Thrive (Addicted, #4)(12)

No one even gives me a chance.

They just assume I’m going to fuck up before I actually do.

I don’t want to be blindsided anymore. Not by the people close to me.

Ryke stares at me for a long moment before saying, “I’d never sleep with Daisy.” He’s said as much before.

Rose suddenly rises from the table, her purse on her arm. “I have to go back to work, but next time you talk about my little sister in the context of fucking, be smart enough and don’t do it in front of me.” She drills a glare into Ryke. “She’s reckless and impulsive, and despite those flaws, she’s still my sister. I love her more than I will ever love any of you at this table.” She pauses. “And you should know that I own a gun. I’m also a better shot than Connor.” With this, she spins on her heels and walks confidently to the exit.

Connor never takes his eyes off Rose.

I’m so glad I’m not dating her.

I focus back on Ryke. “Why does Daisy have your shirt and shorts?”

“We rode to a quarry and went swimming,” he explains. “My friend Sully was there. We ended up at her house…” he trails off, putting doubt in my head again.

“You mean her parent’s house?”

“Yeah,” he says. “Just to dry our clothes. It was closer than my apartment.”

“This sounds so sketchy—”

“I know, but it’s the fucking truth. I had to leave early, so I ended up just wearing an extra pair of shorts in Sully’s Jeep. I left my clothes in her dryer.” His Adam’s apple bobs as he swallows. “I promise it wasn’t anything like you’re thinking.” He sets an elbow on the table, angled back towards me. “I know you shouldn’t trust me, but I need you to—I want you to. Please.”

This is a moment that will define the rest of my relationship with him. I can sense it. “I’m going to ask you this one time, and I want you to be completely one-hundred percent honest with me.”

Ryke nods. “Okay.”

“Are you attracted to Daisy?”

He stares directly into my narrowed eyes. And he says, “No.”

I try to breathe a sigh of relief, but this nagging devil on my shoulder says: Don’t believe him. Don’t trust him. Don’t love him.

All he’ll do is hurt you.

“Not one time? She’s a model—”

“She’s gorgeous,” Ryke admits, “but she’s sixteen, Lo. How many times do I have to say the same thing for you to fucking believe me?” I don’t know.

“And when she’s eighteen?” I ask. I’ve never seen Ryke with a girl longer than a few weeks. I can’t stomach the thought of my brother screwing over Daisy.

“No. Nothing’ll change,” he tells me. “I promise you that we’ll always be just friends.”

I nod a few times, letting this sink in, accepting it as the truth. “Okay.” I pass him his phone. “I believe you.”

Don’t believe him.

I’m going to.

Because he’s my brother, and he won’t hurt me like that.

And if he betrays me—then it’s my fault for letting him in.





{ 5 }

0 years : 02 months

October





LILY CALLOWAY


I lie on my stomach, my canopy net draped around my bed. Too Cute! Puppies on Animal Planet plays, and I try not to flip open the stack of tabloids beside me. Rose told me to burn the picture of me eating a hot dog, but it’s still inside one of those magazines.

Burning one won’t rid them all. Anyway, I think Rose just likes fire.

The door suddenly swings open, and I frantically swipe the tabloids off the mattress. They tangle in the net and hang midair. Uhh…

Lo hesitates in the door frame, his face sharpening as he looks from me to the magazines to the television puppies and back to me. “Okay, this has got to end.” He slams the door and dials a number in his phone.

“What?” I kneel. “It’s not porn!”

He walks further into the room and then slips his phone back in his pocket.

“Who’d you text? I thought we decided that we didn’t need anyone else to deal with our problems.”

“This isn’t about sex,” Lo says, climbing onto the bed and taking a seat beside me. He combs my hair out of my face. “This is about you, frightened to go outside, scared of the fucking paparazzi. You can’t live like this. Christ, I can’t live like this.”

“It’s getting worse,” I tell Lo honestly. “I feel like every time I go outside with you, there’s another article about how I’m a lying, cheating slut who’s with Ryke.” I shrug. “I figure it’s easier for everyone else if I just stay here.” My eyes flicker to the television. “And plus, the puppies…”

“You can watch your puppies in a park.” Lo searches for the remote underneath decorative pillows.

“Hey,” I say, tackling him to stop. “Baby sloths are coming on next.”

“Then we can go to the zoo. Anything but staying cooped up here, Lil.” He grabs my arms and pushes me back.

I climb on him, channeling my inner-monkey (it helps that Chimps was on prior to Too Cute!) “You can’t…” I wrap my thighs around his waist, his back against the mattress now. And I try to press his arms above his head.