Page 45 of Ravage
There’s the smallest hint of a smile tugging at the corner of her lips before she squashes it and tries to cover it up with an eye roll. “I guess we’ll find out if you actually want me dead or not then, huh?”
It’s true, this would be an easy opportunity for an accident to happen. But I could never kill her, even after all that happened.
Something about her killing Vera or working for GE just doesn’t add up to me. I don’t care what Aiden or Dane say. The girl who used to be my partner in crime wouldn’t have done that without good reason. Or she’s lying and didn’t kill Vera.
She’s definitely hiding something, and I plan to find out what that is.
“Guess so,” I offer back with a wink. I turn the key in the ignition, and my car roars to life.
“Is there anything I can hold on to at least?” she shouts over the noise of the revving engine, looking around almost frantically for something to cling on to. Raegan finally looks at me and, seeing my smirk, snaps, “Don’t even say it. For fuck’s sake, Kellan. Is this how you treat all of your enemies? By trying to get them to touch your dick?”
That sparks a howl of laughter out of me. Damn, I forgot how good it felt to laugh. We drive back into the queue for the next round of racing once I hear who my competitor is and move up beside them. “Beautiful, you grabbed it all on your own without me doing anything.”
I pull up to the line, my hand on the shifter, and gaze now focused on Roger with the flashlight. I rev the engine and let the tires warm on the pavement until the light flashes. We launch forward like a rocket ship at blast-off. Raegan squeals, but a quick side eye reveals her smiling face and the excited look in her eyes now that we’re on the move.
She always had been one for danger. Ready to do anything on a dare or get the heart pumping and prove to ourselves that we’re alive. That, for one small moment, we were in charge of our own destinies. Even if it ended horribly wrong, it was our choice.
I can feel the need to shift when it’s time, and when I thrust us into the next gear, we’re thrown back into our seats. Raegan’s gasp changes to breathless laughter, and I can’t stop the wild grin from spreading across my face. I’d forgotten how much more fun things had been with my partner in crime.
We whiz past the competition in seconds, eating up the pavement like we’re starved for it and passing the finish line while leaving the other car in the dust. I don’t slow down, though, ripping toward the end of the strip and the black, open water of the bay.
When she realizes I’m still not making any move to stop the car or turn away from the water, she warns, “Kell…”
“What? You scared, beautiful?” I challenge and turn to face her instead of the shrinking road.
Her blue eyes lock on to mine. “Never.”
My heart gallops at the fierceness of her gaze and the tenacity in her voice. It beats louder than I ever remember it before. Like she’s kickstarted it back to the rhythm it was always supposed to be and had forgotten. I tighten my grip on the shifter and hold her stare even as I see the edge approaching out of the corner of my eye.
My foot jumps to the clutch, and I yank on the emergency break. My body moves on autopilot to swing the car around, the back tires skidding along the edge of the pavement before I gun it to the left.
I snicker and finally break our staring contest, pleased to see that she didn’t crack once. “Good to see you’ve still got your guts.”
She smiles, but catches herself when she realizes what she’s doing. She hurriedly turns to look out her window, the coastline of the bay whipping past us as I drop down a gear. We’re still moving fast, because she didn’t come to me for a slow ride, but at a more manageable speed as I turn us out of the airport and onto the city streets so our ride doesn’t have to end just yet.
“This good enough for old times?” I prompt teasingly.
I know I shouldn’t do this; that this will all come back to bite me later by giving in to her random and impulsive urge to pretend everything is okay, but it feels like I’m riding a high I haven’t felt in a long time.
She hums, but the sudden quiet quickly becomes disconcerting.
“What?” I ask roughly.
She shakes her head and focuses her attention back on the side exit I’m taking to get us back into the city. “Nothing.”
I hate that word.
There’s no such thing as nothing with her. Not to me.
Knowing my luck with her, it’ll be some ruthless commentary that’ll kill the moment and rip my soul out. “Spill it,” I growl, already on the defensive.
Rae settles back into her seat and looks at me. My blood heats under her scrutiny and, not for the first time, I wish I could read her thoughts.
“I’m sorry. This was a mistake.”
My breathing slows. “What?”
“I shouldn’t have come here. To you. It wasn’t right, and I’m just making things worse,” she says in a breathless rush that I can barely keep up.
