Nixon

••• Twenty-Four •••

"Don't bring my sister into this anymore than she has to," I snap, my gaze hardening as Gavin simply cocks his head t the side and a sinister smile spreads across his face. "You once said you were here to help me and now it seems like you are the villain."

"Villain?" Gavin scoffs, folding his arms as he leans back in the booth, eyes roaming over my figure. "The villain here is Nixon, sweetheart, yet you see right past that and somehow manage to ignore it." I mimic Gavin's posture, my arms crossed as I add in a raised eyebrow to the mix. "You see how Nixon is, Lily. You see his violence, his possession, short fuse, and even placing you in a situation where it's either him or your family."

"I doubt you're complaining," I snap, wishing I was like Nixon, a werewolf, able to attack Gavin right now and gouge his eyes out. "You've used this for some reason that I have yet to learn. You're dragging Taylor into this as well-

"Taylor is dragging herself into this mix, sweetheart," Gavin interrupts. "She's the one who is pulling herself into the mix. She's doing all of this because of you, because she thinks that she has to be better than you in shocking her papers. You have to admit it, she loves to shock your parents, and by you running away with an older man means she has to beat that."

"You're saying it's her fault she got raped?!" I hiss. "It is not her fault. She told him to stop and he kept doing. Tell me that's not rape and I'll leave Nixon."

Gavin remains silent as he inspects the restaurant around us. His eyes travel around the interior, back to me, my eyes, my neck, and my chest as I want to smash a glass bottle over his head. "Lily, little innocent Lily, you have no idea what Nixon has done to you, who he has crafted you in to."

"Oh, please elaborate," I snap, my anger reaching new limits.

Gavin offers me a sly smile. "Lily used to be afraid of breaking the rules, of not studying. She used to care deeply for her family and stand up for herself. Now, all she did was move here and meet Nixon Maxwell...you tell me how that worked out. How you chose Nixon, how you let him get his way, how you broke rules and lied, how you willing were bent over his desk-

"My family pushed my limits. He did not pin me against my parents with a trick up his sleeve. He gave me a fair choice and I picked the one that I wanted." Gavin shakes his head, a playful smirk crossing his face as my lips are pressed firm in a tight line. "What are you using Taylor for? To try and manipulate her? To break her limits? To get what you want from her and then toss her away?" I ask, my little sister a touchy subject since she decided to think Gavin was a great idea.

Gavin looks over his shoulder, to the window where the street is displayed. I follow his gaze, looking outside to see my little sister standing by Gavin's car parked out there, her hair cut to her shoulders, attire the same, but her eyes, her eyes look dull even from such a distance. "I'm not using her, Lily. I'm doing to her what Nixon did to you. Tell me that I am using her and that means you realize that Nixon is using you."

I shake my head. "Nixon is not using me and we have different conditions that you and my sister." Gavin simply shakes his head, pulling out his phone as he texts someone. I look to Taylor, her looking to her phone as my skin pales. Taylor heads for the entrance to the restaurant, my throat becoming dry as Gavin looks back up to me. "What are you doing?" I ask, quickly getting to my feet as I overlook the restaurant, only for my heart to fall to my feet as I spot Taylor, her eyes on my own. She looks pissed beyond belief, storming over as I shrink back down into my seat, knowing a conversation is brewing.

As Taylor comes right to the table, Gavin scoots over on the booth for her, my sister sitting across from me as Gavin's tattooed hand is placed upon her thigh. "Tell me, Lily, how does freedom feel?" Are her first words she says, myself at a loss for words as she simply glares at me. "You are free from our family, how does that feel?"