Kade's Game (The Sterling Shore Series 1.5)

by C. M. Owens

  "Of course I care! I've been trying to call her for four days straight. Nothing. I have to find her, but no one will point me in the right direction."

  He frowns as he purses his lips, and then he breathes out heavily.

  "I can't believe I'm doing this instead of killing you. But Raya still loves you, and I hate seeing her hurting. If you actually care about her, I'll tell you. But if you ever—"

  "I won't. I swear I won't. If she'll give me another chance, I'll spend the rest of my life making it up to her."

  He lets out a harsh breath while running his hand through his hair. After glancing over his shoulder at the trailer, he turns back to me.

  "Her dad won't let you get close to her. He's got the protective bit cranked up to the nth degree right now, since he really hates you. So I don't recommend going over there. Raya's working at a place called Silk."

  My eyes widen at the mention of the word as visions of girls dancing on poles and doing burlesque comes to mind.

  Josh chuckles as though I've done something to entertain him.

  "As a waitress. I take it you know the place, given the terror on your face."

  I swallow hard and breathe in a painful bit of air. I'd kill someone if they were eye-fucking a half naked Raya.

  "Yeah. I need to—"

  "Go," he says while turning around. "Next time it won't be Bud's ass that gets shot. Last warning," he adds while walking away.

  I don't need any more warnings. I just need Raya.

  "It's been over a week and I still haven't seen her. How the hell is she hiding?" I ask Tag as he helps me scour Silk, but still no sign of Raya.

  "Maybe all your mounds of roses scared her. You've sent bouquet after bouquet. That's a little creepy, dude. Just saying," he says while shrugging, not being helpful at all.

  "Are you sure she's still working here?" I ask him, considering he and Dane are close.

  The second I found out, I had Tag call and confirm it.

  "Yeah, but Dane is sick of you loading his place up with flowers. Raya won't take them home. Maybe it's time—"

  "Don't finish that sentence," I growl, holding my hand up.

  Just before he argues, I see a familiar body walking by, her hair tosses over her shoulder, and a forced smile on her face as she makes her way to the bar.

  "She's here," I say in a breath, blinking rapidly to make sure I'm not going delirious.

  "Then I guess you should follow her. Looks like she's taking a break."

  I don't need another push. I take off back out the front doors, and head to the back of the building. When I round the corner, I see her. Her back is to me as she stares out over the ocean, seeming lost in thought. And it takes more strength than I care to admit not to launch myself at her.

  I wrap my arms around her waist, kiss her neck, and begin nuzzling her, feeling the hole inside me start to heal with just a little touch. Damn, she smells so good. Her soft, dark hair grazes my skin, and her body goes stiff.

  "I've missed you," I whisper, holding back the storm that has come close to destroying me so many times since I lost her.

  She tries pulling away, but I hold her to me, refusing to lose her after working so hard to find her. I use her weakness against her when I start kissing a trail from her earlobe to her jaw.

  "I'm sorry, Raya. I'm so fucking sorry. Please forgive me. Come back," I murmur gently, praying that's enough.

  She whimpers, and I know I've made her cry. I hope those are good, happy tears.

  "Kade, you don't really want me back. You're confused because I saved your vineyard," she says with emotion rattling her voice. No. Damn it. No.

  "No the hell I'm not. Raya, I've wanted you back since you walked out. I'm a jerk. I'm an idiot. I'm every form of stupid there is. I made the biggest mistake of my life. Please, please come back. Let me make it up to you."

  She wiggles against me as I hold her. I'm not above begging. I finally spin her around so that she's facing me, and my chest tightens when I see the tears I've only heard. But those tears give me hope, because she wouldn't be crying if this wasn't hard for her.

  "Kade," she says softly, trembling in my arms. "You don't... you don't want to be with me. I'm a conman's daughter. Your business, your dreams, and your name can't be tainted by a girl—"

  Fuck this.

