Filed To Story: Pretty Poisoned Novel by Elle Mitchell
I drop my head in my hands; tears leak from the corners of my eyes.
“Declan told me you’re just obsessed with the idea of love. I could be anyone.”
I’m just the one who’s broken and stupid enough to believe it.
“That’s not true. You know that’s not true now, right? You’re my black licorice,” Luca says, nuzzling his face against my neck while running his fingers down my back. “My pretty, poisonous girl. You’re so sweet, Teagan. I’ll let you kill me before I’ll hurt you; I’ll never get enough of you. I’ll love you until my heart stops.”
“Stop it,” I sob.
“We have another problem,” Declan tells us. “Teagan’s sister is here.”
“How did she” I start.
Never mind. I share my location with her. That’s why she was callingshe’s already here. I didn’t even see what time those texts were sent.
“Well, tell her to fuck off,” Luca says.
“I can’t do that,” Declan says. “She told the front desk that if Teagan wasn’t downstairs in fifteen minutes, she would send the police to do a welfare check. Teagan needs to go downstairs and talk to her. Get dressed.”
I wipe my eyes and get dressed like he said, pulling on a pair of jeans, a hoodie, and my black Chucks.
“I’ll go with her,” Luca says.
“No,” Declan tells him. “She has to go by herself.”
“That’s a terrible fucking idea!” Luca says. “She’s going to fuck with her headyou go with her, then!”
“Teagan is free to come and go as she pleases,” Declan says. “We need to show her that. Come on, Teagan.”
Declan wraps his arm around me, and we walk out of the room and then through the hallway to the elevator with Luca behind us.
“You can’t come downstairs, Lucayou need to stay here and calm the fuck down.”
“You said you wouldn’t leave me,” Luca says as I step into the elevator with Declan. “You fucking promised me.”
I avert my eyes and wait for the doors to close.
“Think about what I said, Teagan,” Declan says after the doors close.
“I am thinking about it,” I say softly.
“I didn’t realize what he was doing. I was distracted by my fight with Layla. And once I did, it was too late. I thought we were going to have to kill her. He left a knife close enough that she was able to get free. I don’t know if it was on purpose or not.”
“Please stop.”
When the doors open on the first floor, Luca is waiting in front of them.
“How the fuck did you get down here?” Declan asks.
“Ran down the stairs,” Luca says. “Or jumped down most of them. I’m in better shape than youfuck off.”
“Teagan!”
Blakely stands in the lobby beside a security guard, calling for me.
“I love you, Teagan,” Luca says.
“Get the fuck away from her, you psychopath!” Blakely yells. “You should be in jail!”
“You know what, bitch?! Fuck you! I know all about you. Maybe if you didn’t treat her like shit” Luca starts before Declan cuts him off.
“Luca, don’t. Go upstairs. Now.”
“I love you so much, baby,” he says again. “Please don’t leave me.”
I meet his eyes but say nothing as I step around him, and Declan guides me through the lobby toward Blakely.
“Get your stuff, Teagan,” Blakely says. “We’re leaving. If I have to get the police, I will.”
“That’s really unnecessary,” Declan tells her. “No one is making Teagan stay here. Why don’t you two go somewhere and talk? There’s a cafe around the corner.”
“Yeah, let’s go, Blake,” I say.
“Call me if you need anything,” Declan says.
“She doesn’t need anything from youyou’re a fucking criminal.”
Declan laughs. “If you do decide you want to go, I’ll bring your stuff down, Teagan.”
“Okay.”
“And if your sister wants a ticket for the show, I’ll leave one at the box office for her.”
“We’ll be long gone by then,” Blakely says.
“You know, it sounds like you actually care about her; that’s pleasantly surprising.”
“She’s my fucking sister, you asshole!”
“See you later, Teagan.”
Declan reaches beneath my chin, tilting it upward before kissing me softly on the mouth. He flashes Blakely a smile before he walks awayback toward the elevators where Luca still waits.
“What the fuck was that?” Blakely asks. “Which one are you sleeping with now?”
“Let’s just go,” I say, my cheeks flushing as I hurry through the doors, eager to escape the scene we just made in the lobby.
“Are you fucking both of them?”
I don’t answer her question. “It’s just right here,” I tell her, turning the corner.
“Are you?!” she asks again, stopping me with a hand on my shoulder.
“That’s none of your business.”
I turn and push through the doors of the small cafe.
“Teagan, that’s disgusting!” she exclaims. “You’re you’re a whore!”
The bustling cafe becomes unreasonably quiet. I swallow a lump in my throat and blink back tears.
I will not let her see me crynot over that.
“Well, that’s a really fucking nice thing to say to me.”
New Book: Returned To Make Them Pay
On her wedding anniversary, Alicia is drugged and stumbles into the wrong room—straight into the arms of the powerful Caden Ward, a man rumored never to touch women. Their night of passion shocks even him, especially when he discovers she’s still a virgin after two years of marriage to Joshua Yates.