Ruthless King

by Hughes, Maya

  “Yes. My dad had a heart attack and my parents have been making an effort with me lately.”

  The weakest of smiles lifted her lips. “That’s good. I know the distance…hurt. I think this should be good.” She gingerly removed her hand from the mirror and it stayed put, only sinking the slightest bit. “I’ll see you inside.” Wiping her hands on her jeans, she stepped around me.

  “Avery,” I called after her.

  She stopped and slowly turned. Her muscles were tensed, ready for an attack.

  I pushed down the twist in my gut at the way she looked at me, so vulnerable and guarded at the same time.

  “You can have the bed tonight. We can trade off.”

  “Thanks.” With a bob of her head she disappeared around the corner. The soft thud of her footsteps sounded on the stairs and then the door closed. I leaned back against the car and raked my fingers through my hair.

  What am I doing?

  I pushed up and whipped around at the sharp crack of metal hitting concrete. Turning, I saw old Percy was on his last legs and missing something. Shit. I picked the mirror up off the floor and attempted to stick it back on. At least this would give me a reason to not go inside, to not think about Avery and a bed in the same thought…the way she’d burrow down deep in the blankets to get comfortable…her hands running across my chest while we were both covered in sweat, still panting from the explosive way our bodies came together…

  I was an Avery junkie falling off the wagon after four years. I’d done everything I could to inoculate myself against her overwhelming presence in my mind. I’d kept my distance. Over the years, people had learned not to even mention her name around me.

  Whenever I was back in town, if our paths crossed, I went in the other direction, and I made sure to never let her into my thoughts for too long. Those fleeting moments where I couldn’t bear pushing her out of my mind had gotten more and more frequent, though, stretching out into restless nights, and there I was, standing outside and heating up the spoon, ready to inject her straight into my veins.

  11

  Avery

  The bright summer sun was high in the clear blue sky, not a cloud in sight, the kind of day that would have me staring out the bakery window and dreaming about picnics in the park.

  My book laying beside me, I lay on my towel with my eyes closed, letting the sun warm me as I soaked in my surroundings: the sounds of the beach and friends laughing, sweat beading on my skin. The ocean, which had sent me scrambling back up onto the beach after a vicious seaweed attack an hour earlier, looked more inviting with every passing minute.

  Being a little bit away from the boardwalk meant our portion of the sand was quiet during the week, not as jam-packed as some places like Wildwood, which had an even bigger boardwalk and attractions. The peace and quiet was exactly what I needed, although it seemed some of us were restless. I tilted my head to the side at Liv’s non-stop chatter and picture taking.

  “I can only imagine this is what it’s like when people at school talked about their parents getting a divorce, but not wanting them to know about it.”

  “Come on, this is Ford and Colm we’re talking about. They’ve been joined at the hip since middle school.”

  “And I’m telling you, it’s like a cold war going on in that triple room. If Avery hadn’t shown up when she did, I’d have started sleeping on the couch.”

  I guess some things did change. What the hell would put Colm and Ford at odds?

  “Check him out.” Liv sat up beside me, resting her chin on her propped-up hand.

  I lifted my hat as a neon green Frisbee flew overhead. Squinting in the sun, I grabbed my sunglasses and slid them on, following her gaze.

  There was a group of guys horsing around not too far from us, probably our age, maybe down for the weekend. We’d been to the beach a few times already and hadn’t seen them before. Our group wasn’t exactly inconspicuous, so we’d gotten a little bit of attention, mainly female for the guys.

  I’d tried not to bristle when a group of women came up to Emmett asking for autographs. He’d been more than happy, smiling and posing for pictures with his arm around them. It was a stupid thing to let get under my skin, and it wasn’t like I hadn’t seen his picture in the papers with other women before.

  What really pissed me off was when he’d caught my eye and given me a sly smile while he was doing it. He was trying to piss me off, trying to needle me into letting him win, maybe getting angry enough to leave. Not happening.

  There weren’t any guys with us now as Liv stared at the toned and tan dudes with the end of the arm of her sunglasses resting against her lip.

