Chapter 17
870 Words
Bryan
From the shadows across the street, Bryan watched Jace wrap his arms around her.
Of course he got there first.
He always did.
Lexi looked spooked, but not broken. Not how Bryan imagined she’d be when she got the first text. Or the second. Or the photo. He thought maybe she’d cry. Maybe scream. Maybe run. Something real.
But instead, she let Jace in like he was her damn savior.
Bryan’s jaw clenched so hard it ached.
Jace had everything. The name. The girls. The chance to start over. All wrapped up in some tragic little hero package.
And Bryan? He had secrets.
Secrets Jace didn’t even remember.
Like the time Jace’s father gave Bryan a crisp hundred-dollar bill and said, “Don’t tell anyone you’re mine.”
Like the years Bryan spent smiling beside Jace, clapping when he scored, laughing at parties, pretending he didn’t want to rip that golden boy crown off his head and watch him bleed.
But he didn’t need to do that anymore.
Not when he could watch Jace destroy himself. All Bryan had to do was hand him the matches.
He pulled out the burner, fingers steady as he typed.
> Blocked Number:
Cute. But you can’t protect her forever.
And you still owe me a fire, brother.
He hit send and watched the glow of the message leave the screen.
They were getting paranoid now. He liked that. Liked the cracks forming in Jace’s armor.
But Lexi… she was stronger than he expected.
Maybe that’s why he kept pushing.
Maybe that’s why he couldn’t stop.
Because some part of him wanted to see what it would take to make her c***k.
Jace
He didn’t realize he was holding his breath until she opened the door.
Lexi. Barefoot, hair wild from sleep, eyes wide and still watery.
“Are you okay?” he asked, stepping in like he hadn’t already barged into her life with chaos strapped to his back.
She nodded, stepping aside. “Yeah. Just… rattled.”
He followed her into the living room, scanning every window, every shadow. The house was still. Too still.
“I locked all the doors,” she said quietly, like she could read his mind.
“You should’ve called me sooner.”
“I did. You didn’t answer.”
Jace flinched. “I know. I was—”
“Hiding again?” Her voice wasn’t cruel. Just tired. “Jace… if someone’s after me because of you, I deserve the truth.”
He sat on the edge of the couch, elbows on his knees. “It wasn’t supposed to touch you. None of this was.”
Lexi dropped onto the cushion beside him, curling her legs beneath her. “Who’s doing this?”
He hesitated. Thought of all the names it could be. Should be. His gut told him Bryan. Bryan’s name hovered on the edge of his tongue, but it felt wrong. Bryan was… Bryan. A little off sometimes, sure. But loyal. Or so Jace thought.
“There’s this guy,” he finally said. “Someone from my past. The fire. Someone who knew… things I didn’t want getting out.”
“You think it’s him?”
“I don’t know,” he admitted. “But he knows about the sealed records. The girl. My brother.”
Lexi turned to face him. “The girl who died?”
He nodded. “Her name was Cam. Camille. She was our neighbor. Sweet. Quiet. She was in the house when the fire started. I never told anyone that before.”
Lexi’s hand found his, warm and grounding. “Why not?”
“Because I lit the match,” he whispered.
Her breath caught.
“It was an accident. We were just kids,” he continued, voice cracking. “My foster brother lit it, he was my responsibility that day and I… I didn’t try hard enough to stop it, I was the older one.”
Lexi was silent for a long time.
Then—“You’ve been carrying that alone?”
He blinked at her, throat tight. “Yeah.”
She leaned forward. “You’re not alone now.”
The words wrapped around his ribs like a balm. He looked at her—really looked at her—and saw the fear and worry etched across her face… but also something else.
Something that mirrored what burned inside him.
He leaned in before he could think better of it.
Their mouths met halfway.
Slow. Soft. Then hungrier.
Her fingers tangled in his hair, his hand sliding under the hem of her t-shirt to feel the warm curve of her back. She arched into him, breath hitching when he pressed her down onto the cushions.
The kiss deepened. Urgent. Desperate. Like they were trying to make each other forget the chaos waiting outside that door.
His lips trailed to her neck, her jaw, and she whispered his name like a secret.
He didn’t stop.
Not when her shirt came off.
Not when his followed.
Not until they were tangled together, breathless, shaking, stripped of everything but truth and heat.
They crossed a line they couldn’t uncross.
And for a moment—just one—they didn’t care.
- Writer
