Page 159 of Tainted Romance

She looked at me shaking her head. “You know what. Next time you apologize, put some effort into it. Now let me go.”

“I’m sorry,” I tried again. This time putting effort into it, as she would say.

“I’ve only slept with two people, you and him, so don’t make me sound like some slut! You have had hundreds of girls.” She looked slightly sick mentioning it. It was when her eyes lit up with tears I felt like a real jerk. “Let go of me.”

“I’m sorry, Allie. I was angry; I didn’t mean it to come out like that.” I watched and hoped those tears didn’t fall.

She blinked and when the tears dripped down her cheeks, my heart clenched.

“I have to go.” She went to pull away from me again.

“I’m not letting you go until we have this sorted. I can’t have you doing what Ebony and Blake do. Sleeping with other people, even though they are marked. I can’t have you sleeping with him.”

Didn’t she see if I let her go now, hurt and angry at me, there was more of a chance she would end up in his bed? I could see it, which was why I wasn’t letting her go.

Her expression turned to one of hurt immediately. “And here I was thinking you thought more of me.” She wiped her tears off her cheek. “If you really think I would be like that, then you don’t know me. Not at all.” And this time she successfully pulled her arm from my grasp and took off. “Bye, Zane.”

I went to grab her again, but she took off, and I went after her like a fucking lovesick puppy following its master. I would kick my own ass if I weren't so pissed off with myself for causing the situation.

“Allie, don’t leave upset.” I got to her just as she opened the door.

Blake’s car was pulled up out front.

“If you didn’t want me to leave upset, maybe you should have kept your mouth shut.” She looked over her shoulder at me. “Thanks for telling me what you really think of me. It’s made what I do next a hell of a lot easier.”

What the hell did she mean by that! She was down the footpath and opening his car door before I could even say a word.

It’s made what I do next a hell of a lot easier. Her words repeating in my head as I watched the car pull away.

How the fuck did I screw that up so quickly!

Chapter Sixty-two

ALLIE

We had our normal rap music going. Blake was smoking and clenching a beer. I had lost count of how many we’d had. I inhaled my cigarette and crossed my legs, reaching for the bottle of vodka.

“So, how the fuck did we end up with such fuckwits for mates?” Blake blew out a mouthful of smoke. He turned, looking at me. “Seriously, how the hell did we end up with them? Why couldn’t you and I end up being mates?”

I smiled dimly and swallowed a mouthful of vodka. “Did Ebony say why she did it?”

“I could smell him on her. All she said was I deserved it.” Blake crashed his can. “Fucking useless bitch.”

“You don’t mean that.”

“I can’t take her shit.”

“She was hurt. You did turn your back on her.” I knew how it felt now, personally what it felt like when your mate turned his back on you, when I put my heart on the line for Zane, and he ignored me. Yeah, I knew what it felt like. “She wouldn’t be thinking clearly. She was hurting.”

“It’s not like I fucked you, Allie. I was just being with you while you healed,” he scoffed and cracked open another beer.

“You wanted to run away with me.”

“Yeah, but I didn’t! I went back to her!”

I sighed. We had talked about this over and over. He wasn’t calming down, and I thought after a case he would, but he wasn’t. He was just as pissed off as he was when he picked me up.

“Can’t believe you let him mark you. Did you learn nothing from my mistake?” Blake snapped at me. “I told you I regretted it. Did you not think of that before you fucked him and let him mark you? Or at least think of it before you marked him?”

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