by C. M. Owens
Ash is a lot like me, only she eventually does stand up to people. It’s why we clicked immediately, and why she made an impression on such a short two-day trip.
Kindred spirits and all that.
“I’ve been hoping to run into you, since you and Ruby are so close. Are you going over there tonight?” she asks.
Even pregnant, this girl is insanely beautiful. She’s one of those girls you’d hate if she wasn’t so nice because it’s just not fair.
“Yes. You?”
“Damn. I wish. Tag is worried I’ve been overdoing things with my current state,” she says, pointing at her protruding belly. “He’s gotten a little overly concerned, so I’m remanded to the house as much as possible until the baby is born. I just finished picking out a new crib.”
A man—who might as well step over the puddles of melted panties—walks up and wraps his arms around her waist, slipping his hand over her stomach. Yeah. I’m jealous.
The guy who melted my panties also set fire to my heart. Ash has a guy who is buying her a crib and keeping her from overexerting herself.
“You look familiar,” he says, pursing his lips as he studies me.
“This is Bo. I told you about her before,” Ash tells him, then redirects her attention back to me. “You should come over one day when you have a chance. Pick any time. I’ll be free. As long as you can endure Trip.”
Trip? Oh yeah. Her son.
“I’ll take you up on that. I’d like to catch up.”
I’m glad I didn’t run into her during my numb phase. Or as I’d like to think of it… My reset phase.
A black car pulls up to the curb right beside us, idling there like it’s waiting on something.
“Well, I guess I’ll let you get to Ruby and Corbin’s place. Call me so we can set something up,” Ash goes on, still smiling like her world is the most incredible place to live.
Apparently that car is waiting on them, since that’s where they’re going.
I watch the happy couple walk away like the regular old weirdo I am. I even stare shameless as he pays her special attention, helping her into the car even as she bats his hands away. My lips twitch when I hear her assuring him she’s still just as fine today as she was yesterday.
My phone buzzes, drawing me out of my thoughts, and I look down.
UNKNOWN NUMBER: I will not show you my sphynx kitty! Stop asking. And stop calling it that! Peru! ..l..That’s me flipping you off because my phone won’t update and get the flipping off thingy.
Okay… What the actual hell is this? Before I can message back, another message comes through.
UNKNOWN NUMBER: That should say PERV not Peru!
ME: Who is this?
UNKNOWN NUMBER: Oh shit. Sorry, Bo. Not my fault. My phone is a possessed demon.
Deciding not to carry on with a number I don’t know about a conversation that doesn’t make sense, I put my phone back away and start walking again.
It would probably be smarter to drive to Ruby’s house, but I decide to walk. It’ll give me time to chicken out. Ruby messages me on the way to some gathering they’re having just as the sun sets.
RUBY: Jax just got here. Didn’t know he was coming. I wanted to warn you. I totally get it if you don’t want to come now. BTW, Bella says she’s sorry. She meant to text that to Maverick, but her phone hates her.
My feet freeze in their place, and I almost tip over from the abrupt stop.
Not because Bella is texting about sphynx kitties either. And not because she has my brand new number for some reason.
Jax is there?
No way am I going over there now. It was already hard enough to move outside my comfort zone to do a group thing, but Ruby has been there for me since the walls closed in. It didn’t feel right to tell her no when she invited me.
Nope. Not ready for that.
Why is he there? Ruby said he rarely ever hangs out with them. He has his own friends.
His own friends who stalk my apartment and take pictures to send him out of context. Friends he believes over me, even when I’ve done nothing wrong. Friends who will apparently always hate me and continue to watch my every move until I finally do mess up.
He trusted the butt sniffer who is now the stalking butt sniffer.
Yeah, I talked to Viv. Finally. I mostly wanted to know why she told Jax the wrong story, and she kept calling. Imagine my surprise when she was desperate to let me know it had nothing to do with her, and even said Jax was a stupid asshole.
Viv is the one person from that family I thought hated me. Sometimes I don’t think I know people at all.
A noise draws my attention, and my gaze slides down the alleyway to where a man is rummaging through the trashcans. It’s dark and creepy, but I can’t just walk away from him when it looks like he’s starving.
Everyone else is walking by, not even sparing a glance to the man in the alleyway, acting as though it doesn’t exist as long as they don’t look. The sidewalk is safe and clean. The alleyway is as grimy and dirty as he is.
Against my better judgment, I decide to do what’s right and walk toward him, stepping over some piles of trash he’s already tossed out in his hunt for something edible. As I slide my phone into my pocket, I hear my father’s voice in my head. “Never approach anyone alone, no matter how much you want to help them. If something goes bad, you can’t handle it alone, Bo. Trust me.”
“Do you need food?” I ask him, maybe feeling a little bit defiant as I move deeper into the alley. The sidewalk isn’t too far away. I’m safe enough.
His head jerks toward me, and he eyes me cautiously. Anyone who has been cast aside and forgotten always has those haunted, pained eyes. His are harder, letting me know this life has been his for a long time.
