Before Us (The Next Generation Book 3)

by J. M. Walker

  “Hello, Piper.” His steel-gray eyes flicked over my head. “Problem?”

  “Who invited you?”

  I glared at Ashton over my shoulder. “Don’t be rude. He’s friends with all of us.”

  “Some more than others,” Ashton mumbled, taking a swig of his beer.

  “If you have something to say,” I snapped. “Say it.”

  “Nope. Nothing at all.” Ashton glanced between us both. “Nothing to say at all.”

  “I need another drink.” Aiden stood and walked past us. “Ashton.”

  Ashton jumped from the couch and stopped in front of us. “He better be worth it, Piper.” And with that, he walked away.

  “Am I worth it, Piper?”

  I shivered at the deep voice rumbling through me. “I’m going to go find Gigi,” I told Jaron when, really, I just used that as an excuse to get away from him. From all of them.

  ***

  (Jaron)

  I wasn’t going to attend the party. Especially when Brody would be there, if he wasn’t there already. I hadn’t seen him as of yet. But when Gigi called me, telling me to watch over Piper, I couldn’t resist. I had a sense that she was rooting for Piper and me. There was a hurdle in the way of me being with Piper, but I wasn’t sure what it was exactly. We worked well together and hell, the sex was so fucking good.

  Was I ready to settle down? I wasn’t sure, but what I did know was that I didn’t want her seeing anyone else. Hell, I wasn’t seeing anyone else either.

  I stood off to the side, nursing a beer and watching Piper. She stood with Gigi and a couple of other guys I had recognized from previous parties Gigi had thrown. They were harmless, especially when they caught me looking every so often.

  My phone vibrated, indicating an incoming text.

  Cyrus: You good?

  Me: Yup.

  Sammy: Where are you?

  Me: Party.

  Cyrus: We’re less than five minutes away if anything goes down.

  Me: Good.

  I put my phone away appreciating that I wasn’t truly alone and that Piper was safe. Even if I wasn’t around, she would always be safe.

  Cyrus and Sammy were a few years older than me and had been the brothers I never had. We were family, whether we were blood related or not. That fact alone didn’t matter. I would lay my life on the line for them and they would, in turn, do the same for me.

  My phone vibrated again.

  Glancing at the small screen, I saw that a text had come in from an unknown number. My eyes popped up, landing on Brody standing across the yard. The fucker nodded once.

  The tiny hairs on the back of my neck rose. He bothered me in ways I had never come across before. I knew some vile men. His father being one of them. But Brody Davies was different. On the outside, he was nice and innocent, but get him alone or piss him off and he would snap. My uncle was right. He was way too clean. His record was perfect. No one’s record was perfect. Even if they never got caught, they still did something. Anything. But Brody hadn’t. At all.

  A laugh sounded a few feet away. That same laugh made my dick leak and my mouth water.

  Brody’s eyes followed the sound, landing on Piper who stood with Gigi, Meadow, and a few other girls. Gigi said something, using her hands animatedly, causing bubbles of laughter to erupt from the group.

  My phone vibrated again.

  I glanced down.

  Unknown: You shouldn’t be at the party.

  Me: You should mind your own business.

  Unknown: You’re in my town. You are my business.

  Me: You’re not being very discreet, Mayor.

  Unknown: I have no idea what you’re talking about.

  Bastard.

  ***

  (Piper)

  “Have you girls talked to Luna?” I asked Gigi and Meadow.

  “No.” Gigi pulled her hair back into a tight ponytail. “I think she has her hands full with Zach.”

  I nodded. Luna was another friend who had finally started dating her crush. Zach Porter was Jaron’s cousin and another one who was silent and broody. It seemed that Luna had been the only one to ever put a smile on his face.

  “How are things going with you and those bikers?” I asked Meadow, waggling my eyebrows.

  Meadow laughed, taking a sip of her wine. “So good. I like that they don’t make me feel like a little girl. Not that it would be an issue if they did. You know that whole Daddy Dom thing and all, but it’s not really my scene.”

  “Daddy Dom?” Gigi repeated, frowning.

