Chapter 23

Riley

Everyone knows about the party last night and what happened. Everyone. Students I've never even met before point and laugh. And if they aren't basking in my humiliation, I'm being ignored, treated like I'm not even a person. My insides hurt, my eyes are red this morning, and there is nothing I can do about the purple half-moons under them. I didn't sleep. My mind replayed every minute of what I had witnessed. The dismissal text from Reign still sits on my phone, I can't make myself delete it. Almost like I need to have it, to remind myself it's real and that he doesn't deserve me. You don't treat people you love like this. Love. That's the cherry on top, I had fallen in love with Reign Thorn, my greatest rival, and he's been planning my downfall this entire time.

The gossip flies around me. The Rebels stayed all night. Brooklyn hung out with Reign until he took her home. The rumors go on and on, without anyone even caring that each word is cutting me open. That my heart is wrecked and it hurts. The pain of having your heartbroken fucking hurts.

I go out of my way all day to avoid Reign, not that it matters with most of our classes together. He gets there after me and leaves before me, never making eye contact and never apologizing for being a Grade-A asshole. It's hard but I force myself not to look at him. I also refuse to hide. Using my best ice-queen stance, I glare at anyone who even looks twice at me. Daring them to say the shitty things they've been saying behind my back to my face. I want to leave, have my dad take me out of All Saints and go back home. Until I pull up his last text to me, reminding me to take advantage of what is being offered to me. My future could still be set from staying here. And there is hockey. Against all odds, I have found myself liking my new team, clicking with these girls, and looking forward to the games this season. I won't let Reign or my broken heart ruin this for me. Even when Hunter turns to me in film class and mouths, told you so , I remain strong for myself.

The end of the day can't come fast enough and against medical opinion I go to practice. Coach Silver takes one look at me, who knows what she sees, all that matters is that she lets me skate. I can't participate in drills or have actual contact with my team members, but I'll take the win. Being on the ice gives my brain a chance to stop thinking about what is going on outside of this building. My focus is on the plays and deciding what I would do as the player if I was in a game situation. The rest of the world melts away for the hours I'm there.

"I'm glad you aren't letting him get to you." Quinn skates next to the bench and grabs her water bottle. I eye her and shrug.

"As opposed to what? Starting to knock out any girl he's ever been with or looked at?"

Quinn snorts and shakes her head. "These girls are wild. I used to think it was just the ones here acting stupid, trying to get on his good side. I can't imagine doing anything that horrible to another female over a guy."

I tilt my head at her, wondering if she's been body snatched. "You do remember our last challenge, don't you?"

Quinn's face turns down and her nose scrunches like the memory is painful. "I challenged you because of the rivalry. Reign seemed like a shoe-in to make it happen. Not because I wanted him."

I turn back to taping my stick, something I'd been doing methodically while sitting on the bench. I like Quinn. I respect her as a player on the ice, but I'm not ready to delve into the dirty details of my relationship with Reign.

"I'm just saying, you're handling the situation with grace. Way better than these other girls and honestly, he's a fucking idiot if this isn't all for show," Quinn adds while setting her bottle down and giving me a small smile before she skates back toward the team.

For some reason her words hit me the most. Whether it's because she complimented me or because she confirmed something I had been wondering myself. Is this all for show? And if so, why am I the one getting hurt?

The arena is dark by the time I peel myself off the bench in the locker room. After practice, I helped Coach Silver pick up, then stayed hidden in the locker room. It's silly but nowhere else feels safe at the moment. My dorm reminds me of Reign, the library reminds me of him too. Being on the ice cleared my mind and I am reluctant to leave the vicinity. With my coat pulled tightly against my body, I walk out into the chilled air. A car is parked out front, and when my gaze lifts, my eyes catch on a pair of the warmest caramel ones.

I shuffle my feet farther, glancing around at the vacant area before turning back to Blade. "What are you doing here?"

He shoves his hands in his pockets and shrugs. "I heard you might need someone to talk to."

