We climb out of the car, meet around front, and link hands as we hike up the driveway. Once we get inside, Ayden texts Lila that he’s home then we go up to his room and shut the door.
I turn around and face him, trying to figure out the right thing to say other then, hey we should get our freak on. I shake my head at myself. Seriously, I’ve been listening to Maggie way too much. For all I know, Ayden’s thoughts aren’t even headed in the same direction as mine.
He sets his guitar case down on the floor then glances around his room. “You want to watch a movie?” he asks me, his cheeks looking flushed.
Okay, so we’re definitely not on the same page.
“Sure.” I kick off my boots and flop down on his bed, trying to appear more composed than I am. “What are you thinking? Horror? Romance? A comedy? Or Rom Com?” I smirk wickedly, because Ayden hates Rom Coms.
He studies me, touching his fingers to his lips. “I don’t know . . . Whatever you want to watch, I guess.”
“How about no movies and just . . .” Something about the way he’s looking at me, with hunger in his eyes, gives me the courage to get to my feet, walk up to him, and brush my lips against his. I half expect him to pull away—it’s always a fifty-fifty chance with him. Instead, he deepens the kiss, groaning as he backs me toward the bed.
“We don’t have to do anything if you don’t want to,” he whispers between our fervent kisses. “I don’t want you to feel pressured.”
My stomach does a flip as I smile against his lips. “You know I never do anything I don’t want to do.”
“I know . . . I just want this to . . .” His voice sounds strained. “For you to . . . For this to be perfect for you.”
“Trust me. It already is.” I collide my lips with his, and the kiss goes from slow and savoring, to reckless and nervous.
We fall clumsily onto the mattress and I giggle as our teeth clank together. He laughs, but the mood instantly turns serious again as he slips his tongue into my mouth.
I whimper as he bites my bottom lip, my back arching as I clutch onto his shirt, pulling him closer. His hands travel all over the outside of my shirt before I move back and pull it off. His fingers slide down my stomach and to the top of my jeans, and he fumbles with the button then the zipper.
By the time he strips me bare, I’m so nervous I’m shaking.
“A-are you sure you’re okay?” he asks, his voice wobbly, unsteady, completely Ayden.
I nod, staring up at him. “I don’t have anything though . . . Do you?”
He hesitates then gets up and walks to his dresser. When he returns, his shaky hand is carrying a condom.
“When did you get that?” I ask, trying to conceal my laughter over how guilty he looks that he has a condom.
He sighs, dropping the condom onto the bed as his eyes drink in every inch of me. “Lila made Ethan give some to me after they caught us fooling around that one time.”
I prop up on my elbows, biting back a smile. “Well, as embarrassing as that must’ve been for you, I’m glad they did.”
“You are?” His question isn’t as simple as it sounds.
I nod then sit up and snag the hem of his shirt. He sucks in a sharp breath then raises his hands and lets me tug his shirt over his head. Once I get it off, I chuck it on the floor while he removes his jeans, leaving him only in his boxers. I take in the sight of him as I trace my fingers across his lean, but scarred stomach. I wish I could erase the pain of each one. Wish he never had to go through what he did.
Wish. Wish. Wish.
Wish upon a star.
Wish and wish and wish.
You can spend all your time wishing.
But then you’d be missing out on this moment.
He hooks a finger underneath my chin, bringing my attention to his eyes. He pauses, giving me time to back out. I’m not going to. Now that we’re finally here in this moment, I never want to leave it.
“I-I love you.” He leans forward and seals his lips to mine.
I love you too.
More than anything, Ayden Gregory.
You are it for me.
I’M TERRIFIED OUT OF MY fucking mind as I put a condom on, lie Lyric down on the bed, and situate myself between her legs. My thoughts are racing a thousand miles a second as I suck in a breath and start to slip inside her. My entire body quivers and it makes me feel pathetically weak. Thankfully, Lyric senses my nearing panic attack.
