CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE

AVERY

I ALMOST SAID YOU’RE OKAY. That I would never put you in a situation that could possibly harm you. But she would only see it as a lie although it would be the truth. Now. Things are different between us. I just hope she can see that.

The plane starts to shake a little, and her blue eyes widen in fear. I grab the back of her neck and kiss her just as I did earlier. I press my lips to her and force her to open for me. Her body is stiff, her kiss weak. I take her hands and place her arms around my neck, and then I grip her right thigh and lift it to wrap around my hip. And I deepen the kiss, pushing her head back, my tongue crashing with hers. She releases a small moan into my mouth, but it’s not enough. My free hand reaches between her legs and slides into her black yoga pants. Pushing her thong to the side, I run my finger over her pussy. Teasing.

She rips her lips from mine and pants. “Avery …”

“What, Bunny?”

Her eyes are tightly closed, and her fingers grip my hair. She’s afraid still, but she’s trying not to show it. “Please …”

I rip her from the wall and toss her onto the bed, and she yelps in surprise at the sudden movement. Before she can say another word, I have her yoga pants yanked down her hips, and my slacks unzipped.

_______________

I sit with my brother and Kayn at the front of my jet. I have clear line of sight of Bunny sitting in the back by the minibar with Chloe. She’s made her three drinks since we came out of the bedroom.

“He was staying at a hotel in Manhattan but was spotted at a night club over in Queens,” my brother informs us.

I look away from Bunny to him. “When?”

“Last night. He closed it down and then stumbled out of the club with a woman.”

“Do we know where they went?”

He shakes his head. “No. But I guess this is his new favorite hangout.”

I rub my chin. “It’s gotta be a ploy.”

“How do you figure?” Kayn asks.

“He takes Bunny, then when we find her, he takes off to New York?” I shake my head. “He hates that city. He’s setting us up for something.”

“How do we find that out?”

My eyes go back to hers when I hear her laugh. She has her head thrown back, and she looks … happy. For the first time in the three weeks she has been with me, she actually looks like her old self. I know it’s help from the alcohol, but I find myself drawn to the way she looks now. She reminds me of that girl I fell in love with all those years ago. And I smile, looking back at the men. “We let him think he’s got us.”

“Like you did when you allowed Preston to take you?”

“Something like that?” I mumble.

“What the hell happened to him anyway?” Kayn asks. “You gave him a month. Have you heard anything from him?”

“Nope. Not one word.”

My brother sighs. “Maybe he’s on the run.”

“Possibly.” I take a sip of my drink. “Or maybe he bled out and died.”

Tristan grunts. “We wouldn’t get that lucky.”

_______________

By the time we land in New York, Bunny is hammered. Just like all those nights I followed her from club to club before I took her. I know this because she didn’t even flinch when the plane touched down on the ground. And she won’t stop laughing. I don’t know what she and Chloe have been talking about, but it’s worked. I must admit I’m not fond of Chloe, but she seems to have become a friend of hers. And she could use a few of those.

“Here,” I say, grabbing Bunny’s hand and helping her down the stairs to exit my aircraft.

She grips it tightly and looks over at me. “Where … are we going …?” She hiccups.

“Well—”

“Pres?” A woman’s shriek interrupts what I was about to say.

Bunny removes her hand from mine and stumbles down the steps before running onto the tarmac. “Alex!” she shouts.

A blonde dashes toward her in a short red skirt and a white shirt that looks like it’s about to fall off her shoulders. Once they reach one another, they hug, and the Alex chick picks Bunny off her feet and spins her around. “Fuck, I’ve missed you,” the blonde tells her.

For a moment, I feel guilty for taking her from her friends. But honestly, she didn’t seem to have any when I followed her around during my short stay in New York. Or maybe my rage for her back then blinded me from everything but her.

“Me too,” she slurs.

“Are you drunk?” she asks, pulling away. Then her smile falls. “What the hell happened to you?” she demands, placing her hands on Bunny’s shoulders.

