Beat (The Beat and The Pulse #1) by Amity Cross Page B

midnight and wanted to gag. He was probably fucking
Monica, then coming here to toy with me, but that still didn’t explain that cut
on his face. Maybe she liked it rough ? Puke.
    As soon as the
thought splintered through my mind, so did an image of him fucking her .
I hit the bag harder, tears springing into my eyes.
    Crying wouldn’t help
anyone.
    “Ren?”
    He emerged out of the
shadows like some kind of predator. Lucky me. Despite everything, Ash’d turned
up in his usual silent creeper way to rub it in…just like clockwork.
    I stopped abruptly,
my heart jackhammering. “Fuck off.”
    “I’m not going away,
Ren.” His voice was low and deep and contained a hint of something that sounded
like determination. Determination for what though? Keeping the game going for
as long as he could?
    “You should.”
    His jaw clenched like
he was trying to stop himself from saying what he really wanted to. He was
never straight up, always biting back his words. I was sick of it.
    “I saw you with her.
All day, every day-” In the shower palming your cock .
    “You’re jealous of her ?”
he scoffed.
    “Why wouldn’t I be?”
I snapped.
    “She’s nothing.”
    “Fuck off,” I hissed,
not looking at him. Liar .
    “Ren.”
    The way he said my
name always set off this echo deep inside my body. It made me wet, but what was
the point? It never went anywhere. I didn’t want to be his sloppy seconds. I
didn’t want to touch him after his cock had ploughed into my evil half-sister
only hours before.
    “You made yourself
perfectly clear last night,” I said, trying to keep my voice clear. “So, if
this is just pouring salt into the wound, just fuck off because I don't need
it.”
    “Ren, listen to me-”
    I turned on my heel
and shoved him hard in the chest, the contact sending spikes of pleasure up my
arms. “No, you listen to  me . I’m not a toy to be played with, Ash.
You can’t come here and screw with me, then run off and fuck my heartless bitch
of a sister behind my back. You can’t sleep with me, you can’t touch me and you
sure as fuck can’t kiss me again.  Ever . I’m a human fucking being
and I’ve been through enough shit in my life without having you fuck it up
beyond recognition. This is my time and my space. Get the fuck
out of it.”
    He stared at me like
I’d just kicked his puppy and it only made my rage flare into an inferno.
    “Didn’t you hear me? Get
out .”
    Without another word,
he slinked off across the studio and shoved the door open with a violent jab.
It slammed behind him and then I was alone. Glaring, I went over and punched in
the alarm code before locking him and the world out.
    I was a game.
Remembering the day he fought with Dean in the ring, he'd split up the verbal
slinging match between Monica and I and led her away, leaving me behind. He
sided with her. He’d done nothing to stand up for me because he was too busy
being an asshole. It was like he knew I was an easy target and was taking full
advantage.
    I was so stupid.
    I was just a little
girl that was in too far over her head.
    The moment I had
enough cash, I was getting out of Beat and never coming back.

 

 
    Chapter 19
    Ren

 
 
    “You never asked me
yesterday.”
    I stood behind Seth
as he battled with the steamer on the coffee machine. He promised to ask me out
again yesterday, but he hadn’t uttered a word to me all morning. Today was
panning out to be much the same and I wondered if I’d hurt his feelings the
first time round.
    I was finally ready
to take matters into my own hands - matters being my life. I was no longer
resigning myself to being slave to Ash Fuller and whatever that thing that
sparked the air between us. Obviously, I was the only one who felt it. Time to
cut the weeds out of my life and do what I wanted for a change.
    Seth shrugged,
glancing over his shoulder at me. “Okay, so I’m asking now then.”
    I didn’t have to
think very hard about it. “Sure.”
    Seth's entire