Twisted Betrayal

by Davis, Siobhan

Kai shrugs, swallowing a few mouthfuls of water, and I avoid looking at his sexy swallow so I keep focused. “You’ll have to ask Drew. All I know is the night before the heist, he told us about it in case we needed an escape route.”

  I know Drew couldn’t have built the tunnel because it’s been there longer than our seventeen and a half years on this Earth, but was he the one responsible for the upgraded works to the tunnel and the rear exit? And if he was, why did he do it? My brother and I are long overdue a talk, and I file those questions away with the others I need to ask him.

  “What happened?”

  “Well, we didn’t get near your father for two reasons.” His jaw hardens, and his entire body tenses. “The first was that asshole, Louis.”

  My stomach does a twisty motion, and a sour taste fills my mouth. “What did he do?”

  “Nothing, because I put a bullet through his skull before he could move a muscle.”

  I stare at him, abandoning my sandwich and crawling into his lap. I smack a kiss on his lips. “Thank you, baby. You’re my hero.”

  “Your response should disturb me, but I guess I’m as fucked up as you, because all it does is turn me on.” He jerks his hips up, and I feel the growing bulge against my ass.

  “As much as I’m down to ride your cock,” I admit, grinding against him. “I need answers more. Continue.” I climb off his lap, picking my sandwich up again as he eyes me with amusement.

  “I wish he hadn’t died so painlessly,” he continues. “I was on top of his dead body pounding my fists into his skull before I even realized it. Lauder and Hunt were trying to pull me off, but I was lost in a fit of rage, and if Drew hadn’t come along, we most likely would’ve been captured by your father’s men.”

  “Drew helped you.”

  He nods. “Drew got rid of the body, and Xavier wiped the camera feed. Then we held a meeting, the six of us, and thrashed everything out.”

  “What did you discuss?” I ask, because that’s not a satisfactory answer.

  “We fessed up to why we’d hidden the documents from the safe although they’d already pieced the facts together from the night of the shootout.” He puts his sandwich and drink aside, turning to face me. “I told him I’d no idea my father had sabotaged your birth control and that I wasn’t a part of the plan to get you pregnant. He could see I was genuine, especially when I begged him to tell me where you were.”

  “And did he?”

  “He didn’t know where you were although Charlie and Drew guessed he had taken you to Parkhurst. They were as anxious as we were to rescue you, so we agreed to work together.”

  Certain things slid into place. “That’s how Xavier knew you guys had taken me. And Charlie knew your brothers would kidnap me. That’s why he said it,” I muse.

  “Said what?” Kai asks, instantly alert.

  “Uh, nothing.” I attempt to dismiss it, but he’s having none of it.

  “This truth thing works both ways.” He points between us. “Our relationship won’t work if we don’t trust one another implicitly. That includes sharing everything. So, spit it out.”

  “We’re in a relationship?” I blurt.

  He winds his hand around the nape of my neck. “You’re my girl, and I’m your guy. What else would you call it?”

  I climb back onto his lap. “I can’t believe you forgave me so easy.”

  He grips my ass cheeks, squeezing. “What makes you think you’re forgiven?” He slaps my ass hard. “This morning was only the start of your punishment. You’ll suffer for deceiving me, but I’m done punishing myself.” He drags my head down, kissing me with possessive intensity. “You’re mine, and I’m not letting you go again.”

  “There’s just one tiny problem,” I reluctantly admit. “I’m technically engaged to Charlie.” I wet my dry lips. “And just before he got out of the car that day, he told me he loved me and that he genuinely wanted to marry me. He implored me to keep my options open, saying you weren’t the only choice.”

  His eyes darken to almost black, and a muscle pops in his jaw. “I fucking knew it! I could tell every time he looked at you.” He grabs both sides of my face forcefully. “I’ll only ask you this once. Do you love him?”

  I shake my head. “I don’t love him like that.” His eyes narrow, and I glare at him. “Don’t do that. He’s one of my best friends, and I love him the same way I love Jane and Xavier. In a purely platonic way.”

  I want to add that the only one I love is him, but I’m fucked if I’m going to make myself that vulnerable.

