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

Our faces are pressed so close I can barely breathe. But I can see the monster in his eyes. The beast living inside him.

His fingers plunge in and out, setting a brutal rhythm that my body can’t fight.

“No… God,” I breathe as his thumb finds my clit, applying enough pressure to make me unravel.

“Good girl,” he drawls. “Give it to me, Mia. Show me you want this as much as I do.”

A rogue tear slips down my cheek as my body begins to tremble, enslaved to his touch. But suddenly, Cade stops.

“Fuck this,” he mutters to himself. His hand goes to his belt and he snaps it open, undoing his buttons.

God, no.

Not here.

Not like this.

Just then, the blare of his cell phone cuts through the air like a siren.

“Maybe you should—” His hand goes to my throat and squeezes.

“This is happening, baby. Right here, right now.” He works his cock free ,and I feel it against my thigh, thick and hard and ready to take something that isn’t his to take.

But the ringing doesn’t stop. Eventually, he rips his cell out of his pocket and glances at the screen.

“Who is it?” I ask shakily.

“Channing.”

Relief floods me. Sasha got my message. She got it and she got help.

Cade narrows his eyes at me and then glances back at the screen.

It stops suddenly, but a text message follows.

“Fuck,” Cade mumbles to himself as he reads it, rolling off and sitting up. “Motherfucking fuck.”

“What is it?” I ask, smoothing down my skirt.

“We need to leave, now. Get your shit and let’s go.” He leaps up and storms off toward the car.

I grab my purse, pull out my cell phone and quickly text Sasha.

Mia: Thank you… thank you.

17

Bexley

I sit on a bench outside the Henderson building waiting for Channing to appear after his last class of the day, staring down at my cell.

At Mia’s last message.

My grip on the phone tightens until I'm sure it's about to buckle under my fingers.

Mouse: I won't be in class today. Don't worry, everything is fine. 

How can she say that and think I'm not going to worry? Especially when I learn who else isn't in class today.

What has he done with her… to her?

A million and one questions flash through my mind as images of him taking what's mine emerge faster than I can control, threatening to turn me into a version of myself I hate.

Red hot fury stirs in my belly as I stare at my reply. She's read it. I can see the little ticks.

But she never responded.

"Fuck," I mutter to myself, dragging my hand through my hair and tugging until it stings.

Just reply and tell me you're okay, I plead, staring at her previous words.

"Hey," a familiar voice says before feet appear in my vision. "What's wrong?"

"Kingsley's got Mia," I admit.

"I know. Sash and I have it under control. Don't worry."

"W-what?"

"She's back at the house; she's safe. Don't worry. We won't let anything happen to her."

"H-how? What did you do?"

He drops his bag to the floor then lowers himself beside me.

"He took her out to the lake. Gravestone Lake, not the one at the house. She'd text Sasha for help and I called him with some urgent Q news. He was back in a flash and left her at the house."

"He's going to know you lied."

"I didn't lie. Everything I told him was true. It just could have waited."

I sit and consider his words for a few seconds.

"Wait, how do you know Q news? I thought it went straight to Cade."

A smile twitches at his lips.

He looks at me, his eyes narrowing for the briefest moment as if he's trying to decide if he can tell me or not.

"Not even Sasha knows this," he warns.

"O-okay."

"Q… they called me back in after our meeting on Sunday. Seems there might just be a way for me to get what I want."

"Oh?"

"I can't tell you the details. I shouldn't even be telling you this, but… but I know you're on my side."

"I am," I say without missing a beat.

"If I can get them what they need, then maybe, just maybe there could be a way for Sasha and I to be together."

"They know about the two of you?"

"Yeah, I told them everything."

"Shit."

“Pretty much their response. Phillip looked about two seconds away from killing me with his bare hands, but it is what it is, and I'll stand up for Sasha in any way I can."

"She's lucky to have you, man."

"We'll see about that. There's always time for this all to go very wrong."

I don't respond. I can't. I know as well as he does how much is at stake right now.

"Come on, let's go home and see if your girl is still there."

My heart aches at his words. Even if she is, it's not like I'm going to get to spend any time with her. She'll be with him, playing her part, and I'll be forced to the sidelines, just biding my time.

"Easton," Channing says as I reluctantly stand, ready to head toward the lot.

"Yeah."

"Not a word about this to Sasha. I can't get her hopes up again.”

I nod sadly. He's right; we need to start trying to protect the girls in any way we can. Neither of them deserves any of this bullshit.

"Whatever you need, man," I say, slapping him on the shoulder as he stands, and together we head for his car.

Everyone's cars are already in the driveway when we pull up, all of them having finished classes earlier than us today, and as we make our way through to the kitchen, the sound of their voices from the den carries down to us.

"I guess we'll be expected to join the party," I mutter quietly as we each grab a drink.

"Just play your part, bide your time. It's all we can do."

"And just how many people am I going to be expected to kill in that time?" I ask, bringing up a question I really don't want the answer