Page 64 of Hating On Riot

Not waiting to hear the rest of their conversation, I hurry out of there and rush to my first class. Thank goodness, Coop and Riot aren’t in it. Not that they would be. It’s one of my core classes for my major. Coop is majoring in sports medicine. What is Riot’s major?

Do I care? I growl low in my throat. I’m halfway to class when a hand grabs mine, and I’m yanked behind a dumpster at the back of the finance building.

Before I can get a word in, Riot crashes his mouth over mine. Surprised, pissed, I open my mouth. His thick tongue tangles with mine. His large hand cups my hip. The other hand tangles in my hair. My head is tugged to the side. I open my mouth to protest. He deepens the kiss.

His warm mouth, the pressure of his fingers on my hip, his tight, dominant grip on my hair, how he kisses me with his whole being, my name murmured with longing between our kisses . . . It’s too much.

My body turns to mush. I slacken against his large, muscular frame. My arms wrap around his shoulders. My fingers brush his hair. I weave my fingers through the soft, black strands. My other hand cradles his face.

“Riot,” I rasp.

“I love you, Arie. I love you so much.”

Why the declaration of love? Is he doing it out of guilt? He thanked me for opening up to him, for wanting to share my life with him. But after what that pretty, smart girl said, can I believe him?

We’ve been apart for four years. He’s lived his life, and I’ve lived mine. I don’t know the new Riot O’Sullivan, the single, sexy rugby player all the coeds fawn over. A week ago, I probably never crossed his mind. Then, bam, we have an elective together in the first semester of our last year at university, and he says he loves me?

How can I believe he loves me when I saw with my own eyes and heard with my own ears the hesitation in his voice and the way he avoided looking me in the eyes when he spoke to that girl?

Then there was Estelle, and the note on my windshield next to her bloodied, battered body, telling me to stay away from Riot or else Riot’s older brother, Merrick’s secret, would be exposed.

The secret was written in black ink. I didn’t tell Riot. The secret is real. Girls from Alexandria saw me at a party I shouldn’t have been at, but they stumbled across me while I was looking for Riot. It’s a horrible secret. Merrick is a horrible man. Riot would never believe me if I told him. To him, his older brother could do no wrong. But in my eyes, he has. Merrick takes advantage of the innocent and the vulnerable.

I twist out of Riot’s grip and wipe the back of my hand over my mouth, erasing his kiss. “I can’t, Riot. We can’t.” I point to him, then to me. “We’ve practiced enough maneuvers. I can do them in my sleep. I’ll move out after practice today.”

“Did I do or say something wrong, Arie?” He holds out his palms in defeat.

I shake my head. After seeing the way the brunette looked at Riot, with possession and obsession, I have to take the threat in the note seriously. We had a large graduation class. What if she was one of the girls at Merrick’s party? What if she’s the one who left the dead rat on my car, warning me to stay away from Riot?

My heart pounds in my ears, and a cold sweat breaks out. I glance around. The noise starts off muted. I can’t hear what anyone is saying. The deafening silence is unnerving. Then the noise returns, the conversations so loud that I want to cover my ears.

“I have to go. I’m running late for class.” I’m trying to keep the panic out of my voice. Trying to sound firm when my stomach’s in a knot, and bile crawls up my throat.

“Uh-uh. You’re not fucking leaving until you tell me what’s bothering you. What has your pulse pounding hard under your skin?” He reaches out and skims his fingers over my pulse point below my jaw.

“I can’t be late.”

“Class can wait. You and me,” he points to him, then to me, “can’t. Talk to me, Arie.” He bends at the waist and says near my ear, “Was it the girl?”

I hold back my words, but my body has a will of its own. I nod.

“She doesn’t mean anything to me.”

“Then why were you at her place? You obviously make it a habit since she knows how long it’s been since the last time.”

He clenches his jaw. “It’s nothing for you to worry about.”

Then why did he say she doesn’t mean anything to him? Nothing means something happened between them, and I do worry that he’s keeping the truth from me. Oh, God, Riot isn’t being truthful with me, and that’s how relationships nose-dive into a crashing breakup of epic proportions.

Cooper jogs over with my backpack and coffee. I take the coffee and toss it in the dumpster. The backpack goes on my shoulder. Then I make direct eye contact with Riot and give him the instructions for getting Cooper his happily-ever-after.

“Back of the gym. Forty minutes before practice.” It’s the only time we have. Cooper has football practice at the same time as the rugby team. I plan to put our plan in motion, move out of the rugby house, and return to the quiet safety of the house I share with my brothers.

I can’t think straight when I’m with Riot. I need space. What I saw and heard doesn’t sit well with me. We’re moving too fast. Not waiting for their responses, I turn on my heels and hurry to my class, my backpack thumping against my back.

For some reason, the tears start. I blink them back. One tear rolls down my face. Damn it! I wipe my face with my sleeve.

“Arie! Arie, wait up.”