The Cruel World Read online

  “Florida,” Rook answers. Less is better when it comes to questions like this. “We just wanted to get away for a week.”

  The guy laughs. “Most people go to Florida when they get away.”

  He’s not wrong.

  Tennessee is nice though. It’d be nicer if I knew Cole was all right.

  West walks back over, handing the phone to the guy. “Thank you. I’ve got help coming for our friend. We will just wait here. Somebody will come get us once he’s taken care of.”

  “Nonsense.” He grabs his phone. “Let me drive you back to where you’re staying.”

  West rubs at the scruff on his jaw. “I don’t know if you’ll want to. We came through the woods, so it wasn’t as far, but driving it’s probably a good seventy or eighty miles up the mountain.”

  “It’s not a problem.” He turns toward his truck. “Uh, most of you will have to get in the bed.”

  West looks at Alek and Alek nods like they’ve just had a silent conversation. I realize, as Alek gets into the front seat, that they did. West, Rook, and I get into the back. I suppose West wants Alek up there in case we find out this guy is a serial killer or something. Alek can take care of him if we need it. Not that I think he is—he seems like a nice guy.

  The drive back feels like it takes forever, but eventually we pull into the long driveway that leads to our cabin. The guy keeps his truck running while we get out. West tries to give him some cash for bringing us, but he won’t accept it. Rook runs off toward the cabin, to check on Cole, I’m sure. Alek, West, and I follow in after him as the guy leaves.

  Once we’re inside, we find that Cole and Jensen are nowhere to be seen, but Kal and Ian are waiting on us. Kal seems relieved to see me. He even runs over to me, giving me a hug.

  “No offense, Roxy, but you stink,” Kal says.

  I smack his arm. “Sleep in the woods tonight and we’ll see how you smell.”

  “Where is Cole?” Rook asks.

  Kal pulls back. “An ambulance came and picked him up about thirty minutes ago. Jensen went with him.”

  “Is he all right?”

  Kal nods. “Yeah. He’s been awake since about ten minutes after you guys left, giving Jensen a hard time for making him stay in bed.”

  I let out a breath in relief.

  A horn blows from outside.

  “Ah, that should be our ride,” West says.

  Thank goodness.

  The six of us make our way outside where there is a black SUV waiting for us. I’ve never been so excited as the SUV pulls away from that cabin. Tennessee is nice and all, but I am so ready to get back home. I hope we never have to go through anything like this again.

  “Hey, guys,” I say, as the driver pulls out onto the main road.

  “What, Princess?” West asks.

  “Let’s never fight with anybody ever again.”

  They laugh, but I’m serious. I can’t take any more of this. I don’t want to be dropped in a forest again, not even a cabin. It’s way too stressful. I just want to work hard and do my job. And I definitely want to make sure we all get along.

  Please never drop us off in the woods again.

  Michael Sinclair meets us at the hospital. I’m surprised to see him when we walk through the doors, though maybe I shouldn’t be. For some reason, he’s taken a special interest in my team, as well as Jensen’s team. I know The Royals are important, but I never saw him this much growing up, even with my parents being Royals.

  “Glad to see you,” Michael says.

  West shakes his hand. “I wish I could say the same, but every time we see you, something bad seems to happen.”

  He chuckles.

  “Have you heard about Cole?” Rook cracks his knuckles, looking around anxiously.

  “Cole is fine,” Michael assures him. “It’s a mild concussion and he’s sleeping it off. They’re going to watch him overnight, just to be sure, but he’s going to be just fine.”

  Rook’s shoulders sag with relief.

  “I believe he’s waiting for you in his room.” He rattles off his room number and Rook runs to meet up with his teammate.

  Michael turns to West. “How are things?”

  “They’re good now,” West says. “Our teams have worked out our differences.”

  He grins. “Excellent. That’s great to hear.”

  “Please never drops us off in the woods again.” West shakes his head.

  Michael chuckles. “I’m terribly sorry about that. I just see a lot of potential. Jensen’s team and your team are some of the best I’ve seen in years—I need your teams to get along. I have a feeling you’re going to be working together some in the future.”

  West stiffens at Michael’s words.

  Yes, we’ve worked out our differences, but that doesn’t mean we want to work with another team. And just because West doesn’t hate Rook, Jensen, and Cole anymore doesn’t mean he likes them.

  “You all did well.” Michael nods at us. “I’ll be seeing you guys around.”

  Hopefully not soon.

  He turns and walks toward the exit of the hospital and the five of us look between each other.

  “What now?” Kal asks, looking at West.

  West shrugs. “I guess we should check on Cole and then head home.”

  Home.

