Persuade

by Wendi Wilson

  “I have to be home by curfew and I can’t spend every single day with you guys,” I said. “Oh, and no booze, drugs or illegal activities.”

  “What does she think we are?” Wyatt asked. “A bunch of delinquents?”

  I giggled. “That’s what I asked.”

  “Is that it?” Jett asked, sounding like he was waiting for the other shoe to drop.

  “Um…yes?” I said, kicking myself for making it sound like a question.

  “Just tell us,” Jett said.

  “It’s nothing, reall—”

  “Savanna!”

  “Ugh, fine, but you asked for it.” I took a deep breath. “I am not allowed to have any kinky, three-on-one sex orgies with you guys.”

  Silence. I looked at the screen of my phone to make sure I hadn’t accidentally hung up on them. Or that they hadn’t intentionally hung up on me. The call was still connected.

  “Hello?”

  “We’re still here,” Beckett said, his voice cracking.

  “What about kinky sex with two of us at once? Is that allowed?”

  “Shut. Up. Wyatt,” I said, flames of embarrassment licking through my body.

  Peals of laughter echoed through my phone’s speaker, so loud I had to pull it away from my ear. I could hear three distinct laughs, so I knew all of them thought it was hilarious.

  “Really, Beckett? You, too? I expected Jett and Wyatt to find my humiliation funny, but not you.”

  “Sorry, Savanna,” he said, clearing his throat. “The thought of your mom and dad warning you not to have a four-way is just…ludicrous. It’s like they don’t know you at all.”

  “It’s not me they’re worried about,” I huffed. “They thought you guys might use my feelings for you to coerce me or something.”

  The laughter died.

  “We would never,” Beckett said, his voice offended.

  “Not to mention it would be gross, doing stuff like that with my brothers,” Wyatt added, making a gagging noise. “Besides, we have too much respect for you.”

  “You don’t think we’d ever—” Jett started, but I interrupted with my denial.

  “Of course not!” I said, probably a little louder than I needed to. “I know y’all, and I know you’d never try to pressure me.” A grin spread across my face. “I told them if you ever did, I could just persuade you to stop.”

  “Why is that funny?” Jett asked, hearing the smile in my voice.

  “I may have said something about using persuasion to get even, like making you do something totally embarrassing. Hypothetically, of course, should you ever try to pressure me into doing…stuff.”

  “Savanna!” Wyatt said, his tone chastising.

  “I was kidding. Besides, it’s a moot point anyway. You three would never give me reason to do it.”

  “Did they say anything about tonight?” Beckett asked, thankfully changing the subject.

  “No, not yet, but they said they wanted to talk and asked me to leave, so I assume they’re trying to come up with some sort of plan.”

  “I don’t think there’s anything we can do until we find out what Uncle Earl wants,” Wyatt said.

  We all fell silent at that. He was right. We had no idea what Dr. Patton wanted. Did he want to lock me up in a lab somewhere? Or did he just want me to come to monthly sessions, like I did when I was little? There was no point in obsessing over it. We’d know soon enough.

  “Okay, guys. I’m gonna go get some lunch. I’m starving.”

  “Okay,” Jett said. “We’ll see you at dinner.”

  “Bye, Savanna,” Wyatt said.

  “See you soon,” Beckett added.

  “Bye,” I said, hanging up before I could say something awkward.

  Like telling them I love them and then wondering if they said it back because they want to or if they felt they had to because I said it to them first.

  My train of thought was interrupted by my text tone going off multiple times. I unlocked my screen and opened the app.

  “Beckett: Enjoy your lunch. I love you”

  “Wyatt: Can’t wait to see u. Luv u.”

  “Jett: I’m glad you’re not in trouble”

  “Jett: You can persuade me to do anything you want ;)”

  “Jett: Love you”

  I texted each of them a response, smiling so big my cheeks hurt. I felt like the luckiest girl in the world.

