Total pages in book: 115
Estimated words: 107376 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 537(@200wpm)___ 430(@250wpm)___ 358(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 107376 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 537(@200wpm)___ 430(@250wpm)___ 358(@300wpm)
Maddox rolls his eyes and cuts in as he looks at his best friend. “You need to find a new name for her. Savage is my thing.”
“Fuck off. I was calling her that first. You come up with a new name.”
“Both of you can fuck off,” I say, stepping back into my apartment and attempting to close the door, only Maddox shoves his foot in the way, blocking my hasty escape.
“Uh-uh, not so fast. We aren’t even close to being done here,” Maddox tells me. “There’s still a few very important questions that need to be answered.”
I let out a sigh and go back to ignoring Hunter as I focus on Maddox. “Like what?”
“This right here,” he says, indicating between the three of us. “As fun as this is, it’s gonna get messy, so we’re gonna need you to pick.”
I pull back, my brows furrowed. “Pick?”
Maddox nods. “Pick. Between us.”
Hunter looks offended. “That is not how this works.”
“Uh, yeah it is,” Maddox throws back at him. “Neither of us are willing to bow out, so Lyra’s gonna have to cut one of us loose.”
Hunter scoffs. “We’ve already worked out that she’s not a fan of cutting me loose.”
I cross my arms over my chest, glaring between them both. “Neither of you are really making any compelling arguments.”
“Sure I am,” Maddox says. “Okay, picture this. You’re standing at a buffet, choosing between two dishes—”
“Jesus Christ.”
“Hear me out.”
“No.”
“Too bad. I’m a triple layer chocolate mud cake,” he says, a cocky smirk playing on his lips. “Rich. Decadent. Always the first pick. Everybody loves me. I make people happy.”
Hunter scoffs. “First pick? Sounds like a walking STD to me.”
Maddox rolls his eyes and goes on. “I’m reliable. You know what you’re getting every time.”
“Diabetes?”
Maddox flips off Hunter before hooking a thumb toward him. “This psychopath here, he’s a gas-station burrito—”
Hunter’s brows shoot up. “The fuck?”
Maddox isn’t bothered by his interruption and goes on as though nothing happened. “Looks good from the outside, and at first, you’re like, wow, this is amazing. Just what I need to kick that hunger, and so you take a bite.”
A laugh catches in my throat, and I slap a hand over my mouth as Hunter narrows his stare, less than impressed with the turn of conversation. Maddox is unfazed, and from where I’m standing, he doesn’t look even close to getting to his point.
“He’s delicious going down, but after an hour, your stomach starts to gurgle and next thing you know, you’re on the bathroom floor questioning every decision you’ve ever made. Shit’s staining the walls and ceiling, yet you somehow convince yourself that next time will be better, so you keep going back for more—”
A slow grin stretches across Hunter’s lips, his eyes shining like fireworks. “Damn straight she does, because she knows how fucking good it is,” he says before turning on his friend. “For the record, I’m not a gas-station burrito. I’m tequila.”
I snort a laugh. “Ahhh, makes sense. You’re the hard shot that people regret the next morning.”
His mouth drops open. “That’s not what I meant.”
“Ahh, too late. You’ve willed it into existence, and now that’s all you are. Take your pick. Shit-inducing burrito or regrettable tequila?”
“I fucking hate you both.”
“Right back at ya.”
Maddox leans his shoulder against the doorframe, the move bringing him closer. “What’s it gonna be, Savage? Triple layer chocolate mud cake or explosive diarrhea?”
Looking up at Maddox, I inch even closer, my hand lifting to his chest. “You see, here’s the thing. I gave Hunter a chance, and sure, it was fun, and if today has proven anything, it’s that he can actually put it down. But that’s all it was. We’re nothing. I’m only dating you.”
Maddox’s hand finds my waist, and just as he starts pulling me in, Hunter scoffs. “Like fuck you are,” he says. “After you knocked me unconscious, taped me to a chair, and then rode my cock at knife point, there’s no way you get to claim we’re not dating. That right there is about as hot as flirting gets.”
I gape at Hunter. “Flirting? That was not flirting.”
He scoffs. “Tell that to the cock you were riding.”
Fury ripples through me. “I know I’ve said this before, and I’m sure I’ll say it again, but I really fucking hate you. How is one man so irritating?”
His only response is to hit me with a cocky smirk as though he’s the one with the upper hand here. I’m on the verge of beating him senseless when Maddox cuts in again. “Looks like this is going to be an easy decision.”
Hunter shakes his head, looking way too confident. “Like I said earlier, she wants me. She just doesn’t know it yet.”
I scoff. “You are an actual asshole. I wouldn’t date you if my life depended on it, especially not after seeing you end that guy’s—” My eyes widen in horror, realizing exactly what I was about to say out loud.