Hardcore: Volume 2 by Staci Hart Read Free Book Online Page B

can’t.”
    “But—”
    “No. I need you to accept this without asking questions. Please.” I couldn’t help myself. I gave myself away with every word, but I needed him to know that I had no choice. That if I did, I would choose him.  
    He pulled back, and when I looked into his eyes, his face was drawn. “Cory, what’s going on?”
    I shook my head. “It’s not you. You’re … you did everything right.”
    Van cupped my cheek, searching my face. “I don’t want to let you go,” he whispered and touched his forehead to mine.
    My hand hung on his wrist, and I squeezed my eyes shut. “I don’t want to go, but I have to. I need you to let me. Please.”
    He pressed me into his chest again for a long moment. I felt his uncertainty as he grappled with what to do, how to react. But when he finally lowered his lips to mine, I knew he was saying goodbye.
    When he pulled away, his eyes were shining, full of hurt. “You know how to find me. If things change …”
    I couldn’t speak, just nodded as I stood and picked up my pack. I looked back one last time, taking in every detail, the slope of his shoulders, the silhouette of his body against the trail of color in the sky, and then I vaulted the ledge, leaving him behind.

    It was after midnight when I finally climbed the stairs to the loft. I felt like I’d aged ten years over the last few days, and I wondered if the worst wasn’t yet to come. When I opened the warehouse door and found the demon twins at the table, I clenched my teeth and looked beyond them, toward our rooms.
    Jace glared, and Jade scanned me suspiciously. “Where the fuck have you been?” he shot.
    I didn’t respond or even glance at them, just walked through the kitchen like they weren’t there. A shower and sleep were the only things important enough for my attention tonight, and my hope was that I could burn down my hurt to a manageable degree and erase the what was left with my dreams.
    “Where are you going, Cory? We need to plan this,” Jade called after me.
    “Not tonight.”
    “Fuck you. ‘Not tonight,’” she scoffed.
    I spun around, ready for a fight. “I said, not tonight. I’ll do what you want, you heartless cunt. But not tonight.”
    Jade narrowed her eyes, assessing me before she backed down. “Whatever. Don’t fucking sleep all day tomorrow because we have shit to do.” She turned to Jace, dismissing me.
    I walked away, flipping her off over my shoulder.
    The shower was hot, but not hot enough. My skin was raw, and the water had run cold by the time I finally got out, teeth chattering as I dried off. The hallway was dark, the concrete cold as I made my way into Erin’s room and slipped into bed with her.  
    She shifted to face me in the dark. I couldn’t see much, just the light reflecting on the surface of her eyes, a blurry shade of her profile, too dark to make out the edges. “Hey.”
    “I didn’t mean to wake you up. I just …. I didn’t want to sleep alone.”
    “I wasn’t asleep. I’ve been worried about you. What happened? Is Jill okay?”
    “She’s fine. I dropped her off and went for a run.” I took a breath. “I saw Van.”
    “Like, on purpose?” She sounded confused.  
    So was I. “No. I went to one of his spots, and he showed up. I don’t even know why I went there.”
    “What did you say?”
    “I asked him to let me go, and he did. And now I’m not okay.”
    She reached for my wrist, rubbed her thumb on my skin.
    “What in the fuck is wrong with me?”
    “Your life is in the shitter, that’s what’s wrong. You didn’t want him to let you go, but he did, and you needed him to. I wish things were different, too. I want you to be happy, and want you to get the guy. The timing was just so bad.”
    “The worst.”
    “The absolute worst. But there’s not much you can do except wait it out.”
    “Tomorrow.” The word weighed a metric ton.
    “Yes. Tomorrow.”
    I turned my wrist around in her hand and threaded my fingers