Wrong For Me

by Meagan Brandy

  It’s crazy to think not too long ago, this man wasn’t even on my radar, yet today, he’s all I see.

  And, now, I feel shorted. I want more time with him to learn of all the things I missed along the way when I was blinded by another. I can’t help but feel like I’ll never get it.

  Alec’s leaving, and I have to stay with Rowan. At least until my dad can get back here in the next few days.

  It’s the last thing I want, especially when everything finally feels right.

  I glance up when I see Alec’s shadow in the doorway.

  He stares at me, his eyes tight around the edges, and I offer a sad smile.

  He pushes off the frame and comes to stand in front of me.

  My head tilts back to look up at him, and he runs the backs of his fingers across my cheek, causing my eyes to close.

  “It’s only for a little while. A couple of weeks maybe.”

  Tears threaten to fill my eyes, but I force them away. He’s doing this for me, and I don’t want to make this harder for either of us.

  I feel him grow closer, and then his lips land on mine.

  His kiss is strong, telling. It’s a slow, rhythmic dance, full of wishes and worry.

  His promise to return, my promise to be here, waiting, when he does.

  When a knock sounds at the door, he pulls back, dropping his forehead to mine. “Time to go, baby.”

  I nod, swallowing my disappointment, and reach for his hand, needing to touch him as long as possible.

  He turns to me when we reach the door, and I see the dread lining his green eyes, I’m sure the same is reflecting in my own.

  The knocking sounds again, harder this time. I give a small nod, and he pulls open the door. We both freeze when we find a police officer on the other side with a man in a suit behind him.

  “Oakley Rivera and Alec Daniels?”

  Alec’s grip on my hand tightens, and he shifts so I’m slightly behind him. “Yeah?”

  “I’m Officer Bennett, and this is Detective Murphy.”

  I glance from the man in uniform to the other one.

  “We regret having to be here under these circumstances, Ms. Rivera, but your father was killed last night.”

  All the air leaves my lungs in a loud swoosh, and I lose my balance, my knees buckling beneath me. Alec catches my body before it hits the floor and spins me into him.

  “No,” I whisper, tears instantly streaming down my face. “Alec, he’s wrong. He has to be wrong.” I sob into his chest, gripping his shirt tight, and his arms constrict around me, his own breathing growing choppy as it blows across my hair. “Tell me this isn’t real …”

  “I’m so sorry, baby,” he whispers into my skin, and I cling to him.

  No one says a word for a few moments, but then the officer clears his throat.

  “I hate to do this after delivering the news,” the officer begins cautiously, and we both shift to look at him. “But Detective Murphy needs to take Mr. Daniels back to the station. He’s wanted for questioning.”

  I stand straight, shaking my head. “Questioning for what?”

  The man looks from me to Alec, his features tight. “We need to speak with him in regard to his relation to the suspect.”

  “I … I don’t understand.” I look between the men, who both cut their gazes from mine. “The person in custody?” I whisper, swallowing past the pain in my throat. “Who is it?”

  “We’ve arrested Marissa Daniels.”

  Marissa.

  That’s the name of the woman who has been repetitively calling Alec over the last few weeks.

  But wait …

  My hands fly to my stomach as it begins to ache, and I pull myself from Alec’s hold, tears blurring my vision. “Daniels?”

  He glances to the men and back, the skin around his eyes pinching. His pained expression begs for me to wait, to hear him out, and my heartbeat grows heavy.

  His body sags as he looks at me. “My wife.”

  I stare at the man in front of me. The one I thought I was coming to know, starting to love, wishing to keep. The man who belongs to another.

  I trip over my own feet, dizziness taking over, and I fall against the wall.

  “Baby, please …” Alec reaches for me, but I deny him.

  My hands fly to my temples, applying pressure in an attempt to stop the pounding that’s begun.

  I can’t lose them both in the same day.

  “We need to go,” the officer tells him right as Rowan pounds up the walk.

  “Oakley!” he screams, and I cry harder.