My brow rises. Emma and Sam wouldn't pull something like this. It isn't their style, and it's messy. Scanning the area, my gut clenches knowing it's just him and me. "Did you wait for me?"

Blade pushes off his car and steps closer. "I was hoping to catch you right after practice. I figured with your concussion you wouldn't be in this late. Sorry if it looks creepy."

"Just a little." I laugh and try to blow off the situation. "Well, as you can see, I'm in one piece, so thanks for checking on me, but I'm fine."

Blade nods, his head falling. "I'm sorry again, Riley. About how I handled everything, and at the diner. I didn't want to see you get hurt by him and now, he has hurt you again."

I shake my head and hold my hand out to stop his words. They shouldn't be painful, but there is something about his tone that is tearing me apart. "It doesn't concern you, Blade. I appreciate you checking in, but it's not needed. I'm a big girl. I can handle myself. Have a good night."

I turn to walk away when Blade calls out my name again.

"You deserve better, Riley. You always have. Better than him and better than me. I can't sit by and watch him play you like this." His eyes sear into mine, and his jaw clenches.

My heart hammers in my chest and tears fill my eyes. "Maybe not. I made the decision. I will take the consequences. I'm fine, Blade. Really. I don't need you to rescue me."

He shakes his head, eyes wide. He can't believe I'm not the damsel in distress he believes me to be. "At least let me take you to the dorms. It's freezing out."

"You should go," I tell him, keeping my voice flat and even.

"I'm not afraid of him, Riley. He can punch my face in all he wants; I won't walk away from you this time."

I open my mouth to argue when another set of headlights comes barreling through the parking lot. The sleek, black Nissan GT-R slams to a stop, right next to Blade's waiting SUV. An angry looking Reign gets out and steps between us.

"Back up from my girl, Meyer, unless you want to die this time."

Blade sneers at Reign. My mouth opens in shock from his presence. He's ignored me, stomped on my heart and let another girl touch him, kiss him, rub her body all over him and he has the nerve to show up here.

"You hurt her, Thorn. I backed off, gave you the opening and you made her cry."

Reign's hands turn into fists. "You didn't give me shit, Meyer. She was never yours to begin with."

"She's not yours now. You have a new bunny already." Blade flashes an image toward Reign and I want to throw up. It's from the party, and his lips are hovering over hers.

Reign slaps Blade's phone out of his hand before throwing his fist in Blade's face. Blade stumbles back, the look of rage and hate mixing in his eyes, before he launches himself at Reign. Reign dodges and counters with an uppercut. They slam into Blade's car from the impact. It's chaos in such a short time. For once Carter and Leif are not around and I'm wishing they are. Someone needs to stop Reign from killing Blade. Blade swings again and catches Reign in the cheek before Reign manages to slam Blade to the ground and get a kick in. I jump at the sound of air leaving Blade's lungs and lunge for Reign.

"Reign, stop, please. He didn't do anything but check up on me."

Reign's chest heaves under his coat, and his icy blue eyes pin me in place. "You aren't his to check up on. You're mine. Since you looked at me when we were six years old, you've been mine."

God his words are tearing me apart. Tears stream down my face and all I want to do is run. This feels wrong. His words don't match the actions of the last few days. As much as I want to, I can't forget the memory of her body on his, the way he gripped her and they laughed at my message while my heart was shattering.

"No. Reign." I lift my chin in defiance. "I'm not yours."

Stomping my way past them both, I take the path through the trees toward my dorm. It's trickier at night, and a light dusting of snow covers the dirt, but Reign can't follow me. I hear cursing and a slamming of car doors behind me. My time is limited and I'm not ready for the emotional toil that Reign brings with him. My legs pump and my feet carry me down the path and through the open field to the side of my building. I make it to the door right as Reign is pulling into the lot. Adrenaline spikes in my veins along with fear.

