His Trouble Maker

Chapter 22

Chapter 22

JESSICA

| gave Grayson freaking Westwood a chance.

Oh, Moon Goddess! What did | do?

| sit up too fast, feeling the dizzy spin of my head, the ghost of Grayson’s hands still burning on my skin. |

shudder, trying to shake off the residue of last night-the way | let him touch me, how I let it all happen. But the

thought only makes my stomach flip more..

| shouldn't have said yes.

| shouldn't have let him get that close.

fix it later. I'll fix it later.

However, | glance at the clock and realize later is now. Training starts in twenty minutes. I'm already late. For the

first time, | don’t want to freaking gol | know | told myself Ill play with him, but it feels so wrong. | am not a bad

person. The whole thing feels stupid now.

“Jess! Open t

the door!” Pierce shouts from the other side, his voice laced with impatience.

I roll back into bed, pulling the blanket over my head, as if it could somehow block out the chaos in my mind. “Go

away, Pierce! I'm sick,” mutter, hoping my voice sounds convincing enough to make him leave.

Thear him pause on the other side, a soft sigh slipping through the door. “Really? You've been fine all week.

What's going on with you?”

| groan into the blanket, pressing it tighter around my face, trying to push the reality of everything away. Why is

he so persistent?

“I'm not feeling good. Just leavealone,” | mumble, squeezing my eyes shut.

But before I can think any more, the door creaks open, and Pierce steps inside, all tall, broad shouldered, and

looking atlike I've just done something he can’t quite figure out.

“What's going on with you?” He crosses his arms, eyes scanningwith that sharp look I've known my whole

life.

“I'm fine, okay?”

“You don’t look fine.”

“I am,” | snap, and immediately hate how brittle | sound.

He sighs, runs a hand through his hair. “Look, Grayson’s been acting weird all morning.”

My stomach drops

He says the nso casually, like it’s nothing, ke it's not soaked in sweat and guilt and me

“What do you mean weird?” | ask, trying to sound casual, failing spectacularly.

Pierce shrugs, steps further into the room/Just-off. He's not talking. Just sitting there like someone died.”

I blink. I physically flinch.

He notices.

U9:44 Tue, 5 Aug

Chapter 22

$5 Aug

at me, connecting dots | didn’t even know | spilled. “Did something happen between you two?”

“Wait.” He squints at me,

My mouth opens. No words cout. My body's already betraying me-heat crawling up my neck, fingers

twitching like they want to hit rewind,

“Is Grayson giving you a hard time?”

“No. He's... whatever. It's fine.” | force the words out like they don’t taste like shit in my mouth.

Pierce raises an eyebrow, unconvinced. “Really? ‘Cause | can talk to him. Seriously, why do you hate each

other?”

Troll my eyes, snatching the nearest pillow and hurling it at him. “You're so annoying,” | mutter, watching it fly

and land smack on his chest.

Pierce catches it effortlessly, his lips twitching like he’s trying not to laugh. But his eyes stay serious. “Con,

Jess. You can’t avoid me

forever”

| throw the blanket off me, sitting up with the urgency of someone trying to outrun their own mess. | grab the

first excuse | can think of to shove him away. “I don’t need you playing therapist. Seriously. Just go.” The words

spill out sharper than | mean them to, desperate to cover

the truth.

“You know | can tell when something's up, right?” His voice softens, but there's no humor in it.

Thate that he’s always been this way. Always protective. Always hovering. Even with Grayson. Especially with

Grayson, Pierce has always made it clear that Grayson doesn’t belong in my world. That | should stay the hell

away from him. And the worst part is, I've never fully disagreed with him.

Grayson’s a mess, and Pierce sees that,

“Look, Jess, | don’t care what happened with Grayson, but don’t make this harder than it needs to be,” he says,

voice low, serious now,

| glare at him, my insides twisting like | swallowed a live wire, “What the hell are you talking about?”

He runs a hand through his hair, eyes narrowing, “I don’t care if you two are playing whatever little games you're

playing. But if you're gonna do this whole thing, don’t get too close to him, alright? Don’t get caught up in it.”

“Caught up in it?” | scoff, not even trying to hide my frustration. “What the hell does that even mean?”

Pierce steps further into the room, his eyes hard now, no trace of teasing left. “You know exactly what | mean.

Grayson'’s an ass. Don’t let him mess with you, Jess. You're better than that?

