Page 79 of Wicked Games

Chapter Twenty-Six

Rowan

“This is hell,” I whisper to myself as I pull my knees to my chest and wrap my arms around them. The sky is clear today and the sun beats down on me as the protestors on the street below continue their screaming for the fourth day in a row but in a weird way, I’m kind of getting used to their constant berating. My gaze travels over the crowd before landing on the real source of my unease – Warren.

He’s not chanting.

He’s not screaming.

He’s not holding up a sign that tells us all to leave town immediately.

He’s just standing there in the middle of the protestors and staring up at me.

Apparently, after Travis and I first saw him last night, he informed the others and Blaze called Rodriguez to go grab him but by the time he made it through the mass of people, our mystery stalker was gone. When he showed up again this morning, we called again and Rodriguez went after him but somehow, he managed to slip away before Diego could get to him and at this point, he has told us that he’ll keep an eye out but we need to stop calling him. I think the guys would be mad except there isn’t really anything Rodriguez could do if he did catch Warren. As far as anyone outside of this building is concerned, he’s just a man protesting in a mask and there is nothing illegal about that.

It would be nice to finally know who he really is, though.

Sighing, I turn away from the crowd but Warren’s eyes seem to burn straight through me still and it makes my skin fucking crawl. A part of me wants to go back inside but the other part doesn’t want to leave this spot when going inside means being cooped up with Travis. And I can’t do anything around him without feeling like my heart is being smashed into a thousand pieces. Avoiding him takes every ounce of willpower I possess but it hurts. Every second that I spend across the room from him, telling myself not to glance in his direction is hell but being in his arms again, kissing him when I know the end is coming for us is pure agony. My mind drifts to the moment we shared in his room last night and tears sting my eyes. I can’t be with him and it kills me to be without him so I’ll just keep hiding up here on the roof, avoiding everyone, until I get a handle on my emotions.

Or hell freezes over.

I’m not sure which one will come first.

The door to the roof opens and my heart jumps into my throat as I glance over my shoulder before releasing a breath as Tate steps outside. She flashes me a smile and I do my best to return it but I know it looks forced. There is a gleam of determination in her eyes as she marches over to me and plops down next to me on the air mattress. My belly flips.

“How are you?” she asks, propping her elbows on her knees and cocking her head to the side as she studies me. I nod before turning back to the protestors.

“Good.”

She hums. “You know not a single person believes that, right? Oh, and also, I’m having a hard time keeping your brother from murdering Streak so maybe y’all could work things out already?”

“There’s nothing to work out, Tate,” I whisper, peeking over at her as she scowls.

“What do you mean?”

I take a deep breath and meet her eyes. “If I tell you, you’re sworn to the sister code… it’s like girl code but even more intense and you can’t tell a fucking soul.”

“Okay,” she agrees, nodding. Turning back to watch the people filling the street below us, I take another deep breath and try to ignore the relentless ache in my chest.

“I love him…”

“Streak?” she asks. I nod and she scoffs in return. “Well, obviously.”

Glancing back at her, I shake my head. “We agreed to casual. On the first night I was here, he told me we would never be anything other than sex and then I was stupid enough to fall in love with him.”

“And? Look, people say dumb ass shit all the time and then things change. Besides, I’m ninety-nine percent sure that boy loves the hell out of you, so what’s the problem?”

“He’s never had a girlfriend, Tate,” I tell her, tears gathering in my eyes as I turn back to the crowd and Travis’s words run through my mind. “He straight out told me that he was never going to fall in love with me and that he never wanted anything more than casual relationships. You don’t see this as a problem?”

She sighs. “It’s an annoyance, for sure, but he can’t control how he feels anymore than you can. And I’m telling you, he’s head over heels.”

“Stop saying that,” I plead, my heart breaking at the mere suggestion that he could love me back because I already know it’s not true. One of the things I love about him is that he’s completely upfront about everything. He’s honest, to a fault, so if he felt something more, he would have said something.

“Girl…”

I shake my head. “No. I can’t, okay? You really think someone that made such a big deal about never having anything more than casual relationships is suddenly going to decide he loves me and wants a real one? I’m not that naive and I know you aren’t either.”

“People are stupid, Row. I mean, you should have seen me before I met your brother… I was a fucking mess and then in walked Lincoln and I had no control over how he made me feel and it sure as hell wasn’t an easy road to get to where we are now but we did it and I’ve never been happier. You just have to take a chance.”