Lost & Found

by E B Brooks

  “Faster, Skylar!” Maddy yelled.

  Soon, they were zipping around curves and speeding down long stretches, and the blood pumped through her veins.

  She was disappointed when they pulled into a driveway. Skylar parked beside the garage and turned the motorcycle off.

  Maddy jumped off and unhooked her helmet. With wide eyes and flushed cheeks, she tried to describe what she was feeling. “That was awesome, Skylar! I loved it! I’ve never felt so alive. When can you take me out again?”

  Skylar pinned her with a feral look, and she found herself slammed up against the brick wall of the garage in the blink of an eye. His arms on either side of her head, his lips claimed hers in a demanding kiss that took Maddy’s breath away.

  She didn’t know if it was the ride or him, but she lost it.

  Maddy climbed his body and wrapped her legs around his waist. He groaned, and the kiss turned even more intense, teeth clashing, tongues battling. He ground against her.

  Shit, she had never been so turned on by just a kiss. If he kept this up, she might come.

  They were so caught up in each other that they didn’t hear someone walk up until they coughed.

  Skylar’s head whipped toward the voice, and Maddy saw Ryder leaning against the garage, rubbing his chin. Skylar’s eyes narrowed, and he gave Ryder an evil look for interrupting them.

  “Um, dinner’s ready, unless you two want to continue.” A half-smirk filled Ryder’s face. “I wouldn’t mind that.”

  Maddy’s head fell back against the garage. She felt like she was floating on clouds. “Hi, Player.”

  Skylar’s chest heaved up and down. “God dammit, Ryder! We’ll come inside in a minute.”

  Ryder turned away, mumbling something.

  Skylar set Maddy back on her feet, and she took a couple steps away to fix her clothes. With her head still reeling with what just happened, she leaned back against the garage for support. She was beginning to believe there was something in the water here. She had never been like this before. But then again, she had never felt like this toward anyone.

  How was she going to keep her hands to herself tonight? Shit, how was she going to watch them touching others? This was a bad idea.

  “I’m so sorry, Princess. You’re so sexy with all that adrenalin running through you. I couldn’t control myself. God, you have no idea how bad I want you.” Skylar looked at her like he wanted to throw her down on the grass and have his way with her right then.

  The thing was, she wouldn’t give a damn if he did.

  He took a step forward and placed his hand on her neck, and Maddy looked up at him with her mouth slightly open.

  “Dammit, I need to get away from you for a minute.” He pulled out his phone and typed something, then took off in a half-jog.

  Confused, she raised her hand in the air. “Skylar, where are you going?”

  He turned and looked at her. “I can’t be around you right now.”

  As he took off running, her heart sank to her stomach. He couldn’t be around her right now? She fell back against the garage. He was leaving because he couldn’t be around her anymore?

  She bent over, trying to catch her breath as tears threatened. What did she do wrong that made Skylar leave? Why was she always being left by the people she cared about?

  Everything was jumbled in her head, her insecurities from living at Wings of Refuge rearing up to tear down the self-confidence she’d been working to build in her new life, and memories swamped her.

  The door to her bedroom slammed open, and Nikki stood there with a big smile on her face, holding a newspaper.

  Maddy gave her a dirty look. “What do you want?”

  “I want to tell you that Jon won the bet,” she said with a sadistic smile on her face.

  Maddy pinched the bridge of her nose as she shook her head. “What are you talking about?”

  Nikki slammed the newspaper onto Maddy’s bed.

  Maddy scanned the paper, searching for a clue of what Nikki was talking about. Then, she saw it. In the bottom corner was an article about a gang shooting that left one Ryan Corvino dead on the scene. The investigation was still underway.

  When Ryan had walked out the Wings of Refuge, he had told her he had something important to do and he would be out of town for a while. He was gone for a month before he showed back up to take her out to dinner.

  When she asked where he’d been, he just shook his head and told her it wasn’t important.