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Jett, Wyatt and Beckett were waiting on the front porch when we arrived. I’d sent them a group text when we left to let them know we were on our way, and relief filled me when I spotted them loping down the stairs. Dad parked the car and Wyatt opened my door for me while Jett jogged around to the passenger door to assist Mom.

  I arched a brow at him and mouthed, “Brownie points?”

  He ignored me, smiling at my mother and complimenting her dress. She eyed him suspiciously, making me chuckle. He’d find my mom a much tougher nut to crack than I was. She wasn’t as susceptible to his charms.

  All humor fled as we started up the porch steps. The gravity of the situation hit me, hard, and I started to tremble. Dr. Patton could threaten me with any number of things to coerce me into doing whatever it was he wanted. My secrets, my parents, my guys…he could send them away. My breath came in quicker bursts as Beckett opened the front door and held out a hand for us to precede him through it.

  “Relax,” Wyatt whispered, his lips brushing against my ear. “We’re all here with you.”

  “Angela, Roman. So good to see you both after all these years.”

  Earl Patton’s voice sounded downright cheerful, like it was some sort of reunion of friends instead of a meeting forced upon us by his manipulations and blackmail. He offered a hand to my dad, but Dad ignored it and got right down to brass tax.

  “What do you want from us, Earl?”

  “Please, take a seat,” he said, motioning to the dinner table in the room behind him.

  There were eight chairs at the table and seven of them had place settings. Wyatt pulled out a chair for me in the middle, and he and Beckett slid into the seats on either side of me. Jett sat directly across from me with my mom on his right and Dad at the end. Dr. Patton took the seat at the head of the table, next to Wyatt.

  The doctor picked up a small silver bell and rang it. Within seconds, a man in a white dress shirt and black slacks appeared, handing us each crystal goblets filled with iced water. I arched a brow at Jett before leaning in to Beckett.

  “You guys have a wait staff?”

  “No,” he murmured. “He must have hired them for tonight.”

  The sound of my name brought my attention back to the rest of the room. “Sorry?” I said.

  “I said it’s so nice to see you again,” Dr. Patton said. “I was quite intrigued by your display in the backyard the last time you were here.”

  “Were you spying on us?” I sassed, earning a warning look from Mom.

  “Of course not,” he said, “but you were picked up on the cameras and the head of my security team thought I would be interested in seeing what happened.”

  “Someone else knows about me?” I asked, my palms started to sweat. “What if they tell someone?”

  “Do not worry, my dear. I trust my team implicitly. Your secret is safe.” He paused and smiled. “For now.”

  A different waiter appeared with a tray of salad bowls and placed one in front of each of us. The good doctor was certifiably insane if he thought any of us would be able to eat. He stabbed at the lettuce with his fork as the rest of us stared at him. As soon as the waiter left the room, my dad spoke, his tone demanding.

  “Tell us what you want, Earl.”

  Dr. Patton set his fork down with a sigh. “Here I thought we could at least be civil and enjoy a meal together.”

  “You threatened Savanna,” Jett said. “You can’t expect them to be polite with you after that.”

  “No one asked you, boy.”

  Jett’s eyes widened and W
yatt flinched. I could tell he’d never spoken to any of them like that before. It reminded me of Jett’s description of their father and, with Earl being his identical twin, I was sure it struck a chord with them, bringing up bad memories.

  I stretched my foot out and tapped it against Jett’s under the table. He looked over at me and I smiled, sending out comforting vibes. He shook his head slightly, letting me know he was okay. My dad spoke again.

  “Earl, please.”

  Dr. Patton sighed again. “I want to resume my research. I need Savanna,” he said, meeting my eyes with a smile that sent a shiver down my spine.

  “No,” Mom said, speaking for the first time.

  “Angela, our arrangement—”

  “No!” she shouted. “You will not treat my daughter like a guinea pig, injecting her with God knows what and running your experiments on her. We only made our arrangement so she could have a normal life. She has that now and you want to destroy it.” She shook her head at him. “No.”

