by Janie Marie
“Yeah, finally realized he can escape,” said another.
Janie whipped around, glaring at them like a warrior queen. “Escape what?”
Melody’s grin was vicious. “Everyone knows he’s been trying to escape you. Now with his fighting contract, he’s found a way to be free of you and your crazy family.”
Confusion danced across his baby’s pretty face.
“He didn’t tell you the news?” Melody asked mockingly. “Oh, that’s right, everyone already knows he dumped you this weekend. Or didn’t you figure it out when he didn’t pick you up for school today?”
“Leave her alone,” Ryder said, realizing she had no fucking clue what they were talking about.
Everyone in the classroom jumped at his order, but all he saw was the betrayal she was experiencing—felt it inside him. Logan had betrayed her, and he’d not even had the balls to break up with her to her face.
She stared at the top of her desk, her lips parted and her gaze unfocused. He felt his own heart react to hers breaking. It was too much, too sad.
The only good thing was people already feared him. It gave her a barrier to process everything.
“Janie,” he called to her softly. It was the first time he’d said her name aloud, and it nearly completed him. Only her broken look as she met his stare destroyed his taste of heaven. “Hey, it’s gonna be okay, all right? Don’t listen to them.”
“It’s true?” She knew, even with only their brief introduction in the office, that he’d tell her the truth.
“I think so, angel. Everyone’s talking about some contract he signed.” He hesitated but added, “And if you being late to school is because you were waiting on him . . .” He didn’t want to say it, and it fucking confused him that he didn’t want her to go through this breakup. “He doesn’t deserve you.”
The lost, broken girl vanished, and a goddess glared at him as she spat, “Fuck you,” and straightened in her seat.
Good, she had some fight left. He smiled, even if she was angry at him. “It’d be more than fucking between us, beautiful. But I’ll let you figure it out.”
“Figure what out?” she growled, her tiny frame shaking as she fought the urge to cry in front of the whole class.
“That he was just a shitty boyfriend.” He smiled when she slid her eyes over enough to see him. “That I’m the man who’ll make you his wife.”
Gasps echoed around the room as she turned her face the other way.
He chuckled, enjoying the way her breathing sped up. “Just stating facts, babe. I’ll wait for you to accept the truth.”
The bell rang, and he cursed under his breath that she’d gotten to class so late. He didn’t have the next class with her, even though he’d told Nick to make it happen.
She got up fast, rushing past the people who were now whispering about them. Unfortunately, they were whispering what a slut she was.
“Dammit,” he said, getting to his feet. Maybe he should approach things differently. Logan had left her, but she needed time. She wasn’t a true Knight like her stepbrothers and stepfather. She had no idea who he was to her.
His phone vibrated, and he answered it as he walked down the hall. He’d go see Nick and find out more about Logan, because Logan wasn’t a true Grimm like his brother and father either. “Yeah?”
Tercero sighed. “People are already sharing a video of you declaring you’re her future husband, brother.”
“What?” He stopped walking, hating how fucking nosey kids were.
“Logan was in my class; he was shown a video,” Tercero told him. “He’s looking for you.”
“Good,” he said, ending the call. He’d straighten this motherfucker out.
“We’ll talk later.”
Ryder came to an abrupt stop at the sound of the asshole’s voice. The only problem was Logan wasn’t talking to him.
“Oh, really?” Janie said sarcastically. “Is that when you were planning on telling me you signed a contract behind my back? Or when you’re going to tell me to my face that you’re breaking up with me?”
“Behind your back?” Logan laughed. “Honey, my life doesn’t revolve around you. So yeah, I signed it, and I’m not backing out. But maybe later you can tell me why you let some motherfucker you can’t stop blushing at tell you I’m not good enough—why you didn’t open your goddamn mouth and say we plan on getting married one day. Maybe you can fucking tell me why you didn’t tell him to drop dead when he said he’d be your husband.” He shook his head, disgusted as he looked her over.
