Page 95 of Bitter Prince
“Then he set his sights on Reina,” Isla added.
A growl vibrated in Amon’s chest again, the two brothers sharing a glance. Before I could question them, Raven chimed in. Unhelpfully, might I add. “Well, that wasn’t the worst part. The idiot then started to grope Reina, grabbing her ass.”
“He what?” Amon’s voice was so frigid, it triggered goosebumps along my arms. I shifted on his lap to see a dark expression pass his face, carved with tension and something else. Something terrifying.
“I had it handled,” I chided Raven, shooting her a glare for saying too much. “You didn’t have to smash a beer bottle into his skull.”
She settled back into the seat. “He’s lucky I didn’t do more than that.”
“I know some self-defense moves that don’t include beer bottles,” I snapped at her. “Or going to jail.”
Raven rolled her eyes. “Well, it was worth it to see him limping away pathetically.” The smile on her face was feral. “He won’t have a pretty face anymore.”
“Assuming there’s anything left of it,” I muttered under my breath. The truth was that I didn’t really care either way. He deserved what he got. But I didn’t need my friends to always jump in and help me. I could take care of Phoenix and myself.
“Reina, you have to admit that guy was persistent,” Isla said, coming to Raven’s defense.
“So am I,” I said, waving my hand. “I did a year or two of jiujitsu.”
Isla almost choked on her spit. So did Phoenix.
“You didn’t participate in a single class,” my sister signed.
“Your sister’s right,” Isla said softly. “You spent the entire two years lecturing the instructor.”
“Well, violence is bad,” I protested.
“But his class was literally martial arts,” Phoenix pointed out. It wasn’t the first time. Isla and Phoenix had to drag me out of the class because Master Cho threatened to fail me. He didn’t, of course.
“It was my civic duty to point out his flaws,” I said defensively.
Isla shook her head. “He was so sick and tired of hearing you nagging him about the wrongdoings of fighting that he disappeared to God knows where.”
“Anyway,” Raven hissed. “Back to the original topic. You might as well get used to jail cells, because nobody grabs our baby’s ass and gets away with it.”
I shot her a glare, my cheeks burning. “If you don’t stop with the baby shit, I’m going to start calling you old lady.”
“God, I’m waiting for Raven to grow up, but I don’t think that’ll ever happen,” Athena grumbled. “Would you all shut up? I just want to shower and go to sleep.”
Amon watched the whole exchange with interest. His arm lay casually on the headrest behind us, his fingers playing with my curls, and I fought the urge to sink into his touch. I was desperate for his hands on me. His mouth.
“I thought my evening was ruined,” Dante said, rolling a cigarette with one hand. I assumed if we weren’t in the car, he’d light it up. “But I stand corrected. This is pretty entertaining.”
I sat up straight, everything forgotten. “Our stuff is still at the beach.”
Amon shook his head. “I had it all retrieved.”
“Thank God,” I muttered. “Grandma wouldn’t have bought me another phone if I lost this one.”
Six months ago, I dropped my phone while taking a selfie on my balcony. It had bounced off the balcony, through the three-inch gap, and fell to the pavement. It shattered beyond repair. You’d have thought it was Grandma’s favorite china set I’d smashed.
“Fuck the phone,” Athena said. “I was terrified we’d have to take the train or hitchhike back to Paris wearing nothing but our bathing suits.”
“If people stopped for us in winter gear, they definitely would’ve stopped for us wearing bikinis.”
Yep, Raven would get us murdered one day. We would end up in the paper. I could see the headlines already: “Five Reckless American Girls Chopped Up And Thrown Out To Sea.”
“If my brothers find out, they’ll kill me,” Isla muttered. “What am I saying… It’s a matter of when, not if.” She pushed a hand into her hair, her expression pale. “Shit.”
