Page 179 of Sincerely, Butterfly

“Excuse us if it’s going to take some fucking time to process what’s going on,” Jasper growls. “This…” he holds up the piece of paper Nola gave him. “These names. They’re the names of the victims of the Butterfly Killer.”

“Yes.” Nola nods.

“Let me see that.” I snatch it from Jasper and read over all the names. But towards the bottom, there’s new names we’ve never heard of. “These are new.”

“I know. They’re the girls I killed tonight. The ones I saw you with while you were partying on Bourbon Street. Work, huh?” Her hands land on her hips as she glares at the three of us. “It’s not nice to lie. That shit hurts my feelings.”

“Sorry?” Jasper says, but it comes out more like a question. He’s confused. We all are. I have no fucking clue what’s going on. I have so many questions.

She’s standing there naked, with blood on her hands, her perfect tits on display, and that cunt… fuck me, she’s so fucking sexy.

“You should be!” she shouts. “To find out my boyfriends lied so they could go hook up with other girls is fucked up. Just so you know.”

“Boyfriends?” My brows rise.

“Yes. Boyfriends.” She nods.

“We’re not your boyfriends,” Jasper replies sternly.

“Uh, yeah, you are. Keep up,” she corrects. “I told you. You’re mine. I’m yours. There is no other option.”

“Holy fuck,” Sylas huffs out a laugh of disbelief. “She’s fucking crazy.” He says it with so much joy, I can’t help but smile.

I want to say none of this is real, that we’re just tripping hardcore right now. But I saw her with my own eyes. She killed that girl. And she didn’t even blink.

“Let me get this straight,” Jasper cuts in. “You’re saying you’re the one who killed all these girls, not the Butterfly Killer?”

“No, I’m saying I am the Butterfly Killer,” she replies, sounding tired and slightly annoyed that she has to keep repeating this. “And I killed every single name on that list.”

“Why?” Jasper asks.

“Because,” I say, a slow, sinister smile curling my lips as everything starts to click into place. “You heard what she said. She wantedto prove to us that she wasn’t the sweet, innocent girl we always believed she was.”

“Thank you.” She gestures towards me. “Someone’s getting it.” She crosses her arms over her chest, pushing up her perky tits. “I’m kind of disappointed. I worked hard on this reveal, and now the whole vibe is ruined. I’m telling you that I love you. That I’m yours. I killed all of these people to prove to you that I’m devoted to you three. And I’m starting to feel like that’s not enough. What else do you want me to do?”

Jasper looks at me, then to Sylas. The poor guy’s brain is working in overdrive, not sure what to do.

He’s convinced himself for years that Nola would never be ours, not in the way we wanted. And here she is, proving him wrong, proving us all wrong.

He might not know how to handle this, but I do.

Getting to my feet, I watch as her eyes flick over to mine. Her pupils dilate, her breathing starting to come in quick, heavy pants as I slowly stalk toward her.

“What are you doing?” Jasper asks.

Without looking away from my Little Rabbit, I answer him, “I’m done holding back.”

“Do not touch her!” Jasper demands.

“Sorry, man,” Sylas says. “But he’s right. There’s no reason to be apart anymore. And honestly, I don’t think I could even if I wanted to.”

“Fuck’s sake!” Jasper growls.

I feel like a fucking kid on Christmas morning, ready to rip apart the wrapping and play with my new toy. I’ve dreamed of sinking my claws into this woman, amongst other things, for too fucking long.

I stop just in front, looming over her. She tilts her head back, her wide eyes staring up at me with longing, uncertainty, and something else. It’s hope. It’s the same emotion that she stabbed into my heart like doctors do to patients who go into cardiac arrest to bring them back to life. She licks her lips, the movement catching my attention.

A low, rumbling, possessive growl rattles in my chest. My hand reaches up to brush along the same lip her tongue just glided across, making it glisten oh-so temptingly. She sucks in a sharp breath as ashiver runs through her body so violently at my touch alone that it has a sinister smile slowly curving my lips upward.