  “Your daughter is anything but normal,” he said, his voice sounding more and more sinister by the second. “What I created…”

  “You didn’t create her,” Dad said. “She’s our daughter.”

  “And my scientific breakthrough modified her, making her a force to be reckoned with.”

  “She’s a teenaged girl,” Mom said, her voice pleading. “Leave her alone. Leave us all alone.”

  “I’m afraid I can’t do that.”

  “Just tell me what you want from me,” I said.

  “I told you, I want to continue my research.”

  “Why now, after all this time?” I asked.

  “I needed Alts,” he said. “Without them, I couldn’t test your ability. Then my lowlife of a brother died, dropping three right into my lap.” I felt Wyatt and Beckett stiffen next to me and one glance at Jett showed him just as tense.

  Earl didn’t notice. “I would have contacted you as soon as they arrived but I decided to wait. I wanted to see if the boys would find her and discover her talent on their own. I was not disappointed.”

  “So, what? You want Savanna to come here and persuade us?” Jett asked.

  “That, among other things. She spends a few hours here, once or twice a week, and no one finds out what she really is. It’s a win-win for us all.”

  “And if I refuse?” I asked.

  “If you refuse, I tell the world and show them the videos. The one of you in my lab as a toddler is damning enough, but the one of you here, with my nephews…you’d never find anonymity again. The government would get involved. Not to mention, I’d have no use for these boys anymore.”

  “You’d send them away?” I asked but he only gave me a pointed look.

  I knew it was ridiculous, but in that moment, my fear of losing them overrode all the other stuff. I didn’t care if he told the world I was a freaky mutant Alt. I just couldn’t let him take my boys from me.

  “Okay, I’ll do it.”

  “Savanna,” my dad said in a warning tone.

  “No, Dad. I can handle anything he throws at me. I don’t want to be some test monkey for the government.”

  “You’ll be a test monkey for him,” Mom says, pointing a finger at Dr. Patton.

  “But I’ll still be at home with you,” I said. “And I’ll have Jett, Wyatt and Beckett beside me. They’ll watch out for me.”

  “Good, it’s settled,” Dr. Patton said, rubbing his hands together.

  “You still never told us what you plan to accomplish,” Dad said. “What is your endgame?”

  “I want to change the world,” he said. “To make it a better place.”

  “I don’t understand. How is my ability to persuade Alts supposed to make the world a better place?”

  He smiled. Never had a smile made me more uncomfortable.

  “The possibilities are limitless.”

  It was a non-answer if I ever heard one, but it was all he was going to say. I nodded my head at him. I looked at each of my parents and nodded at them as well, willing them to not fight me on this. It was my decision to make.

  I would do what he wanted. I’d be his guinea pig, explore my ability and let him think he’d won. But, I would find the truth. I’d discover his motives and find a way to get out of this with my secrets intact.

  I caught each of the boys’ eyes and they all mirrored my determined look. We were all on the same page. We’d play his game. And win.

  All of us. Together.

  To Be Continued…

  Afterword

  Thank you for reading Persuade. If you enjoyed the story and have a minute or two, I would sincerely appreciate it if you took the time to leave a review on Amazon. Reviews are indie authors’ life’s blood and make our books more visible to other potential readers. Thank you so much! You’re the best!

  You can leave your review HERE.

  * * *

  Keep reading for a sneak peek at Purify: Blood Persuasion Book 2

  Check it out on Amazon here.

  Acknowledgments

  Thank you to my awesome author friends Samantha Britt and J.L. Myers. Your incredible insight, excitement and appreciation for these characters and their story were much appreciated.

  * * *

  Thank you to all my readers. Your enthusiasm and love of my work keeps me going when it would be so easy (and hard) to give up.

  * * *

  Thank you to my family. You’re the best support system a girl could ask for. I love you!

  Purify: Blood Persuasion Book 2

  Purify Chapter One

  “Hey, Savanna, how’s it goin’?”

  I looked around, wondering where the hidden cameras were. Because there was no way I wasn’t getting punked.

