His hands rub up and down my back as the cool evening air surrounds us, and to be honest, until now I hadn’t even realized it was cold. All that mattered was making things right. “So,” he finally says in a tone that has me guarding myself. “Are you really sure about this Carrington kid? You saw what his mom did at that funeral and those sisters of his … crazy runs deep in that family.”
I laugh and hold him a little tighter. “Trust me, I’ve got it handled. I grew up with you four so I’m well-practiced. Besides, no one is crazier than me.”
“Ain’t that the fucking truth,” Eli mutters, joining us and quickly pulling me out of Sebastian’s loving arms. He pulls me into his chest and I snuggle in, knowing there’s no better place in the world. “Though,” he adds. “You’re kind of a step above that shit because you come with a nasty fucking bite and a set of steel balls.”
“You’re damn right, I do.”
I can practically feel Nic’s eyes roll behind me as Kairo steps into my side. “Come on,” he says, peeling my hand off Eli’s back and slipping his into it. He pulls me away and the others follow. “We should get out of here,” he says, leading me around the side of the house.
“What you mean is that you have a date tonight that’ll end with a guaranteed fuck and you want to get your ass back home before you miss your shot.”
Kairo scoffs. “Babe, I never miss my fucking shot. I could show up at her doorstep at four in the fucking morning and she’ll still drop to her knees.”
“Ugh,” I say, pretending to gag as he loops our joined hands over my shoulder. “Have I ever told you how disgusting you are?”
“Constantly.”
“Good. Just making sure.”
The boys chat among themselves as we walk through the massive property, but as we finally reach the front of the mansion, all five of us pull up and find ourselves staring.
Crazy momma Carrington stands on the front steps of the mansion with a small luggage bag held in her hand, and when I say that she looks proud as fucking punch, it’s the understatement of the year. She looks like a woman who just cured cancer. All her fucking problems are gone. Her shoulders are lifted, there’s a smile on her face, and she walks down those stairs in a way that reminds anyone who’s watching that she’s the motherfucking boss bitch.
Her twin daughters follow down the steps behind her looking kind of happy but kind of pissed at the same time. It’s hard to tell with those two. Hell, they might not be pissed at all. That could just be their usual resting bitch faces.
We watch in silence as the twins reach the bottom of the stairs and slide their luggage into the back of a black limousine before giving their mother a quick hug. The girls chat for a few moments then stride past the limo until their ducking down into the teal McLaren that’s been parked out front of the mansion for the last two days.
Laurelle drops down into the limousine and as it pulls away, that’s when it finally hits me. They’re sneaking out during the middle of a party, and I’m damn sure that they’re doing it without even a simple goodbye for Colton.
Pain rockets through me. He might be a fucking boss now, but he’s still eighteen years old and struggling with the passing of his father. If anything, he needs his family more than ever. I thought they’d be staying and I didn’t question it for even a second. That’s the right thing to do, yet there they go, disappearing down the long driveway.
They fucking left him … again, and now without his father around, he’s got no one. God, he must be hurting so fucking bad.
“Come on,” Kai mutters, seeing the heartbreak and disappointment written all over my face. “It’s not your problem.”
He pulls me along until we’re standing beside Nic’s car and by the time we finally made it there, people are beginning to file out of the mansion. It’s Tuesday night and every fucker in this place has somewhere to be tomorrow. Whether it’s a board meeting or a classroom. Me, I’ll be here doing absolutely nothing.
I give each of the boys a quick hug, hating to see them go but Kairo’s right. They need to head back home before they can get themselves in any more trouble. Hell, before I get them in more trouble.
Nic holds onto me a second longer than necessary and as he goes to drop down into his car, voices from the sixty-six steps of the Carrington mansion draw my attention. I look back over my shoulder and as I take them in, a wide smile spreads across my face.
I can’t believe my fucking luck.
I duck down through Nic’s open window and look at Kairo. “How important is that date?”
His eyes narrow in suspicion before his low voice comes murmured through the window. “Why?”
I indicate back over my shoulder and all four boys look back. “See those guys?” I say with a grin. Nic grunts, telling me to continue. “They’re the five fuckers who crowded me against a car and poured acidic grease over my head until my hair was falling out in chunks.”
All four of their eyes darken and as we watch them walk down the drive, the tension gets thicker. To be honest, I’d kind of forgotten about these guys. So much has happened since that day and getting revenge had slipped from my mind after Colton had taken it upon himself to beat the living shit out of all of them. But that was his payback, this is going to be mine.
“No shit,” Kairo mutters as they get closer. “They’re the same dickheads who were in Breakers Flats a month ago buying drugs from the Widows. Those fuckers thought they could get away from us.”
“The same ones from my last night in Breakers Flats?” I question, remembering that night so well, all the way back when my biggest problem was to hotbox Nic’s car or not.
“Yep.”
Well, damn. I guess these boys really do have a score to settle with the five rich pricks of Bellevue Springs.
Nic looks up at me as the guys pass and grins. “We’ll take care of it,” he promises before winking and sending my world into a tailspin. I don’t know what it is about a man winking that drives me insane but it does and I absolutely love it.
