Chapter 14 " What those guys said earlier … " he trailed off , " you don't deserve that kind of crap . " [ ] Riley blinked , then gave a small smile : " It's fine . I'm over it . " [ ] That was the truth . [ ] The old wounds were still there , but they couldn't hurt her anymore . ] ] Ethan watched her closely and said softly : " If someone's worth your heart , that person should treasure it , not throw it away . " ] The streetlight's glow reflected off his glasses , Riley couldn't see his expression clearly , but she felt her heartbeat skip . [ ] 30 She lowered her head and said quietly : " Good night , Ethan . " ] " Good night . " … 0 Sophia glared at Jaxon , who was clearly not paying attention , and finally exploded after holding back her anger for ages . [ ] " Are you even LISTENING to me ?! " ] Sophia slammed her hand on the table , making the coffee cup rattle loudly . [ ] Other customers turned to stare , but she didn't care , her voice shrill : " You've been spaced out for days ! Is this about Riley ? " [ ] Jaxon just sat back and watched her have a complete meltdown , his face totally expressionless . [ ] Before , he would have immediately tried to calm her down , but now he just felt exhausted . ] " SAY SOMETHING ! " Sophia grabbed napkins and threw them at him, " What did you promise me when you were chasing me ? Didn't you say being with her was just for practice ? But now that you're with me , you won't go anywhere I want , you tune out everything I say - are you hung up on that bookworm … " [ ] " ENOUGH ! " Jaxon cut her off coldly , " Stop calling her that . " ] Sophia froze , her face going deathly pale . [ She'd never seen Jaxon look at her like this before . [ ] Cold , annoyed , even with a hint of undisguised disgust . [ ] " You … you're actually defending her ? " Her voice shook , " Fine ! Go find her then ! See if she even wants you ! " [ ] Jaxon stood right up , threw some cash on the table : " Get yourself home . " [ ] " Jaxon ! Don't you DARE walk away ! " [ ] Chapter 14 But the only response was the café door slamming shut . [ ] Sophia just stood there , totally freaking out as everything slipped away from her . For the first time , she realized that Jaxon - who had always revolved around her - had truly changed . ] ] The bar was dimly lit with loud music mixed with the sound of clinking glasses . [ ] Jaxon sat in a booth downing whiskey after whiskey , ice cubes clinking against the glass . [ ] " Jax , what's your deal these past few days ? " His buddy Derek came over and took the glass from his hand , " Princess Sophia giving you drama again ? " ] ] Jaxon's face darkened as he grabbed another glass and filled it with alcohol . [ ] " If you ask me , you've been out of it lately - it's gotta be because of … Riley , right ? " Derek asked tentatively . [ ] Jaxon's hand froze , his eyes going ice - cold , his breathing uncontrollably frantic : " Don't mention her . " [ ] Derek wisely shut up , but after a moment he frowned like he'd remembered something : ] " Actually , there's something I always thought was weird … that time at the escape room , didn't Sophia's little gang of followers sneak off with some kind of remote ? I caught a glimpse but didn't think much of it then , but now that I think about it , that thing looked like a shock chair controller … " Jaxon's head snapped up : " What did you say ? " ] " When Riley passed out , " Derek lowered his voice , " and a while back someone posted on the forum about seeing Sophia deliberately lock doors , but the post got deleted real quick . " [ ] Jaxon's knuckles went white , and suddenly images flashed through his mind of Riley standing soaked at their apartment door that day … " Sophia's friends tied me to the shock chair . " ] ] How had he responded ? ] " When did our little scholar learn to joke around ? " ] His chest felt like someone had stabbed him with a knife - the pain was raw and bloody . [] He felt like everything was spinning out of his understanding . ] So many things he suddenly didn't have the courage to face . [ ] ( 0 )