“Long story.”

“Well, good thing we have plenty of time for you to fill me in.” She reaches up and runs the pads of her fingers over Bunny’s neck. It’s healing, but the wounds are still visible.

“Actually, we don’t,” I inform this woman.

Her blue eyes narrow on mine. “Who the hell is this?” she demands.

Bunny places her arm over her shoulders and spins her around so both of their backs face me. “Avery—”

“The fucking Avery?” she interrupts her. “The fucking Avery we hate?”

I fist my hands, and I hear Chloe laugh from beside me. I already know she hates me. Now she has a new member to add to her club.

PRESLEIGH

My lips are numb, and my limbs heavy, but I feel pretty damn good inside. And proud of myself. It took quite a bit of alcohol, but I managed to fly without needing to be put under or having a meltdown. Considering how much I’ve been losing when up against Avery these past few weeks, I’ll take that small win.

I climb into the back of a limo that awaits us, and I drag Alex in with me.

“Don’t you have a ride to catch?” Avery asks her when she follows.

“Took an Uber to get here.” Her answer is clipped, and I giggle. “I’m not leaving my girl.”

God, I’ve missed her so much. She’s the only real friend I’ve ever had. I met her at a bar a couple of years after I lost Avery. After I lost everything. She’s the only person I’ve ever opened up to. It took three bottles of wine and a truth or dare game for us to reveal our deepest, darkest secrets. Hers are just as black as mine, but in a different way.

She made me feel like I wasn’t alone in this world. And we’ve been inseparable ever since.

“I’m so glad you’re back,” she exclaims, holding my hand out from beside me.

“She’s not back.” Avery growls.

Tristan and Chloe fall into the back with us, and I hear the front door open and close as Kayn climbs in.

“What do you mean you’re not back?” she demands, looking at me.

I have no fucking clue what’s going on, to be honest. Avery has proven time and time again that I’m just along for the ride.

“If you’re not here to stay, then why come home at all?”

“I have business to attend to,” he replies flatly even though she wasn’t talking to him.

“You mean you have someone to kill,” Chloe snaps.

“What the hell?” Alex demands. “What the hell have you gotten yourself into, Pres?” She grips my wrists tightly in her hand, and through the fog of alcohol, the pain makes me hiss in a breath. They’re still tender from the cuffs I wore for two days straight. Her eyes fall to look and then she lets go of me. “What the fuck …?” Midsentence, she stops and lunges across the limo for Avery. But she’s not fast enough because Tristan reaches out and grabs her by the hair, yanking her back. She cries out, and Chloe begins to hit Tristan on the back. Avery doesn’t even move.

“Enough!” Avery barks out.

Everyone seems to freeze where they are, and I arch a brow at him as if to ask what he’s gonna do. Hurt her? Kill her?

He seems to understand my stare and runs a hand through his hair. “Let her go, Tristan.”

Alex shoves him off her, finding her place back beside me. “Who the hell are you people?” she shouts.

“Alex …”

“No, Pres!” she screams, interrupting me. “You just disappear out of nowhere for three weeks, and you return with your high school sweetheart who ruined you.” She looks at him with disgust. He sits there, his hands in his lap unaffected. “And you’ve obviously been abused.” Her eyes are back on mine. “Do you have Stockholm syndrome?”

He actually laughs at that.

“You have kept her against her will,” Chloe chimes in.

“Chloe!” Tristan snaps.

Alex gasps at her words. They all begin to argue. Alex is screaming, and Chloe is arguing with Tristan. I hang my head and rub my temples. Closing my eyes, I try to take a deep breath. I had too much to drink. Maybe two too many. “Just stop,” I tell them. But it’s not loud enough. Their shouts mix with my ringing ears. My teeth clench and my body leans to the left as the limo takes a sharp turn. “Just stop.”

