Hayes scoffs, his thumb coming up and rubbing over his lips before he nods and clears his throat.”You are right. We really should get a move on.” He grumbles, brushing past me. I roll my eyes and chuckle to myself. He is so used to being in charge that he forgets I am the tracker and he is heading in the wrong direction. “Might be better if we head in the right direction.” I say, crossing my arms over my chest, not bothering to hide my cocky smirk. “Unless you would rather take the long way.”Hayes slows before coming to a stop, his head hanging low as he turns to look at me. He places his hands on his hips as if he is trying to restrain himself, then he mutters under his breath before he walks back toward me. “Less time with you, the better it is for both of us.” He says, flashing me a forced smile.”Seemed like you wanted to spend time with me earlier,” I grumble before I roll my eyes and turn to the left and walk away from him.”That wasn’t exactly quality time, Kyra.” He says behind me. “It was-” “Just a quick fuck?” I grind out, finishing the sentence for him. “Yes, Hayes, I am aware of that. You do know that you are not the first man I have been with, right? I know what it feels like to be loved and now I know what it feels like to be used. Thank you so much for that lesson.””Wait a minute.” He scoffs, rushing past me before he puts his hands out to keep me from walking further. “You are the one who came onto me, Kyra. It was you who kissed me.”What he doesn’t realize is that it was his words and confession that made me weak enough to act on the bond. I didn’t want to kiss the man who left me for dead and then tried to make me watch him die. That was the cruelty of the moon goddess and her damn games she plays on us for the fun of it. I rub my face and shake my head.”Can we just…agree it was a mutual arrangement to scratch an itch? And now we can consider the itch scratched and we can move on.” I say, feeling a bubble of confusion as he frowns at me. He has no right to act like this isn’t exactly what he planned or wanted. “And yet you keep bringing it up,” he says, “Like you can’t get it out of your head.””I do not! And It just happened, I haven’t had the time to get it out of my head.” I scoff, offended by his preposterous accusation.”It’s fine Ky, I get it. You aren’t the only one who struggles with no strings attached sex.” He shrugs, looking smugly at me.I guffaw, a dark chuckle bursting from my lips. This asshole really thinks so highly of himself, even when he wants to die and is such a dickhead. No strings attached. Right, the issue I have with everything isn’t the lack of strings, but the insurmountable strings that only I can apparently feel tugging at me.”I haven’t scented Ezrah since before I was struck by that tree. So hopefully, if we head back that way, we can find something.” I murmur, choosing to take the high road.
Ads by PubFuture Well, more like the silent road, unless it refers to Ezrah.”Really?” He scoffs. “You are resorting to ignoring the whole thing now?””Sure am. Now, shut up so I can listen for anything out of the ordinary.” I say, shooting him a scowl.We probably should discuss it…” he says, gently and for the first time, it feels like he is actually being sincere.”What is there left to discuss, Hayes?”I wait for him to keep talking, but when he doesn’t, I look at him curiously. He looks away before he finally meets my gaze with pity in his eyes. My brows furrow in shock as he takes a step closer to me and then sighs heavily.”What?” I ask, a feeling in my stomach making me more nervous than I was when I kissed him.”Was that your first time since Tyler?” He asks, his voice soft and coaxing as if he is trying to tread lightly.My face heats and my lungs grow tight. I instantly look away, unable to think of a single word to say to him. I came to terms with losing Tyler and our baby some time ago. Not to say that I moved on, but that I know what he wanted for me if I ever lost him.It was a conversation we had once the war started to rage. I loved Tyler, but my world did not cease to exist when I lost him. We both know I couldn’t go through that after how terribly I took Hayes’ initial rejection.”Truth be told, that was my first time doing something like that.” I say, clearing my throat. Hayes’ eyes grow wide and then his brows knit together.”Are you saying I took your virginity?” He asks. It is clear Hayes is not following what I mean. I scoff and roll my eyes.”No, Hayes. Tyler and I made love. It was never a quickie in the woods against a tree. It was the two of us. making a promise, showcasing how we felt about each other.” I whisper, remembering how much he hated anything that seemed rushed. Tyler was a romantic, one who, even when he was tempted, took his time and planned things out.
“Are you serious?” Hayes asks, looking appalled. “You guys never had the passion to just do it and then go about your day?” “You know what, never mind. This isn’t a topic I want to discuss with you.” I mutter.”Oh, come on, I’m just shocked, that is all.” He claims, but I can see the way my words seem to befuddle him. It’s clear to me he doesn’t have a romantic bone in his body, even if he occasionally says something that makes it damn near impossible to not kiss him. “How about you tell me about Leandra?” I ask, whipping around to glare at him. His face hardens, his lip twitching in a sneer.”Maybe silence is the best route for us.” He grits out.”My thoughts exactly.” I grumble. “Follow my lead and try not to get yourself and me killed.”The tension between us is thicker than it was before I gave into the pull of the bond. I can feel every look he gives me, as if his eyes were a stream of fire from a dragon’s mouth on my back. “What do we do when we find Ezrah?” I ask him.”You don’t have to worry about that.” He says, not happy with me. I exhale, showing him my dissatisfaction.”Well, the last time you saw him, you went crazy and nearly got us both killed. So forgive me for wanting to know what the hell to expect.””You know, I kind of thought fucking you would make you a little less uptight and snarky,” he snarks from behind me.My emotions swirl in a mixture of homicidal rage and disappointment as my body responds to the thought of us having sex earlier. I had hoped it would lessen the desire to be in his arms, or at least put it off for a while longer. And yet, his anger only sets me off in a blaze of desire. “Can you not say things like that?” I hiss at him, whirling around to shove at his chest. He stands, unmoved, looking down at me.”What part?” He teases. Sᴇaʀᴄh thᴇ ƒindNoᴠᴇl.nᴇt website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.”The part where you said you guys fucked.” I hear behind me. Hayes grins, his arms crossing over his chest as he looks over my shoulder.”I wondered if you would find us first,” He says with a chuckle. I refuse to turn around, my face blazing red with embarrassment. The last thing I want to do is look at Marcos and everyone else.”Well, we didn’t exactly sit and twiddle our thumbs after watching you two go into the water. And here we thought you guys were in real danger.” Nisha says, a teasing lilt to her voice.”Well, it wasn’t exactly a fantastic adventure.” Hayes says before he smirks, his eyes meeting mine before he winks. “Other than the quickie, of course.”Anger blooms and I glare up at him, tears threatening to fall down my cheeks. It’s not that I like Marcos exceedingly well. I may have played it off that way to Hayes, but the truth is. That wasn’t just sex to me, to him it was. I know that now.He used me, and now I am the butt of his joke. Just another fallen woman at his feet for him to laugh at with his war buddies. Shame on me for giving in. Shame on me for still having an ounce of feelings for him.”Fuck you, Hayes” I grit out, low.”Sounds like you already did,” Koda teases and I inhale deeply, spinning to look at everyone, my shoulders squared.”Enough.” I hiss, looking back at Hayes. His smirk falters as I shake my head. “You can share details and laugh all you want when I am out of earshot.””I’ll walk with you,” Dean offers, clearly trying to be nice.”No, I’d rather be alone.” I grumble, yet again finding my heading and walking away.
