I’d never noticed it before when I’d been in his room – as his girlfriend. Most of the time, I’d been too distracted by making out and his constant push to sleep with me. That should have been my first clue that things weren’t good with him. If that’s all he wanted, then I should have been more on guard.
The girl I’d been so long ago and the girl I had become seemed like they came from different extremes. One had been determined to hold onto her virginity, the other seemed intent on seeking out justice in whatever form she could manage.
I moved tentatively toward the extra door, my breath coming quicker as I approached. What if he was hiding a body in there? Could I deal with it? I’d already found Stephanie dead. What more did I think would shock me?
Pausing at the door, I licked my lips as I reached out, carefully closing my fingers around the antiqued brass knob. Turning the handle, I winced as the door creaked open, revealing a very small space with a door on the other side of a two-foot distance.
I tucked my chin in shock. The door was on the side of the wall that my room was on. Did I have a door that I hadn’t noticed? I’d check in a second, but there was shelving set up in the space. This was a great hiding place and I had a gut feeling the box on the top shelf was something I could use.
Stepping into the space, I let the door close behind me. It snapped shut, the sudden silence wrapped around me. I gasped at the immediate sense of claustrophobia that overwhelmed me. I shut my eyes which didn’t seem to matter since it was black. I took a steadying breath. No. Braddox didn’t control me anymore. He couldn’t scare me. I wasn’t stuck there. And even if I was? He couldn’t do anything to me. Not anymore.
I felt with my fingers for the door handle opposite the way I’d come in, but the door seemed devoid of a knob. I couldn’t see a damn thing.
Rolling my eyes, I pulled out my phone and swiped on the flashlight, directing it the way I faced.
Okay, so it wasn’t a traditional door. There was a turn lock inserted into a small finger slit. I turned the lock and arched my eyebrow at the soft scrape of metal on metal. Interesting. The door was locked from this side.
Then I slid it to the left, holding my flashlight aloft for better viewing.
As I opened the door, I blinked in surprise, but not shock, as I saw my room spread out before me with the bed front and center. How many nights had Braddox snuck in there and watched me sleep? He could have done anything he wanted to me and I wouldn’t have had any idea.
I took a deep breath and turned back to the closet. The box was the only thing on the shelves and was the only thing he’d hidden from easy discovery in his room.
I left the door open and darted into my room, grabbing down a backpack from my things in the closet. Turning back to the hidden closet, I opened the box and emptied the contents into my backpack, shaking it at the end for good measure.
Then I returned the box to its spot as exactly as I could.
Tossing the backpack on my bed, I returned through the closet, locking the door from his side and returning everything the way I’d found it. Then I slipped back to my room. I locked the door to the hallway behind me and stared at the wall between Braddox’s room and mine.
If I wasn’t looking for a specific doorway, I’d never know there was one there. The wooden paneling with its intricate insets and moldings hid the very presence of anything in the wall. The privacy violation was huge and I wasn’t surprised any longer. At least, I’d caught it. Who knew what Braddox would try now that he’d screwed me once.
The best thing about the discovery was that Braddox didn’t know I knew.
I couldn’t get my hands on a gun, but I could get a knife. I could get something to defend myself. I could also move my dresser to block the doorway.
But which did I want to happen? Did I want him to get in and come to me where I could shank him with a knife when he got close enough? Or did I block the doorway and let him think I’d just rearranged the room and he hadn’t known?
No. None of that made me feel safer. None of that made me feel like I was in control.
What would though? What would make me feel like locking the door was actually protecting me? Because the hallway door was locked, but as far as Braddox was concerned, that didn’t matter.
I would need help figuring things out. As it was, I kind of hoped he’d come in that night or the next. I wanted a chance to catch him in the act and hear what his excuses would be.
Knowing Braddox… he wouldn’t be fazed by any of it. I had to do what I could to faze him.