  “Hey, Lizzie,” I said, my words coming out slow and brimming with disbelief.

  Lizzie Williams was the best friend of my arch nemesis, Fiona Butler. She was always at Fiona’s side, giggling behind her hand every time Fiona took it upon herself to torture me or try to put me in my place. Sure, things had gotten much better after my boyfriend Jett used persuasion to make Fiona leave me alone, but neither of them had ever spoken to me cordially.

  “Can I sit with you guys?” she asked.

  My eyes flitted over to her usual table and I saw Fiona, looking at Lizzie with pain in her eyes. She looked over at me and her face turned pink before she snarled and looked back down at her lunch tray. I watched her for a moment. She surreptitiously swiped at her eyes. Was she crying? I’d known Fiona since kindergarten and hadn’t seen her cry since the incident. I’d lost my temper with her teasing and yanked her to the ground by her pigtail. Needless to say, she’s hated me ever since.

  Lizzie hated me by default, because Fiona did, which is why I was so shocked by her friendliness. I looked at Jett, then Wyatt and Beckett, who all wore identical expressions of disbelief mixed with a healthy dose of suspicion. Lizzie didn’t seem to notice and slid onto the bench beside me.

  She flipped her dark, perfectly spiraled hair over her shoulder and leaned in close to me. The scent of baby powder and lilies wafted up my nose. She smelled sweet, but that didn’t mean she was sweet. I needed to keep my guard up.

  “These boys are fine,” she whispered behind her hand, her breath tickling my ear. “Are any of them available?”

  My eyes widened as I looked at each of the brothers. Of course, they heard every word. Alts have super-hearing. Either Lizzie didn’t know that, or she did and was hoping they’d hear. Jett had his arrogant smirk plastered on his face, Wyatt was grinning ear to ear and Beckett was staring at his book, a pink hue tingeing his cheeks.

  Despite their bland responses, I knew they were on tenterhooks, waiting to see what I’d say. Or do. My temper was somewhat famous, so it wasn’t beyond the realm of reality that I’d lose it and push her right off the bench and onto the floor.

  Because no, they weren’t available. They were mine. All of them. But, no one knew that yet, save for my parents and their uncle. We ha
dn’t made it public knowledge. I wasn’t ready. But I wasn’t about to let Lizzie Williams, with her perfect hair and beautiful creamy brown complexion come in and try to take them from me, either.

  I struggled to find the right words, something that would discourage her interest while still keeping my secret. As I opened my mouth, a memory hit me and I closed it again. My eyes narrowed, thinking back to the boys’ first day at school, when I was hiding out in the bathroom. Lizzie and Fiona came in and had a conversation, not knowing I was there.

  Did you see them?” a high-pitched voice asked as the sound of a zipper met my ears.

  “Yes,” said another voice. “One of them is in my trig class, second period. I just about died when he walked in. I wonder if I can switch to another class.”

  The first voice was Fiona, who went on to say she wanted them and that she’d try to get them to fight over her. Repugnance filled me at the memory. My main goal since this whole thing started was to keep the boys from fighting over me. Fiona’s desire to make them challenge each other for her was disgusting.

  The second voice had been Lizzie. She had sounded appalled, like it offended her tender sensibilities to share the same classroom with an Alt.

  I wondered what she was playing at, cozying up to me and showing interest in my Alts. I knew I needed to handle the situation gently, if I was going to get answers. I turned toward her and whispered, mimicking her gesture by holding my hand up to block my mouth.

  “Maybe you should ask them.”

  Wyatt coughed, an action I knew was meant to cover a laugh. Beckett’s head snapped up from his book, his expression slightly incredulous. I turned my head to look at Jett, who sat on the opposite side of me from Lizzie. A soft smile played about his lips, one lacking his usual arrogance. He was proud of my calm, logical response. I arched a brow at him, daring him to comment on my usual fly-off-the-handle style of handling unwanted situations. His grin got bigger.