  His frantic eyes scan the area until they land on me, and he quickly grabs hold of me, hugging me tight. “What happened? What’s going on?” he asks all of us.

  “My dad, Row. He’s … he’s gone.”

  Rowan’s face falls, and he starts to speak, “Wha—”

  “He was murdered,” I cry, my lifeless stare landing on Alec.

  Rowan swings his gaze to him. He quickly sets me back against the wall and rushes Alec, who allows him to shove him against the wall, but the officers pull him back.

  “What the fuck did you do? Shit always goes wrong when you’re here!”

  “It was his wife,” I mutter numbly, staring into Alec’s eyes.

  “Wife?” Rowan growls. “Wife? You pushed for her, asked me to step back, and you’re fucking married? I knew you were into shady shit, Alec, but this?”

  Alec doesn’t say a word; he doesn’t pull his stare from mine. The detective motions for him to follow him outside, but he doesn’t budge from his place against the wall; he doesn’t look away from me.

  “I’m very sorry, Ms. Rivera,” the officer speaks quietly. “But you’ll need to come down as well.”

  When my tear-filled eyes land on his, he gives me a forced half-smile.

  “It’s customary. Just a few questions.”

  Sniffing, I look away, nodding. “Yeah, okay.”

  “Would you like to drive with us?” he asks hesitantly. “Just so you know, Mr. Daniels will also be in the vehicle.”

  I don’t look up, the weight of Alec’s stare crushing me from the inside.

  “I’ll take her,” Rowan tells him, saving me from the pain that ride was sure to cause.

  Alec doesn’t fight it; he doesn’t say a word as the detective tells him to head for the car.

  Rowan turns to me, his breath choppy. “It’ll be okay.”

  I give a sad smile, reaching up to run my hand down his cheek, and his eyes tighten.

  “Come on, Oaks. Let’s get this over with.”

  We lock up and make our way to Rowan’s truck, waiting for the officer to pull away before Rowan shifts into gear.

  With a deep breath, I pull my phone from my purse.

  “Who are you gonna call, Oaks?” Rowan asks quietly as he pulls from the curb, knowing I have no one left.

  I sniff. “I have to call Hillock. Tomorrow’s Monday. Someone has to run the academy since … since Alec and I won’t be there.” I cut my eyes out the window, fighting for a deep breath against the pressure in my chest.

  “I’m sure that can wait a little while,” Rowan offers, trying to help, but he’s wrong. “Maybe after we have more information?”

  “No. Better to handle it now in case it takes him a while to get here, he’s still supposed to be on vacation.” I squeeze my eyes shut, dreading making the call to Dad’s best friend—his partner—to tell him he was killed. Murdered by the wife of one of their very own Blazes.

  When I unlock my screen, my breath hitches, and my hand shoots out, slapping against Rowan’s chest. My wide eyes meet his.

  “What?”

  “I have a voice message … from my dad.”

  Rowan glances between me and the road before swiftly pulling over.

  My finger hovers over the button for several seconds before he reaches over and presses my thumb down, and the message begins to play.

  “Hi, baby girl …” my dad’s gruff voice begins.


  My hand slams over my mouth, tears running across my knuckles.

  “I’ve missed you, and I’m so sorry I couldn’t make it home to you.” He hesitates, and I hold my breath. “Oakley, I need you to remember what I told you. How, sometimes, the ones we think care the least care the most. How people who love you can do the most damage, but sometimes, they hurt you for you.” His usually strong, powerful voice comes across cracked and powerless, wrong. “I need you to remember this, even when it feels impossible. You need to be brave enough to find the truth behind the reason. And I know you are, baby girl. Even if right now, you don’t feel it. It’s there, inside you.”

  I hear his broken sigh, and I know he’s crying. I’ve never seen my dad cry.

  “Be unstoppable, baby girl. Never forget how much I love you.”

  My phone falls to my lap, and I sob into my hands.

  Dead. My father is dead. Alec is married, and Rowan has never truly cared.

