My Sweet Paige: The Hastings Brothers Series

by Mallory Funk

  I hear about how they used to pull pranks on the popular crowd in high school. They hated when they would pick on someone or call them hateful names, so they would retaliate by sticking fish in their car or messing with their gym clothes, stuff like that. They referred to it as “classic pranks” and they were never caught. They were always on watch to make sure that the popular crowd didn’t know who was doing it. I already know firsthand how sneaky these girls are. I know for a fact they can get away with a prank until they are ready for you to discover it. Kind of makes me scared to see what else they plan since they seemed to have been doing this for as long as they have known each other.

  Courtney didn’t meet Tara till a few years ago, but Tara confessed she was one of them unpopular girls. Tara also said that she was glad she didn’t go to their high school so that she didn’t get fish in her car or whatever the girls cooked up. They had reassured her that because she wasn’t popular they wouldn’t have picked on her.

  Luke told us he was a jock and still enjoys playing football, but only for fun. He never thought about going pro. It was just something that he enjoyed doing and thought was relaxing.

  Kyle loves music and would spend lots of time playing on his guitar. I could see that because he wears his heart on his sleeve.

  Noah confessed he also was a popular jerk. Then I think that lead to Derek and Sam admitting it too. It’s not surprising when everyone agrees to being happy about not going to Paige and Courtney’s high school. Most of us would definitely have been pranked. I liked to keep to myself in school. I dated or slept around a lot, but I never really let anyone close to me except my brothers and parents. I never trusted anyone growing up. It wasn’t until Paige came into my life that I had opened myself up to having other people instead of just my brothers in my life.

  I wish I would have done it sooner and made new friends outside of my family, but I think I didn’t because it wasn’t the right time and Paige was supposed to be the one to do it.

  Chapter Eighteen

  Paige

  Later that night after Trevor and I had made love and he had fallen asleep, I decide to go and get a glass of water. Spending the afternoon playing games with our brothers was fun and completely worth it. I know I am a competitive person and I have been that way forever. I know Courtney has seen my fair share of not too proud moments. I also think Tara has simmered down about having her hair turned blue. These guys better hope this washes out. I know we work in a salon and could change our hair, but they said that it all washes out so right now I am going to trust them.

  As I am leaving the kitchen with my water in my hands, I hear someone coming down the stairs. Thinking it’s one of the girls or maybe Derek since he spends most nights here, I stand in the hallway by the kitchen door. I am shocked at who comes down the stairs, but I also can’t stop the shit eating grin that forms on my face. Cole is coming down the stairs and is looking back up. I think he is trying not to get caught sneaking out.

  “Well… well… well… What do we have here?” I say right when he reaches the door knob, and I know that I scared him when he jumps and turns to face me with a hand on his chest. When he sees it’s just me, and the grin on my face, he lets his head drop in defeat.

  “Ahh shit… you didn’t see me, got that P?” Cole says, looking into my eyes pleading. I can’t help the snort that escapes me.

  “What do you mean I didn’t see you rushing down the stairs looking freshly fucked and glancing up the stairs to make sure that no one saw you?” I say smirking at him.

  “I have no idea what you are talking about, P. I was ahh… just… using your shower?” I really have to bite back a laugh.

  “Oh, is there something wrong with your shower? Trevor never mentioned anything. Let me just run up and ask him about it.” I turn pretending to go up the stairs. Cole grabs my arm.

  “No, don’t do that. He’s sleeping, you don’t want to wake him up, and he probably forgot because he was planning on showering with you anyway.”

  “Well, I don’t know about that. Why else would you be here at one in the morning while everyone else is in bed?” I give him a knowing grin.

  “Ahh fuck. Are you really going to make me say it?” I nod at him and he blows out a breath. “I was with Courtney. Please don’t tell anyone. She doesn’t want anyone to know.”

  “Why doesn’t she want anyone to know? Did you not please my best friend?”