  He can say it first, and then I’ll return the sentiment.

  His face contorts, and a myriad of conflicting emotions glints in his eyes. His features soften as he loosens his hold on my face, caressing my cheek with his fingers. “There’s something I need to tell you about Charlie. This’ll make me sound like a jealous asshole, but it’s more than that. I’ve wanted to tell you all week, but it means exposing you to something risky.”

  He bites down on his lip, pausing.

  “Don’t second-guess yourself. We agreed no more secrets. Just tell me.” I lean down and kiss him.

  “Charlie is the reason you—”

  The door to the hotel room crashes inward with a resounding thud, cutting off Kai’s statement. I jump off his lap, lunging for the gun on top of the bedside table, when a familiar figure storms into the room, flanked by two armed goons.

  “I’ve found them,” Charlie says into his cell, frowning as he skims his eyes over my semi-dressed body, his gaze lingering on my braless chest. “I’ll have your daughter back in Rydeville before midnight.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

  “What have you done?” I’m horrified as I stare at Charlie, wondering if I’ve ever known him at all. I inch toward the bedside table as Kai slowly climbs off the bed, keeping his gaze locked on Charlie the entire time.

  Charlie gestures with his eyes toward Maurio and Benjamin. I understand it’s a warning to be careful what I say in front of my father’s bodyguards. “Your father has your best interests at heart,” Charlie says. “As do I. Which is why you will return to Rydeville with me.”

  “Over my dead body,” Kai growls, stalking toward Charlie with murderous intent.

  I grab my gun at the same moment Maurio and Benjamin withdraw their weapons, pointing them at Kai. I race in front of my boyfriend, shielding him with my body as I hold the gun out in front of me. “Back down or I’ll shoot.” I level the gun at Benjamin’s chest, gritting my teeth and steadying my hand. I don’t want to shoot him. But I’ll do it to protect Kai if it comes down to it.

  “Wait outside,” Charlie commands them in an authoritative voice.

  “Our instructions are to remain by your side at all times,” Maurio calmly replies.

  “I don’t care what your instructions are,” Charlie says, eyeballing him. “I’m in charge. Leave. Now.” His cold tone matches the threatening look on his face.

  Maurio considers it for a moment, glancing briefly at me, and I spot the flash of indecision before he concedes. Lowering his gun, he slips it back into his gun strap. “You have five minutes.” The two of them leave, and a layer of stress lifts from my shoulders.

  Charlie locks the door behind them and comes to stand in front of me. “You can put the gun down now, Abby.”

  I take a step closer, pressing the muzzle into his chest, right in the spot where his heart is. “Can I?”

  Kai circles his arm around my waist from behind, holding me tight as I keep the weapon pressed to Charlie’s chest. “I won’t hurt you, and I’m not on your father’s side,” he adds in a hushed tone. “I’ve only ever been on yours.”

  Kai snorts. “Bullshit.”

  Charlie’s eyes darken as he glares at Kai over my shoulder. “I’m already resenting saving your ass, so don’t push it.”

  “What does that mean?” I ask.

  “It means there’s no longer a hit out on him.” He glances over my shoulder, pursing his lips. “You’re welcome.” Sa
rcasm drips from his tone.

  I lower my arm while maintaining a hold of the gun. “And the price is I return to Rydeville and marry you?” I surmise. He nods. “My father isn’t trustworthy. How do we know he’s called off the hit?”

  “He won’t jeopardize our marriage, because it’s too important.”

  “Why?”

  “It’s elite business. I’m not at liberty to disclose it.”

  “Can’t or don’t want to?” Kai asks, moving us back a few steps and creating some space between us and him.

  “It’s Parkhurst rules. Abigail understands that.” His eyes rake me up and down. “Get dressed and grab your things. We need to hit the road before your father changes his mind.”

  “She’s not leaving with you.” Kai’s tone is territorial in the extreme.

  I place the gun down on the bed and turn around in his arms. “Babe.”

  “No.” He shoots me down before I’ve said anything else. “No one is taking you from me again.” He pulls me in closer, flattening his palms on my back. “Especially not that asshole.” I can’t tell if he means my father or Charlie or both of them.

