Thirteen

Pov

Bennet

"You hit like you're still twelve. I'm not convinced your balls dropped." My words infuriate him, and I let out a laugh.
I enjoy being the one to get on his nerves, and that's exactly what I need to burn off this excess energy that's building up. If I don't burn it off, I'll be the next one to snap. I've been frayed for so long that I need to control how I let it out. Secretly, I think Mason knows this. It wouldn't surprise me, as my brother knows me as well as I do.
He throws me to the ground, and I feel rocks poking into my back as my head hits one. My vision goes out of focus for just a moment, and I welcome it. I appreciate the numbing distraction before kicking out and catching him in the thigh. I watch him crumple to the ground, cursing my ass.
"Low blow, you asshole."
"No. A low blow would be if I aimed for your dick." I roll my eyes, looking directly into his icy blue eyes. Both of us lying on our backs, side by side.
All you can hear in the silence of the night is our heavy breathing and the sounds of nature.
"Stop following me, damn it. Track her on your own. If you know her so well, it shouldn't be a problem for you." He gets up and walks off to my left, disappearing within seconds. I watch the dark green swallow him up and fall back with a huff.
I look up, observing the night sky piercing through the tree canopy and allow myself just a moment.
I know she's close by. I can feel it in my bones. It doesn't matter that Gray told us where he was leaving her.
Knowing Grey, that's not the real starting point, but he wouldn't have gone far. He enjoys watching us scurry around like rats in his maze.
I get up and head straight because fuck if anyone's going to think I can't track on my own.
I move silently, only my thoughts fueling me for ten minutes before I hear her up ahead.
I know it's her because there's no way Mason talks that loud.
"I'll get you, damn it, little volcano. And when I get my hands on you... girl, you'll be ready for it." I shout, letting my voice echo all around.
Her rough pants follow suit, creating a symphony of noise in the forest and will lead Mason straight to us if she doesn't stop the racket soon.
Damn, I knew I'd catch her before him.
Can't wait to rub that in his face later.
"We gave you a choice. We left it in your hands, but you failed. So now I'm making the choice for you. It's me. Damn it, touch my brother again, and a murder will happen."
"Ne-never! I won't choose, and I'm already prepared to die." She stumbles over her words as she's trying to catch her breath.
"Oh, you thought I meant you? Oh no, darling. If it comes to that, I'll kill him. My own brother. I'll throw him off Violent Peak and watch his body fall until it finally lands. I'll look down, watching the pool of blood from his broken body, and then I'll pull you to the edge to watch the last breath leave him," I tell her, knowing full well how unlikely that would be. I've never been able to get over him, but neither has he. We're two sides of the same coin.

"I fucking hate you, Bennett," venom drips from her voice, and I let it pass through me before darting off, heading straight to where her voice came from.

I spot the bright red of her hair through the bushes, maneuver around it, and there she is, bent over with her hands on her knees.

I try to slow down, but I can't stop my momentum, and I crash right into Tessa, knocking her to the forest floor. I have enough sense to cradle her head and back to minimize her contact with the hard ground. I need her off balance, but not with a damn concussion.

Although I doubt Gray would care whether I knocked her out or not at this point. He's damn fed up with her. I could tie her up in the cabin and hide her for a while, and he wouldn't hesitate.

Unfortunately, Mason would. He's somewhere in this forest, close by, hunting her like I was. He thought he'd get to her first and might have if it weren't for his one fatal flaw... his anger, which clouds all rational thought.

"I got you, volcano. It's cute that you actually thought you could outsmart me, let alone get away. Your first mistake was thinking Remy would help you. Unless your name is Mia and your pussy drips platinum for him, then you'll always be screwed," I lean in, whispering the last part in her ear as I press the lower half of my body firmly against hers. I want her to feel how damn hard I am right now. Chasing her and taunting her has my cock ready to burst out of my pants and sink into her warm body.

I feel her hands pounding on my back, and her legs kicking, searching for something to connect with. Good luck, sweetheart.

"Get off me, you damn idiot. You feel like dead weight, and I can't breathe," she's particularly sarcastic, judging by the tone of her voice.

"You can breathe just fine, or else you wouldn't be able to spit your bitch venom at me. If I didn't want you to breathe, we both know I'd do a lot more than just sit on you. You wanna drown again, baby?" I taunt her with the facts.

"Just let me go, Bennett. I'm tired. Really exhausted. You and Mason are toxic for me and keep infecting me with your poison. I won't choose. I've said it several times. I've shown it. There's nothing either of you can do to make me choose. Just let me go. I won't leave this damn mountain. I can't. My cousin will just drag me back every time. But I need you and your brother to let him die. Whatever we have between us, just let it die," she's pleading at the end, and the organ inside my chest almost beats in solidarity. Almost.

"No. Letting you go isn't on my bingo card for this year or the next. I've wanted you for years, Tessa. Shitty years. I didn't do this out of respect for your cousin or because I was going through my hoe phase. I'm not more than being honest. I'm no saint when it comes to sex, and I had a hoe phase."

"What a gentleman. Good for you. I don't give a damn about who you've been with. I know our connection. I also know my connection with Mason. I've always put you two above anyone else, but never against each other. I don't know why that would change now just because you demand it. Not everyone bends and crumbles under the Ravens' will," she's a damn volcano. The fire burning in her eyes now is almost enough to make me come like a teenager during his first wet dream.

Her cheeks are red, almost matching her hair, and that's exactly why I want her to choose me. I want to bottle this up and keep it all for myself. Hoard it like a hobbit from Hollow Hill. I laugh loudly at this, and it only makes Tessa's anger intensify.

"Damn it, don't laugh at me, Bennett Slade.I'm not a fucking toy for your amusement. Or any of the Ravens, for that matter. If you wanted me to choose, you're certainly doing it the wrong way."

"I love it when you fight with me, baby. But just to clarify, I wasn't laughing at you. I was having fun with my own fucking thoughts and how much I want to hide. I'm a fucking idiot, you're right about that.
But making you the butt of jokes will never be on my list. Remember that the next time you want to try to insult me too" I lean in close enough to look her up and down, running my eyes over everything I can see. My mouth salivates and my cock throbs and I can't decide what I want to sink into first.

"I want you, Tessa. More than I've ever wanted anything else, and I'll have you. Right here, right now." I leave no room for doubt as I capture her lips in a searing kiss, pouring every ounce of desire from my veins into her. She said that we infected her and I intend to uphold that tradition.

Her hands are gripping the shirt behind my back, and I feel her release me and accept me as her legs wrap around my hips. She locks her ankles together, and this keeps the heat pressed against me so hard that I find myself thrusting shallowly, fucking dry like I did with an girl from Arbor Ridge when I was thirteen.

"Fuck, you feel so good, baby. I can't wait to finally sink into you and claim you as my... " The words die in my throat when I feel Mason coming straight at us.

Fucking Neanderthal.

"Holy shit, Mase. You nearly decapitated me." I watch as Tessa stands up, finally free from being pressured, and looks at us both expressionlessly. I narrow my eyes, watching her facial expressions, trying to gauge what happen next when I see her eyes contract. She's going to run, try to make a break for the tree line ahead and the chase will begin again.

I feel Mason tense beside me and I know he's deduced the same thing from her face. He looks at me and silently we come to an agreement. We've already had it together once tonight, so what's one more time?