by Sara Dailey
Kendall was a bitch, but she wasn’t stupid. Sooner or later she would figure it out. I needed to figure out a way to get Cami’s scent off of me before all hell broke loose. The look Kendall gave me as she let her hands drop to her side could only be described as frightening. She wasn’t going to let this drop.
“Thanks for finding my boy, Kendall,” my dad said to her before she walked away leaving us alone. I stood there just staring at my dad. I had no idea what to say to him, or what I should do. I wanted to tell him to go fuck himself and walk out the door, but I knew that would never fly.
“I want to talk to you. Let me tell Nathaniel that I’m leaving. Give me a minute,” he said. I stood there with my hands in my pockets and waited while Dad spoke first with Nathaniel and then with Noel. Seeing him with Noel made me sick to my stomach. I wondered then if she was the reason for all of this. Would my father go through all of this, put his own children in danger, all because of this woman?
The ride to my “dad’s house” was nearly silent. He asked me only two questions: 1) how did I get here, and 2) where was my bag? He didn’t bother mentioning anything about what he’d been doing since he left home weeks ago to come here and destroy people’s lives or ask about what I’d been up to during all that time. No mention of the fact that he’d been the driving force behind ambushing and taking over another pack. He just wanted to know where my luggage was. Seriously?
So, I told him, in as few words as possible, that John dropped me off at the main entrance and that I wasn’t planning on staying. I reminded him that I had only come to see Scarlett and then planned to leave.
He didn’t say anything after that, but once we were inside the house, he turned to me and said, “I want you to stay a few days, Gavin. We are taking full control of this pack very soon. I want you here for it.”
I shook my head. There was no way I was staying for that. I needed to get back to Cami and get both of us off this damn estate.
“Do this for me, Gavin. Do this, and then I’ll help you find your sister.”
Just hearing him talk about her made me want to kill him. There was no way in hell I could live under the same roof as this creep, especially since as far I knew he still believed Scarlett was dead.
He saw the answer on my face, and he didn’t like it. How did he manage to trick the Red Ridge Pack for so long? He was a terrible actor.
“It’s late. At least stay the night, and you can make your decision in the morning,” he said. I didn’t want to stay, but I couldn’t leave the estate without Cami, so reluctantly, I agreed.
“Let’s get something to eat. I’m starved,” Dad said throwing his arm over my shoulder and leading us into the kitchen. Remembering Cami’s scent on me, I replied, “Why don’t you throw something together for us while I take a quick shower. It’s been a long day.”
Dad seemed to like that idea. If I was going to have to stay and spend time with him, I might as well see what kind of information he would freely hand over. It’d be nice to have something of importance to take back to Cami. I was going to have to leave the estate one way or another now that I’ve been seen. I was hoping to convince Cami to leave with me. Maybe having some information to take back to Cade would do the trick. I just needed to figure out a way to get to her before I had to leave.
CHAPTER 36
Kendall
I left Gavin at the lodge with his father and hurried home, hoping Drew wouldn’t be there yet. I looked down at my watch when I saw that his car wasn’t there. Not that the time mattered. He never seemed to show up at the same time. Could be hours. Could be minutes. But if I hurried, I may just be able to jump in the shower and at least pretend to be fast asleep before he made it to bed.
The last thing I needed was for him to smell Gavin on me. As much as I tried to hide my feelings for Gavin, Drew had his suspicions and had, on more than one occasion, accused me of cheating. But he knew as well as I did that it was all bullshit. Little did he know, I’d be with Gavin without a second thought if he wasn’t such a good guy, but as soon as Drew and I got together Gavin had made it clear that we’d never be more than friends. Damn him for being such a freaking saint.
After a quick shower, I wrapped a towel around my body and brushed out my wet hair. I considered just going to bed with it wet but decided to blow out most of the moisture and then braid it. At least then it wouldn’t be a ginormous frizz-ball in the morning, and it would only take a few minutes.
