Page 116 of Rebellious

“When I went to pick up the present I ordered, I saw other things I knew you’d like,” he lied.

She studied him, then shook her head. “You’re so full of shit. You didn’t even think about giving me anything until Axel and Kaia gave me gifts.”

“Axel gave you money. That’s not a real gift.”

“Let me be with you when you tell him that.”

“No fucking thank you,” he said, laughing. “We argue enough.”

Rebel laid down again. “Don’t engage with him and there’ll be no argument. That’s simple.”

“Not so much,” Diesel said, turning toward her and propping himself up on his elbow. “Axel demands a response. It’ll be much worse if he doesn’t get it.”

“Okay,” she said with a shrug. “If that helps you to sleep so you’re not humiliated that a ten-year-old has you afraid of him.”

“He bombed my fucking bathroom, Rebel,” Diesel reminded her, scowling.

“By accident,” she said around a yawn.

“The motherfucker still detonated. Now, I can’t shower in the privacy of my room.”

“Go to the treehouse.”

His jaw clenched. “No.”

“What am I missing here? Why are you so angry at Jana when she was hurt, too?”

If her parents hadn’t told Rebel the truth, he didn’t intend to. Besides, once he forgave Jana and it sunk in that she was still that same girl he’d been determined to protect even before he saw her as a buffer between him and Rebel, he didn’t need Rebel to be her enemy.

“Diesel?”

“Isn’t it obvious? She shouldn’t have left the fucking mall.”

“True, but she was ambushed. Cut her some slack.”

Gnashing his teeth together, Diesel sat up and leaned forward, elbows on knees. “I thought you were angry with her.”

“She texted me earlier,” Rebel told him. “And apologized for how she’s been acting.”

He straightened and glanced over his shoulder. “That was enough for you?”

She tipped her head back, revealing the curve of her chin and the delicate skin on her throat. “What do you want me to say? I’ve almost died twice in a matter of weeks. Yes, I lost my temper with her but should I continue being that same awful person I was if I’m going to die soon? I want to go to heaven, Diesel. With Baby Patrick and my grandmas.”

“Sweetheart—”

“Don’t. Okay? It doesn’t seem as if I’m meant to stay alive. I just want to go back to Friday night. No, the Friday before the volleyball game. My driving lesson. You acting like you have manners toward Kaia. Me and Kaia being Chi and Huahua. Thinking about Jo coming home. Visiting Rule. My 16th birthday.”

Her eyes watered and she blinked. It was only when the light glimmered off the blueness in her irises that he realized she had all her lamps on. The small one on the dresser that matched the crystal ones on each nightstand. The floor lamps in her sitting area were also on.

He stretched out next to her and drew her into his arms, tangling his fingers through her hair. “You’re safe,” he told her. “And you don’t have to be anyone other than who you have always been. My beautiful, sweet Rebel.”

She tilted her head back and met his gaze, before dropping hers to his lips. Immediately, his cock stirred and his pulse began to pound.

“I asked Jana to talk to you,” he told her, determined to hold onto his morals, no matter how fine a line he treaded. “I would like you two to get along. If you don’t want to talk to her again, then don’t force it.”

Rebel was quiet for a moment before she tucked her head under his chin. “She told me to forgive Kaia.”

Diesel stiffened, not that Rebel noticed because she continued talking about that motherfucker.