I slip in and hit the elevator button, praying it will come fast. The doors close right in front of my face when Reign finally gets in. Our eyes lock. I lift my middle finger up, flashing him a giant fuck you. The elevator rises and I'm quickly to my floor. Reign isn't one to just give up though, and I know my time is short-lived. My fingers clutch the key and I slide it in the lock. The lock clicks and my hand lands on the handle right as the side door bangs open. I glance over my shoulder at him, daring him to come closer while also hoping that he doesn't. Being around Reign isn't good for me, yet I crave him at the same time. His eyes turn liquid blue and the gleam in them can only be read as hunger. My body betrays me, going soft for him, knowing he is near. My heart wants to reach out for him and lie at his feet.

Keeping my back straight, I square my shoulders, facing him head on. "No."

"Yes."

"No. You don't get to do this," I reply, shaking my head in denial.

He moves closer, until we're barely separated. My skin tingles from the awareness of him. I breathe him in, savoring his fresh, woodsy scent. I miss him. But he ruined everything.

Reign's hand slides along my throat before gripping my jaw in his hand, forcing my eyes to his. Tears fill my vision and my chest aches with the suppressed sob. He's destroying me and the ice-wall built tightly around my heart.

"You're mine, Riles. Not his."

Glaring at him I let my hurt and anger twist in my voice. "I stopped being yours when you let yourself be touched by her. "

"She means nothing. That is a means to an end."

"You had sex with her," I accuse him, my worst fears being thrown out to the universe.

Reign's eyes gleam, and his jaw clenches. I can't even breathe before he's crowding the door, his chest pressing into mine so hard I can feel his heartbeat against mine; his lower half molds against mine and I can feel his hardness press against my stomach. "I didn't. I didn't even kiss her. I will never cheat on you. There could never be anyone else but you, Riley Conrad."

His hand twists the door knob and he pushes the door behind me, scooping me off my feet and walking us into my room. My hands fist in his sweatshirt and I push him away the minute he sets me down.

"Don't touch me. I want you to leave, Reign."

He shakes his head, his black locks swishing. "Not yet. I need you to hear me."

"I don't have to do anything. You broke us, Reign, the minute you touched her," I remind him. My chest flushes. Everything hurts. My body physically aches thinking about the party and the way he held her.

"No, I didn't. Babe, I know how it looks. I know you don't believe me right now, but I promise you, I didn't kiss her. I didn't want to touch her. I would not fuck her. She means nothing." He reaches for me, but I move out of his grip.

My dorm is only so big and I need space. The air is too thick, the feelings are too much. I feel like I'm being torn in half. "I want to be alone, Reign. I can't trust you."

"Fuck that." He storms his way over to me, one of his hands circling behind my back and the other gripping behind my neck.

My body bends to his will, my hands landing on his forearms, and my lips parting when his land on mine. Our kiss is aggressive, a battle of tongues and teeth that he uses to try and prove his point, and I fight back. I don't stop him. I can't push him away because as mad as I am, my heart hurts thinking about not having this again. I have to break up with him.

"This isn't something we break up over, Riley. What I'm doing is to protect you. No one will hurt you ever again."

I shake my head and step out of his embrace, my arms circling my waist. "I can't be with you anymore."

"Are you going to be with Blade?" he asks, his eyes murderous.

My shoulders shrug. "It's none of your business."

Reign grips my face with both hands and I suck in my breath from the fury radiating off of him. "Everything about you is my business. You're mine. You will never be his. And I will kill any guy who tries to take you away from me."

He sounds like he's a fraction away from breaking. The blue in his eyes darkens more while he stares me down, daring me to challenge his claim. It kills me that I can't. I want to prove him wrong, but my body refuses to cooperate. It just wants him and his touch. The same things I've wanted since the first night on the beach at summer camp. I've been wrecked, permanently changed, and marked by Reign.

I launch myself into his arms, my legs around his waist, pulling his face to mine for another brutal kiss. I shove all my feelings and doubts and insecurities into the kiss. Purging myself of him. With my legs tightly anchored on his hips, I lift my arms and Reign assists in ripping my sweatshirt off over my head. Our lips barely leave each other. He devours my lips like he knows our time is coming to an end despite how hard he's fighting it.