His car slowly pulls out and stalks the five guys and I wait and watch as they realize what the fuck is happening. They start picking up their speed, regretting their decision to park so far up the drive. Their pathetic run is no match for Nic's car. They’re fucked and they know it.
With them disappearing into the distance, I turn back to the mansion. I should be heading back to the pool house to drop into bed like a good little girl, but the thought of walking back into that godforsaken place has my feet moving without permission toward its looming doors.
Why am I so good at bad decisions?
Once through the mansion doors, I peer into the massive ballroom. I find Harrison hurrying around, trying to close shit down. This isn’t one of those nights where the party will be held into the early hours of the morning. This was a celebration and unfortunately, the reason for celebrating is now gone … literally.
I bypass the end of the party and walk straight through to the kitchen to where I’d seen Colton before I walked out to find the boys. I look down into the open living space and there he is, still sitting in the dark with his head dropped low into his hands.
It’s been well over an hour since I walked through here last and he looks as though he hasn’t moved an inch.
I go to him.
I don’t know what possesses me to do it. Maybe it’s that constant need to always insert myself somewhere I don’t belong. Who knows?
He doesn’t look up as I approach but I know he feels me just the way that I feel him. I walk right up in front of him and he doesn’t move a muscle until my fingers trail over his shoulder. Colton sits up and looks up at me and I see nothing but pain reflected in his eyes. It tears me apart. He’s done nothing but hurt me since the day I got here but the idea of seeing him in pain kills me.
I move into him, pressing my knee down on the couch beside his thigh and doing the same with the other until I’m straddled on his lap. His arms curl around me and I sink into him, resting my
head on his shoulder and just holding him, knowing how damn much he needs me here.
Neither of us utters a single word, as when we do, this will all be over. Instead, we sit in silence, wrapped in each other's arms until the night begins to claim me. A yawn rips though me and his arms instantly tighten around me, somehow holding me even closer.
We sit for another ten minutes before my eyes begin to grow heavy and instead of pushing me away and telling me enough is enough, he simply lifts me off the couch, keeping me wrapped around his body until he’s pushing through the door of my bedroom in the pool house.
He puts me down on my bed and presses a soft kiss to my temple before silently walking out and closing the door behind him, unknowingly setting my world on fire to the point where there’s now no chance in hell that I’ll be able to sleep.
Chapter 10
“The fuck?” I demand, staring down at my Kindle as I read over the last page of Hate by Tate James, desperately trying to flip the page for more because that bitch can’t possibly leave me hanging like that. What kind of fucked up ending was that anyway? Where’s my happily ever after? Where’s the four-way with dicks flying at MK’s face?
Damn. Why does she have to play with my emotions like that?
I sit up on the couch, my head still reeling with the epic ending and theories when I realize that it’s well past four in the morning. How the hell did that happen? I settled onto the couch at some point after Milo had disappeared, and somehow I’m still here. Shit, I didn't even spare a few seconds to take my ass out to the pool house.
I let out a heavy sigh. There’s no way I’ll be able to sleep after that.
I pull out my phone and start searching for book two on Amazon and let out a relieved breath as I find it in the recent releases. Thank fuck. I need more of this world and Archer D’Ath.
Realizing that starting another book after four in the morning is just a little insane, I put my kindle down and try to find the energy to get up off the couch and make my way to bed, only I can’t.
What is it with these authors giving us these incredible books and the BAM, leaving us with blue balls and bullshit cliffhangers that have our tiny minds exploding with insanity? Fuck, if I ever meet that Tate James … damn, I’d have a few things to say to her.
Knowing sleep won’t be coming anytime soon, I grab the throw blanket off the back of the couch and pull it around myself as I stare off out the back window. The moon shines brightly in the night sky and reflects perfectly off the pool. It’s simply stunning. I don’t think I’m ever going to get used to this shit.
A noise out in the hallway has my head whipping around and my heart racing. Ever since there was a murderer and a rapist on the loose around here, I’ve been a little jumpy, but considering the rapist was after me and the murderer may or may not be the same guy who killed my father, it’s acceptable to be a little on edge.
I strain through the dark, watching and waiting as whoever is out there gets closer. My fingers curl around the edge of my Kindle. I’m more than prepared to use this bad boy as a weapon, but if it fucks up my Kindle, I’m going to be pissed.
A familiar figure crosses in front of the door and I let out a heavy sigh. “Oh, thank fuck,” I say, letting my head flop back to the couch as the relief sails through me.
The figure stops and turns at the sound of my voice. “Jade?” Colton questions, sounding a little unsure if he’s believing what he’s actually seeing. Though it’s not a far stretch, it’s nearly pitch black in here.
“Yeah,” I murmur into the dark room. “It’s me.”
He stops and walks into the room, keeping himself at a distance. “What are you doing?” he questions, flipping on a lamp as he passes and spreading a dim light through the room.
“I kinda got distracted reading a book,” I tell him. “I only just realized what time it was.”
“You read?” he grunts in surprise, his brows flying into his hairline.
