Burning Roses

by Amanda Perry

  Without a word, he drops back in the bed and closes his eyes. Jaxon lies beside him, wide awake, with a slight smirk on his face.

  “He figured it out.” Cassie smirks. “He knows me so well.”

  “Why isn’t he searching for the other clock if he figured it out?” I ask, not taking my eyes from the screen. I don’t want to anger the guys, but the whole situation is sort of comical and entertaining.

  She shrugs. “He wants to mess with Caleb.”

  The three of us sit silently until the next alarm goes off at four-forty-five. Jaxon doesn’t hesitate to reach over and turn it off. I watch as he scans the room with his eyes. He stops when he spots the laptop hiding in the corner and winks at it.

  “Unplug the fucking thing.” Caleb throws a pillow over his face.

  “Why bother?” Jaxon tries to hide his amusement.

  Caleb doesn’t answer. Instead, he remains silent as he attempts to drift back to sleep. When the final alarm goes off, I start to worry about his anger.

  “Son of a bitch!” Caleb gets up and pulls a laughing Jaxon from the bed and in the direction of the bathroom. “This is bullshit, let’s go wake her up now.”

  “I doubt she’s sleeping.” Jaxon smiles widely at the laptop when they come back into the camera’s view. Caleb notices and shakes his head while pointing to the camera, or more likely pointing at us. I think it means we’re caught.

  “They sure work well together in those cuffs,” I muse, watching them move easily around the room.

  “Not their first rodeo.” Cassie grins. “They should know better.”

  Caleb stomps to Jaxon’s suitcase on the floor by the bed and searches through it for something. After a while of throwing items out of the suitcase, he gives up. He simply stands and stares at Jaxon in silence for a long moment before they both burst into hysterical laughter.

  “She. Stole. Our. Pants.” Jaxon gasps through his laughter. “What the fuck?”

  Jaxon walks to his laptop, stands in our line of sight, and wiggles his butt at us. I cover my eyes and shake my head.

  “He may have pajama pants on, but that’s still gross.” I laugh.

  “Let’s go.” Caleb huffs, heading for the door in nothing but his boxers and dragging Jaxon behind him.

  “Dude, can’t I put a shirt on at least?” Jaxon asks, trying to keep up.

  “How, genius? We’re handcuffed.” He scoops up his wallet from the dresser on his way. He’s sure to have his copy of our room key in that wallet, which will give him and Jaxon access to the room, and us.

  When we hear the door to their room open, then close, I turn to Cassie. “Should we hide?”

  “I’m running.” Leanne giggles and rushes for the door.

  “Traitor!” Cassie yells after her while jumping off the bed. She grabs my hand and pulls me up. “I like your plan. Let’s hide.”

  She drags me to the closet, and we close ourselves inside, waiting for the guys. It isn’t more than a few minutes later that the door to the suite swings open, and we hear Caleb and Jaxon talking.

  “I can’t believe the staff actually asked if this was foreplay gone wrong,” Jaxon mutters as the front door to the suite slams closed. “Do we look like a damn couple to you?”

  “Jaxon, shut the hell up,” Caleb snarls. Their voices grow closer as he talks. “Where are they?”

  “I’m way too awesome to date you, anyway,” Jaxon grumbles. “I’m a damn catch.”

  Caleb snorts. “You’re a dumb ass. Now, shut it.”

  Part of me is terrified that Caleb and Jaxon are going to be truly angry with me and Cassie. The other part can’t believe how fun it was to pull a prank on someone. It’s a toss-up whether the fear of their anger wins out over the excitement of it all. Either way, I hold my breath in hopes of keeping our location a secret. Cassie isn’t as quiet as I am. She chuckles out loud, and the guys’ footsteps stop.

  “Did you hear that?” Caleb asks.

  “Yeah, sounded like a little minx laughing,” Jaxon says, a smile behind his voice.

  A second later the closet doors fly open, causing Cassie and I to scream. I freeze in place, unsure what to do next. Cassie pushes Jaxon playfully out of her way and races out of the closet. “Riley did it all,” she calls over her shoulder. “I didn’t do anything.”

  “Cassie, get your ass back here!” Jaxon hollers. “You’re in big trouble!”

  His threat would worry me if not for the huge smile on his face. He winks at me and turns to chase Cassie. Caleb reluctantly stumbles along behind him.