She cups my cheek. “Look at me,” she whispers, steadily carrying my gaze. “We don’t have to do this . . . Not if you’re not ready.”
“No, I want to. I-I want to be with you,” I say, looking into her eyes. “I love you.”
“I love you too,” she whispers with small, nervous smile.
I take a breath, then another, before moving slowly inside her, not wanting to hurt her, and not wanting to lose it. Because the panic is there under the surface, threatening to take hold of me.
I won’t
Let it control me anymore.
This is my life.
This is where I want to be.
Only here.
With her.
As I rock inside her, she holds onto my shoulders, staring up at me with complete trust. It’s the most incredible thing I’ve ever experienced. And, while I’m still scared to death, I feel different. Changed. I never want to allow my fear to make me miss out on any other amazing moments like this. I’ve spent so much of my life missing out on the good stuff, because I allowed the bad stuff to consume me.
No more.
Time to remove the cuffs from my wrists.
Time to free myself.
An hour later, we’re lying in my bed with our legs and arms tangled together. “This is for Keeps” by Spill Canvas is playing from the stereo, which I turned on because Lyric insisted this moment needed a song.
“I like this song,” Lyric mutters as she rests her head against the crook of my shoulder.
I play with her hair as I gaze up at the ceiling, replaying what just happened between us. I’m still shocked that I wasn’t dragged into an unwanted memory. It almost happened, but all I had to do was look at Lyric and the memory and fear faded.
“Are you sure you’re okay?” Lyric props up on her arm and catches my gaze. “You’ve been really quiet.”
“I’m fine.” I sweep hair out of her eyes. “More than fine, actually.”
She seems slightly insecure over something, which isn’t like her. “You don’t regret it, right?” she asks.
I swiftly shake my head. “Not at all. What happened . . .” The memory fills my mind of rocking inside her while kissing her deeply. “It was perfect.”
“Good.” She relaxes. “I need to write a song about this.”
“About the first time we had sex?” I squeak, sounding pathetic.
“Don’t freak out.” She bites back a smile. “I won’t use your name.”
“It’s not my name I’m worried about. I just want to be the only one who gets to see you like that.”
“No one will see anything just from a song,” she says, highly amused.
“That all depends on how descriptive you are.”
“I won’t be descriptive. I’ll just write about how I feel.”
“Which . . . Which is good, right?” I need to know—need to make sure she’s okay with that just happened between us.
“Of course. What happened between us . . . It was really, really good.” Even though she confidently maintains my gaze, a blush creeps across her cheeks. “We do get to do it again, right?”
My own cheeks heat as I nod.
We stare at each other for a heartbeat or two then I lift my head while pulling her against me, so our lips meet halfway. She groans from the connection as I grip her hip and roll her over, covering my body over hers. Right as things start to heat up again, though, my phone rings. I try to ignore it and continue exploring Lyric’s mouth and body, but the damn thing won’t shut up.
I grunt in frustration
as I push back from Lyric.
She giggles as I climb off the bed to dig my phone out of the pocket of my jeans that are balled up on the floor.
“I love when you get frustrated like that,” she says. “It’s so adorable.”
I smile at her as I swipe my finger across the screen. But when I see I’ve missed over ten calls from Lila, I frown.
“Shit, it’s Lila . . . She’s called a lot.” I dial her number as I put my boxers on. “She’s probably freaking out that I didn’t answer.”
“Ayden!” Lila cries before I can even get out a hello. “Why haven’t you been answering your phone?”
“Sorry, Lyric and I were practicing some of our songs, and I didn’t hear it ring,” I lie as I pick up my jeans and slip them on.
“I’m just glad you’re okay. I was worried sick. I even called the police and told them to check on you, so don’t be surprised when the doorbell rings.”
Right on cue, the doorbell echoes through the house.
“Who is that?” Lyric wonders as she gets out of bed and starts getting dressed.
I hold up my finger, indicating I’ll be right back then I step out into the hallway heading for the stairway. “They just rang the doorbell,” I tell Lila. “I’m headed down to tell them I’m okay. I’m really sorry I didn’t answer.”
“It’s okay. It’s okay.” Her tone carries an edge.
I pause. “Is everything okay?”
She hesitates before she utters, “Ayden, the police found your sister.”
A wave of fear and relief rushes through me. “They found her? Where was she? Is she okay?” I struggle to get air into my lungs.
They found her.
But where?
Is she hurt?
Is she . . .
“She’s alive,” Lila says. “I don’t know the exact condition she’s in, but you can meet me down at the hospital and we’ll find out what’s going on.”
“Did they arrest anyone?” I can barely hear over my deafening heartbeat. “Did they catch my father?”
“They said they made some arrests, but I don’t know all the details. When the detective called, he didn’t say much, but I’ll get more information from him when we get to the hospital.”
“I’ll head there right now.” I hang up and my legs buckle out from under me.
“Ayden.” Lyric appears beside me. Her eyes sweep across me, as if she’s checking for visible wounds. “What happened?”
“They found Sadie,” I manage to get out.
She kneels down on the floor in front of me, moving slowly, as if she’s approaching a skittish cat. “Is she . . . Alive?”
I nod and that’s when I lose it.
Sadie is alive.
Sadie is alive.
She made it.
She survived.
I start to cry and Lyric wraps her arms around me and rubs my back.
I cry even harder. For Sadie. For Felix. And for myself. Because for the first time in my life I don’t feel so weighed down.
I don’t want to think it, because it feels wrong to after spending so much time being chased by the Soulless Mileas, but maybe, just maybe this will finally all be over soon.
“LYRIC, WHY DON’T YOU HELP your dad in the kitchen while I finish saying goodbye to everyone,” my mom says to me as I pace the foyer in my house, biting my fingernails.
I distractedly look up at her. “Huh?”
She heaves a sigh as she approaches me. “Honey, I know you’re worried about Ayden, but wearing a hole through the floor isn’t going to help.”
“He said he’d text me and give me an update when he made it to the hospital.” I check my phone again and frown when I see I have zero new messages. I wish I could’ve gone with him, but my mom and Lila didn’t think that was a good idea since Ayden’s going to be talking with the police. “He left over an hour ago.” I tuck my phone away. “He has to be there by now.”
“Honey, I’m sure he’ll call you as soon as he can.” She puts her hands on my shoulders and steers me toward the kitchen. “Now go get your mind off of stuff and help your dad clean up.”
I begrudgingly go into the kitchen where my dad, Fiona, Everson, and Kale are cleaning up dirty dishes, food trays, and wine glasses left over from my mom’s guests. Uncle Ethan dropped the three of them off about twenty minutes ago and then headed straight for the hospital. He didn’t say much, but I could see the concern on his face when he mentioned needing to get an update on Sadie’s condition. I worry how hurt she is. How much they broke her. She’s been with them so long . . . God, it’s hard to think about the stuff she must have been through.
I begin wandering around the house, picking up stray cups and plates while my mom urges guests toward the front door, trying to get them to leave as quickly as possible without seeming like a total douchebag about it.
“How are you holding up after what happened?” my dad asks as I return to the kitchen with a stack of plates.
“Fine.” I set the plates down in the sink. “I’m just worried about Ayden and how he’s handling this.”
“I’m sure he’s fine.” He gives my shoulder a squeeze. “He’s a strong person.”
“Yeah, I guess that’s true.” I think about all the obstacles Ayden has overcome in his life, including the one I just helped him with only hours ago when we were in his room.
“Why do you look flushed?” My dad questions, studying me closely.
I lean back, hoping to God he can’t see the answer on my face. He can barely handle the idea of me having a boyfriend. I can only imagine what he’d do if he found out I just had sex.
