Tarnished Crown (Gravestone Elite #2) by Caitlyn Dare (books like beach read TXT) 📕

all in black, like they’re about to commit the heist of the century.

“Electi business.”

“So that’s how it’s going to be now?”

He lets out a thin breath. “What other choice is there? You ended things, Mia… you did that. We’re all just pawns in Kingsley’s game of life, right?”

Silence falls over us again. There are so many things I want to say. But I can’t. No words will change the fact that I’m Cade’s prosapia. Unless I can find some leverage to get myself out of this mess, I am his. Just as Bexley is.

“Fuck, this is so fucked.” Bexley runs a hand over his head and down the back of his neck. “All I can think about is kissing you, little mouse.” He finally takes a step forward, close enough that I can feel the heat radiating off his body.

“You can’t… don’t.” I put my hand up between us, barely touching him. It’s enough to make him shudder, though. “It’ll get easier,” I whisper as the cracks in my heart splinter wider.

The longer we’re apart, the longer we bury our unresolved feelings for one another, the easier it’ll be.

At least, that’s what I keep telling myself.

My heart breaks all over again as I step away from Bexley and wrap my arms around my waist.

“Mia?” His voice cracks, but I don’t meet his intense stare. If I look at him, I’ll break. And if I break, nothing good can come from that.

“Tell Sasha I’m waiting outside,” I say, slipping around him and out the front door.

To my bittersweet relief, Bexley doesn’t follow me.

The next day at school, my worst nightmare comes true. Cade is waiting outside my morning class to walk me to their secret dining room. And when he ushers me inside, I find Bexley, Alex… and Brook, all sitting there.

“What is this?” I ask, swallowing the ball of emotion stuck in my throat.

“The whole gang together.” He chuckles. “Easton and Rexford are Electi now. They’re going to be around a lot.” Cade takes my hand and tugs gently, forcing me to stop. “Is that going to be a problem?”

“Not at all.” The lie rolls off my tongue. “I was referring to Brook.” My lips purse.

Amusement glints in Cade’s eyes. “I know you two don’t see eye to eye.”

“Understatement of the year,” I murmur. “She wants you. That’s a problem.”

“Hmm, I like it when you get all possessive, babe.” Cade closes the small distance between us and brushes his hand along the side of my neck. “But I’m not hers, am I?”

He’s testing me.

This is a test.

And I walked right into it.

Crap.

I feel them all watching. Feel their stares of curiosity and concern and jealousy. Cade wants me to prove my loyalty in front of them. He wants me to claim him.

“No, you’re not,” I say without missing a beat.

“Better prove it then.” He smirks.

But I almost feel relieved that I figured it out.

Wrapping my arms around his broad shoulders, I lean up on my tiptoes and brush my lips over his. Once. Twice. A third time. I can’t bring myself to really kiss him, but I know the second he bands his arm around my waist that he’s going to make this into something more.

Cade plunges his tongue past my lips as he pulls my body into his. He likes this. Dominating me. Destroying me. I feel the evidence of his arousal pressed up against my stomach as he kisses me like he’s trying to devour me.

“Yo, asshole,” Ashton yells. “We’re trying to eat.”

“Maybe I’ll eat you.” He murmurs against my swollen lips. “Maybe I’ll lay you out on the table and feast on your traitorous little pussy. I bet Easton would love that. I know Ash would. They’d want to touch you, Mia. They’d want to taste what’s mine… but you wouldn’t let them, would you, babe?” His fingers close around my throat as he breathes the dirty words into me. “I’d make you come so fucking hard you forgot Easton was ever inside you.”

My legs quiver slightly as my body heats at his words. I should be repulsed. I am repulsed. But knowing that Bexley is watching us, knowing that Cade is out of his mind with jealousy because Bexley has had me and he hasn’t… well, it does things to me. Dark, twisted things.

Shame washes over me.

One of his hands skates down my spine and cups the curve of my ass.

“Cade,” I warn.

“This ass is mine, Mia. And one day, I’m going to—”

“Kingsley,” Channing calls. “Put the poor girl down and let her eat.”

Cade inhales a ragged breath, and for a second, I think he’s going to go off at Channing. But he doesn’t. Instead, he grabs my hand and tugs me over to the table. “Can’t help it if my girl looks good enough to eat.” He shoots the table a wicked grin.

Brook huffs something under her breath but doesn’t make a scene.

“Here.” Sasha pats the chair beside her, and I sit down.

“Thanks.”

Are you okay? her eyes ask me, and I nod. I can’t explain it, but I feel strong. I feel determined to see this thing through and take back my freedom.

But I have to play my part.

I have to make Cade believe I want him.

“So what do you think of our little setup here?” Cade asks Bexley and Alex, keeping one hand firmly on mine.

“It beats eating with the masses,” Alex replies, helping himself to another fry. But not a regular fry. One of those rustic, triple cooked fries.

“Easton?”

A ripple goes through the air as Bexley glares at Cade. “I think I prefer eating elsewhere.” He shoots up and looks at Alex, but he doesn’t follow as he storms from the room.

“You made the right choice, Rexford,” Cade says. “Easton can keep fighting, but it’ll only make things harder than they need to be. Brook, why don’t you make sure our boy is okay?”

“Sure thing.” She dabs her blood red lips with a napkin before shooting me a smug smirk. “He’s