  With the attention on Cassie, I slide out of the closet and sneak around the corner. Jaxon corners Cassie by the front door.

  “Now, woman,” Jaxon demands, shaking the handcuffs in Cassie’s face.

  “You never let me have any fun,” she whines, but reluctantly pulls the key from her pajama pocket to free Jaxon and Caleb. “You deserved this, though.”

  Jaxon pounces on her the second he’s free. I gasp in surprise, ready to help Cassie if Jaxon hurts her. She doesn’t need me, though. She squeals as Jaxon slings her over his shoulder and pulls open the door.

  “Wait,” Cassie yells through her laughter, pushing herself up with her hands against Jaxon’s back. “I need to grab my clothes and your pants.”

  “I don’t need pants for my plans of revenge on you, sweetheart.” Jaxon swats her bottom. He scoops her phone off the bed and stomps toward the door. “Just a smart-ass little minx and a set of cuffs.”

  “What are we waiting for? Go,” Cassie whoops.

  Once I’m confident Cassie won’t be in real trouble with Jaxon, I turn my attention to Caleb. He takes a step toward me, and my body locks into place, my eyes growing wide wondering what his next move will be. He slowly continues his steps until he stands in front of me. I gaze up at him, unable to move or breathe.

  “You helped Cassie, didn’t you?” His tone doesn’t tell me if he’s angry or not. His hands remain loose at his sides, and his shoulders aren’t tense, which gives me the courage to answer him.

  I slowly nod, swallowing hard.

  He takes a slow, deep breath. “Are you still angry with me?”

  His question catches me off guard. He can’t possibly think I’m the one who’s angry, could he? Wouldn’t it be the other way around? I helped Cassie set the alarms and didn’t stop her from stealing their pants.

  “I’m sorry, baby.” He takes my hand in his. “I fucked-up, big time. I should have asked you what was going on instead of assuming Mark and Leanne had it right. Please don’t be mad at me. I’ll make it up to you, I swear.”

  Understanding finally dawns on me. He’s talking about yesterday. “I’m n-n-not mad,” I assure him, though he doesn’t appear to believe me.

  His brow draws together. “You’re nervous with me again.”

  It’s not a question, but he’s right. I don’t know what to say or do with him. At the very least, he should be yelling at me, telling me I was an idiot for running away, scolding me for not listening when they called for me to stop. It throws me off-kilter to have him apologize to me.

  My talk with Cassie earlier plays through my mind. She said I needed to stand up for myself. She promised I wouldn’t upset anyone. I don’t know if she’s right or not, but now would be a good time to test her theory. If he’s already planning to hurt me, then nothing I say will make a difference.

  “I’m not m-m-mad,” I repeat, then I pull my hands from his and wrap them around my body to hold myself together. “I’m h-h-hurt.”

  “The last thing in the world I ever want to do is hurt you, baby.” He starts to reach for me but stops himself. “What can I do to make it up to you? How can I prove to you I’m sorry?”

  I bite my bottom lip and contemplate. He deserves my honesty, and I deserve the chance to be honest with him. “I know you’re s-s-sorry. It’s just n-n-not an instant fix. Earlier, I needed you. D-D-Dad scared me, and I thought I could c-c-count on you to help me. I t-t-trusted you, but you did
n’t t-t-trust me. You sided against me w-w-without a second thought. How can I give you my t-t-trust if you can’t do the same? It’s something I have to f-f-feel from you.”

  Caleb nods slowly. “It’ll take time for that, won’t it?”

  I shrug. “P-p-probably.”

  “Okay, I can give you time if you give me a few things in return.” He pauses and steps toward me. “First, I need you to understand I’m still a guy, and I’m going to fuck-up… a lot. It’s in my DNA. I’ll do my best to be perfect for you, but it won’t always happen. So, just don’t hate me if I screw shit up again.”

  “I’ll try to r-r-remember that,” I promise.

  Caleb takes my hands in his again. “I also need you,” he says quietly. “I need you with me all the time. I need to be able to hold you and talk to you and see you. Don’t run from me, baby. Please, don’t run away from me again.”

  I hang my head and swallow hard. “I-I-It’s instinct. It’s h-h-hard to fight my i-i-instincts.”