  “He will kill you if we stay together.” My heart thumps painfully at the thought of separation, but it doesn’t seem like we have much choice. If I’m not in that car in the next few minutes, I’ve no doubt Maurio and Benjamin are under strict instructions to murder Kai and take me by force.

  “I’ll take my chances.” His jaw sets in a stubborn line.

  “I won’t let you. Your life means more.”

  Anger flares in his eyes. “My life means jack shit without you in it.”

  “Now he gets all romantic.” I roll my eyes, trying to lighten the horrid tense atmosphere, even though my heart is singing at his declaration.

  “Abby.” That one word is a warning.

  “Trust me,” I mouth. “You know it has to be like this,” I say out loud for Charlie’s benefit.

  He slams his mouth down on mine without warning, devouring me with his lips and his tongue, conveying everything he can’t verbalize. I want to do this about as much as he wants me to do it. But we both know it’s the only way.

  Charlie clears his throat. “We need to go now, Abby,” he says in a clipped tone, disapproval hovering in the air.

  Reluctantly, I pull away from Kai, ignoring the panicked fluttering in my chest and pain in my heart. The torment in his eyes reflects how I’m feeling, and I’m sick to my stomach as I grab some clothes and run into the bathroom to change. I emerge two minutes later to discover the guys in a tense standoff.

  “Keep your grabby hands to yourself,” Kai warns.

  “She’s my fiancée,” Charlie says, doing little to disguise his smug smile. “And her father expects to see displays of affection. It’s a dirty job, but someone’s got to do it.”

  Kai rams his fist into Charlie’s face, landing a firm blow to his nose, and blood spurts from the wound. Charlie swings his fist, glancing the side of Kai’s jaw and they go at it, throwing vicious punches at one another in quick succession.

  “Stop!” I snap out of my mini daze, forcing myself in between them. “This isn’t helping.”

  “You’re not doing it,” Kai snarls, pulling me into his side while wiping blood off his upper lip. “I don’t trust him.”

  “You don’t have a say,” Charlie replies, dabbing at his bloody nose. “If we aren’t on the road in the next few minutes, they will put a bullet in your skull. Is that what you want for Abby? To have that on her conscience?”

  Kai pulls me back into his chest, wrapping his arms around me again. “I know what you’re doing, and I’ll be watching,” he threatens Charlie.

  “Oh, I forgot to mention one important element of the deal,” Charlie adds, fighting a lip twitch. “Stay away from her, or it’s forfeit.”

  I’m not shocked. I expect no less of my father. I twist around in his arms. “You need to let me go,” I whisper while my eyes articulate a different sentiment. “We always knew it would come to this.” Taking his hand, I plant it over my heart. “You’re the only one who owns my heart. Forever.”

  He rests his forehead against mine, bundling me into his arms. “I love you,” he whispers over my mouth, his warm breath fanning my face, and it’s amazing how those three little words cause my heart to soar and deflate at the same time.

  “I love you too,” I say, much louder, wanting Charlie to hear.

  We pull apart, silently agreeing to the plan with our eyes. Kai pulls on his jeans, watching me with a tortured expression as I shove my toiletries and pajamas into my bag. I remove the box with my engagement ring from my bag, stuffing it in my pocket. Charlie slings my bag over his shoulder before taking my hand and leading me to the door.

  I cast a glance over my shoulder at Kai.

  “Stay safe,” he mouths, working hard to rein in his anger and frustration.

  “You too.”

  Charlie pulls me forward, ignoring Kai as he closes the door behind us, ushering me toward the car.

  I ignore Charlie the entire four-hour ride back to Rydeville, much to his obvious dismay. Kai’s words linger in my mind. He was going to tell me something about Charlie, but Charlie interrupted us before he got the chance. What’s abundantly clear is Charlie is up to something, and I can’t trust him. I don’t think he’d hurt me, but his profession of love has clouded his judgment, and that scares me. More than that, it hurts. Because Charlie was one of the few people I genuinely thought I could count on, but I realize I don’t know the real Charlie at all.