Chapter 6
Roman
Stephanie was dead. I knew she wasn’t in my closet, where I’d left her. I went back to talk with her after I’d had a few hours to calm down and she was gone. The ropes I’d bound her in left on the floor of my room. I hadn’t had a chance to talk with Olivia and I doubted Stephanie had either.
But driving home, I couldn’t get past the fact that Stephanie was dead. The rumor around school was she’d whored out with a group of Russians and they’d been too rough, but I knew that wasn’t true. Stephanie was crazy in bed, but she didn’t do groups. She’d told me once she wanted all the attention in the bedroom because she couldn’t get any out of it.
Maybe Ryan had played a role in Stephanie’s death. He hadn’t been at school, but then again neither was Donnie. I had no desire to know how that situation had played out. I didn’t care. Stephanie had left sometime during the weekend and I hadn’t gone after her. The silent treatment from Olivia and Jaxon had been more than amusing for the majority of the weekend until I realized neither was going to relent and speak to the other or speak to me.
That just pissed me off more. I’d opted to stay out of Olivia’s room until I’d given her some time to cool off. The next time I went in her room, I planned on a replay of our first night together. With the lights on. She had to be more receptive this time, now that she knew how good things could be with us.
I pulled up to the house and parked the Nova.
Night closed in around the house. In an hour, the sun would be completely beyond the lines of the ocean.
I just had to make it through the next few hours before sneaking into Olivia’s room. That’s all I needed. One peek at her while she slept. For some reason, that plan left me feeling calmer, more in control. Having the ability to slip into her room at will had become my favorite thing – beside the memory of our first night together.
She’d come around. Something that great couldn’t be appreciated by only me.
The hours passed with homework, lifting, and checking on random associates in the area.
After the house fell silent, I waited even longer, well past eleven until I moved toward the secret doorway connecting my room to Olivia’s. I glanced at my box on the shelf. A habit I’d developed long ago. One more thing that kept my position secure. I could burn the papers, but they tied me to the things I’d done, my secrets. I couldn’t help feeling like part of me was wrapped up and anchored in the things I’d done.
Wrong as they were.
If I erased that part of my past, I wouldn’t be sure which side of the coin I belonged on. I certainly didn’t fit where Jaxon had taken root. His good decisions and altruistic choices made me sick.
I closed my eyes, sliding the lock open in the darkness. The subtle scrape of metal on metal reassured me. I pushed the door open.
Flexing my muscles as I came out of the small closet, I moved stealthily toward the shadow of the bed. Nothing had changed in the room and yet I could feel a shift in the ambience as I moved.
I’d been in there. I’d touched her. I’d had her. And my dick responded to the memory. Maybe just watching her wasn’t going to be enough that night. I’d taken it once. Who said I couldn’t take it again? No one. She wouldn’t be able to stop me. If I could just get her to relax, she wouldn’t want me to stop.
Maybe that’s what was so infuriating. I knew she’d cum her first time and that was with me. Maybe that’s why she was s
o upset. I’d made her feel things she hadn’t felt before. Things she hadn’t expected to come from me. Yet I was being punished for that.
Yeah, that was really fair.
Wearing only a pair of shorts, I moved toward the bed, silent as my arms moved through the air at my sides. The room temperatures were held at a comfortable sixty-seven degrees, but my nipples tightened as if it were cold.
What would her nipples do when I touched them?
An influx of saliva made me swallow at the thought of her body responding to mine. My knee bumped the edge of her bed, but only enough to let me know I’d reached my destination, not hard enough to wake her or make any noises.
I was hard. I hadn’t even been in her room long. Her scent filled the space around me and I could already feel her beneath me. I didn’t want anything else. I needed her.
I dropped my shorts, not needing to remove underwear I hadn’t worn. I reached down, holding myself in anticipation of what was coming. Then I let go, moving to crawl onto the large mattress she slept peacefully on.
And then suddenly, a cold sharp piece of metal was between my legs, bringing pain with its presence. I froze, swallowing as I slowly stood and held my hands in the air.
