Page 8 of Muse (Fighting Fate)

Everyone wanted it, but I was the only one who needed it, and I took to my lessons like my life depended on it. I guess in a way, it did. At that stage of my life, I was a very angry fourteen year old, pissed off at the world, and wanted everyone to know it. It took my now stepdad, Mark, to convince me that the best revenge was success, and I was happy to say I was almost there.

“Oh my god. I’m so tired,” Amy groaned, bringing me back to the present.

I looked over at her and watched her press her cheek against Ryan’s leg. My shit stirring meter sprang to life.

“Really? Why’s that? I had the best night’s sleep I’ve had in a long time.”

Amy lifted her face to glare at me. “Shut it, Wallace.”

“Yeah, Jace,” Amber said, sliding down in front of the fire. “You seriously don’t want to go there with seven sleep deprived girls around you.”

“Make that six. I slept like a baby.”

My head snapped up at the sound of Mia’s voice. She was walking out from the bathroom, carrying a box in her arms. When I heard it jingle, I realized it must’ve been all the pieces of broken mirror.

“Don’t make me kill you, Mia,” Aiden threatened from his prone position. He lifted his head enough to look at her then seeing her struggling with the box, he frowned. “What’s that?”

She looked down at the box. “The mirror fell off the wall while I was in the bathroom last night.”

“Holy shit. Really? Did you get hurt?” he said, immediately concerned.

I leaned over to put my coffee cup on the table and nudged Kacey to move off me. “I’ve just got to give Mia a hand,” I mumbled.

“I’ve got it, Jace,” Mia said lightly.

I looked up and met her gaze. She smiled at me like it was just another day. What the fuck?

She shrugged. “It’s not heavy, besides Kacey looks quite comfortable there. Judging by the look on her face, I’d say she might have missed you last night.” She grinned wider at Kacey and shot her a little wink before striding out to the kitchen.

I sat frozen, trying to work out what the fuck just happened. Did she seriously just smile and wink at Kacey? What the fuck did that mean? My heart was beating a mile a minute. Most girls I knew would’ve been right there, trying to stake their claim. Her behavior made me nervous. Was she planning something else? Fuck. I really needed to talk to her. We needed to come to some kind of agreement about where we stood with each other.

“So, who’s going to put on their big boy pants and come ski with me today?” Amber said, interrupting my panic.

Aiden groaned. “Amber, no one’s an adrenalin junkie like you are.”

“I’m not an adrenalin junkie,” she said, pouting.

“So you just ski the steepest runs and bungee jump off scary assed bridges just for the fun of it?” he retorted like a smartass.

“Actually, yes. And the reason I can do it, is because I’m not frightened of death anymore, Aiden. That kind of happens when you’ve faced it twice before.”

Aiden lifted his

head and stared at her apologetically. “Shit. Sorry. I’m a dick.”

“Yes, you are. Lucky for you, I love you.”

I shook my head at them and tried to smile, but my brain was still obsessing about Mia. Standing up, I decided to follow her out to the kitchen to get this shit sorted.

Chapter 5

Mia

After dumping the box of broken mirror outside, I wandered back to the kitchen, hoping that was the end of it. I was actually relieved when I walked out of the bathroom and saw Kacey snuggled up to Jace. Even though it hurt my heart in a way, I knew it was for the best. I couldn’t commit to a relationship with someone of Jace’s stature. He was too popular. Too often surrounded by people. Lots of people.

I shook my head. What the hell was I thinking? Like Jace would even consider having a relationship with me. He didn’t even do relationships. He was probably inside right now, wondering how he was going to get out of the sticky situation he’d got himself into.

The whole time I was in the shower, I thought about what I was going to say to him. I’d run through a dozen different scenarios inside my head where we both agreed it was fun and went our separate ways. Funnily enough, the scenario I’d encountered wasn’t anything like any of the ones I’d entertained inside my head. But I was all for it if it meant we didn’t have to go through an awkward discussion.

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