  “What? Fuck! Of course I did. She passed out after the orgasms I gave her.” He smirks at me.

  I can’t help but roll my eyes at him. “So, you don’t want me to wake her up and demand answers?”

  He blows out a breath looking frustrated. “No. She fucking told me that it was a one-time thing and not to tell anyone, and that whatever the fuck happened cannot happen again.”

  “That should be good news for you. You are the biggest slut out of everyone. Why do you look like your dog died?”

  “I ahh fuck… She’s more than just a quick fuck, but I don’t know how I could convince her of that. I am completely ruined now. I just know my brothers will bug me like crazy and I can’t deal with that shit right now. I really like her.”

  I give him a hug. “I won’t tell anyone. Just give her some time. Spend this time getting to know her and show her the man underneath all the layers.”

  “Thanks, P. My brother is lucky to have found you.” He gives me a little squeeze.

  “Yeah, yeah, get out of here before he comes down here and starts looking for me.” I pat him on the back making sure to lock the door behind him.

  Once I get upstairs to bed, I see that Trevor didn’t even move. Some days that guy could sleep like a rock. Once I settle down into bed, he pulls me to his side. I always love that reaction when he is sleeping. Even subconsciously he can’t stop touching me or holding me.

  I didn’t get much sleep, but I haven’t been getting much since Shaun made it known that he was coming back for me. I didn’t want him to hurt anyone I loved. What scared me the most was the idea that he might go after one of the brothers or my girls. I couldn’t let that happen no matter how terrified I am. I know that they would protect me no matter what, but I think that’s the part that scares me. I couldn’t and wouldn’t let that happen.

  The days kept dragging on and I was getting more restless, worried about what Shaun would do. Were these just empty threats?

  The threat of Shaun still lingered in the back of my mind. I wondered what was taking him so long, and a part of me just wanted to get it over with. I just wanted everyone to get back to their lives, and back to when we girls could go out without having to bring along one of my or Trevor’s brothers. We spent lots of time playing games hanging out, or playing pranks, but I think that only helped us to temporarily keep our minds off Shaun.

  It wasn’t until a week later that I awake to find a text on my phone that chilled me to my core.

  Unknown Number: Wake up Dear Sweet Paige. It’s time for you to come to me. I’m parked at the end of the block. Leave the house unseen. If you tell anyone, I will kill everyone you care about, especially that precious man you have been fucking.

  I didn’t know what to do. I was shaking. I didn’t want anything to happen to anyone. I would never forgive myself if something happened to Trevor or anyone else. I knew Shaun was unstable, and I couldn’t take the chance that he was going to hurt someone I love.

  I start to get dressed, shaking the whole time. I put on a pair of yoga pants and a long-sleeved shirt. I keep checking to see if Trevor is still sleeping. He never moves a muscle. Part of me was glad because I knew he would stop me, but another part of me hoped that he would wake up. I copy and paste the message, sending it to everyone in a group message, before I run out of the house. It was barely sunrise. The skies were a pink and blue turning into morning and the birds were chirping. I normally would love this time of day and I hated Shaun for doing this. He knew how much I would do for anyone that I loved. We always fought when he talked bad about C
ourtney and, at the time, she was the only important person in my life. Now I have ten people that I would do anything for, and I would make sure no harm would come to them.

  I hate him so much in this moment. I go downstairs and disable the alarm. I send the text to everyone before I’m out the door. I know they won’t let him get far with me, and they also can track my phone. We installed it on all the girls’ phones just in case. I slip my phone into my back pocket. I walk out of the house and as soon as I reach the end of my yard, I see his car sitting there at the end of the block. I walk up to it and I see him smiling in the car, impatiently waiting for me to come in.

  Once I open the door, I see the gun sitting in his lap. He has a hand on the trigger and one hand on the steering wheel. I am shaking so badly. I can tell by the look in his eyes that he is enjoying this. I don’t know what has come over him in these last three years. He’s thin and pale. He looks like he hasn’t shaven in months. He looks nothing like the man I knew three years ago.

