need to be hearing right now. “No,” I practically snapped. “We’re fine.”
Easton Keenstone’s blue eyes flashed like he knew I was lying. His chin went up a little. “How’s your arm?”
He knew.
“It’s fine,” I bit out. “Now, if you don’t mind, we’re going to be late to class.”
“Who in the hell are you?” Anderson asked, sounding exactly like a threatened male.
Easton’s blue eyes slid his way. “Easton Keenstone,” he replied easily. “A friend of Neve’s.”
Then the craziest thing happened.
Anderson reached for my hand, and when he threaded his fingers through mine, I couldn’t stop the whimper of pain that escaped my lips.
This wasn’t like before.
Everything I’ve ever done before came in the form of an uncomfortable ache, not this intense pain that was shaking my body to its core. Everything else had been manageable, but not this. My hand in his felt like my soul was in agony.
“Well, friend of Neve’s, I’m going to get Neve to class-”
“I’m only going to say this once,” Easton growled. “Let go of her hand. Now.”
“Fuck you,” Anderson shot back. “Who do you think-”
“Anderson-” He squeezed my hand h
arder, and the pain intensified. I let out another whimper and I wasn’t sure how much longer I could endure this.
“Let go of his fucking hand, Neve,” Easton practically yelled. “Now.”
I shook Anderson’s hand loose, but not because Easton had demanded it. I shook it loose because I was close to falling to my knees from the torrent of pain I was feeling. I took a step back and did my best to get my breathing under control.
“You can’t fucking be serious?” Anderson snapped. “What the fuck, Neve?”
I was still trying to get my bearings, so I couldn’t answer. However, Easton could. “Stay away from her. I won’t warn you again.”
“Or what?” Anderson challenged. Had I not been losing my shit, I would have appreciated that Anderson wasn’t a pussy. However, it was hard to focus on anything but the pain.
“I’ll fuck you up so badly that I’ll be that nightmare you never get rid of,” Easton threatened.
“Stop it,” I rasped out, finally coming around.
Anderson looked over at me. “I don’t need this shit, Neve,” he spat. “You should have told me you were seeing someone else.”
“I’m-”
“Well, she is,” Easton answered for me, cutting me off. “Move along.”
I was still reeling, so I couldn’t call Easton out on his bullshit. However, Anderson wasn’t turning out to be the good guy I thought he was. “Whatever,” he sneered. “It’s not like I don’t have other options.”
“Good,” Easton fired back. “Then there’s no reason you need to be anywhere near Neve again.”
“Whatever,” Anderson repeated before storming off right as the second warning bell rang out.
As soon as Anderson was out of hearing distance, Easton turned to me. “Are you okay?”
I shook my head. “Nope.”
“How bad is it?”
I shot him a scathing look. “Bad enough not to have the strength to correct his assumption that you’re my boyfriend or something,” I snapped.
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