Janie, though, his little warrior goddess, stood proudly. “Like you tell every girl to fuck off when they say I’m not good enough for you?”
“It’s not the same,” he said bitterly.
“Will you just get your head out of your ass?” she begged, sounding vulnerable. “I need to talk to you.”
Logan chuckled. “You told me they said it wasn’t cancer, so it can wait.”
“But this is important, Logan,” she fired back.
Logan lifted a shoulder. “Nothing about you is important enough to interrupt my day.”
Her slap came faster than even Ryder was expecting.
He made his move then, coming to stand between them. “Hey, enough,” he said, pushing her back.
Shock transformed to fury as Logan’s eyes followed the innocent touch, and blinding pain rocked the side of Ryder’s face as Logan laid into him.
He reacted instantly, swinging and landing a punch on Logan’s side. He was going to kill this piece of shit.
Blow after blow was exchanged, and he growled out in rage when he missed smashing Logan’s face, punching the locker instead. He felt the skin over his knuckles break and heard the crack, but what he heard louder was her screams.
He hesitated, and it sent him falling into a trophy case. Glass rained down around him, and Logan came at him again. Ryder’s eyes met a frantic hazel pair, and he stopped fighting. He couldn’t kill Logan.
So he closed his eyes and let the bastard get out all his hatred. He’d never admit it, but Logan could fight, and the bastard wasn’t stopping—not even when he felt his ribs crack, not even when the blood burned his eyes so much he couldn’t keep them open.
“Enough!” Savaş yelled.
Ryder smiled through the pain; she’d stopped screaming because his overgrown brother had broken up the fight.
“Oh my gosh,” she said, her voice sounding muffled as shaking, delicate fingers touched his bloody face. “Ryder, can you hear me?”
It was hard to breathe and he could barely make out her face because of all the blood in his eyes, but he managed to reach up and touch her cheek. “I’m okay, angel.”
She sobbed, sliding her hand to the back of his head. It stung, but he didn’t react when she pressed her hand against the spot that throbbed.
“Cheating bitch,” Logan said, spitting blood out before turning his back on Janie.
“You’re lying.”
Ryder blinked as Kylie’s voice shattered the memories he had been recounting to her.
“Nope.” Ryder stared at the scar on his hand, the only scar he had, as he pulled himself together to finish the story. He’d straighten everything out tonight. Everything. “The crowd had gathered by that point,” he told her. “They heard him call her a cheater and saw Janie trying to figure out how bad I was hurt, and that was enough for people to put shit together that we’d cheated. So that’s where you got your little theory she cheated and I got my ass beat on purpose.”
“I’m sorry,” she murmured, looking betrayed, not sorry. He didn’t care; she’d listen and get it through her head Logan was a fucking monster to Janie.
“No, you’re not.” He scoffed. “I’ll tell you the rest though. She watched him walk away, listened to the kids calling her a whore, then she chose to go with me to the hospital. I wasn’t that hurt, but I couldn’t get up on my own right then. I had a broken rib, my knuckle was shattered, and I had a gash on the back of my head that wo
uldn’t stop bleeding.
“I stopped trying to be noble, I guess. I flirted with her as the doctors and nurses worked on me. She was in tears, and I said all sorts of stupid shit just to make her smile.
“It was late when Tercero finally showed up to take my ass home. She insisted on seeing I was in bed safe before allowing him to take her home, so she came to my place. My brothers laughed at me for losing a fight, and she knew they weren’t going to take care of me. I could take care of myself, but she’s a little nurturer.
“She stayed to keep an eye on me.” He smiled at the memory. “My baby is such a worrier, even though I’m the ultimate badass. I guess she didn’t really put together her story with me yet.” He paused, not willing to give Kylie the satisfaction of hearing what was sacred to him and the others. “Logan called after he heard I had to be taken to the hospital, and she had gone with me. He told her to go home or he was coming to get her. She got feisty and told him he’d never make it past my brothers.”