  I don’t know what will happen from here … but one thing is for sure.

  Marissa Daniels won’t get away with this.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Oakley

  “Ms. Rivera,” Detective Murphy says my name so callously that it makes my chest ache.

  I’m nothing but another name in a file to this man. He doesn’t give a shit about how I’m feeling right now, and he can hardly even make himself act like he does.

  “I know it’s been a long day, and we’ve asked a million questions, but I have a couple more.” He clears his throat, a deep crease forming across his large forehead. He licks his lips and looks down, lightly tapping his knuckle on the cool metal tabletop.

  I know what he’s about to ask, but I’m going to make him say it.

  I’m gonna force him to look into my face and lay the blame on me for my own father’s death.

  It’s not like I haven’t already thought it. It was the first rational thought that crossed my mind after the initial shock and denial.

  Could I have been the force behind the cause? Were my hands on her husband what brought hers to my dad?

  Did she even do this?

  And who the fuck is she?

  Angry tears escape before I can stop them, and I hastily wipe them away, meeting Murphy’s eyes.

  When I swallow, his eyes narrow. “You have to understand, coming to your home in search of the both of you was very suspect.”

  “I understand fine.” I hold his stare, and he sees the truth to the unasked question, his light eyes pinching at the edges. “Ask me, Detective Murphy.”

  He nods, moving to sit on the edge of the table. “Were you and Alec Daniels involved?”

  “Involved?”

  “An affair, Ms. Rivera.”

  I swallow past the bile fighting to make its way up my throat. I mean, an affair is an affair, right? Even if one person has no idea the other already belongs to someone else.

  “Perhaps.”

  “Emotional or sexual or both?”

  “Does the difference between the two really matter?”

  He eyes me, and I can tell he has more to ask, more to say, but he simply stares.

  I look to Officer Bennett, who has been sitting silently this entire time, and then back to Detective Murphy. “Tell me what led you to her.”

  “The last call your father made was to a number registered to Marissa Daniels.”

  My brows pull in as confusion swims in my gut, making me nauseous. “Are you sure?”

  “We’re sure. As far as she told us, this is all a misunderstanding. She says she simply called your father’s number because she had been trying to reach her husband.” The judgment shows then, and suddenly, I’m the dirty, wrong one. “She was worried; she hadn’t heard from him in a few days, and it wasn’t like him. She knew your dad would be able to reach him. Seems he worked for your dad?” When I nod, he holds his hands out. “As you can see, her story checks out. We have no reason to believe she’s involved. She’s simply a concerned wife—and with good reason, it seems.”

  “I … but …”

  This is wrong. Something is wrong.

  My father knew about her? He knew Alec was married, and still, he nudged me toward him?

  Was I only to learn to trust him and not grow to love him?

  Was I not supposed to fall?

  My breaths come faster, and beads of sweat form across my hairline as my skin grows clammy.

  A trash can is shoved into my face right as I start dry-heaving, nothing but acid in my stomach fighting its way out.

  After a moment, a box of tissues is passed to me, and I take one, wiping my mouth before meeting the men’s stares.

  “Let me save you some trouble,” I tell them, shifting to stand. “I don’t know if she knew about me, considering I didn’t know he had a wife before today. I don’t know if she is sane or crazy and would come after my dad to get back at me for touching what’s clearly hers. I don’t know if my father knew of her, but it sounds like he must have. And I don’t know why he called her minutes before his death. I know nothing other than I’m tired, worn down, and done for today.”

  I take another tissue and run it under my eyes to clear them of any evidence that shows more tears have fallen. I thank the men and walk out with my head locked high in pride that I don’t feel and with strength I can’t find.

  I will not break in this place.

  Alec

  My leg won’t stop bouncing. My mind keeps screaming, and I can’t think straight. Too many questions and too many thoughts to sift through, but I can’t focus for shit. Not sure I’m answering these dickheads correctly because all my fucked up mind will show me is Rowan jumping in like a knight that he’s not, but all of a fuckin’ sudden, he wants to be.