Reign takes me down to the bed with him and I've already made up my mind. I want this. I want this with him, one last time, one more night of being his. He must have broken my brain along with my heart. He turns and lays my body down on the bed, his fingers hooking in the band of my sweatpants and yanking them down. They fall to the floor and his hands are back, taking down my underwear, and soon I'm naked and he's towering over me fully dressed.

My eyes skate over him and I reach for his waistband. Reign steps back and I honest to god pout. His lips twist into a devious smile, knowing what he's doing to me. He unzips his jacket and sets it on the desk chair before lifting his long sleeve t-shirt off next. I'm greeted with his perfect, golden skin stretched over chiseled abs. That damn necklace hangs right between his pectoral muscles, next to his heart. The gold metal gleams under the light mocking me. He rips off his track pants and briefs and tosses them to the side of the bed.

Reign's fingers gently run over my throat, his thumb stroking my pulse before he pushes me onto my back. My hands automatically find themselves in his hair, while he grips my waist and then my legs, spreading me wide and shoving his thighs between mine, pinning my lower half to the bed. He kisses me hard. Desperate. Our lips tangling once again and our moans fill the air. I let myself touch his shoulders, run along his back, and try to pull him against me. Like this I can pretend that everything is fine. His kissing consumes every thought I have and blocks out the hurt and the truth of what has happened to us. My hips tilt up, grinding against him, and he groans low in his throat.

"You're going to kill me with your pretty pussy, babe. I've been desperate to be inside you the past few days. Needing you to take my cock," he growls, lining the head of his cock up with my entrance, rubbing it through the folds before pushing inside.

"Fuck, you take me so well." His back arches, his body straining over mine. My eyes watch his abs flex with each thrust, his arms tightening at my sides. His chain dangles between us, grazing the soft flesh right over my heart. He grabs my hips, yanking me closer and locking eyes with me as he drives his cock deeper into my throbbing pussy.

"Reign," I moan, trying to take all of him, my body fighting to accommodate his length. My will to run, to stop this completely vanished. I just want him closer, deeper, marking me from the inside as his.

"You're such a good girl. My puck slut. My everything," he praises me, his voice thick and filled with lust from how good I'm making him feel.

I can feel my body tightening, my core fluttering while he pounds in and out of me. Our pants fill the air, the sound of our urgent kisses and skin slapping is almost too much to bear. I love this. I am going to miss this when I let him go again.

"Focus on me, babe. Don't go anywhere in that beautiful brain of yours. This is you and me, and it's forever." Reign's words bring me floating back down, before pitching me back over into an all-consuming burst of pleasure. "Look at me," he practically growls, his teeth scraping along my jaw and throat. I do though. I look at him. Our gazes collide and the emotion in his eyes that he holds for me sets me off. My core tightens and then I'm pulsing around his thick cock, my heart hammering in my chest.

Reign groans. "Fuck, yes. You're so perfect, babe. Choke my cock."

My body responds again to his dirty words, clamping around him when his thrusts become more erratic, his gaze boring into mine. His eyes are wild and determined, the icy blue burning brightly. "You are mine, Riley. I love you."

I want that. And if we could rewind time maybe it would be enough. Tears spring to my eyes. I instantly come again, and this time, Reign joins me. He comes hard, hot spurts of cum filling me completely. My entire body is limp and warm when we finish. Reign kisses my lips once more before pushing off the bed and walking into my bathroom. Water turns on and a few seconds later, a warm cloth is pressed against my sex. I watch him, moving around, gathering his t-shirt off the floor and helping me into it. He reaches for his briefs and I think this is it. He's leaving now and tomorrow I have to go back to the reality that we're done. That he lied. That I don't trust him.

He surprises me by climbing into bed behind me, curling around my back and his arms holding me close. "You have to leave before I get up," I tell him. If he continues like this my resolve will weaken and I can't be that girl who lets her boyfriend walk all over her.

"Sure, babe," he whispers into my neck, before pressing his lips to the tender skin. I should be happy he agreed, but I can only hear his words in my head as I drift off to sleep. I love you.