“Hey, whoa!” Styx was in between us, pushing me back, while Grace was pulling London away from me.
Internet entertainment?
Yeah, they were going to get it all.
“I’ll fucking kill him, London!” I yelled over the top her car as Grace led her to the driver’s side and Styx kept pushing at me. “I swear to fucking God!”
But the girl knew no fear.
Her eyes darted around, taking in another goddamn crowd we were gathering, and a smirk formed on her face when she found what she’d been looking for. “Hey, Myra,” she called out, and I tensed. I’ve been with Myra before, but how the hell London knew that, I didn’t know. “Silver’s a little tense. Why don’t you come suck his dick and help him relax?” Then her blue eyes flashed my way. “Then maybe that way he’ll leave me the hell alone.”
I had Styx pushed aside, but I wasn’t able to get to her before she had locked herself safely inside her car. Grace and I had to take a step back as London started her car and peeled out of the parking lot.
It didn’t matter, though.
It wasn’t like I didn’t know where to find her.
“Sterling-”
“Don’t,” I bit out. “I know I fucked up.”
“I wasn’t going to blame you,” she grimaced.
I looked down at my sister. She was London’s best friend and knew her best. “Where would she go, Grace?” I knew I had to get to her before she did something stupid. Before she did something I was going to regret.
Grace shook her head, at a loss. “I don’t know, Sterling,” she said sadly. “London’s…she does whatever she feels is right in the moment.” Grace shrugged a shoulder. “She’s always been like that.”
Styx came to stand behind Grace. I looked at him and said, “I’m going to her house. Be on standby in case I need you guys to bail me out of jail.”
Styx just nodded as Grace gasped, “Sterling, you can’t-”
“Yes, I can, Grace,” I said, stopping her. “He fucking threatened my girl.”
And London was my girl.
Chapter 17
London~
Sterling Hale was going to drive me to kill someone. Preferably him, and not some poor, unsuspecting, innocent bystander.
I knew-I knew-he hadn’t meant the question the way I had taken it, but I had still been trying to wrap my mind around Cash’s bullshit, that Sterling’s highhanded ways had pushed my irrationality button. I had wanted to wrap my mind about what I should do, and Sterling had come along and made it all about dick measuring. And as much as I had wanted to give this thing with Sterling a chance, I’d always known from the beginning that we were too much alike for this to work. We both just didn’t give a fuck about things that didn’t work for us.
Christ, Grace was right in wanting us to all become better people.
When I pulled into the driveway, I saw Cash’s car parked behind the fourth garage door. He had a hell of a lot of nerve to drop his ultimatum on me, and then come to my house like nothing was wrong.
What a prick.
And instead of getting out of the car and setting fire to him and this house, I stayed in my car and pulled out my phone.
My dad answered on the third ring. “London?”
“Are you busy?”
His voice was a little hesitant. “I…uh, I’m in the middle of a preliminary budget-” His tone quickly changed, and it almost brought tears to my eyes. “Never mind,” he amended. “It’s not important.”
“If you’re busy, I can call-”
“I’m not busy, London,” he lied right before I heard him tell whoever that he had to take my call. A few seconds later, nothing could be heard but silence in the background. “Now, tell me what’s going on.”
It was times like this moment here that I wish we were closer than we were. I knew my father and brother loved me, but we’d never been close. Right now, I wished for that as my father walked out of a business meeting to make sure I was okay. Usually, I didn’t feel lonely or longing, but between Cash’s bullshit, Sterling’s nonsense, and Bernice’s vapid ways, I was feeling emotional.
And I never did emotional.
Never.
“Your divorce settlement,” I said, getting straight to the point.
“What about it, honey?” he asked. “What’s going on?”
“Has…has Bernice asked you for more money recently?”
He was quiet on the other end long enough for me to know the answer before he even spoke. “A few months back, she hit me up for more child support,” he admitted.
“Then it’s true that she’s broke,” I stated, not really asking for a confirmation. There’s only one reason Bernice would hit him up for more child support. He already paid hundreds of thousands in monthly child support as it was.
“She is, honey,” he confirmed. “When she asked for more money, I had someone look into her finances. I wanted to make sure you were being taken care of.”
“What did you find out?”
“As part of our divorce settlement, I had paid off everything. The cars and house were cleared before the papers had been signed,” he replied. “But it looks like there’s been two mortgages taken out against the house in the past five years.” I let out a tired breath. “The child support is enough to pay the day-to-day bills, but her bank accounts are near empty every month before the deposit.”
“No wonder she was pushing to marry Mark so soon,” I muttered.
“What’s going on, London?” he asked again, and so, I told him. His voice was dark and barely controlled when he asked, “Are you serious?”
“Dad, I got it handled. I-”
“Some sonofabitch tries to extort you into having sex with him, and you’re going to tell me you’ve got it handled, like I’m not about to book a plane ticket to California and kill him,” he seethed. “Do not tell me you’ve got it handled, London.”
I almost rolled my eyes.
The concern was touching, and nothing less than I was expecting, I mean, he was my dad after all. But I already had one testosterone-fueled caveman I had to deal with, I didn’t need my dad flying over here to join in the madness.
Oh, God, and then there was Jason.
“Dad, he’s only nineteen,” I pointed out.
“Which is legally old enough to get his ass kicked,” he shot back. “And if that’s a problem for you, I’m sure your brother’s going to be thrilled when I tell him.”
“Dad-”
“I’ll just book us two tickets,” he ranted. “Jason can kill that sonofabitch while I take care of his father for raising a piece of shit like that.”
“Dad-”
“Then you’re packing a bag and moving to Texas with us, London,” he kept ranting and raving. “I am not leaving you there t-”
“Dad!”
“What?!”
I had just broken up with Sterling-I think-but I had to use his name to stow away my dad’s crazy. But then I figured Grace’s name would work just as well. “Dad, have you forgotten my best friends is Grace Hale? If I need help with this situation, I can turn to her.”
“Grace isn’t your father or brother, London,” he retorted in true old school chauvinistic fashion. “Besides letting you stay with her, what can she possibly do to remedy this situation?”
“You do realize it’s 2020, right? I can remedy this situation myself, Dad,” I pointed out.
“London-”
I knew I was going to have to pull out the big guns if I expected him to stay in Texas. Even though I was pretty sure it wasn’t true anymore, I said, “Dad, in addition to Grace Hale being my best friend, her brother, Sterling Hale, is my boyfriend.”
My father was silent on the other end, no doubt absorbing that little unexpected gem of information. “You’re dating Sterling Hale?” he asked a bit dumbfounded. “The Sterling Hale?”
“Grace’s twin, yes,” I clarified. “Not his father.”
“Seriously, London?” he deadpanned.
He let out a frustrating breath, and I didn’t blame him a bit. I was frustrated as hell, too. “Keep my posted every damn day, London,” he insisted. “Until this situation is resolved, I expect a call every damn day, or else Jason and I are going to get on a plane and handle this shit ourselves.”
“I promise, Dad,” I told him. “I just needed to know what I was working with. I wanted some idea of where Bernice was going to fall in line with all this.”
“She’s going to align herself with the money,” he said matter of fact, and it was true. He wasn’t talking shit or badmouthing her. It was the simple truth. “No matter what happens, I’d feel better if you’ll let me get you an apartment or something in town,” he added. “I don’t want you staying in that house if Bernice decides to side with Mark and his son.”
“And I won’t want to be in that house if she does, Dad,” I agreed.
He was quiet for a bit before admitting, “I’m struggling with this, London.”
“How about I have Grace call you?” I suggested. “Would that help?”
“Grace? Why not Sterling?” he asked confused.
Shit.
“No, yeah,” I lied. “I meant Sterling.”
“Okay, honey,” he relented because he was a firm believer in that men ruled the roost.
“Love you, Dad,” I said.
“Love you, too, kiddo,” he replied before we hung up.
Tossing the phone back into my purse, my forehead dropped on the steering wheel, praying for strength before I went into the house because I already knew what was going to happen. I was going to call Cash out, he was going to deny everything, Mark was going to defend his son, and Bernice was going to side with Mark, and I was going to be left packing my shit and staying with Grace until my father secured an apartment in town for me.
And staying with Grace meant staying with Sterling.
But before I could wrap my mind around that clusterfuck, the driver’s side door to my car opened, and a livid Sterling Hale was crowding my space as he snarled down at me. “You ever try to break up with me again, and it will be your fucking ass, London.”
Just fantastic.
Chapter 18
Sterling~
London looked up at me and her eyes narrowed, and I hoped she was still geared up for a fight. The angrier she made me, the more I could justify killing Cash fucking Manson.
“Do you mind?” she asked coolly, and I stepped back, so she could get out of her car. Once she was standing in front of me, she asked, “What are you doing here, Sterling?”
“I’m here to beat the fuck out of the asshole stupid enough to come after what’s mine,” he replied, honest as the day was long.
“I’m pretty sure I broke up with you earlier when I suggest Myra suck your dick,” she reminded me pettily.
My scoff was dark and condescending. “Over my dead body will you ever break up with me, no matter how many girls you might think can replace you.” I leaned into her space. “No one can replace you, Addison.”
“That was a fucked-up thing to say to me, Hale,” she replied, getting to the heart of the matter.
“It was,” I agreed. “But I didn’t mean it like that, and you damn well know it. And don’t ever call me Silver again. Or sick another girl on me. Or try to break up with me. Or tell me your shit is none of my business. Or just fucking breathe without me.” Was I sounding like a lunatic again? Yep. Did I care? No would be the answer. No will always be the answer when it comes to fighting for London. This girl had me wrapped up so tightly around her, I was sure I was going to marry this stubborn piece of exquisite work one day.
She pushed on my chest. “You’re crazy!” she yelled. “You can’t…you can’t…”
I grabbed her hands and yanked her towards me. “I can do whatever the fuck I want, London. And don’t forget that,” I reminded her. “You’re mine, London. But more importantly, somewhere during all this bullshit, I’ve found myself in love with you.” Her blue eyes rounded. “I’m in love with you, and it’s driving me absolutely insane. And you’re just going to have to deal with the fallout of that.”
Her face looked incredulous. “Are you saying it’s my fault you’re crazy because you fell in love with me?” she squawked. “It’s my fault, so I just have to accept that you’re insane?”
“Yes!” I roared in her face because I really was losing it. I was a protector, and she was stopping me from protecting her, and it was fucking with me something fierce.
“What is going on out here?” London whirled around at her mother’s voice, and I just straightened to my full six-two as I took the in the two men standing behind her.
Mark and Cash Manson.
London turned back to face me. Looking up at me, she pleaded, “Let me handle this, Sterling.” When I didn’t answer fast enough for her, she added, “Please.”
“I’m still going to fuck him up,” I warned her, and she knew she couldn’t and shouldn’t stop me.
“Sterling…”
“What is going on out here, London?” her mother asked again.
London took a deep breath, stepped away from her car, shut the door, and made her way around the hood of her car until she was standing in front of her mother.
And I was standing right the fuck behind her.
“I didn’t want to do this, Mom,” she said. “But Cash has left me no choice.”
“Cash?” Mark asked, confused.
“She’s lying, Dad,” Cash automatically replied.
Mark looked over at his son, his brows low. “About what? She hasn’t even said anything.”
“What do you think you’re doing, London,” her mother hissed, and that’s when I knew that, no matter what London said, her mother wasn’t going to side with her.
London addressed Mark. “Earlier, Cash stopped by Blackstone and the tried to blackmail me into sleeping with him.”
Mark blanched.
Bernice gasped.
Cash sputtered.
And London just kept going, not shying away from the ugly truth at all. “Bernice is broke, Mark.”
“London!” Bernice screeched in outrage.
“She’s broke, and Cash found out,” London went on. “He told me that if I didn’t sleep with him, he’d tell you that Bernice tried to hit on him, so that you’d break off your engagement, leaving Bernice out on the street.”
“She’s lying, Dad,” Cash sneered. “There’s plenty of pussy at college for me. I don’t need to resort to blackmailing some little high school piece of ass to get laid.”
“London, where is this coming from?” Bernice asked aghast, doing her best to keep her secret from getting out.
“What the hell is going on?” Mark asked no one in particular, but all I could concentrate on was Cash and how he just called London a high school piece of ass on top of everything he’s already done to her.
I stepped out from behind her as I told him, “I’m going to fuck you up.”
“Who the hell are you?” Cash asked, still feeling brave.
“Sterling Hale,” I replied, using my name like the weapon it was. “London’s boyfriend, and the guys who’s going to make you wish you’d never been born.”
Mark paled. “Hale?”
“London!” Bernice pleaded.
“She came on to me!” Cash lied, and that was about all I could take.
The next thing I knew, we were fighting on the front lawn, and even though he wasn’t much of a match for me, he wasn’t a complete pussy either. He fought back. But then, I loved when they fought back. People were screaming around us, but I just drowned that shit out. All I cared about was how skin was splitting open underneath my knuckles and the sound of bone and cartilage cracking underneath the force of my blows. I was going to beat this asshole an inch within his life.
If I was untouchable, then so was London.
“Sterling! Stop,” London cried. “You’re killing him!”
>
Good.
I wanted to kill the sonofabitch.
“Sterling!” And that’s when London threw herself between my fists and what was left of Cash’s face. “Sterling!” I pulled pack, my chest heaving, my fists bloody, and my rage still a full-blown inferno. I stared down at the beautiful headache below me, and she was in for the fucking of her life. Once I got her out of this shithole, I was taking her home and branding the fuck out of her.
I stood up and faced Mark Manson. “I couldn’t care less if you believe London or not, because she’s not your responsibility. But understand that I believe her. She has no reason to lie, and she doesn’t benefit from starting unfounded drama.” I stepped to him. “Your son is a predator, and unfortunately for him, he picked the wrong girl.”
Mark Manson shook his head. “He wouldn’t do somethin-”
“He did,” I snapped, stopping the defense of his son. “Bernice is broke, and he was hoping to use that information to hurt London. You’re lucky I didn’t kill him.”
“This is absurd!” Bernice sobbed. “Why are you trying to ruin everything, London?!”
London turned towards her mother. “Are you accusing me of making all this up?”
“Of course, you are,” she insisted. “I am not broke, nor am I using Mark for his money. And Cash doesn’t need to resort to…to…”
The funny thing about all this denial and carrying on? No one was bothering to check if Cash was alive, dead, or crippled while everyone was arguing their points.
London gave her mother a tight nod. “Okay, then. Since I’m already eighteen, I’ll be moving in with Grace while I finish out the rest of my school year at Blackstone,” she announced. “After I pack, I’ll call Dad and let him know he can stop with the child support deposits immediately. Let’s see how well you hold up financially before your grand June wedding, Bernice.”
“What?!” she screeched.
And because I was an asshole, I ignored everyone around us and leaned down into London’s ear. “Me.”
She turned away from her outraged mother and looked over at me. “What?”
“Me,” I repeated. “You’re moving in with me. Not Grace.”
The Blackstone Prep Academy Duet Page 19