Page 14 of Royally Bad

“Three,” I whispered, the word sticking in my throat. Kain filled me to capacity, his teeth bared. He looked at my face as he came, but he never slowed down. The monster kept fucking me, his seed shooting into the condom.

I didn’t stop counting; I justcouldn’tcount anymore.

Blackness crept into my vision. Kain had made me come until I passed out.

The last thing I saw as I faded away were his tender, unguarded eyes.

Even if I wanted to forget what we’d done ...

I could never forget how he looked at me.

- CHAPTER FOUR -

SAMMY

Slipping out of the room, I concentrated to make sure every step I took was as quiet as a church mouse’s. I wasn’t about to wake Kain up and let him see me fleeing, and worse, what if anyone else in the house saw?

Closing the door, I faced the hallway and took my first real breath of air.

Francesca slammed into me, her arms choking away that single breath.

“Sammy!” she screamed, the noise raking over my nerves. “How could this happen?”

“It—it’s not what you think!” I blurted, staring wildly at Kain’s door. Was she going to kill me for sleeping with her brother?

Hugging me harder, she rubbed her cheek on my shoulder. That was when I realized she was crying. Was this that big of a deal?! “Sammy.” She sniffled. “I don’t know what to do. I can’t believe that bitch! I hate her. Ihateher!”

My brain ticked like a clock, striking twelve.This isn’t about me.

Carefully, I untangled her and held her at arm’s length. It was early in the morning, but mascara and makeup ran down her cheeks. Francesca was a mess. “What happened? Who’s a bitch?”

Pushing out her lower lip, she stepped backward. “That fucking Monica, that’s who. She was supposed to be my maid of honor, Sammy! Then she goes and texts Midas pics of her vajayjay! How the hell am I supposed to let her be my bestie now, huh?”

Lifting my hands cautiously, I kept my voice calm. “It’ll be okay. I’m sure you’ll think of something.”

Wiping at her face, she focused on me. I took the opportunity to put on a reassuring smile. Slowly, she copied me—going from depressed to thoughtful. Digging her nails into my forearms, she leaned closer to me. “You’re a genius, Sammy!”

“Ha-ha, thanks, but I’m not.”

Bobbing her head, she gripped me until I winced. “Yeah,” she whispered, almost to herself. “This will be perfect.”

“Um,” I said blankly.

“You’ll be perfect.”

My mouth crinkled up like a flatlining balloon. “Hold on.”

She threw her arms around me in a hug that was much more cheerful than earlier—but just as painful. “You’re going to be such a good maid of honor!”

Inch by inch, my stomach crept into my feet. “Francesca ... I can’t do that, we barely know each other.”

“I feel like I’ve known you forever!” Staring me in the eye, she put on her saddest tone. “Plus, if you don’t, I’m screwed. Sammy, I’ll have no one! My whole family and friends will laugh, they’ll say, ‘Oooh that Frannie, she’s too much of a bitch to have a bestie! See?’” Her eyebrows knitted together. “I’d fall apart in front of everyone.”

She was being ridiculous ... and even still, I felt a twinge of sympathy. I wasn’t close to being married, but if it was my big day and my best friend had destroyed our friendship, and I now had no maid of honor ... wouldn’t that be awful?

Kain warned you about this.I snapped a peek at his door.He said if you helped her, she’d keep asking for more.

Like always, I couldn’t turn down someone in need.

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