I almost laugh, but it comes out more like a bitter exhale than anything else. “Better than that?” | shake my

head, trying to get the sting of his words out of my chest. “It's not that simple. It's not just black and white like

you think. I'm not some-

“Yeah, | get it,” he interrupts, his voice a little softer now, like he’s trying to find the right words without making

it worse. “But | know you. And | know him. He's not worth it.” He stares atfor a second, making sure I'm

listening. “Trust me. Don’t deal with him. It screw you up.”

| want to argue, but something in his voice stops me, makesfreeze for a second. He's not wrong, Grayson is

a mess of contradictions, and for sgodforsaken reason, | keep getting tangled in them.

Pierce watcheslike he’s waiting for something-skind of acknowledgment that I'm hearing him. And for a

second, | want to tell him everything. To explain why | even let Grayson get that close, but the words feel like

they'll choke me.

Instead, | throw my pillow at him again, this twith less force. “I'll deal with it, Pierce, Just go. Please.”

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09:44 Tue, 5 Aug

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Chapter 22

Pierce doesn’t budge, just stares atfor a moment longer. Then, finally, he sighs, his shoulders slumping in

resignation. “Fine. But so you know? The idiot’s outside, asking for you.”

My eyes widen. “And you're just tellingthat now!”

I quickly scramble to my feet, but my legs betray me, and | end up crashing to the floor in a tangled mess of

limbs and sheets

Pierce's laugh rings out, sharp and loud, cutting through the air like it always does. “Smooth, Jess,” he teases,

leaning against the doorframe,

ars crossed. “You really know how to make an exit.”

| shoot him a glare, heat flooding my face. “Shut up,” | growl, pushing myself up from the floor. My hands shake,

frustration and panic swirling inside me. “What do you mean he’s out there! What the hell is he doing waiting

outside for me?”

Pierce shrugs, the smirk still playing on his lips. Probably he personally seeks you out so he can punish you for

being late”

“It's not funny, Pierce,” | snap, trying to find a decent clothes. The last twe got stuck in a cabin and | got

mangled by a rogue wat turn to him and his face turns sour. “Is that the srogues that attack mom?”

Pierce’s smirk fades, and for a moment, and that madecurious. When it comes to things like that, he and

Grayson kept it to themselves

“Don’t talk about that,” he mutters, his voice quieter now.

| feel my stomach twist, “What, the rogue attack? | also deserve to know so | can train better and help our pack-"

“You will not beca warrior Jessica”

My jaw drops

| stare at him, wide-eyed, as if waiting for him to take it back, but his eyes are cold, serious, like he actually

believes it. Like he’s sure. And for a second, everything ingoes cold. A lump forms in my throat, but | can’t

swallow it down. It's not just the words, it’s the way he says them— like it's skind of done deal, like I'm not

even allowed to fight for my place, for my worth.

“You-you're serious?” My voice cracks with a mix of disbelief and rage, and | take a step forward, my hands

shaking as | fight to keep my composure. “So that’s it? | don’t even get a shot? You just-what, you just decide for

me? What makes you think you can tellwhat i can

and can’t do!”

Pierce's face hardens. He doesn’t back down, and | can feel the anger rising inside me, scorching my insides,

pushing everything to the

surface.

“Jess,” he says, the words coming out like he’s explaining something simple. “You're a woon. This isn't about

strength or skill. This is about what's expected of you. There's a line, and you're not crossing it. Not in our

world.”

Every word slams intoharder than the last. A woman.

| tilt my head, the laugh that escapesnothing short of bitter.

“A woman?” | scott, “Right, because that makeswhat? Fuck you Pierce. You are just like Dad!”

The words fall out before | can stop them, but the moment | say them, Pierce's eyes darken, like a storm cloud

rolling in. His jaw tightens, muscles going laut. His gaze turns colder, darker, as if | just stepped into dangerous

territory-territory | have no business crossing

“Don’t you dare compareto that son of a bitch, Jessica,” Pierce growls, his voice low but seething with rage.

His chest rises and falls with every breath, and | can feel the heat of his fury radiating off him. “Don’t you fucking

dare.”

He's right

Our dad is an asshole.

3/4

09:45 Tue, 5 Aug

Chapter 22

He left us. Chose the rogue life over his own blood. Over me. Over

Pierce.

AD

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