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

probably just a little tense. I’m sure I can find a way to help him relax.”

Cade and Ashton chuckle. Brandon is too busy hoovering down his lunch to notice the tension. And Sasha and Channing both watch me with pity in their eyes.

“Where’s Tim?” I ask, noticing his absence.

Cade immediately stiffens, and I file that nugget of information away for another time.

“He’s dealing with Fawn,” Ashton says.

“Dealing with Fawn? What the hell does that mean?”

“It means don’t ask questions you might not like the answer to.”

Silence befalls the table, and I don’t push. Tim is a sore point. Or rather, Fawn is.

“So Rexford, you ready to party with us Electi style on Friday?”

“Hell yeah.” Alex puffs out his chest, and I’m surprised how readily he’s accepting all this.

“Right answer.” Ashton claps him on the shoulder. “Maybe we’ll make an Electi of you yet. What about you, Mia?” His eyes find mine across the table. “Are you ready to party Friday?”

“Ash,” Cade warns.

“What? It’s just a question. Now we’re one big happy family, what could go wrong?”

“I’ll need a new dress,” I say.

“Sasha will take you shopping. Take your friend, too… Annabel, was it?”

“Oh, I’m not sure—”

“Take her.” Cade squeezes my knee under the table. “She is your friend, isn’t she?”

“Yeah, but—”

“So take her. You can have a girl’s trip.”

“Okay. I guess.” I study him, trying to figure out his angle. Because I know Cade.

And he doesn’t do anything without an ulterior motive.

7

Bexley

Our first week in the Electi house is bullshit.

After we got back from the setup, Cade denied all knowledge of who might have called the cops, but his amused smirk said otherwise.

He doesn't want me here, that much is obvious, but he's going to need to try harder if he wants to get rid of me. The gauntlet has been laid down. I'll remain right here, under his feet, reminding him at every possible moment that I hold more power than he ever has for as long as it takes for me to get what I want.

Mia.

I don't care about tradition or rituals.

She's mine.

And one way or another, I'm going to find a way around all that prosapia bullshit. I'm going to release her from Kingsley's claws even if, in the end, she doesn't want me either.

My chest aches at the prospect of that being my reality after what happened with Brook. Hell, I deserve it, even if I had no clue what I was doing.

"You all set for tonight, Bexy?" Ashton asks, throwing his arm around my shoulders as we make our way to the parking lot after class on Friday.

Fuck knows where he appeared from, but he can fuck right off back there again. I might be able to tolerate some of the guys, but Kingsley and Moore are not them. If anything, I wonder if Ashton is worse than Cade. Just the thought is terrifying.

"No. But remind me, why exactly are you always hanging around like a lost sheep? You know your blood means fuck all, right?"

His lips thin in anger. "I'm as fucking important as you are."

"Only because Kingsley thinks so. You need to know that when all this is done and I've stolen his tarnished crown, you're going to be out on your ass where you belong."

"And that's exactly why Cade is going nowhere, Bexy."

"Stop calling me that."

He smirks, telling me that my words just fell on deaf ears. "You don’t have the grit, the determination, the level of ruthlessness that Cade has to see this through. You're weak, Bexy. You let a fucking chick in here." He taps harshly at my head and then my chest. "And that was a fucking mistake, let alone the fact that Mia belongs to Cade." He tuts as we continue walking.

"Are you about done?"

"We're going to end you," he warns.

"If you think forcing me to fuck your whore of a sister is going to get me to back down, then you really need to think again." He has me up against the side of my car with his fist in my shirt in the flash of an eye.

"What the fuck did you call her?" he growls in my face.

"A fucking whore. The only cock around here that hasn’t been inside her is yours, but I even wonder about that at times."

He cocks his arm back to hit me but not before his name is barked across the parking lot, and, like a good little puppy dog, he lets go of me.

"That's it, Ash. Be a good little boy for your master,” I taunt.

"What's going on?" Cade barks, joining us in the parking lot.

"Just having a little fun with the new boy." Ashton smirks.

"Keep your fists in check, Moore." The friends stare at each other for a few minutes as some silent conversation passes between them.

I'm just about to turn my back on them and fuck off when Cade turns his evil eyes on me. "You ready for tonight?"

"No," I deadpan, ripping my driver's door open. "And if you even try anything, I'm going to fucking end you."

He holds his hands up in defense. "We're just gonna party, man. No ulterior motive."

I raise a brow at him. Like fuck do I believe that. Motherfucker is always up to something.

"Whatever. I'm not interested." Climbing into my car, I rev the engine and gun it out of the parking lot.

The house is a hive of activity when I walk through to the kitchen as Cade's staff get it ready for tonight's party. The kitchen counters are already lined with alcohol, and, after grabbing myself a soda from the fridge, I swipe a couple of bottles of vodka so I can have myself a little party for one while the rest of them do whatever the fuck it is they want to do down here.

Swinging the door open the second I get to it, I blow into my room, slamming it behind me, wishing like fuck the lock actually worked.

Part of me wants to get the hell in my car