Page 59 of Sin Like the Devil

“I guess so.”

Fights in Harrowdean aren’t uncommon, but most people lack the energy to start shit here. They’re far too concerned with the messy business of surviving day to day. But when scuffles happen, they get violent fast.

“That’s unlike you,” Rae comments.

“Huh?” I shoot her a look.

Waggling her auburn brows, she grins at me. “You’re usually the first to know everyone’s business around here. What had you so busy that you missed a fight?”

Cheeks heating, I avert my eyes. The memory of Raine and his sordid whispers making me come so hard I saw stars fills my mind. Fuck, does he know how to get a girl off.

It was a shame that we were forced apart afterwards, or I would’ve happily returned the favour. I’m dying to get my hands on that man’s body. I’d like to see if he’ll live up to all his filthy promises.

“Oh,” she says knowingly. “It’s like that, is it?”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Sure.” Rae nudges my shoulder as she walks beside me. “I had no idea that you could blush. Must’ve been a hell of a show.”

“We are so not discussing this.”

Jogging to catch up to us despite the grumblings of disgruntled guards, Noah stands on my other side. I don’t miss the way he scans over me, checking for any signs of harm.

“You both alright?”

“We didn’t see anything,” Rae answers.

His throat contracts as he skims a hand over his mouth. “Someone went berserk last night. Guards dragged ‘em outside, and a bunch of others followed. A full-blown mob fight broke out.”

Rae gawps at him. “Seriously?”

I know this place is a fair comparison to hell on earth, but seriously, what the fuck? The guards abuse their authority more often than not. The sedatives and restraints usually come out long before this kind of thing happens, though.

“You saw the fight?” I clarify.

He nods solemnly. “It was chaos with all these idiots joining in, but I saw who the three guards dragged outside. Carlos started it.”

Well, double shit. Carlos is Rick’s lapdog. If what Noah says is true, the resident asshole is going to be out for blood. No wonder several others joined in. No one messes with his friends and gets away with it.

“Where were you last night?” Noah frowns.

“The gym.”

His eyes scan over me, cataloguing the bruise-like smudges beneath my eyes and the still-present trembling of my body on overdrive. The gruelling run and fooling around with Raine hasn’t quite taken the edge off.

I only bother going to work out when I’m struggling to hold it together. I’ve also been known to seek Noah out for a quick fuck when those episodes hit. But not this time. I haven’t even considered approaching him since my attention moved elsewhere.

“You didn’t call.”

“I didn’t need to,” I answer impassively.

Rae’s gaze bounces between the two of us, caught somewhere between confusion and amusement. Great. It’s painfully obvious that I wasn’t with my usual go-to hook-up last night. I can see she’s desperate for details about where I was.

“What about that… other thing?” Noah asks quietly.

“What other thing?” Rae looks between us.

“I need more time.” I ignore her, pitching my voice low. “But be ready.”

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