CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
Lexi
After the long talk I had with Axle, I went to find Lex. We sat together for a while, and I told him everything—how I felt about Axle, how confused I was, how scared. As always, Lex supported me. He listened, nodded, and held my hand when my voice trembled.
But he was skeptical.
He told me he’d heard things about Axle. Things he couldn’t repeat. Things that were just… bad.
I didn’t press him. I could see the conflict in his eyes. He didn’t want to hurt me, but he didn’t trust Axle either. And honestly? I was scared too. I’d never felt this way for anyone. I’d never been in a relationship before. I had no idea how it was supposed to work.
Axle had told me he wanted me. But that didn’t mean he liked me. Or that he wanted me to be his girlfriend. It was all too confusing. And I promised myself I would find him and make him give me the answers I needed.
I saw him leave earlier after the cake cutting with his father—or should I say, Elric. I looked around and saw Elric talking with someone else, which meant Axle was alone.
This was my chance.
I walked over to the drinks cooler and pulled out a cold beer. I don’t normally drink, but right now, I needed something to steady me. Something to brace me for the conversation I was about to have.
After two gulps, I felt ready. I dropped the half-filled bottle and made my way to the secluded part of the beach—the same place Axle had taken me earlier.
I couldn’t have been more hurt or shocked.
A harsh sob escaped my throat before I had the chance to cover my mouth.
Axle and Mina were kissing.
I froze.
I know Axle told me they weren’t blood relatives, but it still felt wrong. It felt weird. It felt like betrayal.
How could he do this?
I didn’t even know if I could call it betrayal. We weren’t exclusive. We weren’t even in a relationship. But it still felt like betrayal. He had played me. And I fell for it like the naive fool I was.
They stopped kissing and turned to me as soon as the sob left my mouth. Axle didn’t even bother to get up. He didn’t try to explain. He just sat there, his expression hardening.
Did he even mean all the things he said to me?
I stood there, stunned. My heart breaking into a million tiny pieces. But I didn’t cry. I was too angry to cry.
"Oops, I guess the cat is out of the bag," Mina said, smiling as she hugged Axle.
I felt like snapping her neck. Pulling her hair out by the roots. Never in my life had my thoughts been so dark.
He didn’t hug her back. He didn’t say anything. But he didn’t dispute what she said either. He just kept staring at me.
And that annoyed me even more.
"Are you going to say anything?" I asked, my anger evident in every syllable.
"No," he said.
And I snapped.
I launched at him with everything I had—hitting him, scratching his eyes out, and biting him. Only… all of it happened in my mind. I couldn’t believe how much of a bastard he was.
"You bastard!" I yelled, turning to Mina. If she was the one he loved, I would take her away from him. I would expose the truth. "He’s nothing but a cheap bastard."
My heart ached. I stumbled backward slightly, the pain too great. I had been ready to open my heart to him. But I was a fool once. I wouldn’t be a fool again.
Tears blurred my vision, but I refused to let them fall.
"Hey you, been searching for you all evening," Eric said, catching me before I fell.
I saw Axle grit his teeth in anger as Eric touched me. I swallowed my tears. He might not want to be with me, but I knew it would hurt him to see me with Eric.
I know, I know—Eric’s a human. I shouldn’t use him as a pawn. But he wasn’t innocent either. He had seen Axle coming the other day before he pressed his lips to mine.
Without thinking, I turned to Eric and gave him the biggest smile I could muster.
"Oh, I’m sorry. I just got lost. I interrupted their makeout session. Thanks for coming to find me. Let’s get out of their hair," I said, pulling him closer.
His hands snaked around my waist, and I smiled at him. From the corner of my eye, I saw Axle’s expression darken. He looked like he was about to smash something.
A plan formed instantly.
I snaked my arms around Eric’s neck and touched my lips to his. He smiled before responding, kissing me back.
His mouth was warm. It tasted of alcohol and cigarettes. The combination was dizzying. My head spun from the effect. His kiss wasn’t bad—but it couldn’t compare to the bone-melting kiss I’d received from Axle.
Still, I had to push it.
There was no mistaking the look on Axle’s face. I had accomplished my mission.
I smirked at him and turned to Mina.
"Oops. I guess two cats have been let out of the bag today," I said sweetly.
She looked at me in pure shock.
"Wow, Smith. You do play to win. Barely your first month and you’ve managed to snag the captain of the basketball team," she laughed.
"Well, you know… it just happened. It wasn’t planned. But you know, none of these things ever are," I said, turning my attention to Eric.
"What’s wrong, Hunt? Are you feeling alright?" Eric asked, and I nearly burst out laughing.
"Shaw, get the fuck out of my party," Axle snapped.
I looked at him, horrified. I hadn’t expected him to show his jealousy in front of Mina.
"What! You can’t kick him out. He’s the captain of your team!" I shouted.
Eric just chuckled beside me.
Before Mina mentioned it, I hadn’t even known Eric was the captain of the basketball team.
"Oh yeah? Is that why you’re with him—because he’s the captain?" Axle sneered.
I glared at him. "Of course not. It’s because he’s a better guy than you."
"Is that what he’s told you? He’s nothing but a pathetic excuse of a guy who can’t even stand up to his own father."
"And you? What about you? You’re an arrogant son of a gun who made out with another girl and is claiming to be in love with his stepsister. How psychotic is that?"
"I never promised anything to anyone," he said, standing up from the sand.
"Well then, I guess you have no fault, do you?" I said, voice trembling.
I was done talking. My heart had taken more than it could handle.
"Let’s get out of here," I said to Eric.
And without a single backward glance, we walked away.