My first instinct is to retreat. When someone’s eyes are that hard, there’s a stronger possibility they’re dangerous. But I’ve been the selfish one lately, drowning in my own misery and not being the person I truly am.
The least I can do is make sure he gets a real meal, even if he isn’t someone I can save.
“I’m hungry,” he says in a gravelly, deep voice. He’s so skinny, but he’s tall. His beard is unruly, and I can smell his stench from here, even though he’s five feet away.
His eyes dart around us, as though he’s expecting a trap of some sort, but I pull open my purse to fish out some money. With my head down, I never see him approach, and years of sneaking around has taught him enough stealth to not make a sound.
The only thing that registers is the pain that explodes against the side of my face, and my vision dimming as I crash to the ground, banging my knees hard enough to split them open on impact. My hands barely shoot out in time to stop my face from slamming into the pavement just as hard.
The unmistakable taste of copper and rust invades my mouth as blood slowly trickles out from between my lips. Something jerks my arm, and I end up falling to my back as my purse is ripped away. The pounding of footsteps rushing away is the last thing I hear before my vision is swarmed with little black dots.
Chapter 47
JAX
Bo isn’t here. In fact, it doesn’t look like she has any intentions of coming. I’ve been here for over two hours, possibly three. Hell, I beat most of the Sterlings over here.
I keep nursing my beer, staring at the gate to Corbin’s backyard as all the others laugh and enjoy the gathering.
Ruby walks in front of my gaze, cutting it off as she puts her hands on her hips.
“You didn’t really think it’d be that easy, did you? Lure her here? Ambush her with another apology? She’s sick of apologies, because that means someone fucked her over. Again.”
I reach over and grab the steak knife from the patio table and hand it to her. She takes it, but she looks confused.
“If you want to cut me, then do it literally. I can’t really handle too much more right now.”
Her eyes soften, and she slowly lowers herself to the seat beside me.
“If I could talk to her about you, I would,” she finally confesses. “Right now, I’m the only person she’s letting around her. I can’t screw that up by pushing her, or she might shut down again.”
I nod absently. Ruby doesn’t owe me any favors, so I don’t ask anything of her. It would be selfish to ask her to do anything anyway, since Bo needs at least one person she feels is on her side. Ruby’s the one who can give her that. She’s loyal. She doesn’t fuck her over.
“I thought it would be resolved by now. I realize I handled shit bad, but couples argue all the time.”
“Bo doesn’t argue,” she says quietly. “Ever. At least not passionately. She shuts down when people argue too intensely and gives them what they want. Which is why her family tends to bully her without even realizing they’re doing it. You wanted out. She gave you that. Until you, she hasn’t ever been passionate about anything but design.”
Really wish she’d just use that knife and get it over with.
“This is more about her dealing with her own issues than dealing with you right now. I don’t know if she’ll work through it, but I hope she does. I’ve never seen her like this, and I think it’s because she’s never opened herself up the way she did with you. She felt like an equal for once.”
Ruby clears her throat like she’s getting emotional, and I try not to get emotional with her.
The gate opens, and I sit straight up, feeling a knot ball up in the pit of my stomach as hope inflates my chest, but just as quickly, I sag back in defeat when Rye walks through. However, I tilt my head when a fuming Brin walks in right behind him with green hair.
“The hell happened?” Maverick asks, laughing as Brin scowls at him.
Rye is grinning smugly as he grabs a beer from the cooler, and Brin turns to glare daggers at his back.
“I don’t want to talk about it,” she growls.
“You have green hair,” Kode says flatly, stating the obvious.
“Really? I hadn’t noticed,” Brin clips out, grabbing a beer for herself as she stomps toward Rye.
Instead of slapping him, she drops to his lap, and he grins as his arm goes around her waist and holds her to him. I may not understand their relationship, but I actually sort of envy it.
I’d take a never-ending string of pranks over radio silence any day of the week.
Ruby gets up, abandoning me as she goes to laugh and talk to Brin, who is rolling her eyes. Kode is watching Tria’s ass as she bends over, completely tuning everything else out. It makes me hate him a little, because they’re relationship is so much easier, and if anyone should be having a hard time being in a relationship, it’s him.
He’s a much bigger asshole than me.
Britt sits down beside me, watching Dane as he bounces his daughter around on his shoulders.
“Do you care if I ask you a personal question?” Britt asks me.
I turn to face her, leaning back and nodding. Why the hell not? Everyone seems to know my business these days anyway. Pride comes before the fall, and I’ve sure as hell fallen hard.
“If you had to choose between sleeping with a virgin and a porn star, which would it be?”
I choke on my beer, and silence descends across the yard as every Sterling turns to glare at me.
Damn it. Why did I tell her she could ask me a question?
“Excuse me?” I ask, half coughing.
“It’s for a class I’m taking. I signed up for summer courses to get a jump start on college. This has nothing to do with my own personal matters,” she deadpans.
I forgot how damn blunt she is. And clueless. And completely devoid of any personal boundaries.
“What the hell kind of classes are you taking?” Corbin groans, glaring at her like he could strangle her right now.
She doesn’t answer him, and I ignore the weight of her gaze as she waits expectantly on me to answer.
