Raw (Revenge Book 6)

by Trevion Burns

  As baby blue strobe lights danced through the gym, illuminating joyful eyes from every angle, Veda’s own sentimental gaze locked onto something across the room. She jolted, convinced her eyes were playing tricks on her. Because across the gym, filled to the hilt with teenage rugrats who were, to her deep surprise, actually behaving, she caught sight of him.

  Gage had entered the gym through a door on the opposite side. Not yet having caught sight of Veda, his dark brown eyes surveyed the room for several moments before they landed on her. His plush pink lips fell open, his eyes expanded, and a moment later his face fell into an easy smile. His eyes grew soft under the flying strobe lights. His hand came over his heart.

  It was the longest Veda had ever gone without seeing his spit shined face, and before she knew it, she’d covered her heart too. Not just because she was surprised at his unexpected presence, but because only her fine ass man could pull off that burgundy suit, black button-down, and white bow tie without becoming the instant laughing stock of the room. Gage was killing that suit, forcing Veda to summon every ounce of her willpower to stop herself from crossing that room, ripping every shred of that fabric off his body, and confirming that she was the last person on Earth who should’ve been trusted with the well-being of a bunch of adolescents.

  Her breathing picked up as their eyes remained locked, and she only had a moment to wonder what the hell he was doing there before she cut a look at Coco Lockwood, dancing with her date a few feet away.

  Veda caught the amused look in Coco’s eyes, and the conspiratorial gleam blaring at their depths, just before Coco snapped her gaze away, far too quickly to spell anything innocent. Coco pressed her lips together to hide a conniving smile, tightening her arms around her date’s shoulders.

  Veda shook her head with a grin before moving her eyes back to Gage.

  He caught her gaze as if he’d been waiting for it, hands deep in his pockets as he gave a nod toward the gym’s exit door, licking his lips with hooded eyes.

  Just like Veda had recognized the scheming look in Coco’s eyes, she recognized the suggestive look in Gage’s. Whatever he had planned beyond the door he’d just nodded to would make the plunging back of her lace dress look downright virginal that evening.

  After a cursory glance at the kids having the time of their lives all around her, Veda concluded that she could step out for a few minutes without anything too terrible happening. Worst-case scenario, somebody spiked the punch, got shot, or made a baby. Three unfortunate possibilities, sure, but none of which would be totally disastrous. If someone spiked the punch, it would just ensure the kids had ten times more fun! If someone got shot, she was a doctor and could probably keep them breathing long enough for the paramedics to arrive. And if someone made a baby, well, she’d help them apply for that MTV show about pregnant sixteen-year-olds. They’d become infamous, make a fortune, and forget all about the mistake they’d made that night at senior prom, thanks to the selfish chaperone who’d abandoned them for some hot guy in a burgundy suit.

  Sounds legit. Veda nodded sharply, concluding that the kids would be fine without her before pushing away from the hors d'oeuvre table she’d been leaning on. Catching Gage’s eyes once more, holding them as she moved toward the exit, neither of them was capable of wiping the stupid smiles off their faces.

  Veda made it to the exit, and in the next instant, the click of her heels were echoing off the quiet walls of the high school hallway. She strolled easily down the hallway, lined with blue lockers, while shooting occasional looks over her shoulder. Gage still hadn’t followed her out. She knew he was letting a healthy amount of time pass before he joined her in the hallway to avoid suspicion since they still couldn’t be seen together in public. So she kept strolling, surveying the large trophy case bolted to the wall as she went, chronicling the championship titles Blackwater Prep’s sports teams had won over the years.

  When she laid eyes on a photo of the basketball team that had played for the school ten years earlier, the heart that had been pounding in anticipation for Gage churned to a sudden stop. She froze in mid-step and cringed at the glass case. Eight of the ten monsters who had raped her had played for the team in that photo, and each one of them had a smug, shit-eating grin on his face.

  She slammed her eyes closed when her mind tried to run away with her. Her heart set ablaze and spread fast, setting every inch of her body on fire, nearly proving Hope’s words from earlier that night right.

