I slipped on the tank dress, opting to go commando for the evening, and put on the sandals. I looked at myself in the mirror. Once again, I felt like a different person was staring back at me. This me, this Ellie, was tired and hardened. I rubbed the residue mascara away from under my eyes and applied a new coat. My skin was brown from the sun now and I didn’t need much else.
When I came out of the bathroom, Camden straightened up on the bed. I felt strangely shy in front of him, especially as his eyes trailed up and down the length of me.
“Do I look okay?” I asked him, feeling the need to say something. “I mean, if you can see me, that is.”
He bit his lip and stared, a multitude of emotions flashing through his eyes, too fast for me to pick up on each individual one. I thought I saw lust in there – maybe that’s what I wanted to see.
When he still didn’t say anything, I walked over to the dresser where I had my clutch purse left over from the other night at Travis’s and rifled through it for my lip stuff. His silence at my back was a heavy weight, laden with too many uncertainties between us. It was eating at me, burning through me, rendering me with a lead heart. There were so many things I had to focus on, to worry about, f**king impossible things, and yet I needed him to tell me I looked beautiful. I needed him to tell me I was something to him.
I heard him get off the bed and walk toward me, that heaviness, that warmth that he brought with his bones, teased at my back. He stopped, close enough to touch me, and I was about to turn around, perhaps to do something foolish, when he crouched down.
“How is my art?”
His hands found my leg, one of them lifting the hem of my dress, the other slowly moving over the cherry blossom tattoo. I sucked in my breath, holding completely still, trying to contain my nerves that were firing wildly as his fingers ran along the ridges of the ink. He touched me gently over every vine, leaf and petal, until I had to supress a shaky moan that tried to escape from my lips.
“It feels fine,” I said softly when I found my voice.
“It looks beautiful,” he said.
“I had a beautiful artist,” I told him. I turned at the waist and look down at him, my blue dress glowing in his tanned hand, his other one placed firmly around my calf, his strong fingers imparting heat that sunk deep. He was looking up at me, lips parted slightly.
I couldn’t take a second more of this.
I turned and dropped to the ground, my knees rubbing against his.
I grabbed his face, his rough stubble pressing into my palms, and kissed him.
Hard.
There was surprise for a second, a hesitation, a pulse that refused to beat on. Then Camden kissed me back, his soft lips enveloping mine, his mouth opening to give me life. He put his hand behind my head, holding it there with power and control.
My heart was an elevator car, the cable suddenly snapped, and I was freefalling and falling and falling as his lips and tongue and hot, wet mouth took away every inch of my resolve. The more he kissed me, the deeper and longer we found each other, the thirstier I got for him. I felt like if we stopped, I would die, empty on the inside and forever longing.
“Ellie,” he whispered into my lips. “I … can’t.”
And I was empty.
I pulled away and looked at him, fighting the tears of frustration that were tickling behind my lids. “You can’t what?”
A jarring knock at the door prevented him from finishing his sentence.
The door swung open and Javier stepped in. He eyed the two of us, crouched together on the floor, our hands entwined in the other’s hair, our chests heaving and unseen hearts hurting. Breaking.
He couldn’t what?
Do this?
Love me?
I didn’t even care that Javier was watching us, waiting for us to say something, to explain ourselves. I cared about what Camden was going to say next.
“Well, isn’t this awkward,” Javier said. Though his tone was light there was no mistaking the fire that was burning in his eyes. He looked at me like he was ready to slit my throat and be done with it. He didn’t even give Camden a second look – this was all about me.
He finally tore his eyes away from us and over to the bed where Violetta was sleeping soundly. He made a tsk-ing noise and shook his head. “And you were about to f**k each other in front of my sister, is that right?” He looked back at me, chin down, lips pouting ever slightly. “I never pegged you to be such a whore.” He smiled as if forgetting his manners, adding, “Angel.”
It didn’t sting. It didn’t hurt me. I wouldn’t let him hurt me anymore.
But Camden sprung up as if he had been waiting for this and launched himself at Javier, his fists flying. Javier was quick too, and managed to duck, though not without Camden clocking him on the side of the head with a powerful blow.
The two of them tumbled to the ground, crashing against one of the bedside tables. Violetta didn’t stir, not even when I started yelling at them to stop it. I know I’d said I wanted to see this fight happen, but not now, not like this. This wouldn’t bode well for Camden and I, especially if Camden won again. Javier would never ever let him live that down.
Perhaps not even let him live.
Javier was fighting back, dirty, of course. His physical strength was no match for Camden’s and he repeatedly went for Camden’s injury on his shoulder, with every jab and hit he had. He was cruel and ruthless and got the job done. At one point Javier stuck his thumb hard into Camden’s bullet wound until Camden released him, crying out in horror.
This was my chance.
I leaped onto Camden’s back, wrapping my arms around his neck and good shoulder.
“Stop it!” I screamed in his ear. “This is what he wants.”
Violetta mumbled something at that, then adjusted herself on the bed and fell asleep again.
I looked up at Javier who was getting to his feet, his lip bloody again, his suit disheveled. He grinned, enjoying himself, and let out a wicked laugh. “You have no idea what I want.” He wiped his fingers across his lips and raised his dark brows at the blood on it. “Huh. Not even sure how you managed to do that again. You know, if you’re not careful Camden, you’re going to end up with nothing.”
“And yet you still haven’t killed me,” Camden said with effort. I could feel his heart racing in his chest, the rage that wanted to keep flying out of him until Javier was a lifeless pulp.
“I didn’t say anything about killing you,” Javier said. “I just said you’ll end up with nothing. And you will. You want to help Ellie get the things she wants, you have to start playing a lot nicer than you have been. A lot nicer.” He sighed and smoothed his hair behind his ears. “Ellie, if you want to see your Gus again, you come with me. Right now.”