“Kind of,” I say. “I read to distract myself from the bullshit of the real world. It’s not like an obsession or anything. Just something to do when there’s nothing keeping me interested on Netflix. What are you doing?” I ask. “It’s a little early for you.”
He pinches the edges of his grey tank and I allow my eyes to rake over his body. “Ahh, the gym. Right. As if your body needs work,” I say with a scoff, feeling like an idiot for not realizing the second he walked through the door.
His lips twist into a proud grin and I roll my eyes at him. He’s such a cocky fuck.
His whole schedule has been changing this week. He's been doing some school work through correspondence while spending his days locked in his father's office, trying to wrap his head around everything that he did. It’s not as though Charles left Colton a cheat sheet. He's been having to work it all out on his own and honestly, I’m kind of proud.
It’s only been a few days since the funeral but so far, Colton has been killing it as a badass CEO of everything Carrington. Hell, I don’t even know the business’ names or how many there are. I don’t even know what those businesses do, but I do know that watching Colton slay day in and day out gets me all kinds of hot and bothered.
“Come on,” he says, walking toward me and taking my hand. Butterflies swarm through my stomach as he pulls me up off the couch. “You need to go to bed. You have school in a few hours.”
“Oh, you haven’t heard?” I question, putting on the brakes. He looks back at me with his brows pinching in confusion. “Dean Simmons called me into his office before school on Monday morning and informed me that now your dad was gone, there was no obligation to keep me at BSA. He had my transfer slips already signed and approved without even thinking of mentioning it to me or Mom.”
“The fuck?” he grunts.
“Yeah, I apparently start at the girls’ school on Monday morning—not that Mom and I can afford the fees. I’ll have to change to whatever public school you guys have around here.”
“That’s fucking bullshit,” he spits, his eyes bouncing around the room, deep in thought. “Don’t worry about it. I’ll sort it out.”
“No,” I say, stopping him before he can get too far with that thought. “I don’t need you rushing in to save me all the time. It’s fine. I mean, the way he handled it was wrong and he should be fired for that shit, but it doesn’t change the fact that you guys are a bunch of dudes and I’m a chick. I never should have been enrolled at BSA in the first place.”
“I mean …”
“That’s what I thought,” I grumble, allowing him to pull me out of the room, assuming that he’s leading me back to the pool house and sending me off to bed like a good little girl, only he turns in the opposite direction. “Where are we going?”
He doesn’t respond, just keeps pulling me along, his fingers laced through mine and doing all sorts of things to me. It’s moments like this where I feel we could be so much more but then he always goes and does something to fuck that up.
I don’t understand this. Sometimes he’s so unbelievably sweet, caring, and overprotective, but other times, he wants to get at me, tear me down, and remind me who’s the fucking boss around here. I get it, I really do. It’s his way of coping with all the bullshit and trying to keep me in line, it’s his way of pretending what he’s feeling for me doesn’t exist, but it’ll get to a point where he can no longer pretend, and when it does … fuck. It’s either going to be epic or a colossal cluster fuck. There’s no middle ground when it comes to Colton Carrington.
We walk through the house until he stops in front of a set of double doors that look just like the rest, that is until he leans forward and presses the call button. My eyes bug out of my head. “You have a fucking elevator in here and I’m only just finding out now?”
“Jesus,” he laughs. “What kind of worker are you? How could you not know this?”
I glare at the magnificent man beside me. “Because I stick to the jobs Maryne gives me and make a point of not snooping around your house.”
/>
“Bullshit,” he grunts. “I’ve seen you standing in front of bookshelves tipping books, hoping for a secret dungeon.”
My mouth drops. Fuck. Sprung. “I … uhhh. I was just ...”
“You were just at the wrong bookshelf.”
My eyes widen. “Bullshit. Are you serious?”
He grins. “Dad had to hide his prized possessions somewhere, but don’t get too excited. It’s just a really big room with all his favorite art, sculptures, and treasures.”
“No shit,” I laugh. “That’s kinda cool.”
Colton shrugs, clearly not as impressed as I am.
The elevator arrives and the doors slide open. Colton waves me in and holds the doors open like the gentleman he pretends to be. I step through and Colton follows behind, allowing the doors to close us in.
He presses a button and as the elevator starts taking us up, the tension rises along with it. His hand remains in mine but the need to grab his face and devour it pulses through me. I wonder what kind of alarm system is on this thing and how much jumping around it could take before it broke off the chains and dropped to the ground?
No. Ocean. Behave. I’m not about to have a quickie with Colton in the elevator while dangling between floors. If and when I fuck him, it’s going to count and it’s going to be so much more than a quickie. It’ll be fucking explosive and I can’t wait.
There’s a soft ding as we reach the top floor and when the doors slide open, I stare ahead in shock. “Holy shit,” I breathe as Colton pulls me out of the elevator.
I glance around at the fully stocked library and itch to start searching. It’s like a scene out of fairytale in here. It’s incredible.
Cocky F*ck: A Dark High School Bully Romance (Rejects Paradise Book 2) Page 10