by Becca Steele
“Caiden.” My voice was hoarse, but I managed to speak loudly enough that his head snapped round to mine.
“You,” he growled, and then he was stalking over to me, his eyes so, so black, a dark rage filling them. He reached me and thrust his hand up, gripping my throat, and pinned me against the wall.
I couldn’t speak, not because he had his hand around my throat, but because I couldn’t think enough to form words. I was on fire.
This was so fucked up.
He leaned closer, his teeth bared. “You,” he repeated, then sank his teeth into my neck.
Flames of desire lit up my entire body, and I barely registered the pain.
I wasn’t afraid. I trusted him with every single part of me—I knew he wouldn’t go too far. All I knew was that I was beyond turned on, and the only thought in my mind was that I wanted him. The throbbing need between my legs grew more and more intense.
How to snap him out of this? I reached down and grabbed his other hand, pulling it up to my lips before he had a chance to react. His head flew up, and he stood, frozen for a moment, his eyes glued to my movements as I licked across his split knuckles, the burst of blood in my mouth coating my tongue with its sour, metallic tang.
It was a spur-of-the-moment, totally unplanned action, but…fuuuuck. It worked.
He lunged for me, attacking my mouth, ripping his hand away from mine and undoing his jeans with one hand. Not quick enough, apparently, because he suddenly released his grip on my throat and pulled away from me totally, pulling his jeans and boxers off, his cock hard, thick, and heavy between us.
My mouth watered. I needed him inside me, now, and we were most definitely on the same page. He tore my underwear away from my body before I could even process what was happening, and then he lifted me and thrust up into me.
“You. Were. So. Fucking. Careless,” he hissed between thrusts, all teeth and savage grip on me. All I could do was hold on and ride him, moving closer and closer to the edge, feeling him flex around me. His hot breath on my face, his sweat-soaked body, his cock that filled me so perfectly…
“I’m sorry.” My strangled gasp was barely discernible as he buried his face in my shoulder again, biting down, pressing me into the wall as he fucked me mercilessly.
Oh. Fuck.
Fuck.
Fuck.
Stars burst beneath my closed lids as I came hard and fast, gripping him with everything I had. His iron grip tightened on me as he followed me over the edge, pulsing inside me, his cum marking me as his.
“Caiden.” I breathed his name as he kind of collapsed back onto the workout bench behind us, me straddling him, my arms around his neck, his dick still inside me.
“What am I gonna do with you?” His voice was so pained, and I knew what he was saying. Why had I been so stupid? He already had to go through losing his mother, and then to have me disappear not once, but twice, if you included tonight…why hadn’t I at least sent him a message? What had possessed me to climb out of an upstairs window? Why didn’t I think?
“I’m so fucking sorry, Cade. Please…” I had the biggest lump in my throat, and I could hardly get the words out around it. I swallowed, still breathing hard. “Please…” I took a deep breath. “Please don’t do anything rash. I—I don’t…”
Argh. My huff was audible—it wasn’t meant to be.
“You don’t what?” The rage and pain were masked by something else. Curiosity, perhaps?
I drew back to meet his eyes.
There he was.
My boyfriend.
His gaze all stormy, still angry, but tempered with his curiosity and what I thought was concern. And maybe something else, something I couldn’t think, let alone say aloud.
He made my heart skip a beat.
“When you look at me like—” I stammered, flustered.
“Like what?” His voice grew impossibly soft, as he cupped my face in his hands, not allowing me any escape from his intense gaze.
“Like…I don’t know. Like you care.” I lowered my eyes, unable to look at him anymore.
He lifted my chin, forcing me to meet his gaze again.
“I do care. So fucking much. Why do you think I was so angry? You could’ve called or sent a message. We could’ve created a diversion for you so you could get out without putting yourself in danger!” His eyes closed for a moment, a muscle ticking in his jaw, before he turned the full force of his stormy gaze back on me again.
Being the centre of his focus?
It was like being in the hottest part of a fire.
He burned my defences away, leaving the truth exposed.
But I couldn’t say it.
Couldn’t think it.
I threw my walls up over the top, smothering the flames.
“I wasn’t thinking.”
“Remember what happened to my mum? Remember what happened to you, when you were fucking taken!”
His voice echoed around us, full of the pain he’d never shown me. Yeah, he’d told me about his mum, but this depth…the absolute despair in his voice…
The walls cracked and crumbled, burning away in an instant.
“I love you.”
My words, shocking us both, hung in the air, then crashed to the ground.
Absolute silence.
Fuck.
“I—I didn’t—”
“I fucking love you,” he breathed against my lips, and then his mouth was on mine and we were kissing, pouring everything we wanted to say into this kiss. No other words were needed. Nothing else existed in that moment.
Just him and I.
THIRTY-ONE
He loved me.
He. Loved. Me.
“I’m still angry, by the way.” He finished dressing, glancing over at me where I sat on the weights bench, my legs still shaky. A small smile played across his lips as he registered the happiness that was probably beaming all over my face.
“I know. But you love me, right? So you can’t be angry forever.”
