Page 14 of Forged in Rain

When I turn back, I find Cyn glaring at me once more and throwing my fry on my plate; I sigh and wait for whatever he’s going to throw my way this time.

“We’ve got business after school. Wait by the SUV,” he says before grabbing the girl sitting beside him and pulling her toward the door.

I guess I should have ousted her, too, but it wouldn’t have mattered because there’s a long fucking line, and Cyn only has so much patience.

“You think you got balls enough to pull that shit?” Bastion says.

“I just did, didn’t I?” I ask tartly.

Frowning, he says in a low voice, “You’re here on borrowed time. Don’t forget that.”

Leaning forward, so we’re practically nose to nose, I say, “Go fuck yourself.”

His brows raise to his hairline before his mouth twitches and he grunts. Since I have no idea what that means, I turn back to my lunch and perseverate miserably about what Cyn is doing with that chick even though I know what he’s doing, and frustratingly I lurch to my feet when the bell rings.

Bastion’s in my next class, and although we don’t speak, he sits next to me and broods the entire time. Thankfully, with the new semester, I’ve fulfilled my requirements for PE, so I’m spared the humiliation. Still, I have a free study period and sneak away before anyone can escort me to wherever they deem acceptable.

Stepping outside, I breathe in the crisp air and shiver. It’s still icy cold outside. With a sigh, I sit down on the bleachers and look out over the field, huffing when I spy Jig and Cyn among the gym class, running drills. It would appear I can’t escape them even when I try.

Since neither has noticed me, I take the opportunity to study my obsession from his beautiful head of dark hair, down his broad, muscular back, to his trim waist and taut backside.

Strangely, there isn’t anything about him that isn’t sexy, and as though he can sense my gaze, he turns around and spies me sitting on the bleachers. Jig follows his stare and turns to me as well before jogging forward, grabbing his hoodie off the ground and tossing it to me.

“You look cold,” he says with a devilish grin, his eyes dipping to my boobs.

Rolling my eyes, I pull the sweatshirt over my head and burrow into the fabric because it is fucking cold. I glance at Cyn to find him frowning at Jig as he jogs back up to his side.

“Roll your tongue back into your mouth,” Iris says caustically, sitting down beside me.

Raising my brows, I watch as she gets comfortable, which takes an excessive amount of time before she says without looking at me, “I’m sorry.”

Silently, I watch her until she squirms and says, “It was wrong; I know it. Things got out of control.”

“Why?” I whisper through the lump in my throat, staring out over the fields blindly.

This is my family, and she betrayed me worse than the dick on the field. And it hurts, especially when I’ve been following her around and doing her bidding for the very sake of sparing her from John.

“There’s a hate in my heart, Rainy, for every jerk who’s ever used me, and I let that hate control me,” she whispers, her mouth twisting in a wicked grimace.

“But you’ve gone too far, Iris,” I mumble, my stomach clenching at her stark words.

“I have, and I don’t know how to get myself out, but I promise Rainy, I didn’t bring you into the Jagger mess. I don’t know what he’s planning, and it scares me.”

“You hurt me, and I don’t know if I can trust you,” I say slowly, staring into her pretty brown eyes.

“Yeah, well, you probably shouldn’t,” she says with a wry smile. “But I’ll figure a way out of this mess, I promise.”

“Iris, no. Can’t you just let it alone?”

“No, not until it’s done,” she says with a ferocity that makes me pause.

“It’s done, Iris. He’s gone.”

“Yeah, well, that was the end game, but I’m still caught on the fucking sidelines.”

“What more do you owe?”

“More than I have to give,” she says with a sigh before standing and tapping my shoulder.

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