“No,” I hear Alex snap. “I’m not letting you do this to yourself …”

“Shut up!” I shout, lifting my head. The limo falls silent. Taking in one deep breath after another, I open my eyes. “Just. Shut. Up,” I growl. “I just want to go one day without arguing. Without having to fight with myself or anyone else.”

Everyone just stares at me. I focus on Avery sitting across from me. His right ankle on his left knee and arms crossed over his chest. “Do you have a plan?” He nods once. “Does it involve me in anyway?”

He shakes his head and finally speaks. “Tristan, Kayn, and I will handle it.”

“What about me …?”

“Tristan’s men will be with you and Chloe.” He ignores the fact that Alex is with us. But for all I know, they could not be planning on going after Vaughn until days from now.

“Where?” Chloe asks.

“A safe place,” he answers simply, not removing his blue eyes from mine.

“What if I tell you I wanna help?” I argue. “Vaughn …”

“I’ll tell you absolutely not.” His reply is instant.

I huff. “I could be useful.”

“You’d only be a hinder,” he counters. “Vaughn wouldn’t think twice. And I refuse to have a repeat of what happened. I want you protected at all times and out of his sight.”

“Who the hell is Vaughn?” Alex asks, her voice softer than before.

When telling her my past, I never mentioned Vaughn because I never knew he was behind the scenes. I mean, I knew he was bad news, but I never thought he would go as far as to record what their father did to me. And then how he treated me when they kidnapped me.

“Our older brother,” Tristan answers.

She frowns. “Why are you all looking for him?”

Avery’s eyes finally meet hers, and he matches her look of disgust. “Because he is the one who hurt Bunny.”

_______________

We come to a stop and get out one by one. I’m the last one to exit. I step onto the rock driveway and look up at the … what I can only think of is a hotel. Most of the front is made of big windows. But they’re tinted, making them look black in the night. The building is a dark red brick and looks to be five stories. Not sure, my count is a little off since my sight is a little blurry. “What is this place?” I ask.

“Mine,” Tristan answers.

“Is it a hotel?”

“No.”

I stumble on the driveway, and Avery grabs my hand, pulling me forward up the white rock stairs. They’re uneven, and even in my Chucks, I manage to stumble a little. The alcohol still lingers more than I would like. Now that the flight is over, I want my drunkenness to clear as well.

The large glass door swings open, and a man stands before us in a black and white tuxedo. He bows to Tristan. “Master.”

I snort, and the sound bounces off the tan walls and shiny black floors. Everyone ignores me.

“Are all the rooms set up?” Tristan asks the poor man.

“Yes, Master,” he assures him.

Tristan nods. “Thank you, Ralph.”

I tug on Avery’s button-down. “Why can’t we stay at my house?”

“It’s not safe,” he replies.

“I don’t think she’s safe anywhere around you.” Alex gives him another jab, but like the man he is, he ignores her well.

Tristan looks at her but speaks to Ralph. “Show Alex to her room.”

Her brows rise. “My room?”

“Unless you plan on going?”

She looks at me. Her eyes run over my faded bruises and then back at Tristan. “I’ll stay.” She says it like I’m in danger here. When, in fact, this is the safest place for me to be at the moment.

I close my eyes and place my hand over my mouth to cover a yawn. The day is catching up with me.

“Come on, Bunny.” Avery pulls me forward, and my shoes slap on the floor. Too heavy to pick up and my eyes too tired to stay open.

He takes me down a hallway and then pushes open a door. I step inside the bedroom and look around when he switches the light on. It’s big and extravagant. But that’s what I expect when it comes to Tristan. He and Avery were always alike.

I fall onto the king-size bed. The fluffy dark brown comforter swallows me up. The bed dips, and I open my heavy eyes to see Avery now sitting beside me. His hand caresses my cheek. “How do you feel?”

“Good.” I give him a drunken smile and close my eyes again.

Then I feel his lips on my forehead. “Get some rest.”