“Porn star or virgin?” she asks again. “The majority of men seem to answer porn star. However, if asked who they would prefer to marry, they say virgin. I have to have fifty answers by next Friday.”
I clear my throat, and try to ignore how every single Sterling here is glaring at me like they’re daring me to answer just so they can pounce on me.
“I don’t get it,” Britt says when I don’t answer. “If you want to sleep with the porn star, why wouldn’t you want to marry them as well? It seems as though sexual compatibility would play a huge part in a relationship since Homo sapiens aren’t designed for monogamy, yet monogamy plays an intricate and delicate part in society. In other words, you’d need someone extremely compatible sexually to endure the monogamy.”
When I still say nothing, she continues to stare, making me incredibly uncomfortable, because I know she won’t go away until I answer.
“I’d pick something in between,” I tell her, watching as the Sterlings continue to stare me down.
“I can actually add another column just for answers like that. It may help me differentiate my own paper from the others that will be turned in.”
She beams at me like I just gave her the best answer in the world, and I try to take another sip of beer without choking on it this time.
“Who would you rather marry?” she asks, even though she doesn’t write any of it down.
Right. She has an eidetic memory.
“Same,” I tell her without hesitation.
“Interesting,” she says while chewing on her lip. That action makes me think of Bo, and the fact she’s not here.
Loud music blares to life, and I look up as Ruby pulls her phone out to answer it. She seems surprised at whoever is calling, and yeah, I watch like a stalker because it might be Bo.
When she answers, she walks away, and I continue watching to the point I get worried Corbin is going to notice and blindside me with a punch while I’m distracted. Her back is turned and her voice is quiet, but I notice when her body goes rigid.
Without saying a word, she frantically slings the patio gate open and takes off running. I stand up, ready to chase her down, but then I hear the roar of her Camaro and tires squealing out.
“Where the hell did Ruby just go?” Kode asks before I can, looking over at Corbin.
He looks just as confused as we all feel, and he pulls out his phone.
A bad feeling sinks into my gut, and I walk over to him as he talks to her. Well, it seems more like he’s listening than talking. His eyes go wide and dart up to mine, and fear spikes my pulse.
“I’ll head that way,” he says. “Okay, then tell me when I can come,” he says after a beat. “I’ll be there if you or she needs me then,” he sighs, looking frustrated as he hangs up.
I swallow around the lump of dread in my throat.
“Go. Bo’s place. Now,” he tells me. “She was just attacked, and—”
I don’t hear the rest of his words because I’m already sprinting down the road, not even taking the time to get in my car. People jump out of my way when I barrel down the sidewalk, racing toward her apartment building, and my heart hammers in my chest as I dart across the street without waiting on the crosswalk light to change.
Horns blare and tires skid, but I keep running, not stopping when the doorman yells at me either. I throw open the staircase door and keep running, taking the steps three at a time up fifteen flights without slowing down.
When I burst out of the door on her floor, Amani is waiting by Bo’s door, training his eyes on me like he might rip me in half. I’m too preoccupied to be surprised to see him.
“You can move or we can finally settle this problem between us,” I threaten, stalking toward him without one single reservation.
Turning to face me, his lips twitch, and I crack my neck to the side. I really don’t have fucking time for this shit.
Chapter 48
BO
Three hours ago, I was found in the alleyway by a policeman shortly after I had been knocked out. Unfortunately, he called several people from my contact list, including my father who was stil
l in town.
He’s missed three shows in the past week because he’s stayed in town, waiting for me to talk to him. My father has never missed a show since he started performing over twenty-seven years ago.
Amani was with him when he showed up, since he’s Dad’s security this week. Mom was also with him, since she’s apparently been staying with him in hopes I’d see her too.
Now she’s in the kitchen and baking cookies. Well, burning cookies. My mother doesn’t cook, and she’s been trying to make a single batch turn out right since she got here and broke down in tears when she saw me.
My dad is sitting across from me in my oversized bedroom chair, while Bora is curled up on the bed beside me, slowly running her fingers through my hair. I used to do that for her all the time when we were younger and she was upset. This is the first time she’s ever done it for me.
It’s almost like we’ve swapped places lately.
The police have just left, because they took forever to take my statement, and I’m tempted to call Ruby. However, I know she has a party at her house right now. I don’t want to ruin her fun with yet another problem from me.
“I kicked his ass,” Dad says randomly, looking over at me with exhaustion in his features. I’ve never seen him look tired, and he’s a rockstar, so that says something.
“Whose ass?” I ask absently, ignoring all the guilt I feel for snapping at everyone all week.
Even Shanna is here, trying to teach my mother how to bake cookies, and she hasn’t yelled at me once. No one has. I entered an alleyway by myself and approached a man alone, uncaring if he was dangerous or not. Yet no one has even raised their voice to me.
They’re all on eggshells, because this is the first time I’ve let them be around me, and it’s because tonight I could have gotten myself killed.
For once, I deserve to be yelled at, and everyone is too afraid to do it because they’re scared I’ll cut them out again.
As if my head isn’t already hurting enough from the cheap shot I took.