  Now that sounds good.

  Monday, January 15

  The way you look at him.

  I sit in the driver’s seat of the Jeep. Ian is sitting beside me with his arms crossed over his chest. He looks out the window to avoid looking my way.

  It’s been one month since we were dropped off in the woods. I wish I could say that things between Ian and I have gotten better since then, but they haven’t. If anything, they’re more tense than ever. He refuses to talk to me or even look at me.

  On a positive note, Jensen, Cole, and Rook got called away on a mission a week after we returned home, so things are quiet again. I like quiet.

  Today, I am taking Ian to get his cast off. If he weren’t so desperate to get it taken off, I’m sure he would have rescheduled for when somebody else could drive him. I’m the only one who could spare a moment, though I think West did that on purpose. He knows Ian and I need to talk—we need to work out our differences. The problem is, Ian won’t talk to me. Anytime I walk into the room, he walks out. He can’t even stand to be around me.

  I sigh, tapping my fingers on the steering wheel.

  Should I try to talk to him? Maybe I could make friendly conversation.

  “Are you excited to get your cast off?” I ask.

  Silence is my only answer.

  Of course.

  Wordlessly, we make our way to the doctor’s office, not saying anything to one another. I wish there were something I could do or say to make Ian not despise me, but right now I’m just playing a waiting game. I have to wait for him to come to me.

  Ian and I walk inside the doctor’s office together. I’m surprised that he didn’t tell me to wait in the car, but I’m happy nonetheless. We go back to a room right away. Ian sits down on the table and I sit in a chair by him. I tap my fingers against my knees, wondering what I could say to him. Last time I tried to talk, it didn’t turn out so well. Maybe I should just give him his silence.

  “I’m sorry.”

  Ian’s voice breaks the silence and my eyes widen as I look at him. “Sorry for what?”

  “Being mad at you for not feeling the same as me,” he clarifies. “I already knew how you felt before I confessed my feelings for you—it was obvious you weren’t into me. But I was still hoping that maybe you’d give me a shot.”

  I frown. “I’m the one who should be sorry, Ian.”

  He shakes his head. “I see the way you look at him. It’s obvious that your head over heels for him.”

  “Him?” I raise an eyebrow, feigning innocence. I’m hoping he won’t say West—maybe he’ll say Kal. Kal and I do flirt, but I’m not in love with Kal, at least not like I am with West.

&
nbsp; Ian gives me a pointed look. “Obviously, I’m talking about West.”

  I swallow hard. “Oh.”

  “I confess that I am jealous, but someday I want to meet a girl who looks at me the way you look at West.” Ian sighs. “You’re not the girl for me and I just have to accept that.”

  I put a hand to the base of my throat. “West and I are just friends, Ian. I doubt we’ll ever be more.”

  He smirks. “Keep telling yourself that.”

  I roll my eyes.

  “He feels the same,” Ian says.

  “How do you know?” I push a piece of hair behind my ear.

  “Roxy, the guy calls you Princess. Do you really think he’d call you that if he weren’t in love with you?” Ian asks.

  I snort. “He calls me Princess because he knows it gets on my nerves. He does it to annoy me.”

  Ian raises an eyebrow, calling my bluff. “At first, maybe. But around the second week you were there, it was clear to all of us how West felt. We all felt that way, but you never looked at any of us how you look at West.”

  Am I that easy to read? Who cares? Ian is talking to me!

  “I missed you,” I tell Ian.

  He grins. “I missed you too.”

  “Does this mean you forgive me?” I ask, feeling hopeful.

  He nods. “If you’ll forgive me.”

  “There is nothing to forgive, Ian. You’re my best friend.”

  His grin widens. “You’re my best friend too.”

  You’re such a good friend.

  That night, things are as they should be. The five of us are getting along perfectly and I hope that this time it’s for good.

  West didn’t seem at all surprised when Ian and I came through the front door talking and laughing. It’s like he expected it. Kal and Alek were both overjoyed at the fact that we made up. All is well again, and I can’t help but be overjoyed.

  Later that night, West and I sit on the balcony together. It’s too dark to see the water, but we hear the waves roar as they crash onto the shore. It’s my favorite sound in the world. It’s a little cold, so I cover myself with a throw that I put on the balcony.

  West shakes his head, looking at me. “Since when is sixty-five cold?”

  I shrug. “Since I moved to Florida.”

  He throws his head back and laughs. “I see that you and Ian made up.”

  I couldn’t stop the grin if I tried. “Yeah. We had a talk at the doctor’s office and everything is good now.”

  “I’m glad.” He nudges me with his shoulder. “I knew things would work themselves out eventually.”