“Oh, Braddox. You’re so predictable.” Olivia’s words stung. Not as much as the laugh in her tone.
I clenched my jaw, staring at the opposite wall from where I stood.
She moved, the metal of whatever she held on my nuts moved as well. I held my breath, tilting my head to the side as I spoke. “What are you going to do? You don’t have it in you to kill me. And trust me, Olivia, you’re going to wish you had.”
Where I should be scared, I wasn’t. For some reason, the fact that she was so close to my dick – even in a threatening manner – only left me harder and more out of breath. I was ready to take her right there, willing or not.
“Oh, Braddox. I’m not going to kill you. That wouldn’t be fair, would it? No.” She leaned forward, kissing my shoulder before biting me hard enough to draw blood. The warm liquid dripped down my skin.
I closed my eyes at the pain, but somehow maintained my hard-on. Olivia was amazing. I shook my head. “You never fail to amaze me. Come on, you can hold the knife or whatever that is on my throat. But do me. Right now. You’ll never feel a rougher sense of endorphins, Olivia.” I could almost taste the orgasm as I closed my eyes and wished she would take me up on my offer.
“You’re never touching me like that again. Do you understand?” Her words shook.
At least I was still getting to her.
We stood there in silence for a full minute, the knife moving gently between my legs, the metal caressing me as her arm moved with each breath. I groaned, unable to hold it in. I was close to finishing right there. She had no idea the impact she had on me.
“Are you getting off on this?” And in a split second the metal was gone, moved to my back.
I turned; fully aware she couldn’t see how she affected me. Unfortunately. I really wanted her to know how much I wanted her, but the point I was reaching, if she barely touched me, I’d cum all over her. Not a bad thing, but not exactly the best way to seduce her.
“What are you going to do? We can’t stand here all night. Unless of course, you want to stare at me. I suggest turning on the lights for a better view.” I grinned. “Come on, Liv. It’s not like you’re actually going to do anything. Let’s mess around like we used to. I really think you’d like it.” I couldn’t see her very clearly, but her shadow was easy to discern in the muted moonlight coming from the window.
She reached out, pressing the knife to my chest. If I breathed deeply, it would penetrate my skin.
“Here’s the thing, Braddox. I don’t want you doing that to me or anyone else. And if you think for one second, I haven’t got it in me? You don’t know me as well as you think.” In less than a second, her hand moved and my inner thigh was filled with an intense burning pain.
I dropped my hand, clapping it over the place she’d cut me. “You stupid bitch. What is wrong with you?” The pain was intense and liquid heat seeped through the cracks between my fingers.
“This is only the foreplay, Braddox. Just think. You seem to want more and more from me. Well, you’re going to get it. You just don’t get to choose what exactly you’re going to get. Your cut is probably pretty bad. I’d get it checked.” Olivia grabbed my shoulder and moved me toward the closet.
She’d known about it. Of course, she had. I had no recourse right then. I couldn’t do anything to straighten her out. I stumbled through the closet and fell to my bed, grabbing up my phone.
Calling 911 should have been easy. Instead, it was going to take more effort than I had available.
I dialed it anyway. As I reported my injuries and waited for help to come, I couldn’t help noticing that my hard-on hadn’t gone down the slightest bit. No matter what Olivia said. I was going to get another piece of her. I had to and now I knew she was ready to handle what I truly wanted to do to her.
She’d just taken us to the next level. Too bad she had no idea it was exactly what she wanted.
Chapter 7
Olivia
I couldn’t stay in that room. My chest rose and fell as I panted to get my breathing under control. That room was like a damn cage. I couldn’t breathe, knowing he was right next door, knowing he had such easy access to me any time he wanted.