  I interrupt her by kissing her hard, refusing to let her spit out reasons we can't be together, especially nonsensical ones. I love her too much to hear her tell me she's not good enough. I can't believe she thinks she's not good enough for me, considering what an absolute idiot I've been.

  I get greedy and too confident when I feel her melting ever so slightly against me, so I push my tongue in to seduce her, hoping it's enough. But I'm left in a haze of wonder as I taste her and pour too much into the kiss, trying to tell her everything I've felt for these past several weeks without words.

  Unfortunately, I get too swept up in the kiss, and she catches me off balance, forcing me off her with more power than I gave her credit for having. She's at the door before I steady myself, and the resolve in her eyes isn't what I want to see.

  "Just go home, Kade. Please leave me alone."

  She takes off running, and I follow through the backdoor, barging past the staff as Raya disappears into the club. Just as I rush in, I'm slammed into from the side, and someone's hands are holding me steady.

  I watch in panic as my one chance slips through my fingers, and then I turn to snarl at... what the hell? Dane Sterling?

  "What the hell are you doing?" I ask, cursing myself for not going to the gym lately when he holds me back without help.

  "Keeping you from chasing around my waitress."

  "She's not your anything," I spit, struggling to break free. "Let me the fuck go. If she runs now, it could take me weeks to catch her again."

  He rolls his eyes, not releasing his hold.

  "Listen to yourself. You sound crazy. Raya is done. Can't you see that? Once they're done, they're done. Trust me. I know."

  I really don't have time for a Dane Sterling revelation right now.

  "What's going on?" Tag asks as he warily approaches, his eyes gauging my murderous glare focused on Dane.

  "Take him home. He needs to sober up," Dane says, releasing me at last.

  "He hasn't had a drink," Tag drawls, tilting his head.

  Dane laughs as he shakes his head. "Then he needs to have one. I've got shit to do." He starts walking away, but then turns back. "Don't come back to my club," he pointedly tells me, then disappears into the crowd.

  Motherfucker.

  "You just made the nicest guy I know pissed enough to kick you out of his club," Tag says in a breath of awe mixed with aggravation.

  I shoulder by him as I call Josh, hoping he's still an ally. By now, Raya has fled. But he knows where she lives.

  I was alone before, and it never bothered me. In fact, I enjoyed my solitude. Now, the silence is deafening, the house is depressing, and the days are filled with meaningless tasks I once enjoyed. It's surreal how one person can change everything you knew about yourself. And it's painful to know you lost the one thing worth waking up for. I was hungry for life, needed to be successful. Now all I can think about is the one thing I threw away, because nothing else seems important without her.

  I may not deserve her, but I fucking need her. She's crazy if she thinks this is over, because I can't let her go. Not when I see how much she still wants me, too.

  "You're kidding, right?" Josh answers. "I give you what you need to find her, and you're calling me?"

  I huff as we reach the outside, and Tag eyes me, probably wondering who I'm calling.

  "Work is no longer an option. I need her address."

  His humorless laugh doesn't make me feel all warm and tingly.

  "Forget it. Even if I was stupid enough to give it to you, her dad would never let you across the threshold."

  "I just need her address. I saw her tonight, Josh. She cried and argued that she wasn
't good enough. I didn't even have time to tell her what I had to say because she ran. I need a chance to prove myself. That's all I'm asking."

  He groans as if he's considering it but not really wanting to betray his sister, so I push just a little harder.

  "I love her, Josh."

  He's completely silent for a minute, and finally his breath comes out harsh.

  "Fine. Fuck. I'll text it to you. Don't piss her dad off. That's how those pictures of me circulated. The one and only time I teased Raya—just like a big brother does—I paid dearly. And he was still in prison at the time. Imagine what he can do now. I'm surprised he hasn't come after you yet. She must have him really wrapped around her finger these days."

  I feel a bit of relief. As long as I can get past her dad, who I hope isn't even there, I can do this.

  "Wait until tomorrow. When Raya is upset, she doesn't listen. She needs to cool down if your encounter didn't go so well tonight."

  "I'll wait," I say too quickly, making it obvious what a lie it is.

