Page 100 of In the Danger Zone
“I didn’t—”
“Shut up,” Evan barked out, voice blunt. “You’ve been after my dick this whole time. I’mveryfucking aware of that. But me not paying any fucking attention to you should have been a sign that you fucking disgust me.”
Brie gasped, blinking at Evan. “Oh, and she doesn’t? It makes no sense! As soon as she showed up all you did was get wrapped up in her!”
“So?” asked Evan. “What the fuck does it have to do with you? Why do you think I couldn’t stay away from her? It was because she was all I could fucking think about. It was because I wanted to be with her all the goddamn time.”
“It doesn’t make sense!” Brie pointed a hand at me. “Look at her! She’s so—”
“The next words out of that fucking mouth better be a compliment.” Evan’s voice was low. It was harsh and dark, the look on his face absolutely matching everything he was saying.
Brie sighed. “She’s not good enough for you. She can’t even talk properly, she just—”
That was when Evan seemed to lose it completely. He approached Brie, towering over her as she backed up, moving so that she was up against the wall.
“E-Evan,” I let out, voice panicked. My hand tugged at his arm. It shouldn’t have felt so nice to touch him again. “Evan, don’t. Please.”
He looked right in my eyes. There seemed to be some shock on his face. Maybe he was taken aback by me getting so close to him. Part of me was just as stunned I got so close. God, I missed him with everything in me. But he had hurt me more than Asher ever had.
“I’m not gonna touch her,” Evan said, voice still dangerously low. “I don’t do that shit. I’m not like Asher. I’m not. I never have been and I never will be. I can’t keep my mouth shut sometimes, and I let my emotions get the better of me. It fucks me over in the long run. Clearly. But there’s something I gotta say to this one.”
Sighing, I nodded at him and stepped back. I didn’t leave. I was stupidly curious about what Evan had to say.
“You don’t ever say a mean fucking thing about her again.” Evan turned back to the terrified looking Brie. “Ever. Especially about the way she talks. I might have fucked up with that, but that doesn’t mean I’ll let other people get away with it. Don’t fucking go near her, Brie. It doesn’t matter what you say or do, because nothing’s gonna change how I feel. I love her. Not you.”
Brie shut her eyes tightly. “You don’t get it. You should be with someone who’s in your league. She’s not. Why would you ever—”
“What the fuck did I just say?” Evan hissed. “I love her, Brie. I love every part of her. The second I saw her I knew that I could never want anyone else. You think I felt like that with you? You think I’ve ever thoughttwiceabout you? The only reason you even got near me was because you were with Asher. And the only reason you were with Asher was so you could get to me.”
Brie shook her head. “That’s not true.”
“Bullshit. You’ve always made it really fucking obvious, Brie. I don’t want you. At all. So fucking give it up already,” Evan said with gritted teeth.
“You should bethankingme for doing all that dirty work,” Brie shot back. “Daisy was never gonna do it.Idid. Coach Murphy never would have known about Asher attacking her if it wasn’t for me. I’m the one who saw that card on her desk and came up with the idea. You should be thanking me for my help, Daisy.”
“I’m pretty sure you did that for yourself and n-not for m-me,” I told her with a shake of my head. “And I want m-my card b-back.”
“Daisy’s right. You did that for your selfish fucking self.” Evan spat out, his words so much harsher than mine. “You do everything for yourself. I already knew that, though. I’m not thanking you for a fucking thing.”
“I’ll pay you back,” Brie offered. “I’ll give you back that ten thousand. If you just give me a chance, I’ll send it to you.”
“Nah. It’s okay. Best ten thousand I ever spent if it meant me finally finding out the truth,” Evan said with a mutter. “I want nothing to do with you after today. But more importantly: stay the fuck away from Daisy. Forever. I don’t hit girls like your boyfriend did, but I sure as fuck will lose it if I find out you even looked at Daisy funny. And you don’t wanna deal with that, do you, Brie?”
With red cheeks, Brie shook her head.
“Fucking run along now.”
Brie moved fast. Arms crossed, she darted away from Evan and moved straight towards the exit. She was responsible for Coach Murphy finding out about my history with Asher, and maybe I should have been – in a weird way – thankful for that. But Evan was right. She didn’t do that because he deserved to be punished. I knew that very well.
“Are you okay?” Evan asked lowly, his voice suddenly so soft and welcoming.
My first thought was that I wanted his arms around me, but I had to shake that thought away. I stared at him, taking in his softened eyes. He had been beyond angry just a minute ago. But hopefully his words had been enough to get Brie to leave me alone. At least we both knew who was responsible for outing Asher now. Mystery solved. That didn’t mean forgiveness was on the table.
“I… I think so,” I replied.
Evan pushed a hand through his hair. “I might have fucked up, but that doesn’t mean I still won’t look after you, Daisy. I’ll always look after you. I promise.”
I didn’t know what else to say to him or how to even say it, so I just stayed quiet.