My chest heaved and before I knew what was happening, I sobbed, gripping the knife in my fist, staring around at the now empty suite with a fire in my eyes. I wasn’t crying because I was sad or scared, damn it all to hell. I was crying because I was so pissed off, I couldn’t contain it. I wanted to do more than just cut his thigh. If he tried to assault me again, I would cut anything that stuck off his body more than half an inch.
So, help him.
Moving out of the house was out of the question. I wasn’t old enough to move out on my own yet. As soon as I was, bam! I was going to be gone.
I couldn’t tell Mom what I’d done. I couldn’t tell her what Braddox had done without sharing the fact that I’d wanted to have sex with Jaxon. Some things I could tell my mom, but plans to lose my virginity just weren’t on the approved topics list. The whole situation could be rounded out with the simple fact that I wasn’t following my mom’s rule to stay away from the guys.
My hand shook and my breathing came in short spurts. I held my breath so I could swallow and then returned to panting. I backed myself into the corner where I’d waited for Braddox to come into my room. For some reason, my instincts told me he’d be in there that night. I wouldn’t have long to wait. And my gut hadn’t been wrong.
He’d entered and that’s when I’d tucked my chin, holding my knife behind me so it didn’t catch any light to reflect and give my position away. He waltzed in, bold as brass and with zero respect for my space or wishes. He acted like he owned the place, like he owned me.
Braddox’s first mistake was underestimating me.
His second was in thinking I would let him do to me what he’d already proven he could. Not me. Wrong girl.
After I sent Braddox back to his room, I waited until the sound of emergency workers and a frantic Trenton carried to me, muffled from the hallway. They left and silence soothed my nerves. I finally was free to move.
As soon as I felt safe enough, I broke into action. The boxes in my closet hadn’t been unpacked yet. I’d gone through them, but hadn’t found time to empty them. I packed even more on top of the items already in the half-full boxes and carried them quietly across the hall to the room beside Jaxon’s. I wasn’t sure what he was doing or even if he was in there, but that didn’t matter to me. I wanted Jaxon to have access to me.
Not Braddox.
That’s what mattered.
With silent footsteps, I moved everything I’d brought with me or that Mom had moved in across the hall and into the new room. I turned off all the lights from the old room and scurried to the new one.
The colors
were different, but there was still a bathroom, a walk-in closet, a television with cable and internet, windows to the ocean, and a blatant not-concealed connecting door to Jaxon’s room.
I locked the doors, careful to even lock the one that connected me to the twin I wanted. I had no idea what Braddox would do to get back at me. I’d cut him, and good, and he wasn’t the type to get over an attack of that caliber quickly.
But then again, neither was I.
Moving boxes around in the closet, I grabbed the backpack I’d shoved all of Braddox’s things into and sat on the ground of the closet with the bag in my lap. Even with the doors locked, I couldn’t help the feeling of vulnerability in that room. I felt safer than I had beside Braddox’s room, but I was still in his house, still down the hall from him, and still unable to watch my doors at every moment of every day.
The carpet in the new closet was softer, almost more like a shag than the tight piling the last closet had had. Or maybe I could see that there was a potential for privacy in my new space. If I could feel somewhat safe, there was more hope than there had been in the room beside Braddox.
I closed my eyes for a minute and couldn’t help seeing Stephanie’s body in my mind’s eye and the shaking started up again. My whole body seemed to take on the tremor. I leaned my head back and drew my knees up to drape my arms across. What was I supposed to do?
I didn’t expect any sleep to happen that night. That was a fair expectation. I didn’t have any problem with that either. Maybe I could sleep during the day. Nothing was normal. Nothing could ever be normal for me again.
Blowing my breath out on a whoosh, I tucked my chin and unzipped the bag. The soft whirring from the zipper startled me in the silence and I jumped. Shaking my head at my weakness, I chewed my bottom lip and finished opening the pack.
Inside, the majority of the items were envelopes with black handwriting on them. Some of them with blotches that might have been tears.
Forgiven: a bully romance (An Academy Twin Rivalry Series Book 3) Page 5