  Meadow patted her hand. “You need to read more.”

  Gigi blushed. “I’m so naïve.”

  “Nah. You just know what you want and that’s not one of them.” I shrugged. “I wouldn’t worry about it.”

  “I don’t even know what I want.” Gigi looked around her. Her gaze landed on something that caused the red in her cheeks to become even more pronounced. “I feel like a dirty old woman.”

  “You are a dirty old woman.” Meadow laughed.

  “Is there something wrong with me?” Gigi asked, her brows narrowing. “Guys my own age don’t do it for me. Hell, Vincent’s more mature than them.”

  I followed her gaze. Vincent Junior stood off with some of his friends. He was Luna’s younger brother and while he was much younger than us, he was a good guy and was highly mature for his age. “He’s only a few years younger than you. Luna is only a couple years younger than Zach.”

  “That’s different,” Gigi muttered.

  “How? Sunny and Shade are twenty years older than me.” Meadow patted her own shoulder. “I’m so proud of myself right now.”

  We laughed.

  “Listen, Gigi. Vincent is young but he’s mature.” I had to admit that Gigi was right though. Vincent Junior was good-looking.

  “True.” Gigi sighed. “He probably hasn’t noticed me anyway.”

  I bit back a scoff, but I understood her doubts. Hell, I had them about Jaron and myself. My body heated, and that was when I remembered that my thong was currently sitting in Jaron’s pocket.

  Gigi and I both stood at the same time, bumping our hands together and knocking over our wine.

  Giggles erupted between us.

  A red stain spread on my dress. I wanted to change anyway but at least this would give me a better excuse.

  “I’m so sorry.” Gigi pouted. “What a waste of wine.”

  “No problem.” I patted her hand. “I was going to change anyway.”

  I excused myself. As much as I enjoyed feeling Jaron’s cum on my thighs, it gave me a reason to have a moment alone. And also a moment to grab more wine. More wine was always needed.

  Once I reached my room, I went in search of something new to wear.

  A soft knock on the door a moment later, startled me.

  “Coming,” I called out, wiping the wet spot on my dress. Of course I had to wear white. Why would it make sense not to wear white when I was drinking red wine? I mentally smacked myself.

  Opening the door, I stared up into Brody’s deep green eyes. My stomach twisted as I remembered the new information I was given about him. Knowing I had to play it cool and not act like anything was wrong, I smiled up at him.

  “Hey, Brody. I was just cleaning my dress. Or trying to.” I looked down at the stain that was now pink. “Hopefully I can get this out. I actually like this dress.” Even though it had only been a few dollars, it was comfy, and it was soft. I should have bought—I was suddenly shoved back a step.

  Brody closed the door behind him, clicking the lock into place. His eyes roamed down the length of me, his tongue swiping along his bottom lip.

  My heart started racing. Ice-cold fear gripped my spine. “Brody?” my voice cracked. “W-What’s going on?”

  He didn’t meet my gaze. His lips moved like he was mumbling to himself, but no words came out.

  “Hey,” I said gently. “What’s wrong?”

  He took a step toward me, forcing me back.

 
“Brody.” I held up my hands, trying so damn hard not to spook him. He had always been kind. Gentle. A little off but his father was the mayor, so he was constantly in the spotlight. We thought it had to do with that, but this situation proved differently. Him being nice was too good to be true. “I don’t know what’s wrong but—”

  “Shut up,” he whispered. “Shut up. Shut up. Shut up.” His voice rose, sending that ice-cold fear racing over me into undeniable amounts of terror.

  “Please leave,” I demanded softly. “I won’t tell anyone.” And I especially wouldn’t tell Jaron.

  “I saw you with him,” Brody finally said. He rubbed his nape, his gaze flicking back and forth but still not meeting my eyes. “I saw you with them. The twins. Him.”

  “With who?”

  Brody reached his hand behind him. It came back a second later with a knife in it.

  My world tilted on its axis. This was it. This was how I was going to die, or worse.

  “I like you, Piper.” Brody met my gaze that time. “I’ve always liked you, but you didn’t like me back. I don’t know why. I have money. I have a lot of money. I could make you fall in love with me. Whether you like it or not. You will be mine. I’ll see to it. No matter who gets in the way, you will always be mine.”

  “We’re friends,” I told him, backing up until I hit the edge of my dresser. “We’ve always just been friends.”

  “Yeah.” Brody chuckled, the sound cold and vile. “You see. That doesn’t work for me. If I can’t have you, no one’s going to have you. I don’t give a shit who they are. It kind of sucks that I have to do this here though. I like your friends. They have nothing to do with this. It’s all you, Piper. You and that slutty little body of yours. You’ve been prancing around here half naked ever since you got back from Paris. Is that what you learned over there? How to be a whore?”

  My blood burned at what he was accusing me of. “I’m not a whore, and I don’t dress like it either.”

  “No? You don’t? I’ve seen you with the twins. I like them though. But Jaron? Come on, Piper. You could do so much better than him. He’s a biker.” Brody took a step toward me.

  “Please, Brody. We can talk about this.” I reached behind me, trying to find something on my dresser that I could use as a weapon, but there was nothing. My dad had tried getting me to have a gun, but I refused. Even if I kept it in a locked case, we threw too many parties. I didn’t want to take the chance that someone would stumble into my room and find it. I suddenly regretted that decision.

  “Talk?” Brody laughed. “What are we going to talk about, Piper?”

  Taking a breath, I ran around him and jumped onto my bed when my feet were pulled out from beneath me. I cried out, struggling against him. I kicked and fought with all of the strength I could muster. My foot landed against Brody’s crotch, making him grunt, but it didn’t stop him from ripping at my clothes. His fingers dug into my sides, his knee pushing into the small of my back.

  I winced, attempting to push him off of me but he was too damn strong. “Brody, please stop this.”

  Brody removed his knee from my back and towered over me. With his fist in my hair, he leaned down to my ear. “You see, Piper. I do want to do this. Because no matter what, I can get away with it. I wonder what would happen if Jaron walked in. There would be a struggle, naturally. But people will think I actually fought him off. That I was the one to stop him from raping you.”

  My eyes widened. “W-What are you saying?”

  “I’m the hero, baby. I’m your hero.” With a firm grip on my head, he leaned back and slammed his fist into the side of my face.

  Spots danced in my vision. Agony screamed through my cheek. My lip split, a metallic taste coating my tongue.

  Brody turned me onto my back and knelt between my legs. “You’re so fucking beautiful. Why couldn’t you fall for a guy like me? Why him?” Wrapping a hand around my throat, he grazed the other up my thigh, pushing it beneath the hem of my dress.

  Bile rose to my throat, when I remembered I had no panties on. He would see me. Just a little more and he would see every inch of me. A part that had belonged to Jaron since Paris. I struggled, trying to grab the fabric from him but he was too strong for me. “Please, Brody. Stop this.”

  Squeezing my throat, he towered over me. “I want you to look into my eyes when I fuck your soul.”

  I whimpered. “Please stop.”

  “That’s right.” He licked up the side of my face. “Beg for it. Isn’t that what you do for Jaron? I bet he has you crawling on the ground for him like a little bitch in heat. You’re a fucking slut. Sleeping with the twins. Now Jaron. And then me.”

  My stomach twisted. “No.” I grabbed his hand around my throat, digging my nails into his skin, but that only seemed to make him squeeze harder. The lack of air burned through my lungs. I gasped for breath, spots dancing in my vision. “Brody,” I croaked. “Stop.”

  A heavy fist slammed into the side of my head and then my stomach. It forced the fight from me. No matter what I did, I couldn’t push him off. I couldn’t scream. I couldn’t fight. I couldn’t overpower him. I had no idea that Brody was this strong. He was smaller than Jaron. Much smaller.

  “Brody,” I whispered.

  He leaned down to my ear. “I will make it so you never forget me.”

  He was right. I wouldn’t. I never would.

  ***

  (Jaron)

  “Hey, Jaron.” Gigi came toward me, followed by Meadow.

  “Hey.” I nodded. “What’s up?”

  “Have you seen Piper?” Gigi looked behind her over her shoulder. “We bumped into each other and spilled our wine. Some landed on her dress and she was going to change.”

  “That was half an hour ago,” Meadow added.

  I glanced around the backyard, not seeing Brody anywhere in sight. “Shit.”

  “Jaron?” Gigi raised an eyebrow.

  I pulled my phone out of my pocket and texted Sammy and Cyrus.

  Me: Get over here. Now.

  If he hurt her, I would kill him. I would make him beg for his life. I would rip off every part of him that touched her.

  Storming into the house, I slowed my steps to a walk, not wanting to cause a scene.

  “Jaron?” Gigi followed me. “What’s going on?”

  “Which room is Piper’s?” I demanded, inching my way down the hall.

  “Last one on the left.” Her eyes were wide. “I can’t find Brody.”

  My stomach clenched. “Stay out here,” I told her as Sammy and Cyrus appeared around the corner.

  Gigi jumped. “Who are you?”

  “They’re with me,” I told her.

  She nodded. “Okay.”

  Sammy and Cyrus came toward me.

  I held up my hand, signaling for them to follow me. Once we neared the end of the hallway, I stood outside Piper’s door. I heard muffled voices but couldn’t make out anything that was being said. Trying the door, I realized then that it was locked. Sammy gently pushed me out of the way and picked it with the tools he had kept in his pocket at all times. Thank fuck for that.

  The door unlocked.

  “Stay out here,” I told them. I wasn’t sure what I would be walking in on, but I didn’t want them to see anything they shouldn’t see. Especially if it belonged to Piper.

  Slowly opening the door, my vision became clouded when my eyes landed on what laid before me. Brody was on top of Piper. Her dress was torn. Her face was badly beaten. His fist was in her hair. Her dress was pushed up and over her ass, but he was still clothed. The flesh of her rear was red like he had spanked her over and over.

  I didn’t know if he had finished the act or not. It didn’t matter. The fact that he started it in the first place, earned him death.

  Blood pounded in my ears and before I knew what I was doing, I charged for him.

  Both of us fell to the ground beside the bed. My fists hit his face repeatedly. He struggled beneath me, but I was too strong for him. I
should stop. I knew I should have stopped, but the rage inside of me controlled my actions.

  I vaguely heard my name being called. Over and over again.

  Jaron. Jaron. Jaron.

  But I couldn’t stop. I couldn’t quit. He had to hurt. He had to die. Brody was a slimy fucker, but we could never prove anything thanks to who his father was, but this time we had proof. We had something.

  “Jaron.”

  A metallic taste coated my tongue. Blood splattered my face and clothes. The skin on my knuckles split with each hit against the bones in Brody’s face.

  “Jaron.” Warm, gentle arms wrapped around my shoulders, pulling me off of him. I could have fought but I didn’t.

  Brody stared up at me. His eyes and face now swollen and bloody.

  It wasn’t enough.

  But it had to do.

  Piper

  YOU SEE IT on the news. Hear about it in passing while at school. Maybe a friend of a friend experienced it. But you would never think that it could happen to you. You’re safe. You’re smart. You don’t go out at night. You don’t walk down an alleyway alone. You keep with friends. You have a buddy system. You think you’re good and in the clear until one day it’s your friend who tries to rape you.

  My heart raced. My blood pounded in my ears. My hands shook.

  Jaron pushed away from me and rose to his full height. He pulled a gun from the back of his pants and shot him.

  My heart jumped. Although the sound had been quieter than I expected, knowing he had a silencer on the pistol, the shot still rang in my ears.

  I squeezed my eyes shut, shaking my head. This couldn’t be happening. I was dreaming. It was a fucked up nightmare. A shiver trembled through me. I needed clothes. I needed to get changed.

  “Piper.”

  “I-I need to get changed.” I sat up, pulling at my tattered dress. Clothes that were ripped and shredded. Clothes that hung off of me. Was I dressed too slutty? Did I lead Brody on? Was I a tease?