Page 64 of Liars

Really bad.

The circle of masked figures closed in, their laughter turning darker, and panic surged through me. The candlelight was now a menacing glow instead of a comfort.

Maddox’s voice purred through the dark. “Let’s see what you’re made of, menace.” A pause. “Who wants to go first?”

Ice locked around my lungs. He wouldn’t fucking dare. At least, that’s what I wanted to believe, but the merciless grin creeping across his lips and the darkness in his tone gave me a glimpse at something so much darker I hadn’t wanted to see. It made my fight-or-flight response kick into overdrive.

I knew better.

The circle tightened.

And I screamed?—

“Maddox!”

18

KREED

The party was a blur of noise and movement, but none of it mattered. My beer sat untouched in my hand as I leaned against the crumbling wall of the old church, watching and waiting, ignoring the chaos as it faded into static.

I couldn’t stop thinking about her.

Kaylor.

I had no business letting her occupy even a fraction of my mind. What she did wasn’t my concern. And so what if she was a good kisser? I’d kissed plenty of girls, but only when they understood the rules—when they knew how to be discreet. How to keep their mouths shut.

I doubted Kaylor ever kept something hidden in her entire life. She seemed like the kind of girl who liked attention. She sure as hell knew how to draw it.

That damn get-up.

If I’d known she’d be showing up to Raven Night in that little black number, I would’ve either made her change or refused to let her leave the house.

Then, as if she hadn’t already turned every fucking head in the room, she had the balls to kiss me in front of everyone like itmeantsomething. Like she meant something to me, but what really got under my skin—what had my jaw clenching and my grip tightening around the bottle in my hand—was that I couldn’t get the damn kiss out of my head.

A kiss shouldn’t do this to me. I didn’t fixate on things like the way her lips felt or what she could do with her tongue. And yet, no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t stop replaying it.

If I didn’t shake it off now, I’d find myself marching into the cellar and dragging her into a dark, empty room just to remind her exactlywho she belongedto. The more I thought about it, the more appealing the idea became.

I pushed off the wall, ready to go find her. I had no business thinking about her. Watching her.Wantingher. But my body wasn’t listening. My lips still tingled from the press of hers. My blood still ran hot from the way she melted into me.

And I fuckinghatedit.

I told myself it was just a kiss. Just a mistake.

But I wasn’t stupid.

I could lie to everyone else but not to myself.

Something about her had burrowed under my skin, dragging up feelings I didn’t want and definitely couldn’t afford.

I shook my head, shoving those thoughts away. She was off with Maddox now, playing whatever stupid game he’d cooked up to mess with her. I should’ve stopped her, but instead, I let her walk away. Told myself it wasn’t my problem.

Except it was.

“Kreed!”

I turned at the sound of my name.

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