  I do not want to see the world burn. Veda’s mind repeated those words as she resumed walking, eyes shut. I do not want to see the world burn.

  She only opened her eyes when she was sure the trophy case was out of sight, turning a corner down another long hallway also lined with blue lockers.

  I want to marry Gage Blackwater, the man I love. Her mind continued. I want to have his mixed race babies, move into his mansion, fuck every night on his Egyptian sheets, and be unimaginably happy. I want to find a way to convince him that Wyatt is an awesome name. I want—

  She gasped when her arm was seized from behind, and already had a huge smile on her face before she even finished looking over her shoulder. When she caught sight of Gage, smiling just as widely as her, she bent her knees and jumped high into the air. He caught her around the waist before she could land on her feet, and she locked her arms around his broad shoulders, sealing a smiling kiss on his lips.

  Moaning softly, he used one hand to shove open the door next to them, carrying her inside the classroom that awaited them on the other side. The chalkboard, teacher’s desk, and student’s desks all went empty, the initials that had been carved into the wood over the years the only signs of previous life. The window blinds were lowered, blocking out the evening sky.

  “I missed you,” Veda spoke between kisses, filling herself with the taste of his soft lips, his wonderful aroma, and the strength of his body against hers as he carried her into the room and kicked the door closed.

  “I missed you so damn badly,” Gage gasped, returning each of her fervent kisses, setting her down and turning them, backing her into the door.

  Veda’s back hit the door just as his lips left hers with a smack.

  He yanked at a string next to her head, causing the blinds over the door to lower, blocking out the small window that looked out into the hallway. He locked the door next, sending a soft click into the air. And then he was on her, grabbing the hem of her dress and tugging it up, his breathing labored.

  “Take off your dress,” he begged, lips gasping against hers.

  “Wait, wait,” Veda whispered, cupping his reddened cheeks, waiting for his ecstasy filled eyes to meet hers.

  Swallowing heavily, he allowed her to pull him away from the erotic world he’d been delving into. A world run solely by his blind need for her.

  “I didn’t mean to attack you.” He took hold of her waist, stroking up and down, eyes still gleaming with his carnal need. “It’s just been so long, and you’re so damn beautiful, Veda.”

  “What are you even doing here? You offered to chaperone too? Why didn’t you tell me? I’d have worn a sluttier dress.” Realizing her excitement was making her ramble, Veda reigned it in. “The ship just docked.”

  “Coco asked me to, a few days before the Celeste set sail. I promised her I’d do my best. Came straight from the ship.”

  “She thinks we’re still broken up.” A new understanding laced her voice. “This was her master plan to get us together.”

  “She’s adorable,” Gage whispered, trembling hands cupping her face, leaning in until the tips of their noses brushed. His lips met hers in a soft kiss. “And brilliant.”

  “Brilliant, indeed.”

  “Come here.” He seized one of her hands in his, his big fingers nearly swallowing hers whole, while wrapping the other hand around her waist. He pulled her in until their chests were flush before lifting their clasped hands up high, next to their smiling faces. Then, he began a slow sway, rocking along to the beat of the Adele s
ong fluttering in through the air vent in the ceiling.

  Veda sighed as they swayed, her eyes filling with emotion as she searched his. “Tell me everything that happened. Were you able to find out what your family’s hiding?”

  “Not yet.” His jaw clenched. “That guard that I paid off?”

  Veda nodded.

  “He went to Eugene Masterson and ratted me out.”

  “Damn it, Gage.”

  “Eugene said he’d keep it between us this time, but if it happened again, he’d go straight to my father. I couldn’t risk trying again after that, so I spent the rest of the trip lying low. Learning the ropes of my new job while I thought of another plan.”

  “And have you? Thought of another plan?”

  “Not in so many words.”

  Not at all. Veda’s mind spoke the words his pride wouldn’t let him say. She shook her head with a frown, even as they continued their slow-slow-quick-quick-slow sway to the music.

  “I suppose I didn’t play this as well as I could’ve.”