He felt the vicious smile on his lips as Kylie flinched and lowered her eyes. “She can be sweet, but she knows how to hit your weak spots. She bruised his ego to protect me. I didn’t need it, but it worked. He didn’t come, and he didn’t call back. That night, at least.
“He ended up calling Gawain, and her big brother stormed into my house the next day. She was going to leave with him until she caught me puking my guts out. It was just a mild concussion, but she freaked out. Gawain told me she could stay if I realized she had a boyfriend waiting for her. He didn’t say it in front of her, so I guess she didn’t get that Logan still thought they were together, even after accusing her of cheating and calling her a bitch.”
He gave her a knowing look. “I know she told you he’d make it hurt if he left you. That’s what she meant.”
Kylie stayed quiet.
“Gawain knew who I was,” he said. “He knew who she was in our world, so he told her to stay with me—that he’d keep Logan away. I considered how fucked up I was being to come between them like I was. Obviously, we didn’t cheat, but I wasn’t as bad as I made out to be. She could’ve gone to Logan and possibly mended things, or at least told him they were having a baby. But I didn’t know, and I faked throwing up the next day.”
He smiled, aware he looked like a lovesick fool because Kylie, even fuming and hurt, blushed. “I told her to go when she got sick herself, and that she could call me if she needed anything.”
He took a deep breath. “She told him about the baby. She told him they could figure things out, and he could still do what he wanted—that she would be supportive if he wanted to fight.” Ryder watched a gold leaf floating around the courtyard. “Logan asked if it was his.”
Kylie gasped, and Ryder closed his eyes. He didn’t want to tell this part, but he did. He told her everything.
Logan slid his fingers across Janie’s bandaged stomach, blinking away the tears building as she covered his hand with hers. “I never told you I was sorry,” he whispered, being careful with his touch as he recalled the day she’d told him he was going to be a father.
The black and white photo he had held shook like a leaf. The grainy image hadn’t looked like anything, but it was.
“I’m sorry,” she had whispered.
“You said you were fine,” he said, staring at the arrow pointing at a white blob in the middle of the image.
She sniffed. “I am.”
He finally looked at her blotchy, tearstained face and snapped. “How are you fine? You’re pregnant. Hi, Daddy?” He pointed to the ultrasound. “Am I supposed to say, hi, baby?”
Tears that couldn’t be stopped broke free from her normally pretty eyes. “I just meant I’m not sick like we thought.”
“No, this is worse,” he said without thinking.
She dropped her head into her hands. “I thought I was tracking it right. It’s a baby—our baby. How is this worse than me being sick?”
Something broke in him because all he could see was how she’d run to Ryder after their fight. All he could hear was the rumors that Ryder had been in town fucking her for months. Every time she’d blown him off over the past month, Ryder had been in town. Then she’d stayed at the bastard’s house to ‘take care of him’ instead of coming home. To him.
“Did you plan this?” he asked as so many thoughts screamed at him that she’d done this on purpose to ruin his chances.
Her head jerked up. “What kind of question is that?”
“I know you’ve been panicking about me graduating, Janie. Did you plan this so I would have no choice but to stay?”
She clutched her chest. “No. I wouldn’t fucking trap you. I thought I was sick like Mom.”
He shook his head. “Then it’s a coincidence? Out of all the times we’ve been together, you’re suddenly pregnant when I get an opportunity to do something you don’t want me to?”
“I didn’t plan this,” she said, her voice dark instead of light.
He felt sick. He felt like he was on fire. “Is it mine?”
She slapped him, then stared at her hand like she was holding a murder weapon.
Logan rubbed his hand over his face. Her hit hadn’t hurt, but he still felt like she’d just tried to kill him. And now he felt like he was holding a gun to his own head.
“I can’t believe you,” she whispered, her voice so soft he barely heard her.
He glanced at the ultrasound. “You were with him.”
Her forehead crinkled and she frowned. “So? You know I was there to make sure you didn’t go to jail for killing him.”