  When they parted ways again that night, he said he would stop by in a few days. That was two weeks ago, though, and she hadn’t seen or talked to him since. But Maddy was sure he’d come back, just like he did last time.

  After he’d left, Nikki had returned to her old tricks every chance she got, saying something cruel to Maddy. She ignored her, which pissed Nikki off even more, but Maddy was trying to be strong, the way Ryan had taught her to be.

  This was just Nikki trying to get to her again.

  Maddy drew in a stuttered breath as her head snapped up. “You created this at school just to make me think Ryan’s dead,” she accused with a trembling lip.

  Nikki laughed. “You think I would go that far? I knew he wouldn’t survive out there. The rumors are he went back with his old gang because he couldn’t hack it alone.”

  Gang? Ryan never mentioned he was in a gang before. Maddy stared at Ryan’s name on the paper. They had the wrong name, it was someone else who got shot. But deep down, she knew it was Ryan.

  Tears flowed freely as Ryan’s name became wet. Maddy grabbed the paper in her fist, her body shaking with sobs.

  “I told you since the beginning that no one wants you,” Nikki sneered. “People go to extremes to get away from you. Just face it, no one will ever give two shits about you. You’ll be old and all by yourself.”

  Maddy had completely forgotten Nikki was in the room. She stood and stomped over, grabbing a handful of Nikki’s hair. The other girl yelled at her to let her go as Maddy dragged her to the door and shoved her out, slamming the door in Nikki’s face.

  Maddy’s body shook violently with a fresh onslaught of sobs.

  How was she going to survive without Ryan? Ryan was gone. Her big brother was no longer around to protect her from the world, and all of their plans for the future died with him.

  Her hand hit something hard and cold. She pulled it out to find the switchblade Ryan gave her for her birthday. Hitting the button, it snapped open, and she ran her thumb over the sharp edge. Feeling the sting, she pulled her thumb away, and a red line formed against her ivory skin. She examined the blood on the blade. Maddy couldn’t get through life without Ryan. He was her family, her light.

  Taking the blade, she pressed it to her wrist.

  Maddy came back from the memory with a gasp, the pain of watching Skylar walk away merging with the pain of losing the only family she’d ever had.

  Opening herself up again hurt so much, but she’d made a promise to herself after her failed attempt at suicide. No matter how hard things got, she’d pick herself up and keep moving.

  But sometimes it was so damn hard.

  15

  Jace

  “Maddy?”

  Where the hell was she? Skylar had texted him to get out here, and Jace had heard them pull up a while ago. When they didn’t come in right away, he thought they were making out or something. Skylar always got turned on when he rode his bike.

  When Ryder came back in with a smile and said they needed a few more minutes, Jace knew he was right.

  But Jace grew concerned when Skylar texted him to come outside. Skylar could be intense sometimes.

  Jace walked over to where Skylar kept his motorcycle and saw Maddy turning the corner, looking upset.

  Shit.

  He opened his arms, and she ran into them. “Oh, baby, what happened? What did Skylar do? I know Ryder came out to get you guys, but he came back saying you two might need a few more minutes.”

  When he pulled her back and
put his hands on each side of her face, she was trying to keep tears at bay. Damn Skylar, this should have never happened. They had talked about this all last night.

  Skylar wanted her in his bed, but not as a girlfriend. He wasn’t sure if he could handle sharing her with his brother or Ryder.

  Jace, on the other hand, wanted her to be his girlfriend. He didn’t care if he shared her with his friends.

  Skylar had promised Jace he wouldn’t push her.

  She half cried, half laughed. “I’m all right. Skylar and I got a little carried away, and he needs a few minutes to get himself under control. It just brought up some old shit.”

  Her green eyes brimmed with tears, and Jace brushed away some stray hair. “Did he push you too far?”

  “He said he couldn’t be around me. And it hurt. Dammit! I hate being emotional.” Her hands wiped away the tears.

  “He was probably afraid he’d do something he’d regret. Let’s get you some caffeine. That should help a little. Feel like going into the house?” He dropped his hands from her face and put one hand on the small of her back.