  “Stare any harder and they might spontaneously combust.” I pushed on her arm.

  She lifted her eyebrow and fanned herself. “They are seriously hot.” She sat up straighter as their Frisbee throws got closer.

  “I mean, they’re okay.” Mak sat up, resting on her arms beside her.

  Liv scoffed. “Okay? I know you’re dating Declan, but that doesn’t mean you need to pretend you’re dead. Just look at them.” She snapped another picture of me. Her stack of Polaroids grew by the minute.

  “If you even spoke to them, Colm would try to lock you in a chastity belt.” Mak laughed and gulped down some water.

  “What Colm doesn’t know can’t hurt him.”

  The Frisbee landed right in between me and Liv—imagine that. It was almost like they were trying to get our attention or something.

  Liv grabbed it and popped up from her towel. A couple of the guys came running over, one in a blue hat and black shorts and another in orange swim trunks.

  “I could have thrown it back.”

  “No, it’s okay. I wanted to come over and get it.” Blue Hat’s gaze dropped from her eyes to mine.

  I sat up and pulled my knees to my chest. Being laid out like a smorgasbord felt the tiniest bit uncomfortable. I hadn’t been in a bathing suit in forever.

  “I’m Liv.” Her hand shot out. “And this is Avery, Mak, and Kara. Are you staying down here or visiting for the day?”

  Everyone exchanged the smile-and-wave pleasantries. Orange Shorts made a point to come over and shake Liv’s hand.

  “I’m Noah, and that’s Mason. My brother rented the place for a week, but he’s stuck in the studio, so he told me to come down and enjoy it. We got in on Saturday.” He pointed to Orange Shorts, AKA Mason.

  “Nice. Your brother is a musician?” Olivia beamed.

  His eyes darted away and he ran his hand along the back of his neck. “Yeah, he plays guitar.”

  “That’s awesome. If he makes it down, maybe he can play us a song. We’re staying there.” She turned and pointed at our house, cursing under her breath when she spotted who was coming our way.

  “Party’s over,” Kara whisper-laughed beside Mak. All of the guys were making their way toward us with towels slung around their necks and a cooler between Ford and Emmett.

  “Awesome house. We’re having a party later this week—maybe you ladies would like to come.” Noah’s smiling gaze landed on me.

  “Maybe. They’re all spoken for, but I’d be more than happy to come.” Liv straightened her shoulders, thrusting that rack up a little higher.

  “Hey, I’m not spoken for.” I smacked her leg then cringed at how desperate that had come out.

  She tilted her head down at me. “Aren’t you?”

  I rolled my eyes. “No, I’m definitely not.”

  Noah smiled and held out his hand. “In that case, it was very nice meeting you all. I look forward to seeing you soon, Avery.”

  I slipped my hand into his. It was warm and strong. He was cute, but there definitely wasn’t a zing there. Still, that didn’t mean I couldn’t enjoy the view as they walked back to the rest of their group.

  The cooler dropped down behind me, bathing my back in flying sand. My head whipped around as Ford grunted, left holding one side of the cooler, and an annoyed Emmett stared back at me.

 
“See?” Liv singsonged before dropping her hat and running toward the water, probably to avoid the interrogation her brother had in mind.

  “Who were they?” Emmett groused. It seemed like that was all he did—grumble, mumble, grouse, and grind his teeth.

  That water sure did look inviting. While it wasn’t clear blue ocean, I’d take it over roasting on the beach.

  “You know he’s just waiting for you to get back to your towel to begin the interrogation.” I waded out into the water beside Liv.

  “I could say the same about you.” She tugged her glasses down.

  I refused to look behind me. “He’s driving me insane.”

  “You two need to fight and bang, get it out of your systems.”

  I quickly skimmed my hand across the water, sending a spray of water right in her direction. She yelped and splashed me back.

  “It’s not always that easy.”