  "I know you will, because I'm not sending you the address until tomorrow. Night, rich boy."

  With that, the line goes dead. Fucking suspense is killing me. Now I have to wait. Again. Damn it.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Two vehicles in the driveway. I don't recognize either of them, but that doesn't look good for me. I'm sure her father is home. Maybe Raya will take pity on me.

  Taking in a deep breath, I knock on the door, preparing myself for the worst.

  "Coming," a man yells, making me tense.

  The door swings open to show a man who doesn't really look old enough to be Raya's father, but I see her in his eyes, which is what gives it away. This is going to suck.

  "Yes?" he asks, seeming impatient.

  "I need to talk to Raya, please," I murmur, my sleep deprivation sucking the life out of my words.

  "And you are?" he asks, but the narrowing of his eyes tells me he already knows.

  "Kade Colton."

  His jaw tenses as he glares at me, doing his best to intimidate me.

  "I think you know by now she doesn't want to see you. You should go and forget this address."

  He starts to shut the door, but in a desperate maneuver, I shove my foot in its path, keeping the door wide.

  "I really have to see her, Mr. Drivel. It's—"

  "Capperton," he interrupts, seeming thoroughly offended. "It's Ray Capperton. I don't use Drivel."

  "Sorry," I say, biting back a grin. Didn't realize the name was such a touchy subject. "Mr. Capperton, I'd really like to have a chance to apologize. Raya is wrong about us. I—"

  "You hurt her," he says honestly, not finishing my sentence the way I wanted to, but making it true nonetheless. "She trusted you and you hurt her, because you, like all the other morons she meets, judged her based on my actions. She's a good girl. She has a heart like you'd never understand. She's the most forgiving, understanding, and compassionate person I've ever known, and you hurt her. She doesn't want to talk to you."

  He might as well have stuck a hot knife right through my side. I've already told myself I don't deserve to have her back, but hearing him lay it out... It sucks.

  "I didn't judge her. Mr. Capperton, I fucked up. You don't understand. If you'd just let me—"

  "What? Let you in? Let you stalk my daughter more? You're lucky I'm not calling the cops. Believe it or not, I've actually got a few friends in that department. You have your vineyard, your plans can move forward, and your life will be as fucking shiny as you like it. You're the one who doesn't understand.

  "You didn't fuck up because of what you said once. It's what you've preached about. Your life is supposed to be perfect. You want that. And you've made Raya feel as though she's inferior. My daughter is a better person than you'll ever be. Ever. She doesn't deserve to feel as though she's a lesser person because of decisions I've made, because of the money she didn't have handed to her, or because of where she came from.

  "She's strong, and you damn near broke her. Now, go. The fuck. Away."

  He's so wrong about everything. Except for Raya. I once thought she was fragile, but she's not. Not at all. I'm far more breakable than she is.

  Obviously I'm not getting past the seething father, so I retreat, allowing him to slam the door on me. If no one lets me talk to her, I can't make it right. Even if she refuses me, she deserves my strongest apology.

  I stare at my one and only leafy option that towers above me. There's a room with soft, pretty pink curtains that I can see from here, and a tree is beside it, even though it's a hell of a swing to make. The damn top. Always the top.

  I'll never complain about things being too easy again.

  I climb quickly, refusing to look down, and then I shimmy out onto the branch above the window until it starts to creak and bow. With four large back-and-forth swings, I build the momentum needed to hurl myself toward the window.

  I'm sure I look like a psychotic flying squirrel right now, but I don't care. I scramble to grip the ledge, holding on as my body crashes against the side of the house, and then I quickly shove the window up with one hand, thankful it's not locked. That thought never even crossed my mind.

  Very ungracefully, I thud to the floor, and a groan crosses through my lips as I take a deep, much needed breath. I hate trees. I hate heights. I hate myself for getting into this predicament.

  Raya comes running in, stumbling to a halt when she sees me sprawled out on her floor. No doubt I look five shades of insane right now. Thank God her father isn't the one who came in.