“I’m just a little hot. I think I’m going to go turn the air conditioning up.” I round the kitchen island, heading for the thermostat in the hallway. When I reach it, I don’t turn the air up, since I’m not really that hot.
I slump against the wall and take a minute to collect myself. I’m just about to go back into the kitchen when my phone vibrates. I dig it out of the pocket, so eager to read the message that I drop the phone on the floor.
“Shit.” I pick it up and swipe my finger across the screen.
Ayden: Hey, sorry I didn’t text u sooner. Things have been crazy.
Me: But she’s ok, right? I mean, your sister?
Ayden: I haven’t seen her yet . . . I guess she had a broken arm that needed an operation. But the doctors said she should be fine. At least physically.
I squeeze my eyes shut as tears sting my eyes. Poor Sadie. I can’t believe people can be so cruel, so brutal, so ugly. The only thing that gets the tears to stop is that I remind myself there’s also wonderful, amazing, beautiful stuff in the world. That not everything is bad.
Me: Where did they find her?
Ayden: That’s the strange part. She actually showed up at the police station.
Me: What???
Ayden: Yeah, she walked in and said who she was and that they let her go. Then she passed out. I guess the police had just raided the house she was being kept at and someone took off with her before she was found, but then they just dropped her off at the police station . . . It’s so weird.
Me: That is really weird. Maybe the person who left her at the police station just panicked or something.
Ayden: Maybe. I don’t have all the details yet, but I should be talking to the detective soon. Hopefully, he won’t try to pull that secretive shit and keep me in the dark about stuff.
Me: Let me know how it goes. And come see me as soon as you get home. I know it’s only been a few hours since you left, but I miss you. I’m seriously going to turn into one of those needy girlfriends.
Ayden: I miss you too. I wish you were here with me. I’d probably be a lot more relaxed.
Me: I can try to relax you when you when you get back.
Ayden: That sounds nice.
Me: Good. It’s a date then.
For a split second, everything feels like it’s going to be all right. Then another message pings through.
; Ayden: I have some bad news, though. The police made a lot of arrests, but as of now, they haven’t found my dad.
My fingers constrict around the phone. “Dammit.”
Me: What are they going to do?
Ayden: Keep looking for him. And I have to be watched by an officer at all times until they find him.
My head slumps forward. I was so hopeful this was coming to an end, that Ayden was finally safe. But he’ll never be until his dad’s behind bars.
Me: I’m sorry, Ay. I really am.
Ayden: I hate this.
Me: So do I. But they have to be closer to finding him, right? If they’ve found all those other people.
Ayden: I hope so . . . I just really want this to all be over.
Me: Me too.
Ayden: I have to go. The detective just showed up. Call u when I’m headed home. I love u.
Me: I love u too.
With a heavy heart, I tuck the phone away and walk into the kitchen. Most of the plates and cups have been picked up and the air smells of lemon cleaner. Kale, Everson, and my dad have wandered off somewhere, but Fiona is at the table, munching on a cupcake.
“He’s still sad,” she remarks as I join her at the table.
I grab a cupcake off a platter and lick off a bite of frosting. “Who’s still sad?”
She plucks a candy off the top of the cupcake and pops it into her mouth. “Ayden.”
I peel the wrapper down and take a bite of the cake. “I don’t think he’s sad. Just stressed out.”
“No, he’s sad.” She sets the cupcake on the table. “He’s sad over his sister. And over you.”
I freeze, mid bite. “Over me?”
She nods. “He’s sad because he thinks he’s going to lose you because he can’t do stuff with you.”
“Did you hear him say that?” I ask, trying not to get wigged out by her matter-of-fact attitude.
She simply shakes her head. “Nope, I felt it.”
“You say that a lot. But I’m still not sure what you mean.”
“It’s hard to explain. And you probably wouldn’t believe me if I tried.” She sits back in her chair and picks up the cupcake again. “My mom knew about me, though. It’s why she gave me up. Because I was a weirdo.”
Unraveling You Series: The Complete Set Page 51