  Yeah, it only took forever. But I’m glad we’re through it.

  “You’re a good agent,” West tells me.

  I play with the fringe on my blanket. “Thank you.”

  “You’re also a really good friend.”

  My chest aches and I look up at him.

  A friend?

  Ouch.

  I was really hoping I was more than a friend to him.

  “I haven’t told you enough how happy I am that you’re on our team. I’m glad you turned down Jensen’s invitation, even though you had every reason to join.”

  I chew on my lip. “Nah, I belong here. With you.”

  He grins, putting his arm around me. “I think so too.”

  I snuggle into his chest, loving how easy it is to be around him now. “I’m glad you don’t hate me anymore.”

  “I never hated you, Princess.”

  I grin at that. “It sure felt like it.”

  “No matter what, I will always consider you a friend. I promise,” he says.

  There is that word again.

  Friend.

  I hate that word.

  “Are you okay?” West asks.

  It’s then I realize I’ve been quiet.

  I shrug. “Yeah, I’m fine. Just thinking about things.”

  He nods, easily accepting my answer.

  A big part of me wants to tell West how I feel, but that would be a stupid, stupid decision. He’d turn me down and then things would be awkward between us. I can’t do that, not now that I’ve finally figured things out between Ian and I. I refuse to make things bad again.

  West hasn’t tried to kiss me anymore—not since the kiss we shared at The Royal Games. And while I am disappointed, maybe it is for the best. Our team is finally getting along. Me having feelings for West would just complicate things.

  He grabs onto my hand with his. My pulse races.

  For some reason, I can’t get my heart to listen to what my brain has already decided.

  Friends.

  We’re just friends.

  The thought makes my chest ache.

  It doesn’t matter though. This is just the way things need to be. And I’m okay with it. At least, that is what I tell myself.

  THE END.

  Book 3, The Perfect Lie, is coming soon!

  Letter from Scarlett.

  The Royals is, by far, my favorite series that I have EVER written. And writing this book makes me excited because of all the future books that are going to come from this series! There are so many guys I want to write stories for! It makes me pumped about the future of all The Royals.

  I can’t believe I’m saying this, but… I LOVE ROOK. I know. I’m not supposed to like him. He’s on the rival team. But I adore this sweet boy and I think a story for him, Jensen, and Cole NEEDS to happen. (I seriously wasn’t supposed to love them so much).

  I hope you enjoy this series as much as I do. There are still three books left in Roxy’s story and I’m glad. I don’t know what I’ll do when I have to say goodbye to her!

  If you did enjoy this book, it would mean a lot to me if you left a review wherever you picked this up.

  For more information on this series, be sure to check out my blog https://scarletthaven.net!

  —Scarlett Haven

  P.S. I recently deleted my social media accounts. I find that being on social media during these uncertain times makes me feel down, and I don’t like that. So, I deleted everything and I’m just going to focus on writing. If you want to keep up with my releases, be sure to follow me the following ways.

  Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Scarlett-Haven/e/B01AM928MG

  My website: https://scarletthaven.net

  My newsletter: https://wordpress.us13.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=2b073ef1d3dd1a8003e58a389&id=8393d2923e

  More books by Scarlett

  Shifter Academy: Corrupted

  The Unwanted Student (Book 1—coming soon!)

  The Forgotten Princess (Book 2—coming soon!)

  The Unexpected Ally (Book 3—coming soon!)

  Spy Academy: The Royals

  The Unwanted Spy (Book 1)

  The Cruel World (Book 2)

  The Perfect Lie (Book 3—coming soon!)

  The High Life (Book 4—coming soon!)

  The Ugly Truth (Book 5—coming soon!)

  West Raven Academy:

  Losing Grip (Book 1)

  Fighting Fate (Book 2—coming soon!)

  Wasting Away (Book 3—coming soon!)

  Taking Risk (Book 4—coming soon!)

  The Spy Chronicles:

  The Princess of Spy School

  *This is a completed story!

  After Spy:

  Hacked (Book 1)

  *This is a stand alone series!

  East Raven Academy:

  Ever After (Book 1)

  Never Ever (Book 2)

  Never Say Never (Book 3)

  For Ever (Book 4)

  *This is a completed series!

  Bayside Academy:

  Gracie (Book 1)

  Unraveling Gracie (Book 2)

  Hating Gracie (Book 3)

  *This is a completed series!

  New Hope Academy:

  Fate (Book 1)

  Luck (Book 2)

  Fame (Book 3)

  Wish (Book 4)

  *This is a completed series!

  Stand Alone Sweet Con
temporary Books:

  The Day My Life Began

  The Bucket List

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