  We stayed in the water until I finally called uncle and dragged myself up onto the sand. Picking up my extra towel, I dried off my face and rummaged in the cooler for something cold, wondering if New Jersey had suddenly been pulled a hell of a lot closer to the sun. Finding the coldest bottle of water available, I gulped it down, nearly finishing the entire thing.

  “Who’s ready for some food?” Heath called out.

  Every hand shot up. Liv scrambled away from Colm, who was badgering her about sunscreen.

  We packed up our stuff and trudged back to the house.

  “We need more buns. We’ve only got, like, two of each.” Heath held up the nearly empty bags.

  “I’ll get them.” I rushed out of the house and down the steps before anyone could stop me. Being in the house with Emmett was torture, the confined space making me hyperaware of every glance, glare, and move he made.

  Sometimes I felt like I was trying to move imperceptibly slowly so he wouldn’t notice me. It hadn’t worked. Just like I’d been aware of his every word and laugh, his focus on me made goosebumps break out all over my body.

  There was a store not too far away. Using one of the bikes, I hopped on and pedaled to the shop. The cashier finished ringing me up and I grabbed my bags.

  “Avery.” I spun around at my name. It was Mr. Blue Hat, just without his hat. His honey blond hair stuck up every which way.

  “Noah, right?”

  “Yeah, I’m glad you remembered.” His wide smile put me at ease.

  “It would have been super embarrassing if I hadn’t, especially because you remembered me.” I dropped the bags into the basket on the front of my bike. “Are you headed back to your house?”

  “Yeah, we needed more ice.” He hefted the giant bag in his arms.

  “Why don’t you use the basket? I can carry the buns. It’s no big deal, but that thing’s going to be killer walking all the way back to your place.”

  He grinned. “You’re a lifesaver. Walking over here didn’t seem too bad, but with this giant bag trying to freeze my arms off, it would suck.”

  “No problem.” I picked up the buns and he dropped the bag into the basket. Walking the bike, we made our way back to our side of the beach.

  He told me all about his older brother the musician—well, not all about him, only that he played guitar and was working on a new album. He mentioned the name, but I hadn’t ever heard of him, and my shoulder shrug when he said the name seemed to put him at ease.

  I told him all about Alyson and baking. Those were the safest subjects—my bourbon brownie recipe, what a pain in the ass puff pastry is, how many croissants a grown man can eat before puking, etc.

  He lugged the bag of ice out of the basket when we got to the house. “I’m going to hold you to that brownie offer, although I really should be offering you something for making sure I didn’t get frostbite walking this thing back.” He lifted the bag, which was already dripping water everywhere.

  “No problem. I’m making some soon for these guys, and it’s no biggie to make extras. I hope your brother makes it down.”

  “Me too.” He walked off, giving me one of those over-the-shoulder looks when he was about half a block away. Cute, uncomplicated, easy—those were the feelings I got when I was near him. He was a nice guy.

  My phone buzzed in my pocket. Putting all the bags in one hand, I pulled my phone out.

  Dad: Why are the lights off?

  My stomach sank. Not a Hi or a Hello. I hadn’t heard from him since his disappearing act at graduation, and this was how he greeted me.

  Me: I don’t know, Dad. Did you pay the bill?

  Dad: Why would I do that? You pay all the bills.

  I wanted to scream and shout at the sky. Because it’s your fucking job! Because you’re a damn adult and that comes with having real responsibilities. The accident hadn’t just taken my mother away; it had taken my dad too. Traumatic brain injuries weren’t only traumatic for the patient; they affected everyone. He’d never been the same. The caring, doting father who’d given us piggyback rides, cooked almost every night, and done everything he could for Mom had been snatched away. I’d lost them both that night.

  Me: Remember. We talked about this. I’m going away to school in the fall, so I’m working on saving. You were supposed to take over all the bills starting in June.

  Dad: Saving? Aren’t you at the beach right now?

  Me: My friends generously invited me and are covering the whole thing.

  Dad: So that means you have plenty of money…

  A weariness I hadn’t felt during my few days of respite set in. I opened my bank app and tapped ‘Transfer’.