  I sit upright in my seat as we round the corner toward my house. “Why are we here?” I ask, instantly suspicious. “I thought you said I’d be staying at your place?”

  “Your father wants to talk to you, and you need to box up the rest of your stuff. Mrs. Banks has already moved most of your clothes to my house, but I insisted she left your personal possessions for you to sort through.”

  “If you’re expecting my gratitude, you’ll be waiting a while.” Bile churns in my gut as we drive up the driveway toward the mausoleum that has never felt like a home. I remove the engagement ring from the box with a heavy heart, pretending I don’t see Charlie’s happy smile as I slide it on my finger.

  He parks in front of the house as the security car trailing us continues on to the large garage. Charlie kills the engine and turns to face me. “You’re pissed. I get it. But this was the only way to keep him alive.”

  “Don’t do that,” I hiss. “Don’t pretend like you’ve done this for him.”

  “I’m not pretending,” he deadpans. “I’ve done this for you.”

  “Why?”

  “Because I love you, and, for reasons I don’t fully understand, he’s important to you.” He shrugs, appearing indifferent, but his muscles are corded into knots and his jaw clenches. “For now.”

  “Didn’t you hear what I said back there?”

  “I heard you, but people change. Feelings change. And I know you have feelings for me.”

  “Not the feelings you’re suggesting.” I level him with an earnest look. “I don’t love you, Charlie. I love Kaiden. Being kept away from him won’t change that.”

  “Well, I guess you must fake it then,” he barks. “Because your life and his life depend on your father buying into our engagement.” He sighs, dragging a hand through his dark hair. “Look, I’m not stupid. I know you love one another. But there is no scenario where your father will ever permit it.” He takes my hand, rubbing circles on my skin with his thumb. “He approves of me, and I can take care of you. I’ll give you a good life, and I’ll treat you the way you deserve. In time, you’ll learn to love me.”

  He is fucking delusional, but I won’t continue arguing the point. Because a lot of what he has said is true. Kai’s survival means I must be with Charlie. At least until we figure out a way out of this mess. If Charlie wants me to buy into his fantasy, and it’s the best way of safeguarding Kai’s life, then I’ll do it.

  “Fine.
”

  He arches a brow. “Fine?”

  “But I’m only doing this for Kai,” I say before getting out of the car.

  He comes up behind me, placing his hand on my lower back. I shuck out of his reach, stabbing him with a cautionary look. “I will do what I have to in public, but no touching unless it’s absolutely necessary.”

  He raises his palms in a conciliatory gesture. “Whatever you say.” His tone is affable, but I don’t miss the glimmer of determination shining in his eyes.

  I inwardly curse as I step foot into my house for the first time in weeks.

  Because I’ve just realized I’m in the middle of another battle.

  One for my heart.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

  “I trust you’ve come to your senses, Abigail?” the bastard says as we enter the formal living room over on the west wing of the house.

  Charlie slides his arm around my waist, and I lean into him as we walk across the patterned rug toward the blazing fire. On the outside, Charlie is the epitome of cool, calm, and collected, but his body is wired tight, every muscle straining in anticipation, and danger radiates from him with every step we take toward my father.

  I’ve sensed this about him before—this lethal calm that hides the feral beast caged within.

  Provided it’s used in my favor, I’ve zero issue with him unleashing it. However, I’m not some naïve little princess. I know his idea of acting in my best interests isn’t the same interpretation I’d apply. Charlie has the potential to be a formidable enemy, and if I don’t play the game the right way, that’s exactly what he’ll end up being.

  “You say that like I wanted to get kidnapped?” I coolly reply while taking a seat beside Charlie on the hard leather couch across from my father.

  He’s sitting comfortably, one leg crossed over the other, with the prerequisite whiskey in hand. “Don’t be facetious.” He sips his drink, eyeing me over the rim of the glass. “We both know you loved being back with that delinquent.”

  “If he’s a delinquent, it’s your fault for ripping his life apart,” I snap, letting anger get the better of me. Charlie squeezes my side, but I ignore him. “You know, by murdering his mother, stealing everything from his father, and leaving them to rot in poverty planning their vengeance.”