  She took a cleansing breath and nodded.

  She was so cute. Jace kissed her nose and wrapped his arm around her shoulder.

  As they walked to the back of the house, she took time to admire the large, two-story house, and even commented on how she liked the green shingled roof. She stopped on the deck and took in the big backyard.

  Jace took her through the laundry/mudroom and into the kitchen where she stopped so unexpectedly that he almost knocked her over. She was staring at Cody with her mouth hanging open. Ryder leaned against the counter doing nothing, as usual.

  Cody stood beside him, cutting up a tomato to put in the salad he was creating.

  Jace wasn’t sure what made her stop so suddenly. Was she surprised to see Cody cooking?

  Cody stopped chopping, glanced over at Maddy, and Jace caught a look he’d never seen on Cody before. Desire. Then, just as quickly, Cody’s mask slammed back into place.

  She gave him a little wave. “Hi, Cody. You cook?”

  The smell of oregano and other spices filled the kitchen, and Maddy let out a moan.

  He gave her a curt nod. “If I didn’t, all they would eat is frozen or microwave food.”

  She chuckled. “That’s the reason I had to teach myself to cook. We all had to take turns cooking for everyone at the group home. Most of the kids would make deep-fried shit every night. Got sick of it and learned to cook.”

  “Group home?” Ryder’s body turned rigid, and his eyes grew big.

  “They didn’t tell you?” She looked back and forth between Cody and Jace.

  Jace handed her a coke. “No, we haven’t said anything. It’s your story to tell.”

  “It’s no secret.” She shrugged. “I was dropped off at an orphanage when I was only a few days old. I stayed there until I turned twelve, then spent the rest of my time at a group home.”

  Ryder said nothing, just stared at her like he was seeing her for the first time.

  “Where’s my brother?” Cody demanded, slamming a spatula down. “I thought he brought you?”

  Ryder snorted. “I’m sure from what I saw, he needs a release.”

  As Maddy’s face turned beet-red, Jace pulled her closer, and she buried her face in his shirt.

  “Well, just great. Dinner’s ready. We’ll start without him,” Cody complained.

  As Jace lead Maddy toward the dining room table, she tried to look at everything, and he promised a tour after dinner.

  Once they all sat down, the conversation was slow to start, but thanks to Ryder, it soon picked up. He had them cracking up with the tales he told. Well, most of them. Cody wouldn’t look anywhere but at his plate. Maddy kept looking at him, trying to involve him in the conversation, but he’d only say one word and that was it.

  As they finished, Maddy tried again, “Dinner was delicious. I want the recipe. I’ve never had anything like that before. What did you call it again?”

  “Kielbasa rolls. It’s easy to make. All it is, is lasagna noodles, kielbasa, and provolone cheese,” Cody said shortly.

  Jace was about ready to hit him. Maddy was trying to get him to talk, and he was acting like an ass.

  “Well, it’s good. I’m sorry Skylar didn’t make it.” Lowing her head, her body sank into the chair.

  “He’s a damn idiot,” Cody said as he rose from the table and stormed back into the kitchen.

  Jace smiled at her and patted her leg.

  When they carried their dishes into the kitchen, Maddy offered to wash them since Cody cooked, but he said he’d handle it.

  Jace wasn’t too happy with the way Cody was talking to Maddy. He couldn’t wrap his head around the way Cody was acting, it was so unlike him.

  Taking Maddy’s hand, Jace walked her to the living room.

  “Wow, that is a big TV.” Her eyes left the enormous flat-screen and looked around the rest of the living room. “This place is beautiful, Jace.”

  Ryder hooked a thumb toward the TV. “If you think that TV’s big, you should see the one downstairs. I’ll see you both down there once you’re done with the tour.”

  She waved at Ryder but kept looking around the room.

  Jace thought they’d done a good job. There was a fifty-five-inch TV above the fireplace with a brown-suede, L-shaped sectional facing it. There were two end tables with lamps on each end.