The flames burning his heart roared with delight at her lies. “You were there because you can’t keep your goddamn eyes off him! How the fuck am I supposed to know you didn’t let him screw your brains out? Then, of course, he wouldn’t want to get tied down to you, so you come to me with it.”
“Read the fucking gestation,” she screamed, pointing to it on the photo. “Six weeks! I was already pregnant when I went there, you fucking asshole!”
Logan closed his eyes. She said nothing had happened between her and Ryder, but he didn’t believe her. He’d seen how they’d stared at each other. He’d seen the videos of that bastard declaring his fucking feelings for her without even caring the world was watching. And she’d not said a thing to tell him to stop.
“And I wouldn’t have gone to him if you hadn’t beaten the shit out of him for no reason,” she added.
He stood up fast. “No reason? He fucking asked you to be with him instead of me! What the fuck was I supposed to do?”
“Trust me,” she roared like she wasn’t the bad guy.
“Trust you?” He shook his head, yelling as he repeated, “Trust you? You fucking turn to mush every time you stare at him! Everyone saw you smiling with him, laughing with him. That son of a bitch doesn’t smile at anyone, but I get all these photos of you and him smiling at each other. What the fuck was I supposed to do when I found out?”
She glared at him. “The same thing you tell me to do when people tell me you’re cheating!”
He laughed. “That’s completely different.”
She shook her head, a mean smile on her lips as she spat, “You’re a fucking dick, you know that? It would be me who cheats, not you, right? Because Logan Grimm is a fucking saint and Janie Mortaime is the goddamn devil!”
“No, but you considered his offer,” he fired back, his blood boiling because it was everything he feared. She’d fallen for someone else. Someone stronger and more powerful. He’d learned about Ryder, knew the guy was young but something their families feared.
Her tears dried and burned in her eyes. “I told him I had a boyfriend. All he said was he was a better choice, and he’d wait for me to see that. I told him to fuck off.”
“Yeah, you told him to fuck off,” he said condescendingly, “then fell all over him. When will you get it through your fucking head that guys just want to get in your tight-ass pants? If they talk to you, they want to fuck you.”
&nb
sp; “I didn’t do anything wrong.”
“Really?” He shook his head, wishing he had that son of a bitch in front of him again. “So the blushing and giggling is my fucking imagination, and you’re really disgusted by him staring at you, asking you to pick him over me?”
“You’re the one who let rumors start that you’d broken up with me,” she yelled, her voice cracking. “Then you got jealous and beat the shit out of him. He didn’t even fight back, but you almost killed him!”
Acid burned his throat as he said, “Yeah, and that would’ve destroyed you—watching your pretty boy get hurt was devastating. Not the fact your boyfriend was losing his mind, worrying about another asshole coming between us.”
She whimpered, a truly wounded sound. “You’re the one killing me right now.”
He stared at her and said something his soul begged him not to. “Baby, you killed me the day you came into my life. Mom was right.” He held up the ultrasound. “You’ve ruined everything for me.” He didn’t mean it. Still, he stared her down as the fire extinguished in her eyes. Guilt overwhelmed him, but he couldn’t stop. “I’ll take care of you and the baby. If you want to get married, I guess we’ll do that, too. I’ll cancel my shot and get a shitty ass job. I’ll be miserable for the rest of my fucking life.”
He handed her the ultrasound. “You got what you wanted. Me. Congratulations. Now I have to go make some calls and figure out what I’m going to tell Arthur.” He picked up his gym bag and walked around her.
“Don’t bother,” she whispered.
Logan stopped, staring at the floor as his heart stuttered. “Don’t bother?”
“Don’t cancel anything,” she said. “I’ll get out of your life.”
He turned around as his stomach clenched and ice spread over his soul. “What?”
She put her hand over her belly as her face scrunched up, and she cried, “You’re free of me.”
“What the fuck are you talking about? How the fuck can I be free of you now?”
She covered her mouth, muffling her sob as her eyes darted around the room. She finally looked him in the eye and whispered, “It’s not yours. You can be free. It’s not yours.”