  Once I slide into the seat, he smirks at me. “Good girl.”

  I look into his eyes and they look cold. He starts driving away. Speeding away. I look behind me out the window and see Courtney run out onto the street. I knew that she was the one person who couldn’t sleep through the beeping of a text.

  Trevor

  I woke up with a start, and Courtney screaming and running into Paige’s room.

  “He’s got her! Trevor, wake the fuck up! Paige is with Shaun!” With those words, my eyes widen. I bolt out of bed not caring that I was naked. I put on pants and a shirt. “What do you mean he has her?”

  “Look at your phone! He texted her this morning and she sent it to everyone.”

  I grab my phone and read the text. My blood starts to boil, and I feel a chill in my body.

  “What the fuck? Why did she willingly go to him?” I run down the stairs to go and get my brothers and hers. Courtney was hot on my heels.

  “Go get her brothers and I will get mine. Meet at my house. Go!” Courtney runs towards Paige’s brothers’ house. We all have house keys to all three houses in case anything had happened. I run into all my brothers’ rooms and wake them up. Derek and Tara were staying in Derek’s room. Once everyone found out that Shaun had taken Paige, they were wide awake with worried looks on their faces. Courtney came in with Noah, Luke, and Kyle on her heels. Tara had called the cops and they were on their way over.

  We were all sitting around waiting for them, and everyone was getting more furious by the second. “Why the fuck would she just go with him? I swear I am going to kick that girl’s ass when she gets saved,” Noah says pacing back and forth.

  Courtney stands up and yells at everyone. “She fucking did it because she loves us. Paige is protective of anyone in her life that she loves and trusts. If anyone threatened any one of you individually, she would protect you in a heartbeat. That’s who she is and how she has always been. For years, it’s only been me that she has done anything for, but this asshole decided to use that against her. He not only threatened me and Trevor, but he also threatened every single fucking one of us. Paige loves with her entire heart and he knew how to take advantage of that. She would never risk anything happening to any one of us. Now, I know she’s not stupid, why else would she text the message to all of us? She trusts us and believes in us, and I think she knows that we in return would do anything for her. So, let’s work on finding her and putting that asshole behind bars once and for all.”

  She was right. I hated that she was right. We all could bug and tease each other, but we never let anyone outside of our circle make fun of or talk badly about any of us. I loved that she was loyal to those she loved, but at this moment I hated it. I sure hope to fucking god that nothing happens to her before we get to her.

  The cops come in a few minutes later with everyone taking turns pacing and growling in frustration. It was seriously too early for this shit. No one was functioning properly to think of a plan which is probably why Shaun chose this time of the day to make his move.

  “She has a restraining order against him. He has been stalking her for a few months now. He had physically hurt her in the past when they broke up, and now he has taken her, so I cannot fucking calm down!” Courtney yells.

  “Is there anything any one of you can think of that would help us find her?” one of the cops asks.

  “Wait! Fuck, why didn’t I think of this before!” Cole jumps up and grabs the laptop from his room. He comes running back and starts typing into it rather quickly.

  “What are you talking about? Think about what?” Noah asks leaning over Cole to see what he was doing.

  “Trackers! If that fucker hasn’t found her phone, then we can find her. I mean, think about it, she sent that text for a reason and knew we would find her which means she had her phone when she met with him. I know our sweet Paige and she would have stuffed the phone somewhere that he wouldn’t notice it right away.” He kept typing really fast. I completely forgot about that. We had all put trackers on our phones. At first it was just the girls who had the tracker, but we had eventually decided to add everyone’s numbers in the tracker. I sure hope to fuck she still had her phone on her.

  “There! The phone is located just outside of town towards the lake. I bet that fucker has a cabin out there!” Cole states. The cops look at the screen and call the location in.