With my hair taken care of, I headed out of the bathroom to grab something to wear only to have my heart practically leap out of my chest. “Damn it, Drew! You scared the hell out of me!” I shrieked, keeping a death-grip on the towel covering my body.
Sitting on the edge of our bed, Drew shot me a lazy grin as he eyed me from head to toe. “Sorry, baby. I was hoping to catch you naked. But this look…this look is definitely working for me.” Desire filled his eyes, and I knew exactly where this was headed. Then his eyes locked with mine and visibly hardened as he demanded, “Come here.”
I walked over, and once I was in reach, he grabbed my wrist and pulled me over so that I was standing between his legs. He remained seated as he ran his hands up my thighs and under my towel. With his teeth, he tugged at the corner of the towel that had been tucked in above my chest so that it would stay in place. It didn’t take much effort to pull it loose and within seconds I was standing before Drew completely nude.
He ran his tongue up my body, from my belly button, up between my breasts, to my collarbone. “God baby, you make me so fucking hard. I don’t want to fight anymore. I’m going to make you feel so good that you forget all the bullshit that’s been going on between us since we got here.”
He didn’t wait for a response before he pulled me down to the bed and covered my body with his. As he kissed me everywhere but my lips, I closed my eyes and tried to imagine I was somewhere else. Only that didn’t work as I had hoped. Instead, it was suddenly Gavin’s lips ravishing every inch of me, Gavin’s body hovering above mine, readying himself to stake his claim. In my mind, it was Gavin, not Drew, and I couldn’t help but lose myself in the moment even if it was only a fantasy.
For the first time since we’d arrived in Red Ridge, that night, I went to sleep with a smile on my face.
*****
My fantasy, full of lust and desire, continued into my dreams. It was one of those dreams where somehow I knew I was dreaming, but I didn’t care and refused to wake up. Gavin was all mine, and I didn’t want it to end. I wanted nothing more than to remain right there for as long as possible. With his long, hard body covering mine, I wrapped my legs around him, reveling in the feeling of having him so close. My greedy hands gripped his hips to guide him to his destination as I inhaled deeply, taking in his scent. But it wasn’t his scent. It was hers.
My eyes shot open, and I sat up in bed. No! It couldn’t be. Could it? How? Why? There was no way it was her. It was just a dream, right? Either way, I was going to find out. It was time to pay Cami Moore a visit.
CHAPTER 37
Cami
I lay in bed and stared up at the ceiling last night in complete and total shock. Somewhere around 4:00 in the morning, I’d finally fallen asleep after tossing and turning for hours, so when the doorbell rang at 8:00 a.m., the last thing I wanted to do was drag my emotionally battered body out of bed, so I just continued to lie there, mulling over the same crap I did the night before.
Why in the hell would Gavin betray us…betray me? All this time, he had me believing that he was on our side, that he wanted to help us, but now I wasn’t sure of anything anymore. Had he been playing me all this time? Was that why he didn’t want me sneaking out? Maybe it wasn’t because he was worried at all. Maybe the truth was that he didn’t want me helping my pack.
Could he have really had me so fooled? Did he realize that we were getting too close to finding a way to save Red Ridge and finally decided it was time to bail? None of it made sense. But then again, he didn’t come to Red Ridge
to help us. He came to find his sister, and just by happenstance ended up stuck inside our safe room when his pack attacked. He had no allegiance to Red Ridge.
The sad truth was that I didn’t even really know him, what he was like back home, how strongly he was committed to his pack, what he truly wanted after all this was over. But his sister was with us, on or side. Would he betray Scarlett? My gut said no. He loved his sister. That much I knew. But maybe that was all a sham too.
How could I be so stupid? So blind?
When the doorbell began to ring with vengeance, I threw back the covers and gave in. Obviously, not answering wasn’t an option.
What if it was Gavin? What would I say? No, surely he wouldn’t come, not after what he did, which meant one of two things. Either it was time for a surprise raid on my home, or it was the very last person I wanted to see right now, Kendall Mega-bitch Stuart.
On my way down the stairs, the doorbell rang again and again and didn’t stop until my hand hit the doorknob. Before I unlocked the door, I looked through the peephole and sure enough, there she was, looking refreshed and gorgeous as always.
I opened the door but didn’t bother with my usual fake pleasantries. I just didn’t have it in me. “Kendall, what do you want now?”
Pushing her way inside, she replied, “Now Cami, that’s no way to greet one of your best friends.” She stopped in the foyer and turned around to look me up and down. “My goodness, girl. You look like shit. Ever heard of a shower? Makeup maybe? At least run a brush through that rat’s nest on your head.”
Still standing at the door, I repeated, “What do you want?”
I’d never hated Kendall more than in this moment, and that’s saying a lot. I wanted to tackle the skank to the ground, rip out her perfectly shiny hair, and then strangle her half to death.
She still didn’t answer as she turned on her heels and headed into the living room. After looking around at nothing in particular, she made her way to the kitchen.
“Kendall!” I warned.
“Oh, calm down. I have a message for you from your parents.” She continued her search for God knows what, but didn’t bother to elaborate.
I followed her into the kitchen and asked, “What? What did they say?”
With a stupid, little smirk on her face, she sidestepped me and then sighed. “Maybe you should consider apologizing for being so inhospitable first.”
I figured she was headed back into the living room, but she didn’t stop there. She wandered over to the stairs, as if she had all the time in the world, and marched her way up and into my room.
Again, I followed behind, stopped in my doorway, and waited patiently as she scoped out my room. When she sat down on my bed and grabbed my pillow, I’d had enough. “What the hell are you doing here, Kendall? Either give me the damn message or get out!”
Watching as she squeezed my pillow against her chest and inhaled deeply, sent my gut spiraling into red-alert mode. I marched toward her, ready to snatch my pillow out of her hands and suffocate her with it when she released her grasp and tossed it back into its place.
She stood and threw her hands up in surrender. “Okay, okay. Relax. No need to go all rabid dog on me. I’m just trying to be helpful. They wanted me to tell you that they are fine and not to worry. And that all of this will be over soon. To just sit tight and do what we say.”
Eyeing her wearily, I called bullshit. She stepped around me again and headed back downstairs. “Believe whatever you want, Cami. Like I said, I was just trying to be helpful.”
Once we were both downstairs and standing in the foyer by the front door, I asked, “Why are you really here?”
Kendall opened the door, and I thought she was actually going to leave without replying, but that wasn’t Kendall’s style. She always had to have the last word, so I waited for the sucker punch that was sure to come. And she didn’t disappoint.
With an evil glint in her eyes, she said, “Oh, did you hear? Scarlett’s brother showed up last night. Guess Gavin finally decided to take his place at the table and help out. I knew he would come to his senses sooner or later.”
She stood there and watched me as her words sunk in, surely trying to gauge my reaction. Trying my damnedest to hold on to a mask of indifference, I didn’t respond. After a few excruciatingly long seconds, she smiled and said, “Well, see you later. I’ll tell your parents you said hi.” And with that, she closed the door behind her just before my legs gave out, and I dropped to my knees.
CHAPTER 38
Gavin
I was hoping to leave the house before my dad woke up, but luck was not on my side. Just as I was about to go, my father walked in the front door and stomped the fresh snow off his boots.
“You weren’t about to leave, were you?” he asked, already sounding pissed off.
I shivered as the cold air reached me, and I shoved my hands into my coat pockets. “I was, actually. I need to find Scarlett, and school’s starting soon,” I said, trying to step around him.
My grand plan was to first get off the estate and then to call Cade and hope to hell he would come pick me up. Then I needed to get Cami’s new number and let her know where I was. After a lot of thought, I figured that would be my best shot of getting out of this mess, even if it meant I wouldn’t be with Cami.
With my father’s feet planted directly in front of mine, he eyed me up and down. “I want you to stay until after my meeting with Nathaniel. You said that you would. I thought you were a man of your word.”
“I would have had no problem staying here if you hadn’t run my sister off,” I threw back.
Dad ran his hand through his hair and turned to head into the living room. “Look, I already agreed to help you find Scarlett. I don’t know why you are so worried about her. She’s with Luke. That’s where she wants to be.”
Dad lowered himself into one of the chairs by the fireplace. “You’re already here. Just go to the meeting with me. I want Nathaniel to know that you are with us. I need one of my children to appear to be on my side. If you still want to leave after the meeting, I’ll ask Avery, or Kendall, or whatever she wants to be called these days, to drive you back.”
I wanted nothing more than to leave the estate, but I knew that I shouldn’t miss the chance to hear firsthand what Nathaniel had in store for the Red Ridge Pack. I agreed to stay through the meeting, but I reinforced the fact that I was leaving immediately after. Just being in the same room with my father was more than I could stand. If I stayed any longer than that, I would surely explode and either end up killing him or letting something slip. Then he would know the truth about Scarlett.
“What time is the meeting?” I asked.
“We need to leave here soon. I’m going to grab a cup of coffee. Do you want one?”
Really? A cup of coffee? I wouldn’t put it past my father to slip a little rat poison in there and be free of his parental responsibilities forever. Hell, for all I knew, that could have been his plan all along. Dad and Noel already thought that Cade and Scarlett were dead. What was to stop them from getting rid of me, too?
“No thanks. I’ll just wait for you outside.”
The moment I stepped out onto the front porch I regretted it. Not only did the wet, cold air instantly invade my bones, but an overly cheerful Kendall was headed my way.
“Don’t you just love the snow?” she asked, holding her hands up to the sky.
“Not really. I’m freezing.”
Kendall laughed as she tugged my hand free of my pocket. “Don’t be such a baby. Anyway, I’ll keep you warm.”
I pulled my hand from hers and shoved it back into my pockets. I thought that she would be pissed, but she simply shrugged. “It’s the high altitude up here. You will get used to it soon.”
I looked her straight in the eye. “You know that I’m not staying here, right? I only came here for Scarlett. In fact, I’m leaving today. I’m only staying long enough to go the meeting with my Dad.”
Kendall’s smi
le faltered, but only for a moment. “We’ll see about that,” she whispered.
“I mean it, Kendall. I’m not staying.”
Kendall took a couple of steps toward me, and it took every ounce of strength I had not to move back. She smiled. I realized then that she was playing some kind of game with me. She wanted me to retreat. She wanted to be in control.
“Gavin, where have you really been for the past few days?” she said softly.
My eyes widened. “I told you already.”
“Don’t insult my intelligence or my desire to know the truth when it comes to you. Where have you been?” she asked again, more firmly this time.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“You are going to stay here, Gavin,” she started.
“You know I can’t,” I said cutting her off.
“You will. You will stay here or I will tell everyone where you have been. It would be a shame if something happened to Cami. Don’t ya think?” she said as she threw her hair over her shoulder and walked away. Once I picked my jaw up off the snow, I had to run to catch up with her.
CHAPTER 39
Kendall
“What do you want, Kendall?” Gavin asked as he followed a few steps behind me.
“Hmmm. What do I want?”
“Yeah, Kendall. You heard me. What do you want?” Gavin asked, his eyes full of emotion, a bit of fear and worry mixed with a whole shit-ton of anger. I had him right where I wanted him…sort of. I didn’t exactly want him pissed at me, but I didn’t have another hand to play, so this would just have to do. He’d get over it, eventually.
Channeling my inner innocent girl in need, I looked up at him beneath my lashes and said, “What I want is you here. I don’t want you to leave. Everything is a mess, and I need you, Gavin. Just having you here will…I don’t know. I just don’t want you to go. So I’ll keep your little secret. You can trust me as long as you agree to stay.”