  Behind the sectional were stairs, and as they walked up to them, Jace explained, “Cody and Ryder bought the house with the help of our parents the summer before they started here. It was a complete mess. They had to gut the whole inside and start over. They wanted to keep the original hardwood floors, but they were too damaged.”

  “Wow, so you knew you’d be coming here when you were still a junior in high school?” Amazement flowed through her voice.

  He snickered. “Yeah, this is where Mr. and Mrs. Anderson went. It’s the closest school to home. Plus, it has the best business department in the state. When Cody and Ryder bought this house, they asked if we wanted to move in with them.”

  At the top of the stairs, Jace took the left and stopped in front of a door.

  A flicker of a smile passed her lips. “You came to Blue Ridge for the business program?”

  He leaned against the doorframe. “Yes, I want to take over my dad’s construction company when he’s ready to retire.”

  She beamed at him. “So, your dad owns a construction company? I guess that’s where you all got your talent from.”

  He pulled out his wallet and handed her his business card.

  Her eyes widened as she studied it. “You have your own business card already.”

  When she tried to hand it back, he folded her fingers around it. “Keep it. Why did you choose here? Do you know what you want to do?”

  She put his business card in her back pocket. “I came for the same program you did. I want to open my own bakery one day.”

  He could see her in the back of a bakery, covered in flour, making fresh treats for them. That was a dream he’d have to work on.

  He smiled from ear-to-ear. “So, we’ll be in a lot of the same classes.”

  “I guess we will.” She bounced on her toes, smiling wide.

  God, she was so gorgeous; she had no idea the effect she had on him.

  “On with the tour. This is an empty room,” Jace didn’t want to tell her it was Ryder’s fuck room. He didn’t open the door, he just passed over it.

  He opened the next door, though, and she peeked in. “This is Skylar and my bathroom. Please ignore the mess. Skylar’s not the neatest person.”

  She chuckled at that one.

  They walked down to the end of the hall. “This is Skylar’s room. Once again, ignore the mess.”

  He opened the door, and she stepped in. Jace had told Skylar to clean up his room, but Jace could see he didn’t touch it. Clothes were all over the floor, his desk was covered with books and paper, and the ch
air in the corner was completely buried. His queen-size bed was unmade.

  Standing there, shaking his head, he looked over at Maddy. The messy sight didn’t seem to faze her at all. She was more interested in the posters on Skylar’s wall and ceiling. Most of them were of people skydiving, skateboarding, and motor-crossing. He had some music posters up there, too.

  Her eyes landed back on Jace, and the smile on her face could have melted anyone’s heart. Excitement filled her voice. “This is exactly what I expected his room to look like. Now, let me see yours.”

  Ushering her across the hall, Jace let her take the first step into his room.

  He had the smallest of the four bedrooms, but he didn’t mind. All he needed was a double-bed, a desk, and a comfortable chair to read in.

  She walked in and scanned the room. When she spotted the bookshelf hidden behind the door, she started reading the titles.

  Curious, he gave her a coy smile. “So, is it what you thought it would be?”

  “Yep! The complete opposite of Skylar’s.” She laughed, and Jace decided he could listen to that sound all day long, along with a few others she’d made.

  He wanted to throw her on his bed and never let her up. He could see why Skylar lost it earlier. “What, you don’t think I can be messy?”

  She walked up to him with her eyebrows raised. “Not on your life.”

  Jace grabbed her and pulled her into a hug. “You’re right, I can’t.”

  He couldn’t hold back anymore and kissed her, in a way that left them both wanting more.

  After a moment, he reluctantly pulled away. There was a lot more house to see, and the party would start soon.

  He took Maddy down the hall and past the stairs. “This is Ryder’s room. Remember, I warned you.”

  He opened the door and let her step through.

  The floor was dark wood, and Ryder had installed two cream sconces the same color as the wall in a small entryway. Past that on the left was a plush chair with a footstool, and on the other wall was a king-size bed. The bedframe was black wrought iron, and the sheets were a dark-red.