  “Stay here! We will go out there and check it out. If she’s out there, then we will get her home to you. Keep this tracker open and call my cell if it changes.” The cop gives us his card and he and his partner leave. I hope to fuck they find her.

  “Fuck! How are we supposed to just sit here and wait? We had finally gotten the baby sister we always wanted, and this fucker thinks he can just take her? I can’t believe this shit,” Noah says, and resumes pacing.

  “Let’s give the cops a chance to handle it. If we don’t hear from them in a couple hours, we will go wherever the track is,” Liam says sounding surprisingly calm.

  “I agree. I fucking hate this, but we need to cautiously think everything through. Let’s wait just a couple hours before we jump into action,” Kyle says.

  We all sit around waiting. We drink coffee and take turns pacing. Everyone changes their clothes in case we need to run out of there and find her ourselves, or in case we got a call that anything bad had happened. I want this asshole to suffer. He took my girl by using her love against her. I couldn’t even speak. I was full of rage and fear. Please let my girl be okay. I finally found the woman that was made for me and I cannot imagine life without her. It was almost two hours later when my phone rings and everyone stands still. I swear that no one is breathing. This could be good or bad news. God, I hope it is fucking good news. I pick it up when I see the cops’ number. “Hello?”

  Chapter Nineteen

  Paige

  Shaun had made me put a blindfold on and told me that if I took it off, he would shoot me. My hands were shaking the whole time I was putting it on. I could hear my own heartbeat thumping loudly in my ears. I was sweating. Fear. I haven’t felt this level of fear since the last time I was alone with him. I had no idea what he was going to do. He was clearly mentally unstable.

  During the drive, he spoke, “Three fucking years I’ve spent searching for you! After you had me arrested, you had taken off and I couldn’t find you. The more I waited, the angrier I got. I am about to show you how angry you made me, baby. You shouldn’t have ran. I told you that you were mine.” I felt the car stop. “Get out and take the blindfold off. We are in your new home until I make us plans to get away.”

  I could hear the evilness in his voice. It was cold and unpredictable. I had no idea what to do or what was going to happen. I didn’t know if they could track my phone out here. We seemed to be in the woods. There was a small cabin in front of me. I didn’t want to show him how scared I was, but I was going to put up a fight now that we weren’t on my block or near my family. From here he couldn’t harm anyone I loved, and I made s
ure of that. I had to keep them safe. He was my problem and now I was going to deal with it.

  Once we got inside, he locked the door and turned on the lights. There was nothing in the room but a couch, and a kitchen off to the side. There were two doors down the hallway and I guessed that those were the bathroom and bedroom. I had to suppress the urge to gag when I thought what he might have planned in there which of course I knew wouldn’t happen. I would die fighting before I let him do anything to me.

  I stood behind the couch as he began pacing.

  “You have any idea how pissed off you made me? Not only did you run away on me, but you started fucking that asshole. YOU. ARE. MINE!!! How many fucking times did I tell you that? You weren’t ever supposed to leave me and let someone else fuck you! You fucking slut, you will be punished for that!” He strikes me across the face.

  I glare at him. “I was not fucking yours! If you ever fucking loved me, you would have never had hurt me! Why can’t you just fucking let me go! I’m not yours and I will never belong to you! I will fight you till my last breath before I would willingly be yours again!

  “Look at the fucking fight in you! I’ve got to say that I love this new side of you, baby girl. It’s turning me on.” To prove his point, he rubs his erection through his pants. I can’t fight the urge to gag this time, and he notices. I see the anger in his eyes flash before me.

  “There was a time when you loved it when I touched you. You couldn’t get enough of me.” He snarls at me.

  “That was before you fucking hit me! Not like you could ever satisfy me anyway. Now that I have Trevor, I know what it’s like to fuck a real man.” I smirk at him. I waited all this time to piss him off and the anger in his eyes makes me that much happier.