His brows furrow as he watches me. “What happened?”
“Nothing,” I groan, deciding not to get into it and ruin the rest of my day. “It’s just Nic being his usual asshole self but he’ll come running back with an apology so don’t be surprised when he breaks through your big fucking gates and shows up outside the pool house.”
“That bad, huh?” he questions. “You know, it wouldn’t be the worst thing if you just gave it space. Every time you see him lately it ends in some kind of fight.” I let out a heavy breath knowing he’s right and he steps into me, gently taking my waist, a harsh contrast to the way Nic had clutched onto it this morning. “I want you to be happy, Jade,” he murmurs. “And right now, Nic ain’t doing that for you.”
I meet his eyes, not wanting to admit just how right he is because admitting it would mean that I have to let go of him and I'm not ready to do that, not even close. “Is this a jealous boyfriend thing where you don’t want me hanging out with my ex, or are you really just looking out for my best interest.”
“Boyfriend, huh?”
My eyes bug out of my head. “Oh, fuck. That just slipped out,” I tell him. “I mean, maybe you’re not. I guess I don’t exactly know. I just assumed …”
Colton laughs and pulls me in tighter before dropping his lips to mine and kissing me deeply. “I thought you’d never figure it out.”
Well, damn. I went and got myself a billionaire boyfriend. How the hell did I manage that?
Butterflies swarm through my stomach and I peel myself away before I go and do something stupid like tell him just how badly I need him in my life. I look back to his desk and start straightening the papers that we messed up while screwing when my eyes scan over a bundle of resumes off to the left of his desk. “Wait,” I say, feeling the butterflies in my stomach die and turn to lead. “Did we just fuck beside a bunch of resumes of people who want to take Maryne’s job?”
Colton lets out a deep sigh. “Yeah,” he says, looking down at the stack. “I’ve been avoiding going through them. It just feels too final.”
I nod, unable to tear my eyes off of them before my plan falls into place. I reach across and take the resumes before striding across his office and dumping them into the fancy as fuck fireplace. “You don’t need these,” I tell him. “Put Mom in her position. She’s been doing it ever since Maryne … you know. If you hire someone else, you’re going to have to train them. Mom can do it. She practically did everything with Maryne anyway so she already knows what to do. I’ll take over some of the things mom was doing before so everything gets done, but you might need to hire another housekeeper to fill in while I’m at school.”
Colton presses his lips together, thinking it over. “I really don’t want to replace Maryne,” he says thoughtfully. “Do you really think your mom would be down for this? Have you even mentioned it to her?”
“No,” I say, “But trust me, planning elaborate parties and making schedules is much more appealing to her than cleaning thirty toilets every day.”
“You sure?”
“Yes, I’m fucking sure.”
“Alright then,” he says with a smile. “I’ll tell her this afternoon.”
I throw my arms around him and press my lips against his in excitement. “You’re the best,” I say excitedly. “Just do me a favor and don’t let her know that I had anything to do with it. You know, tell her that it’s because you see how good she is and that you value how much effort she puts in. That’ll make her feel really good.”
“Fuck, I love the way you’re so selfless when it comes to your mom,” he tells me. “But it’s true. Your mom is a fucking force of nature. I’ve never seen someone log as many hours and do such an incredible job. Hell, I don’t think I’ve seen any of our past live-ins actually smile.”
“Spend a little time in Breakers Flats and you’ll understand how she can be so happy scrubbing toilets. Your family has literally given me and my mom the world.”
“Alright,” he says, spanking my ass and making it sting in the best way. He's clearly trying to skip the sentimental crap because he doesn't know how to accept a compliment. “Get that fine ass out of here. I have work to do and if you keep hanging around here, I’m going to end up fucking you on every available surface until your pussy is red raw.”
I bit down on my lip, more than okay by the idea. “Go,” he tells me with a warning.
“Okay,” I laugh, slowly backing away before glancing at the fireplace. “Though, can I light them up first? It’s only the right thing to do.”