  “Gage, you’re dealing with some serious white collar criminals here. You—one of the few men left walking this Earth who is completely, inherently good. You were born into a rich family that spared you life’s ugliest lessons, and that’s not a bad thing. You’re not cruel because you were never taught to be. You’re not a con man because you never had to be. You’re not cutthroat because you weren’t built to be. You weren’t built to roll around in the dirt getting battered and bloody, and frankly, that’s one of the things I love most about you. I love your kind heart and your gentle ways.” When he sniggered in offense, she took the lapels of his jacket in her free hand and clenched. “Being kind doesn’t make you weak. In fact, it’s exactly the opposite. It’s a lot easier to be evil than it is to be gracious. It’s easier to cause pain than it is to heal it. I love that you don’t know the right moves to make when you’re surrounded by a bunch of heartless, immoral, unthinkably evil pigs. I love that. So can this please be it? Can I please have my sweet, docile, tranquil fiancé, Gage Blackwater back? Now that the guard’s ratted you out to Eugene, there’s no way you can continue looking into this anyway, right? You can put the Jason Bourne inside you to rest forever.”

  He brushed the tips of their noses together then placed a slow kiss on her lips, nostrils flaring as he pulled back, lips smacking. “I’m not quitting. Not you. Not us. Not this.”

  “How can I change your mind?”

  “You can’t.”

  “I’ll never have sex with you again.”

  “Solid threat, but not sure I buy it. Majority of the time, you’re the initiator. You’ll be begging for it before the night is out.”

  Veda huffed as he broke into soft laughter. She stopped swaying.

  He sensed her retreat, and his biceps flexed around her waist, keeping her body sealed to his. “Come here,” he whispered, his brows pinching. “I love that about you.” He stole her earlier words. “I love that you can’t resist me.”

  “Nothing will stop you from following through on this ridiculous plan?” She brought her clutch bag between their bodies, popped it open, and produced a wad of tissue paper. Unwrapping it, she revealed the white plastic stick underneath it and held it up.

  Gage’s eyes fell to the stick in her trembling hand—to the hot pink plus sign in the stick’s indicator window—and his mouth fell open. His wide eyes shot up to hers, instantly gleaming with emotion.

  “Nothing will stop you?” She shook the stick. “Not even this?”

  “Are you serious?” he whispered, the vulnerability in his eyes growing deeper every second.

  Veda nodded, tears filling her own eyes, with a soft laugh. “I guess I owe you one hell of an apology. As it turns out, you really do have magical, otherworldly, legendary, herculean sperm, sir—”

  “Oh, Veda.” He yanked her into a hug before she could finish, squeezing his arms around her body, bringing her to the toes of her black leather heels. “Oh my god, I love you. I love you so much.”

  She sank her free hand into his silky black strands. “Do you love me enough to stop?” She pulled back and searched his eyes, tangling her fingers in his hair, making claws. “Do you love us enough to stop this madness for good?”

  He hesitated.

  I stopped slicing balls for you. So you should stop putting your life at risk for me. It’s only fair. She bit her tongue and gripped his hair harder—sure she was close to pulling it from the scalp.

  If she was hurting him, he didn’t show it.

  “Veda, I’m not stopping,” he said, his voice so full of authority it left her speechless.

  “Eugene caught you red handed.” The same way Linc caught me. “He’s cut you off at the knees.” At least I was smart enough to stop. “He’s promised that if you’re caught again your father will hear about it, and God only knows what that man will do. Something about him, Gage…” A chill shot down Veda’s spine at the thought of Gage’s father. “Something about him really, really scares me. Please stop.”

  “No.”

  “Christ, you don’t even have a real plan—”

  “I’ll think of something.”

  She paused before removing her hands from his hair, cupping his jaw with her free hand, voice lowering. “I’ll never forgive you. Do you hear me? I’ll never forgive you if you let our child—our second chance—come into this world without a father. I’ll never forgive you, Gage.”