“You’re fucking impossible,” he growled, stalking over to me and pulling me up and into his arms. “Yeah. I do. I won’t be angry forever, but don’t push me right now, okay?”
“Say it,” I begged, linking my arms around his neck. “I want to hear you say it.”
“For fuck’s sake,” he muttered, before kissing the tip of my nose. His arms tightened around me, and then his eyes met mine. “You’re mine, and I love you. You got under my fucking skin the first day I met you, and I never managed to escape.”
“Did you want to escape?” I raised a brow at him, smirking.
He rolled his eyes. “You know I did. It was like you were sent here to purposely test me, to fuck with my head.”
“Uh, same for me, thanks. You were fucking with my head just as much.”
“That’s true. Who would’ve thought you’d fall for your stepbrother, huh? What will our parents say?” He grinned at me, the anger in his gaze finally gone.
“I have no idea, but that’s going to be one awkward conversation. Not that I care. I love you, Cade, and we’ll get through whatever shit gets thrown at us.”
“Yeah, we will. Come on, I’m gonna have a quick shower, then we need to sit down and find out what the fuck is going on with Allan.”
He let go of me, and I dropped my hands from his neck, taking a step back. “I’ll see you up there.”
“No.” Reaching out, he gripped my hand firmly and started tugging me towards the stairs.
“What?” I stared at him, confused, and he glanced over at me, giving me that wicked smirk that he knew I couldn’t resist.
“Part two of your punishment for the way you acted. I need you in the shower to wash my dick.”
Riiight.
“With your mouth,” he added, his smirk widening into a huge grin.
“Oh, really?”
“Yep.”
“Just how many parts to this punishment are there?” I asked curiously as we made our way up the stairs, excitement bui
lding inside me as I watched his eyes darken. Dirty, dirty thoughts filled my head as he contemplated my question.
He licked his lips. “I’m thinking…at least five.”
“I’m okay with that.”
Back all together, minus Weston, who was busy digging for any data he could get his hands on, the mood turned deadly serious as the reality of what I’d discovered about Allan sank in.
“He’s always been so quiet and unassuming. I never once would’ve imagined he’d be involved in any of this.” Cassius rubbed his chin, deep in thought. “Nothing adds up.”
Caiden nodded in agreement, his eyes on my phone as he scrolled through the photos I’d taken. “That’s the fucking problem. Not even a hint of trouble.”
“Except—” Zayde hesitated, and we all turned to look at him. The look in his eyes gave me chills. “I need to speak to Creed. I’ll be back.”
Caiden, Cassius, and I exchanged glances as he got up without another word, stalking out of the room.
“What was that all about?” Cassius wondered aloud. “Any ideas, mate?”
Caiden shrugged. “None. He’s never said anything to me about Allan. Nothing suspicious, anyway.”
“Is it worth speaking to your dad?” I leaned closer to Caiden, and he gave me a quick smile, tugging me closer and putting his arm around me.
“Yeah, I could. But I’d rather keep that as our last resort, if we can’t find out anything else. I don’t think my dad’s involved, and I don’t wanna make him suspicious.”
“You didn’t think Allan was involved though, either,” Cassius pointed out.
Caiden stiffened next to me, and I frowned at Cassius. Don’t, I mouthed, and he grimaced, his thoughts clearly turning in the same direction mine had. Enough shit had happened for one day. I didn’t want Cade stressing about his dad on top of everything else, questioning everything he knew.
“Nah, your dad’s not involved. I’m sure of it.” Cassius blew out a heavy breath. “I’m not convinced that all this shit with Allan is as it seems, either.”
We sat in silence for a moment, Cassius motioning for Caiden to pass him my phone so he could look through the photos.
“You okay?” I stared up at Caiden, worried.
“I don’t know.”
Sadness filled me at his despondent tone.
“Cade…” I slid my arms around him, and he held on to me tightly, as if he needed me to support him. As much as I needed answers, and as strong as he was, he’d been through so much in his life, and to now have all this to deal with… It was enough to shake even the strongest person. “We’re going to get through this, okay?”
He didn’t answer me, but he placed a soft kiss on my forehead, pulling me into him.
“Winter’s right. We’re so close to putting these puzzle pieces together. Failure is not an option. We’re gonna get the answers, fuck some shit up, then get back to our lives.” I looked around to see Cassius holding out his fist, his expression resolute.
Caiden released me, reluctantly I think, and they bumped fists, a smile finally back on my boyfriend’s face.
“C’mon, babe. You have to do it, too.” Cassius held his fist out to me, and I was just about to respond when Weston crashed into the room, throwing a set of keys to Cassius.
“We need to go, right now. Cass, you’re driving us to the docks. I’ll explain on the way.”
In the car, the second Cassius had started the engine, Weston continued, twisting in his seat to look at us, his leg bouncing restlessly, excitement in his eyes.