  Am I glad she had him there for her at that moment?

  No.

  Should I be?

  Still say no.

  I’m fucked up, I know, but when it comes to Oakley, I don’t care.

  I’ll kill him.

  If he so much as touches her in any way other than a comforting hug to help her get through this, he’s fucking burned.

  No, scratch that. He doesn’t get to touch her at all.

  This is some bullshit.

  I drag my hands down my face, letting them hit the table with a bang. Course I was thrown in a room with two rookie officers instead of Murphy and the douche bag he’d shown up with. I thought for sure he wanted to grill me, but it seems all he wanted was a chance to talk with Oakley. Guess all my double scheming is still safe for now. Fucking kills me to know she’s in there, dealing with him by herself.

  “Okay, Mr. Daniels, you’re free to go. Seems your wife’s been cleared for now.”

  I shoot up from my seat and stomp for the door, and the second I step into the hall, Oakley walks around the corner.

  I step forward, my jaw clenching when her muscles lock at the sight of me. “We need to talk.”

  “I don’t think so.”

  I fight to keep my cool when all I wanna do is throw her ass over my shoulder and get the fuck outta here. I step closer, and this time, her spine straightens.

  “Oakley—”

  “Stop.”

  My gaze flits between hers, and I see the damage done. I hurt her; I know. But the look in her eyes tells me she thinks I’ve broken her, but she’s stronger than even she knows.

  She’s Blaze through and through.

  Rowan steps around the corner right then, and instantly, his glare turns hard. He slides himself between me and my fucking woman and gets in my face.

  “Are you kidding me?” he seethes. “You fuck up like you did and then corner her like this?”

  Reaching behind him, he gently pushes Oakley backward, stepping away with her like she’s some fragile woman who needs it.

  She’s not.

  Her barren eyes find mine, secretly searching for a truth I can’t show. Not here, not now. So, she finds nothing, and the disappointment she can’t cover hits me hard, right in the fucking g
ut.

  I hate doing this to her.

  “Wait, and I’ll find a way to get you home,” I tell her.

  Her face scrunches in disgust. Rowan laughs humorlessly, moving closer to me.

  “Go fuck yourself,” she seethes. “But you should probably clean me off before you fuck your wife.” With that, she spins around, quickly breaking for the exit, Rowan at her side.

  “Oakley,” I growl, but they keep moving. “Stop.”

  “Well, well, well, if it isn’t the infamous Oakley Rivera.” A grating voice comes from behind me, and my fists lock tight.

  Oakley and Rowan both jolt to a stop and slowly spin to face us.

  “I must admit, you are much less than I expected.”

  Oakley fights to keep her body steady as she slides her eyes to the woman at my side.

  “For a second there, I was almost worried, but I can see now that was unnecessary.”

  I stare at Oakley as she stares at her.

  “I’m Marissa Daniels.”

  A hand glides up my arm, and now, it’s Oakley’s jaw that clenches, her eyes fighting a war of emotions—to break or to brave it. And, like I knew it would, rage wins over everything.

  Oakley steps closer, and out of the corner of my eye, I see Marissa grin.

  “Don’t think me a fool. Something is off with all of this, and I will figure out what it is.”

  Marissa’s smile is unhurried. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

  “You’d better hope not because if I find out you had anything to do with …” She swallows. She can’t say it. “Nobody will be able to keep me from you.” Her eyes are low and purposeful as they drag back to me. “Not even your husband.”

  Marissa laughs obnoxiously, and Oakley books it through the doors, practically fucking running with Rowan following behind.

  And I’m right on her damn tail ’cause I don’t fucking think so.

  “I swear to God, woman.” I increase my speed to catch up. “If you think you’re leaving here with him—”

  She spins, her angry eyes fired up and way past the point of rational. She’s pissed off, confused, and fucking devastated, but she refuses to show the world her pain.

  Like I said, strong as fuck.