His lips lift into a crooked smile and waves a hand toward the fireplace. “Be my guest,” he tells me. “But if you’re going to burn them, can you burn all this other shit too?”
I let out a groan. I should have known it wasn’t going to be that easy. “Yeah, alright,” I say, walking towards the big box of papers and dragging it toward the fireplace. “What is all of this?”
He shrugs his shoulders. “Just a bunch of shit that dad was collecting over the years and is now wasting space on my shelves.”
I gape at him. “Did you even check any of this? What if it’s something important?”
“Anything important would have been filed away or at the main offices, not kept here. This is just his personal shit that he never got around to destroying.”
“If you insist,” I say, dropping down in front of the fireplace and pressing the magical little button that turns it on. I’ll never get used to these rich people's fireplaces. Back home you’d have to sit in front of the fireplace for ages trying to get it to light, but these ones are on and warm with the push of a button.
Just as I wanted, the resumes are the first to go up in flames and it feels so damn good. Maryne will not be replaced today. With Mom taking over her position, things can remain as normal as possible.
I lean back and listen as Colton works while I grab handfuls of papers and throw them onto the fire. I do my best to be a nosey bitch and scan over the papers as I go, though to be honest, I don't understand any of it.
I get halfway through when I grab the next pile to go in the fire and a folder with a familiar,unmistakable mark steals my attention.
“The fuck is this?” I murmur under my breath, quiet enough not to steal Colton’s attention away from his phone call. I drop the papers into the fire while keeping the folder on my lap.
The Black Widows mark stares up at me. Why the fuck would Charles have a Black Widows folder?
I tear open the folder in the same breath, desperately needing to know what’s in here. Before I’ve even finished scanning the first fucking page, I’m out the door and racing back to the Ferrari as my blood boils beneath my skin and the rage from earlier comes bounding back twofold.
They fucking know something and this time, I won’t be leaving until I have my answers.
Chapter 25
I bring the Ferrari to a screeching stop outside the Black Widows clubhouse, this time not giving a shit about what happens to the car. If someone wants to fuck around with it, be my guest. I’m not in the mood right now. This is too fucking big. It’s fucking huge and if I find out that Nic and my boys knew about this … fuck. Things will never be the same.
I storm through the compound and slam my way through the big doors. I’ve only ever been in here a handful of times and only ever because I had no fucking choice, and one thing is for sure, I’ve never stepped through these doors without my boys at my back. Walking in here unprotected–fucking stupid.
All eyes fall to me the second the door bangs against the brick wall but I don’t fucking care. Let them watch. Let them be witness to me tearing down their fucking second in command because that’s exactly what’s about to happen.
The folder burns against my skin as I start making my way through the building. It’s fucking huge in here, and a fucking mess. These guys live like slobs. There are four cars spread out across the compound, all being taken apart. I have no doubt that they’re stolen and the poor people who probably spent
their hard-earned cash and most likely couldn't afford insurance will never see them again.
Music blares through the building as guys sit against a bar either drinking, smoking, or counting stacks of cash. No matter what they’re doing, their eyes are on me. People don’t just wander in here whenever the fuck they want. If you’re inside this building it’s because you’re either one of them or because you’ve been invited and I can guarantee, not one of my boys would willingly invite me in here.
“Woah,” a familiar voice calls, jogging toward me before anyone else can. Elijah catches me around the waist and instantly starts hauling me back toward the door. “What the fuck do you think you’re doing?” he spits through his teeth, keeping his voice low, overpowering me, and getting me at least three steps back before I even know what’s going on. “Are you fucking insane?”
“Where the fuck is he?” I demand, fighting against Eli’s hold.
“I’ll get him. Just get the fuck out of here before someone decides that they have a problem with it.”
“GET HER OUT OF HERE,” a chilling voice booms through the compound. My head snaps up and I find Kian’s dark, deadly eyes locked on me and my blood instantly runs cold. How is this guy Nic’s father? They look nearly identical but they’re nothing alike. Kian is cold, harsh, and practically cut off from everything that makes a human good, while Nic is the whole fucking world … except for his need to fuck sluts and apparently becoming aggressively possessive like he did this morning. Maybe he does have a few things in common with his father after all.
Eli tugs on me hard and within the blink of an eye, he throws me out the door and the heavy metal slams shut behind us. He keeps me moving, his hard, unimpressed stare never leaving mine as he forces me all the way back to the road and far out of hearing range from the clubhouse.
He doesn’t speak a word directly to me, just silently pulls out his phone and holds it to his ear. “What?” I hear Nic’s sharp voice snap through the phone despite it not even being on speakerphone, going to prove exactly what kind of pissy mood he’s already in after our bullshit this morning.
“Your fucking girl is here and just let herself into the goddamn clubhouse.”
“The fuck?”
“We’re out front.”
Eli ends the call and drops his phone back into his pocket, his glare somehow even sharper. “You’re a fucking fool walking in there like that. Are you trying to cause shit for Nic?”
“I couldn’t give two fucking shits what kind of trouble I cause Nic. I hope he has the whole fucking world brought down on his ass.”
His brows furrow. “What the fuck has gotten into you?”
The door opens with a loud bang and Nic comes striding out looking like the worst kind of guy. The power radiating off him is enough to cut off my response to Eli and I storm toward him, the overwhelming emotions building within me far too great to control.
Anger burns in his eyes and it’s not clear if it’s from our bullshit this morning or if he’s just pissed at the little stunt I just pulled. Honestly, it’s probably both.
“Do you think this is a fucking game?” he roars. “What kind of bullshit do you think you’re playing coming in here unprotected? Do you know what those fuckers would have done to you?”
“Nothing worse than what I’ve already suffered through,” I throw back at him before holding the papers up at him. “What the fuck is this?”
His eyes flick to the big Black Widow marking on the front and something flashes in his eyes that puts him on edge. The papers are stolen from my hands and he flips it open as Sebastian and Kai appear behind him.
“Tell me you didn’t fucking know.”
“Know what?” Sebastian asks, stepping into my side so he can peer over the paperwork. “That my father was involved with Charles Carrington.”
Sebastian’s jaw clenches and just like that, I realize that they all know exactly what’s inside that folder. I snatch the papers back from Nic before he has a chance to finish scanning through them. “Fucking tell me right this goddamn minute what you know or I swear to you, Nic, you will never see me again. I will walk out of here and never look back.”
He stares at me and for a moment, Eli, Sebastian, and Kairo fade away, leaving just me and Nic—real, raw, and lethal. He swallows hard and I watch as he mentally goes through his options. He knows damn well that I will follow through on my threat and considering his reaction to the thought of me moving on this morning, I’m going to go ahead and assume that he doesn’t want me to walk away.
He lets out a loud breath, realizing that he’s backed into a corner and the second he does, the three boys stiffen as admitting that he knows something is admitting that they do too.
“Your father was a Wolf,” he starts, his eyes never once leaving mine, and upon seeing the lack of surprise, his brows furrow right along with the rest of them.
“You knew,” Kairo says, like an accusation, stepping a little closer.
My eyes cut to his. “Is it such a surprise that I knew something about my own fucking father? Hell, you guys all knew so why shouldn’t I? I fucking found out during an appointment at school when someone recognized my father’s name. Do you know how fucking stupid I looked sitting there and accusing this woman of not knowing what the fuck she was talking about?”
“Babe,” Sebastian says, reaching for me and trying to be that voice of reason that’s always been able to calm me during the worst kind of storms.
“DON’T,” I snap, stepping just out of his reach and watching his features break. “You all kept this from me. How could you do that? For fucking years. Tell me, did you know from the very beginning? Is that why you guys just suddenly popped into my life?”
“It’s not like that,” Nic growls.
“You know what? I don’t even care about that right now. I want to know if the shit in this folder is fucking true,” I demand, hating what I read and refusing to believe it. “I want to know just how low you can get, Dominic.”
“Well,” he says. “You have the papers in front of you. Read it for yourself.”
“I already have read it,” I yell at him. “I want to hear it from you. I want you, the guy who’s supposed to have my back to tell me that he’s always known the very reason why mom and I ended up in Bellevue Springs. I want you to tell me that you’ve known the answers to the questions that I kept asking and I want you to fucking tell me to my goddamn face that you’ve lied to me over and fucking over again.”
“O–”
“FUCKING TELL ME.”
“Alright,” he roars. “Your father was a fucking scumbag who stole from Carrington to put food on the fucking table for your ass and he got caught. He was offered two choices. Either pay the money back or lose his life, and that prick decided to pay up, but all he had was you and that fucking prick sold you to Carrington to save himself. You paid off his debt. That’s why you’re in Bellevue Springs. That’s why Charles called you his goddamn property, and that’s why I haven’t taken your ass out of there. Is that what you wanted to hear? You wanted me to break your precious little heart and tell you the truth about the man who you hold on a fucking pedestal? I was trying to protect you.”
I step into him, clenching my jaw. “I don’t need your protection. You lied to me. You could have told me from the start.”
“How could I have told you? If you knew you were a Wolf, you would have turned your back and walked away from us as some fucked up way to protect us. I wasn’t willing to risk that.”
“And just like that, you get to make that decision for me? So, every day you put my life at risk by bringing me into your world. You’re a fucking Widow and I’m a Wolf. We can’t be … whatever the fuck we are. I can’t be anything to any of you, yet every day you risk me like that. If they knew that I’m a fucking Wolf, I’d be–
“Dead.”
My eyes whip over to the chilling voice to find Kian striding toward me. My heart races. I’ve never had this man actually come to talk to me
before. I’ve always had Nic’s protection from that, but I don't need him. Not any more. Not if he could hide something like this from me.
I turn back to Nic, not giving a shit about his father right now. “Does my mother know? Colton?”
He shakes his head. “No. Neither of them.”
I let out a breath, not realizing how badly those questions had been plaguing my mind since I first scanned through these papers, but now it all makes sense. Why my boys have been so shady about Bellevue Springs, why Charles so suddenly took us in, and why he took an interest in my schooling. I wasn't just staff to him, I was his actual property. Yet in all of this, there's still one question that sits heavy on my heart.
I look back to Nic, feeling as though I could break. “Why didn’t he tell me?”
Eli scoffs. “Why didn’t he tell you that he sold you? Fuck, O. Why do you think? Hey, Honey, how was school? Oh, by the way, I sold you to a fucking billionaire so I could save myself.”
“Fuck you,” I snap. “Why didn’t he tell me that he was a fucking Wolf, asshole?”
Kian steps into the circle and grabs my chin, forcing my eyes to his as the four boys stiffen, not liking his closeness at all. “You were his little girl and this is no world for princesses like you.”
I tear my chin out of his hold. “You can’t touch me,” I snap. “I’m a fucking Wolf.”
He leans in, his eyes brimming with excitement. “As far as they’re concerned, you’re a traitor. You spend your days running around with Widows. I could do whatever the fuck I wanted to you and they wouldn’t do a goddamn thing.”
Nic glares at his father. “Back off.”
Kian straightens and turns his attention on his son. “What’s with this little obsession you have with this girl?” he questions before tracking his eyes up and down my body. “She’s certainly nothing special.”
My sharp glare cuts to him and he catches my eyes. I raise my chin, trying to appear bigger than my small 5’2, but I know my intimidation techniques would never work on a guy like this. They’re more suited to bitchy high school cheerleaders. This is the real fucking world here.
Cocky F*ck: A Dark High School Bully Romance (Rejects Paradise Book 2) Page 26