“Allan, nothing, total dead end, although I didn’t have much time to look. But…call me a fucking genius. All the Alstone Holdings places other than AMC—the offices, warehouses, docks? Staff have an ID card they use to scan in and out with. I’ve been working on getting into their system for ages so I could match up the IDs to see if we could build up a picture of who was where and when. When I was searching for Allan, I had I guess what you could call an epiphany, and I managed to access the system. Finally! They had the strongest security I’d come across, as strong as Dad’s.” He paused in the middle of his speech, a thoughtful expression stealing across his face. “I wonder if it’s the same as Dad’s? If so, I might be able to hack his system at long last.”
“Get to the point, will you?” Caiden stared at him impatiently.
“Yeah, sorry. I didn’t dare to stay in the system for long in case I was detected, so I went straight to the date Winter was attacked, and the date she was rescued, on the off chance we might find an answer.” Taking a deep breath, he met my eyes. “There’s only one ID logged for the night you were attacked, which we have to assume was the guard. All the IDs are a long string of numbers, so I can’t match them up to names yet. The night you were rescued? Same ID. But that wasn’t the only one. Someone else was there, and the time they scanned in correlates with the rough time frame you were rescued, if we go by the time Kinslee got the phone call from the hospital.”
“But how do we find out who—”
“Wait,” he interrupted me. “I’m getting to that. That same ID has just scanned in at the docks. They literally did it as I was in the system, so they won’t have been there long. There’s one other ID already logged in, which I’m assuming will be the security guard, but that’s it.”
I gripped Caiden’s hand tighter, my heart rate speeding up. Were we about to come face to face with my potential rescuer?
“Fuck!” Weston exclaimed, holding up his phone. “The answers are coming thick and fast. Not only are we about to find out who rescued Winter, or at least, find out who else was there at that time, but Mercury has info waiting for me. He says he’s found out what Andromeda is.”
What?
Hope soared in me. At last, we were going to get some answers.
We sped towards the docks, and Cassius threw his SUV into the layby I’d parked in way back when I’d first come here to investigate.
“Everyone stay together. Stay cautious,” Caiden commanded in a low tone. “I’ve sent Z an SOS message, so he’ll be here soon.”
Moving stealthily towards the entrance, we fell into complete silence. Caiden kept hold of my hand the entire time but stayed in front of me, protecting me, while Cassius and Weston fell back in line behind me.
We could see the outline of the night guard in the hut, reclined in his chair, scrolling through his phone. It was easy enough to sneak past him and around to the long, low warehouse.
I sucked in a sharp breath, as all four of us stopped dead once we rounded the corner, staring at the figure that Caiden had almost run straight into.
My gaze travelled up, past the black boots, the jeans, the leather jacket, to the face, and our eyes met, mine widening in shock.
“You!”
TO BE CONTINUED…
That’s it…for now…
Thank you so much for reading The Secrets We Hide! The final part of Winter and Caiden’s story will be coming soon, and you can add it to your TBR here. Feel free to send me any and all abuse/love/comments, and reviews are always very appreciated!
Acknowledgments
I’ll attempt to keep this on the short and sweet side (doubt I will manage it). First of all, thank you for reading The Lies We Tell, and then choosing to read The Secrets We Hide. It means so much to me!
I have to once again thank my husband (not that you will read this), for helping me out with my research and reading the entire book, and only rolling your eyes a few times.
Thank you to Claudia and Jenny. You do so much for me, and I’m forever grateful. You both read the rough first draft of TSWH without complaining, and have been there for me through all my mental breakdowns, giving me support and encouragement when I need it most. Love you both, and I’m so glad I have you in my corner. Also - thank you Jenny for your amazing PA skills (and hot AF graphics), my life feels way less disorganised now!
Sue, Ashley, and Andi - thank you so much for taking the time to read TSWH through, and catch all the plot
holes and errors I missed. I appreciate everything you do!
My amazing street team, you never fail to blow me away with all that you do. Thank you so much <3 And my ARC team, you are all amazing, and I thank you for taking the time to read and help get TSWH out into the world.
Sandra, my editor, and Jeanette, my cover designer, this book wouldn’t shine without you. Thank you for all your hard work in shaping TSWH into the book it is now!
To the bloggers, bookstagrammers and readers that have shared, posted, commented, made edits, sent me kind words, joined my BBB group after reading… thank you for loving the Four. I’m so grateful for all that you do. While I can’t promise 10 books for Cassius (haha), I can promise that each of the Four will get their own story.
Thank you for reading! <3
Becca xoxo
Also by Becca Steele
London Suits Series
The Deal
The Truce
The Offer (coming soon)
The Wish (a free short festive story)
The Four Series
The Lies We Tell
The Secrets We Hide
Book 3 (coming soon)
Standalones
Broken Crown (coming Nov 2020)
(part of the multi-author Cresthill Alumni world)
About the Author
Becca Steele is a contemporary romance author from the south of England, where she lives with her husband, two kids, and various animals that randomly turn up expecting to be fed.
When she's not writing, you can find her reading or watching Netflix, usually with a glass of wine in hand. Failing that, she'll be online hunting for memes, or wasting time making her 500th Spotify playlist.
Join Becca’s Facebook reader group Becca’s Book Bar or find her via the following links: