by Meg Ripley
Fuck off.
She could practically hear him laughing at her response, and she tugged her phone back in her pocket before she continued on her not-so-merry way.
****
Keeping to herself had been a bit of a long-shot wish. She had hoped to avoid meeting with her family for as long as possible. She probably should have asked Arty to keep her appearance a secret, but two days after her little rendezvous with Jace Dillinger, her phone suddenly buzzed with the excited call of her mother’s desire to meet.
“How long ago did you arrive, and how come you haven’t told me? I had to hear from Archibald that you got here, and he said you disappeared with some strange man? Please tell me it wasn’t Jace Dillinger.”
Wonderful.
“It wasn’t Jace Dillinger,” Natalia replied evenly, taking a sip of her morning coffee and staring at one of the hotel’s newspapers. “And I’ve been busy, so sorry I haven’t visited yet.”
“Busy doing what, Natalia?” her mother sounded exasperated.
“Catching up with old friends.” Ha, that was laughable. Natalia Hyde was never known to be the type to harbor friends. The closest thing she had to friends were Nathan’s old lackeys, but they were more like bits of amusement rather than friends. What friends Natalia had during her first years of high school had disappeared with Nathan’s rise in notoriety, and soon, all of her time was spent making sure her brother didn’t do anything extremely stupid.
“Really?” her mother sounded dubious. Natalia had a feeling the woman was aware of her daughter’s reputation as the school’s Ice Queen. “Well, that’s nice, I suppose.”
“Any sign of Nathan?” Natalia asked, but kicked herself once the words came out. If she hadn’t contacted her parents when she arrived, it was even less likely that her brother would have.
“Nothing,” was the response and Natalia sunk into her chair, spreading the remains of her breakfast over her plate. “I wish you’d come and visit soon. Your father would love that.”
“I’m sure he would, Mom,” Natalia said, humoring the woman before ending the call. The reminder of Jace was no help to her already frazzled nerves, and while Natalia had been successful in steering clear of the dark-haired temptation, her body didn’t do her any favors. The following nights that she had spent in her hotel room were spent in restless sleep and frustrating dreams. Brad had come knocking one of those nights, hoping for a nightcap, and Natalia nearly ripped his head off in aggravation after refusing him twice. He managed to get the hint after that and gave Natalia plenty of space whenever they bumped into each other.
Exhaling, the dark-haired woman slid a palm down her cheek, ignoring the slickness between her legs as she tapped a rapid rhythm with her fork against the plate. She lifted an arm and waited for a server to arrive with the check, silently damning Jace for the intimate frustrations she’d been dealing with.
As expected, Natalia furtively avoided heading home, dodging every single phone call from her mother with the excuse that she was busy with other things—which earned her a huge guilt-tripping text message—until she could find some peace. The rest of the day passed by with Natalia’s focus on her work, and when she visited the pub one last time, she was both relieved and disappointed that Jace remained absent throughout the end of the night.
****
The dreaded day of the reunion finally came around, and Natalia was in the middle of getting ready when she heard a knock at her door. A groan built its way through her throat as she approached the door, “For the last time, Brad. I don’t need a fucking date to the reunion.”
When she opened the door, to her surprise, a pair of green eyes and a natural smirk met her gaze. The moment her eyes found the rest of Jace’s figure, her expression had flattened considerably, even if her heart was now thrumming hard. “Oh. You. What do you want?”
Jace’s smirk widened, “Wow, and here I thought you reserved that attitude for when you’re hungover. You look nice, by the way.”
“If this is your idea of a proposition, you can beat it,” Natalia grunted. “I’m not interested.”
Jace gave her a shrug and she took that moment to appraise him. He was dressed rather sharply. A black button-down shirt hugged his figure like a loose glove; a simple gray tie hung around his neck where the collar was unbuttoned, exposing his collarbone. A silver belt buckle accentuated the narrow dip of his hips, and black slacks slipped down his legs. Even his sleeves were rolled up to expose the corded muscles of his forearms. She couldn’t deny that he looked incredibly delectable right now.
“If you must know,” Jace spoke, “I wanted to give you a bit of news.”
“Oh?” Natalia asked, leaning against the doorframe. “What of?”
“It has to do with your brother, Nathan.”
That got her attention. Straightening up, Natalia felt her fingers itch for a whole new reason and her heart gave a little jump in her chest. Jace noticed her change in demeanor with a smile and he turned his chin slightly to fix her an amused stare. “Have you seen him? Did he show up?”
Jace chuckled, “Easy there, tiger. I’ll tell you everything I know,” he paused to lift up a finger. “But, on one condition.”
She was already dreading his reply. “And that is?”
Then his smile rose half-way, making his lips twist in a charming smile that almost seemed boyish. “Be my date to the reunion?”
With a disgusted snort, Natalia tried to slam the door in his face, but he stopped her by pressing a hand over the door. “Aw, come on; humor me a little.”
“What part of ‘not interested,’ did you not understand?” Natalia hissed, bracing herself against the door as she met his gaze with a glower.
“Possibly the whole ‘not’ part,” Jace replied cheekily.
“I will break your fucking hand, Dillinger—don’t think I won’t.”
He laughed, “Alright, alright, I’ll lay off. If you change your mind and you want to find out what I have to say, then give me a call. You should have my number.”
“I deleted it,” she said before forcing the door shut. Jake yanked his hand away before his fingers caught between the wood and the frame. Natalia waited against the door for several moments, wishing her heart rate to slow down and the heat in her blood to cool off. Damn him.
Minutes later, her phone gave an abrupt buzz; when she checked it, her stomach plummeted to her feet. Sure enough, it could only be Jace who texted her, and Natalia had half a mind to toss her phone into the toilet.
Here you go. ;)
What an asshole.
****
The reunion was exactly what Natalia had expected it to be: awkward, boring, and far too long to be enjoyable. The whole thing started at 3 PM and wasn’t due to finish until midnight. It had barely been two hours since it began, and the young woman was already wishing she had played hooky and just showed up at the very end. She had even entertained the idea of visiting her parents instead of sticking around for much longer, but that was easily disregarded when she pictured how her mother would react.
No. If she was going to visit, it would be right before she had to leave; that way she could avoid unnecessary ‘bonding time,’ as her mother liked to call it.
The only good thing that came from the whole event was that they had an open bar, with all the free vodka Natalia could possible want. It was there where she had taken up temporary residence while their class presidency struggled with setting up the commemorative slideshow of all the good times. The music was dull and those who recognized Natalia stayed far away; this wasn’t a problem for her at all.
Until Brad showed up.
“You look really pretty in that dress, Natalia,” he said; the dark-haired woman had to pause from swirling her martini glass to glance over to his large figure. He was dressed in an old gray suit and his floppy hair was slicked back over his large head, exposing a rather unattractive receding hairline.
“Thanks,” she said, noncommittally. “I made it myself.”<
br />
Brad’s eyes blinked wide open, unsure of whether to take her words seriously or not, and gave her a half smile, shuffling awkwardly to stand next to her. “So, uh…you doing anything later?”
“Yep,” Natalia replied, reaching behind to grab an olive from a tray to plop it into her mouth. “Real busy.”
Brad appeared somewhat disappointed before he tried to fix her a very sad version of a sultry look, “Might I tempt you to...change your mind?”
“Afraid not, Bradley,” she said, her eyes never leaving her drink.
Brad glanced up, eyes crinkling with confusion when Jace appeared from the other side of the counter. Jace looked absolutely pleased with himself. “Our plans can’t be rescheduled. You’re looking nice, though. Sharp suit.”
“You look familiar,” Brad muttered curiously.
“Bye, Brad,” Natalia said quickly, knowing full well the consequences that would explode around them once the bigger man recognized Jace’s smirking face. The dismissal was taken with some surprise and unexpected disappointment, and sure enough, Brad was slinking off into the crowd.
“Poor guy,” Jace sighed dramatically. “You’re as brutal as I heard you’d be.”
Natalia wasted no time jumping to the point. “What do you want, Jace?”
He faced her with mischievous green eyes and sly smile, “If we’re being honest, you.” Natalia heaved a heavy sigh, dragging her fingers down a lock of her black hair away from her face. She would not look at him, especially now that his words had started a strange tremor in her chest. She should’ve tested her luck with her family.
“Bye, Jace,” she said before leaving her half-empty martini glass on the counter. A warm and coarse hand gripped around her wrist; gentle, but with enough tug to stop her.
“Alright, I won’t play around,” Jace said, and when she dared to face him, his demeanor had sobered up. She could see a muscle in his jaw work as he seemed to be genuinely struggling for something to say. The very implication of what was about to transpire next made her freeze completely, incapable of pulling away. “But, I wasn’t lying when I said I do want you.”
A bright flush erupted beneath her skin, and for the weirdest moment, Natalia could feel her body react almost violently to the sincerity in his words. This was…new. For years, men tried to make contact with her, only to disappear moments later; but this guy wanted to stick around? She didn’t get it.
“You’re joking, right?” she asked, a tinge of panic in her otherwise composed voice. Jace shook his head, and his thumb traced over the skin of her palm, making electric shocks buzz with every caress.
“I’m serious, believe it or not,” he said. “I haven’t been able to stop thinking about you since you walked off that morning.”
She couldn’t take it anymore. Firmly yanking her wrist away, Natalia took a step away from him and nearly stumbled over her own heels. Jace’s face contorted to one of wounded surprise before it disappeared behind a wall of casual stone.
“That isn’t funny, Jace,” Natalia stated, her voice hard.
“I’m not laughing, Nat.” There it was again. What gave him the right to call her that?
“Let me make something clear to you,” she hissed, taking an angry step forward. “That was a one-time thing. I’m not a doll you can collect or some conquest you can drape on your arm. We drank, we had fun, and we had sex. That’s all. It meant nothing.”
Jace looked genuinely taken aback, but his face had hardened swiftly before she could make anything of it. A familiar smirk appeared over his lips, “Alright, Ice Queen, I get it. But let me ask you just one question before we go on our merry ways.”
Natalia felt one of her eyebrows twitch, “Spit it out, then.”
He moved before she could attempt to figure out what he was doing. His mouth rammed firmly into hers, pressing a fiery current against her tongue and setting her skin alight with pleasure. Natalia couldn’t help but melt into the kiss, her mind blanking completely when one of his hands curled around her neck to tilt her chin further toward him. It wasn’t at all like the kisses they had exchanged that night when they were drunk, and even though there was some inhibition spooling warmth in her blood, Natalia was perfectly aware of what was happening.
So, it made no sense whatsoever when she let out a soft moan and pressed a little harder against him, wanting to taste more—feel more—she wanted to drag him deep into her chest and make him do wonders over her heart. She had leaned upwards, her fingers beginning to tighten around his tie and dig wrinkles into his shirt when suddenly Jace broke away, peeling his mouth from hers with an obscene little pop.
She was gasping, her mind reeling and her knees shaking.
He began to speak; she could feel his breath against her lips, “Are you absolutely sure that meant nothing?”
And just like that, Jace ripped himself away from her and sauntered off, leaving Natalia to stare after him, lips kiss-stung, and body trembling as if she had been electrocuted.
It wasn’t until after he left that Natalia remembered that he knew something about her brother, but by the time she realized that, Jace was nowhere to be seen for the rest of the night.
****
“I thought you told me that you didn’t get involved with Jace Dillinger!”
The following morning, Natalia had woken up to a killer headache and an angry call from her mother. She had barely managed to burrow out from the sheets and comforter, choking out a ‘hello’ into the phone, before her mother’s voice shrieked in her ear.
“Mom,” Natalia groaned, pressing the heel of her palm into one of her eyes. “We have got to teach you to stop shouting on the phone. Besides, why does it matter?”
“Stop being cheeky with me, Natalia! I heard about your little make-out session from Cecilia Warren!”
Who??
“Apparently, you two made quite the spectacular show for the rest of your class!”
“Again, why does it matter?” It probably wasn’t a fantastic idea to have asked that at the moment, and Natalia realized that the second her mother began another assault of words on her already exhausted brain. Fantastic. So not only did she let that moron kiss her, but the entire town probably knew about it by now. Just wonderful.
With a pained sigh, Natalia pulled the phone away from her ear to give herself some respite from her mother’s rant. The relief was almost instantaneous and despite her desire to hang up, Natalia could only glare at the screen of her phone, watching the seconds tick by as her mother went on and on.
She began to doze off when she caught something her mother said, yanking wakefulness through her system like ice water. Pressing the phone back over her ear, Natalia intervened in her mother’s monologue.
“Wait—what? What about Nathan? You mentioned Nathan?”
“Were you not paying attention at all, Natalia?” her mother shot back. “Nathan’s here! Archibald called us to say he’d appeared at the pub last night!”
“When—where is he now, did Arty tell you that?” Natalia stressed, already pushing herself to her feet in a frantic search for her shoes. “Come on, Mom, what else did he tell you?”
“Well, he didn’t tell me much, but he said he was worried! He mentioned that Nathan had been asking around for information of Davis Jordan—”
Oh no.
“—But that boy hasn’t been back since that incident at the gas station. It makes no sense why your brother would want to find him instead of stopping by to greet his parents! It’s as if I mean nothing to my children anymore—”
Last night. Nathan had arrived yesterday… and suddenly Jace’s words came back to her full force. He knows my brother is here… he probably knows why.
With a final and hurried farewell to her mother, Natalia ended the phone call, tugging a few pain pills from her bag and tossing them into her mouth before rushing out of her room. She had to go find her brother. She needed to know why he was back here; she could only hope it wouldn’t spell trouble.
*
***
The reunion between the two siblings had been nothing like Natalia had hoped for. She had all but sprinted toward the pub, hoping that she might find a sign, or maybe find Arty waiting for her to tell her about Nathan’s whereabouts. Instead, when she managed to push her way through the doors of the pub, she found the most unlikely sight.
The pub was empty, save three people there, and the place was in such disarray; a bar fight could be the only logical explanation for it. There were tipped tables and upturned chairs; broken glass glittered over the ground, but it was not enough to distract Natalia from seeing her brother’s face glancing up at her through a bloodstained napkin stuffed up his nose. She recognized the familiar tousled black hair and the shape of his slumped shoulders as easily as she could recognize her own and the years that had passed between them suddenly disappeared—just for a moment—like a wisp of smoke.
Sitting on an opposing chair sat none other than Jace Dillinger, nursing a split lip with a bag of frozen peas, his own dark hair stuck up, framing his face dangerously. His green eyes had widened in surprise upon landing on Natalia. Arty stood between them, huge arms crossed, acting as a wall between the two wounded men.
Natalia didn’t care much for the others, taking several steps toward her brother’s hunched figure automatically. She stopped when his brows furrowed, and she remembered exactly what had transpired; the wall of distance returned.
“G’morning, Natalia,” Arty said somberly.
“What the hell happened?” she asked, ignoring Arty’s greeting.
“These two dumbasses,” Arty grunted, aiming a sharp glare at the two men, “started a ludicrous fight here a few hours ago. Nearly called the cops on the two of ‘em, but managed to get them to sit their asses down.”
Natalia threw her brother a different glare this time, irritated that his temper still hadn’t changed. “Why?”