  "I knew you'd be on the top floor," I grumble, rubbing my side.

  "Kade, are you crazy?" she yells in a whisper.

  I shake my head as I stand up, calmly smoothing my clothes back into place, and then I walk over to the door to shut it, keeping myself between my girl and her escape. Tears waver on her lids as she works hard to hold them back.

  "Crazy?" I ask, my exhaustion weighing in. "Raya, I passed crazy a long damn time ago. I've done everything I know to do. I'm not letting you go. I can't. Not unless you can tell me you don't give a damn about me at all. Can you do that? Because judging by those tears in your eyes, you still want to be with me, but you're just too fucking stubborn to listen to me."

  I step toward her, and she steps back, but I'm not giving up that easily. She'll run out of room sometime.

  "Your father is right. You're so much better than me—too good for me. You're the most incredible person I could have ever found, and I'm the biggest jerk in the world."

  Her eyes flick to the door, possibly hoping her father will barge in and save her. By now he's heard me. If he was coming, he'd already be here. Something tells me I've proven to him how serious I am about her, considering the only way to get in here is that stupid fucking tree.

  "He didn't phrase it like that," she says, sounding breathy and so damn sexy.

  I can't help but smile at the uncertainty in her eyes. She's close to giving in to me. She just doesn't know it yet.

  "He should have," I say, taking another step, smirking when she steps back, matching the distance I closed.

  "Please go, Kade," she says too softly, her eyes begging me more than her voice.

  "Not this time, Raya. Even if you forced me out, I wouldn't give up. I'll jump from that fucking ridiculously scary tree everyday if you make me. Just try to leave the window up for me from now on. It's hard to hang on and force a window up."

  I grin, but nothing about me feels playful right now. I've needed her for too long. She doesn't speak, so I trudge on, pouring my soul out.

  "You don't feel like you're good enough, and that doesn't make a damn bit of sense to me. I couldn't give a fuck about your father or what he did. I wouldn't give a damn if you had done the same thing," I promise, finally breaking through to her.

  Her eyes soften as she stares at me with wavering strength. Another piece of this wall between us breaks in front of my eyes, and I step closer.

  "My fathe
r is a con. Even if he's not out conning the world the way he used to, his past will haunt you just as it does me. No one in this society will ever back you if you have me and my reputation tethered to you," she says, reminding me how much I've failed to show her my feelings toward her. "They'll whisper, gossip, and run your name through the ground. Just like they did mine back home. It'll catch up with me here. I'm sure Courtney is already spreading the word. You need to—"

  "I need to be with you. That's all I need. My father's name holds more weight in this town than Courtney's or her family's. Even if it didn't, so what. I don't care what anyone thinks. I've spent my life worrying about the opinions everyone else has. I've spent too much time playing some stupid, elaborate game that I don't care about anymore. I was hooked. That's all.

  "I was hooked on the game—just like your dad, Raya. I'm nothing more than a con. I don't have a single genuine friend outside my family. I realized that almost as soon as you left. I'm the one people should look down on. I'm the one who could tarnish your name. But I won't be this way anymore. Fuck it all. I want real friends—people who are there for me when I need them, just like my family. Just like you were."

  Tears trickle down her cheeks as she stares up at me, seeming immobile. I close the distance between us, and reach out for her the second I'm close enough. One of my hands finds her cheek, and the other tugs at her waist.

  "You were all I wanted to see when Granddad went into the hospital, and you came. Even after all I did, you came. After the way I treated you, you risked it all to help me. I lost more than my girlfriend when I pushed you away. I lost the only friend I had ever made on my own. I don't want to lose you, Raya. I can't. I'm not hooked on the game anymore. I'm simply hooked on you. I love you," I murmur softly, not caring how pathetic I sound as I brush my lips against hers, leaving her with the choice to push for more.

  Everything in me boils to perfection when her arms wrap around my neck and pull me closer, and then her lips part in invitation. Her soft tongue presses against mine, sending a powerful shot I can feel all the way to my toes, among other places.