  He exhaled heavily, stroking her back, up and down, slowly, patiently, even as she fell apart before him. “Veda, if you thought a positive pregnancy test would move me to become a coward once more… A coward who kneels before his family, a coward who’ll never deserve the title of someone’s father—someone’s husband—then I’m sorry, baby, but you thought wrong. If anything, that test is only going to drive me harder. Our baby will be born into a world where he can look into his father’s eyes and know he’s looking at a man who’ll never stop fighting for him. Who’ll fight to the death if that’s what it takes.”

  She swallowed thickly, still speechless, even as she shook her head at him with a deep frown.

  “He’ll know his father doesn’t quit right before the finish line.” He shook her from where he still had her tightly around the waist. “It’s close, Veda. However this war is meant to end, whatever the outcome is meant to be, it so close. I can feel it. Can’t you?”

  Veda clenched her teeth, and the first tear spilled over her eyes.

  Because she could feel it.

  This war was nearly over.

  She was just terrified it would end with the wrong blood shed.

  24

  Linc’s chest swelled when, just minutes after entering the hotel suite and hiding behind a wall in the bathroom, the sound of Sam and Lisa’s laughter floated in from the other side of the door. Black hoodie still pulled low and shadowing his face, he looked into the bathroom mirror, catching sight of the hotel room’s adjoining door where Lieutenant Chavez and his fellow officers were waiting on the other side. The hard part was over. Sam had convinced Lisa that she was a lonely, lesbian john looking for a mail order bride and had separated Lisa from her muscle, who had remained in the bar downstairs.

  The hotel room door clicked and then beeped, indicating it had accepted the keycard inserted from the opposite side. Linc held his breath, tucking his body deeper into the bathroom shadows.

  The door opened, and the ladies entered arm in arm, Lisa giggling at something Sam had said, clutching one of Sam’s arms in both of hers, leaning in just enough to tease the idea of a kiss before pulling away playfully. Lisa was escalating. Her whispered flirtations at the dinner table grew more suggestive in the hotel room, and so did her non-verbal cues, subtly offering her body, waiting for Sam to bite. Sam, of course, didn’t bite, as the hotel room door clicked shut behind them.

  “I can’t remember the last time I laughed so much,” Lisa purred, keeping one hand locked around Sam’s arm while using the other to stroke her cheek. “T
hank you for showing me such a wonderful time tonight—”

  Unable to stand another moment, Linc took a deep breath and stepped out of the bathroom, every bone in his body wobbling as he came face to face with Lisa and Sam.

  Lisa gasped when he emerged, freezing in mid-step as his towering body cast a long shadow across the hotel room wall. She gasped again when Sam suddenly stepped out of her hold, moving her wide eyes back and forth between them. Even as her panicked eyes screamed to run, Lisa remained motionless, chest heaving as her blue eyes locked onto Linc, every bone in her body tensing as her gaze ran the hooded man before her.

  In a flash, Lisa sobered. She turned to run, but Sam was blocking the door, holding both hands out in front of her. In one hand, Sam held up her gold police badge, displaying it to Lisa, and with the other hand she showed Lisa her palm, finger’s splayed, communicating peace.

  “SRPD,” Sam said, softly. “Lisa, we’re not here to hurt you.”

  Linc didn’t know which one of the words Sam had just said—SRPD or Lisa—that prompted Lisa to turn on her heels once more, but turn she did, facing Linc, her stunned eyes locking onto his shadowed face, where his hoodie still hung low. She squinted at him.

  With a deep breath, Linc reached up with trembling hands and pushed the hoodie off his head. The brown waves of his hair tumbled out as his stricken face was revealed.

  Lisa’s mouth fell and her shoulder’s collapsed, eyes instantly filling with moisture. Her ample breast heaved under the see-through mesh of her black cocktail dress, and her supple red lips opened wider every second, making the cheeks of her sculpted jaw sink in more than they already did by nature. Her naturally fair skin went even whiter as her deeply arch eyebrows shot up. The hot tears filling her ice blue orbs stained the whites of her eyes red as a look that Linc couldn’t pinpoint as horror or disbelief shot through them.