  Me: The money will be in your account soon. If the power’s been off for a while, you should check the food in the fridge. It might have gone bad.

  Dad: There’s no food in there. Bring some when you come back.

  I wanted to throw my phone into the ocean. I didn’t reply. If I had, it would have been a string of expletives so long I’d have to invent some new ones. This was why I had to move out, even if school was going to be draining away the savings I had, and it was why I needed to work at the bakery as much as possible. Every hour counted.

  I needed a shower and a nap. The sun and water had done a number on me. A headache was coming on, judging from the throbbing in my forehead. Maybe I could just sleep at the bakery once I started school. I climbed the steps to the house. It would be the best of both worlds if I stayed there—easy commute and all the croissants and donuts I could eat. Maybe I’d just never leave the bakery. What more did anyone need? Sprinkles? Check. Icing for days? Check. More donuts than you could ever consume? So many mouthwatering checks.

  “Who was that?”

  The harsh words snapped me out of my daydream of sleeping on a pillow made entirely of muffins.

  I grabbed the handrail to steady myself as my heart nearly leapt out of my throat.

  “You scared the crap out of me.” I met Emmett’s steely glare head on.

  “Who was that?” He said it slower, like I hadn’t heard it the first time. Oh, I’d heard it all right.

  Pushing past him, I stepped into the house. “I got the buns,” I called out to no one in particular, shaking them triumphantly.

  Heath poked his head out of the kitchen. “Perfect, Declan’s got the grill going. I’m putting the burgers on now.” The thunder of footsteps sounded on the stairs from the second floor and Mak, Kara and Liv poked their heads out.

  “Did you say the burgers were done?” Liv bit into a Twizzler.

  “No, I said I’m going to put them on now.”

  “We’re starving up here.”

  “Well, why don’t you get out there and help us?”

  Kara made her way down the steps and took the buns from me then the four of them went out onto the deck.

  “You’re just going to ignore me?”

  My back went straight. I peered over my shoulder. “I thought I was making that clear.”

  “Do I really have to ask again?” The annoyance in his voice grated on my nerves.

&n
bsp; “I don’t know why you thought you had the right to ask the first time.”

  I grabbed my bag from beside the couch and walked down the hallway to the bathroom. The heavy thud of Emmett’s footsteps behind me had me gritting my teeth. Stepping into the bathroom, I took some new clothes out of my bag.

  “Do you just love hovering in doorways?” I didn’t look up.

  “I seem to remember finding out quite a few things about you by hovering in doorways.” His nostrils flared.

  I stepped up to him, toe to toe. It was on the tip of my tongue to just let it all out, to throw it all in his face, but the questions that would bring up—the ones about my dad, the money from his parents, who he seemed to be getting along with now—as much as I resented them, I didn’t want to wreck that for him.

  “You really don’t know what you’re talking about.” I broke off the stare and leaned into the shower to turn on the hot spray of water. Grabbing the door, I stood waiting for him to leave. “Do I have to get undressed to make you leave?”

  “Who was the guy?” He wasn’t going to let it go.

  “What guy?” My forehead scrunched down.

  “The guy from earlier—the one you were all over on the beach.”

  I racked my brain and let out a sigh. “Noah?” Was he seriously doing this about a guy I’d spoken to for ten minutes total? “He was a guy, Emmett, just a guy from the beach. Stop acting like a jealous ass and get out.” Using my body to block the doorway and forcing him to step back, I pushed the door shut. At the sharp click, I turned the lock. Banging my head against the door, I prayed for a quiet night. Should have taken a nap when I had the chance.

  * * *

  A cloud of smoke from the grill wafted across the table on the balcony.

  “Are you trying to smoke us out or something?” Mak fanned the meaty breeze away from her face.

  “Burgers will be ready in five. Who wants cheese?” Declan twirled the spatula in his hand and everyone’s hands shot up. He doled out a slice for each patty on the grill. Liv was playing secret bartender again, and damn was she good. I had never tasted half the stuff before, but it made my lips tingle and she had everyone laughing.