  “I get that.” He puts his finger under my chin and pulls my head up, our eyes meeting. “I will never hurt you, Riley. Not physically, anyway. I might do idiotic shit, and I might say stupid crap. Those things may hurt your feelings, but I’ll never intentionally hurt you in any way. I love you, and I want you happy all the time. Hurting you doesn’t make you happy.”

  With nothing to say in response, I take a deep breath and desperately try to even out my voice. “What else do you n-n-need from me?”

  “I need you to let me hold you right now, because if I don’t, I might lose my damn mind.” He squeezes my hands gently, waiting for me give him permission.

  Rather than answering, I wrap my arms around his waist and squeeze him tightly. He folds me into his embrace, resting his lips on the top of my head. Finally, safe in Caleb’s arms, I allow relief to crash down on me. Tears stream down my cheeks and refuse to stop.

  “Hey.” Caleb pulls away, dropping his head to search my face. “What is it, baby girl?”

  “I couldn’t sleep without y-y-you,” I admit with a wobbly chin. “I m-m-missed you, and I was scared you w-w-would hate me. I wanted to a-a-apologize to you for being upset and b-b-beg your forgiveness.”

  Caleb pulls me back into his chest, one hand on my back and the other on the back of my head to keep me tight against his body. “You won’t apologize for being upset, baby. That’s not anything to be sorry for. You were right to be hurt. But I will admit, I missed you like hell. It killed me to be away from you, even for a few hours.”

  “R-r-really?” I sniffle.

  He sighs and leads us over to the bed. Before sitting down, he lifts me up, and I have to wrap my legs around his hips to help him hold me up. I watch him with wide eyes as he lowers us to the bed, me straddling his lap while he holds me tight. “You became my whole world the minute I caught you on those stairs. The feelings I have for you only grow every single day, and now that you’ve been through the Blessing, it physically hurts to be apart from you. It’ll be a while before we can be apart for more than an hour or two without the urge to run back to each other.”

  “S-s-so, that’s normal?” I snuggle into his chest. Cassie told me it was, but it’s good to hear it isn’t one-sided. “I’m n-n-not crazy?”

  Caleb chuckles, lying back and pulling me with him so I lay on his chest. “You’re most definitely not crazy.”

  “I missed you,” I admit quietly.

  He freezes for a second, and I look up at him, raising a brow. “You didn’t stutter.”

  My cheeks darken, and I bury my head in his chest. “I second-guess my words when I’m n-n-nervous. I don’t n-n-need to second-guess that, though.”

  “I’m glad you let me come back,” Caleb murmurs. “Jaxon is a shitty cuddler compared to you.”

  I giggle, curling up closer to him. “Thank y-y-you for the flowers, they’re all so pretty.”

  “I love you, Riley. I would be lost without you.” He breathes out as I start to drift off to sleep.

  Cassie said revenge is sweet, but I think being right where I am now is much sweeter.

  Chapter 8

  “Riley?” I vaguely hear my name being called, but sleep tugs at me, refusing to let me go easily. “Kiddo, wake up.”

  Something warm touches my arm, and I jerk away, my eyes cracking open. My dad stands beside the bed, wide awake and dressed for the day. At first, I worry something bad happened, but the events of yesterday rush back to me before I can ask what’s wrong. I scramble to a sitting position on the bed, wide-eyed and ready for whatever my father has planned.

  He frowns at me and takes a small step away. “I just came to talk to you. Do you think you can sneak away from Caleb for a few minutes? I don’t want to wake him.”

  Caleb snorts. “Don’t bother. You know I’m awake, Mark.”

  He rolls out of bed and stretches. I subtly watch his body move, savoring the way his muscles bunch and flex as he stretches. As much as I wish I could stare at him all morning, I don’t want to get caught—especially with my father in the room. Instead, I drop my eyes to the bedspread and wait.

  “You two can talk. I need to shower, anyway.” Caleb yawns, glancing my way while he shuffles to his suitcase.

  The air leaves my lungs in a whoosh. Dread sets in, anticipation about what will happen once Caleb leaves the room. He may or may not already know what my dad has in mind, but I don’t. I’m not sure I want to know.

  When his eyes land on me again, Caleb freezes halfway through putting a pair of sweatpants on, his brow drawing together. “Baby?”

