Page 106 of Bitter Lies

“A sweatshirt?”

“Yeah.” I smile bright, although I’m sure it doesn’t pass muster when he frowns.

But slowly, he nods and glances behind me before ushering me from the closet. “C’mon, we’re barbecuing out back.”

∞∞∞

Griffin hands me a hamburger as soon as I emerge and watches me like a hawk while I eat it. After, we sit around the fire, roasting marshmallows. The treat is sticky and gooey and when I glance up, I shiver to find Griffin’s eyes on me as I lick my lips.

The burn in his eyes creates a sense of power and feeling sassy, I lift a brow and eat another, making sure it’s messy as I lick myself clean once again. His nostrils flare when I suck a finger into my mouth and with a growl, he pulls it free and sucks it between his yummy lips.

My core spasms so painfully, I shift as he smiles at me wickedly and proceeds to give each finger the same treatment, running his tongue around the digits boldly, one-by-one. Spellbound, I watch with wide eyes, only breaking away when someone laughs across from us, and I realize he’s showing desire for me in front of his friends.

Uneasy but thrilled, I pull away until he grabs me under his arm and hugs me tightly to him, and giving in, I snuggle deep, meeting the vicious glare of the girl from our car ride across the fire.

Disturbed, I glance away into Max’s cold blue eyes, shivering under the intensity of the hatred staring back at me.

Griffin glances down at me and I drop my unease as he smirks, and asks with a teasing lilt, “Where’s the sweatshirt you were planning to steal from my closet?”

“Oh,” I say, heat filling my cheeks, but he just smiles and pulls the sweatshirt he’s wearing over his head before helping me to into it.

The warmth immediately surrounds me, his scent invading my nostrils as I snuggle in his arms once more and studiously ignore the multiple pairs of eyes boring into me.

Later, he takes me back to his room and lays me out on the bed, exploring every part of my body until I’m writhing with need before fucking me gently until we both orgasm together.

∞∞∞

When I wake the following morning, he’s gone, and glumly I search through his things halfheartedly, finding nothing but the memories of a boy turned man.

After I search out Max, only to find his room is empty, I give up and make my way outside, walking down the beach tiredly. I don’t know what to do about Max, and I’m scared for him but frankly relieved I haven’t found the necklace because I’m terrified of what this will do to Griffin.

Maybe I’m being foolish because inevitably, this will all end, but even so, I’d like to think it doesn’t have to be because of this and over Max and his stupidity.

“Hey, Halsey,” Jason says with a smarmy grin.

Startled, I skid to a stop, turning away with a grimace as he opens his mouth to speak, but he catches my arm and stops me as he says, “Not so fast. Let’s chat.”

“About what?” I ask, pulling from his grip uneasily.

“Griffin was asking me about you. I thought we had an agreement?”

“We did. We do,” I say, my stomach sinking. What could Griffin possibly be asking Jason?

“Then you better bring him in line,” he warns.

“I can’t control Griffin. Why are you even here? Maybe if you stayed away, he wouldn’t be wondering about shit.”

“Because this is where the action’s at,” he says impatiently. “Just get him off my back.”

With that, he walks away, and I drop to the sand wearily. As much as I’m enjoying this little interlude with Griffin, it can’t last, and I’m starting to worry about the consequences. What if he digs too deep? And why does he care?

Except he kept all our memories and the damn jacket!

Rubbing my head tiredly, I glance up when a shadow looms over me, staring into the eyes of Griffin’s bitch, who looks me over rudely. “You know he doesn’t care about you, right?”

“Maybe. And he cares about you?” I say, standing to my feet.

Fingering her chest, she smiles wide, her eyes narrowed with glee on my face. “Yes.”

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