  If Caleb leaves me alone, no one will be around to help me if things take a turn for the worst. My dad’s demeanor gives nothing away as to what he may be thinking or planning. Every bone in my body screams at me to run from my current predicament, but I promised Caleb last night I’d try to stop running. It isn’t an easy thing to do, but with the promise fresh in my mind, I can’t let him down.

  “Hey.” Caleb appears next to me. He kneels on the bed and leans over to gently place his hand on my cheek. “Talk to me. What’s running through your mind right now?”

  My gaze darts from Caleb to my father and back again.

  “S-s-stay,” I whisper to Caleb.

  I worried what Leanne, Jaxon, Cassie, and Caleb thought of me after I upset my dad. But the trepidation I held over them is minuscule compared to my terror of my father. Last time I saw him, he was livid with me. Leanne and Caleb claim they understand and aren’t angry, but my father made it clear how he felt yesterday.

  Do I make myself clear?

  My dad curses under his breath, and even though it’s nearly silent, I scoot closer to Caleb. Dad’s gaze lands on the floor, and his forehead scrunches. I don’t know what frame of mind he’s in, and it causes anxiety to bubble up in my chest. He could be angry, frustrated, confused, or planning my death. Without seeing his eyes, I can’t read him, and it puts every single one of my nerves on edge.

  Caleb wraps an arm around my waist and pulls me closer to him, my back to his front. He rests his chin on my shoulder and pushes my hair away from my ear. He whispers quietly to me, too low for my father to hear, “You’re safe, Riley. Not only because I’ll never let anything happen to you, but because Mark would never hurt you. He’s not angry, and even if he was, he wouldn’t hurt you.”

  “S-s-stay, please?” I beg him again.

  Caleb nods against my shoulder. “Always.” He rests his lips against my neck and inhales deeply. He slowly lets his breath out, then lifts his head. “Mark, do you mind talking while I’m here, too?”

  My dad’s head rises, and he watches me with Caleb for a long moment before nodding. “Whatever makes you comfortable, Riley.”

  He takes a seat at the end of the bed and watches me silently for a while.

  Waiting makes me nervous, and I fidget with the hem of my shirt. Finally, Dad takes a deep breath and dives in. “Riley, I messed up. I let you down more than once over these past few days, and I was wrong. It
isn’t that I meant to hurt you or upset you, but things are a lot crazier now than I ever expected they would be when I got the call saying I have a teenage daughter I knew nothing about.”

  I murmur a quiet apology, willing the tears back. He doesn’t want me anymore. He wants to get rid of me and prevent me from complicating his and his family’s life any more than I already have. “I’m s-s-sorry. I d-d-didn’t mean to c-c-complicate everything. I d-d-don’t want to r-r-ruin your f-f-family.”

  “No.” He shakes his head emphatically. “I don’t mean it that way, Riley.” He squeezes his eyes tightly and takes another deep breath. “Listen, kiddo, I’m not perfect,” he admits with a shrug. “I never said I was perfect, and I know I never will be perfect. I screw up sometimes—like yesterday—and I know I will screw up again, too. Leanne knows this, and she also knows how to get me in line when I’m being an idiot. It’s the reason I call her my better half. On rare occasions, I need to remind her to think before she acts, but generally, it’s the other way around, and she needs to give me a good talking to.

  “Cassie knows this, as you saw yesterday when she yelled at us, and again this morning when she pranked the guys.” He pauses and gives a small chuckle. “By the way, thank you for not pulling that on me.”

  “I’m sure it wasn’t her idea, Mark,” Caleb scoffs. “But I know she helped somewhat. Even though I was a victim of the damn prank, I’m kind of proud of her for helping to pull it off. It was a pretty good one this time.”

  Dad grins and nods his agreement. “Anyway, what I’m trying to say is, I’ll screw up again. I’m still learning how to be your dad. I want so badly to do everything right for you and be the dad you deserve, but sometimes, I have no idea what I’m doing.”

  I frown. “B-b-but, you have J-J-Jaxon.” Dad met Leanne when Jaxon was small. He married her and adopted Jaxon quickly after. He’s been in Jaxon’s life almost from the start. He must have some idea about what he’s doing.

  “Jaxon was completely different than you. He skipped school and snuck out to parties with his friends.” Dad glares at Caleb.