CHAPTER 9

Brock

Years.

Amanda had been stuck with that fucker for years. All because of her piece of shit father. I didn’t want to tell her that her father was lucky Nathan got to him first, because if he was still alive, the damage I’d do to him would make what Miller and I did to Marcello pale in comparison.

I’d really fucking landed in it this time.

I didn’t have the backing of the Hawes family. Right now, they knew nothing of what I was doing, nor would they until I could find a way to prove that Amanda had been forced into this against her will and hadn’t done even a quarter of the things people accused her of. At least, I had a feeling she hadn’t. Malcolm was a forgiving man and willing to protect a woman at any cost, but the cards were stacked against Amanda. I knew I could go and find a way to prove it to him. It might take time, and I would, except first, I needed to figure out a way to protect her from Marcello’s people. All of that was hoping that Malcolm didn’t want to go looking for her.

During high school, Amanda and I had our entire lives planned. Even though I was the guy from the wrong side of the tracks, she still wanted me. It didn’t matter to her that I couldn’t offer her a damn thing. She wanted me anyway. The plan was for her to go to college and prepare to take over her family’s company, while I found a job here to help my mom and dad. If I could afford it, I would take classes at night at the local community college. After she was done, we were going to move in together, then I could focus on my own degree and still work to help out my parents. When Amanda died, or at least when I thought she did, I gave up everything. Dreams of a degree and working with Amanda at her father’s company died too.

I shoved off thoughts of our past and stood from the bench. There was too much bullshit to deal with in the present to worry about it. I climbed the stairs and found the house quiet when I opened the door. After everything that had happened, I had a feeling Amanda went to bed. Not wanting to wake her, I silently made my way down the hall and saw a light coming from my office. I came to a stop in the doorway and found Amanda curled up on the couch on the side of the room, the bottle of bourbon we’d been drinking earlier on the table in front of her,  a half-filled tumbler in her hand.

Her gaze was focused out the window and I hadn’t realized she’d seen my reflection until she spoke up. “That was stupid.”

I stepped farther into the room. “What was stupid?”

She turned to face me, pointing at my hand. “Busting your knuckles up over nothing.”

“Over nothing?” I dropped into the seat next to her, swiping the bottle off the table in the process. “I’m pretty sure all of this is more than nothing.”

“Don’t tell me you’re still pissed.”

I lifted a brow. “That you’re still in town and drinking my bourbon? I’d say that’s a yes.”

She snatched the bottle from my hand and refilled her glass. “I guess you’ll have to get over both things then.”

I got up and grabbed another glass from the side table, filling it after I sat back down. “You’ve become stubborn, I see.”

“Apparently your memory is faulty. I’ve always been stubborn. I’m just more vocal about it now.”

“Lucky me,” I mumbled as I brought the glass to my lips.

“Where did you send my mom and Michael after the dealership?”

I glanced over the rim of my glass at her. “Over the state line. I have a few friends there who can give them a place to stay until we can figure this mess out.”

She kept her gaze focused out the window. “Will they ever get to come back?”

“Probably not, but a lot of it depends on who takes over for Marcello.”

She sighed. “It’s all my fault.”

I leaned back in my seat but turned my body to face her, laying my hand over hers. “It’s not. You didn’t choose any of this. Michael and your mother knew what leaving meant.”

She nodded, and I took my hand away when I realized what I’d done. I kept eye contact and held it.

“Thank you for letting me stay.”

I scoffed. “I’ve half a mind to put your ass on the first bus out of here in the morning.” I knew she’d never go for it and my suspicions were confirmed when she narrowed her gaze at me. I held up a hand to calm the raging storm I saw swirling in her eyes. “I have a feeling you’d get off at the next stop and come back here.”

“You’re damn right I would.”

It was my turn to sigh. “Always willing to fight for someone else. Haven’t you realized it’ll only get you in trouble?”

“You fight for someone else.”

I took a sip of my drink and set it on the table. “Not initially. When I started working for Malcolm, the only thing I cared about was helping my parents get out of debt and getting my mom to the doctors she needed. It was just a job. Later, as I got to know the family, I started to care about what happened to them.”

“They became like a second family to you?”

“Yeah, they did.”

For what seemed like hours, we sat and drank in silence. Although not that much time could have passed since the outside was still pitch-black, but the way the room blurred at the edges, I knew the alcohol was quickly taking hold. I had no doubt Amanda was on the same path, especially since she started before me.

“How did you end up working for the Haweses anyway?” she asked, grabbing my attention.

“After you disappeared, my mom got worse. I’d taken a few classes here and there, but it seemed pointless, so I went looking for ways to make easy money and ended up in an underground fighting ring. The money was good. And people had a hard time trying to beat me.”

“I can see that, but what does that have to do with the Haweses?” The alcohol seemed to soften her slightly, if the tone of her voice was any indication.

“That’s where Miller found me. After three easy knockouts, he came up and told me I’d be a good fit for his business. The next night he brought his dad, and the rest is history.”

“But you don’t usually work with Miller.”

“No. Miller mostly works with his father at the dealership. And that was long before Miller opened his other businesses. It was Ashton that Malcolm wanted protection for.” I was amazed at how quickly my trust in Amanda returned. Although it wasn’t like I’d told her anything Marcello’s crew wouldn’t already know, but it was still easy to lay all of it out for her, even as I knew I should be keeping my mouth shut. I didn’t really know her anymore.

“Collecting money owed is dangerous. What does your mother know about what you do?” She sat on the couch, twirling the glass in her hand.

“She knows everything. It’s nothing I can’t handle.”

“I never thought you couldn’t.” She kept her gaze on the liquid in the tumbler. “She knows you could get hurt?”

“I’ve been hurt before, but I’m sure you know this, so what’s the real problem?”

She leaned back into the cushions. “It’s just that once everything is taken care of, I don’t know what I’ll do with myself.” Stopping, she turned to face me, hands raised. “I’m glad he’s dead. But since my family is back home and safe, I don’t know where I’ll go from there.”

I knew the alcohol had taken its toll. Amanda was showing a vulnerability I hadn’t seen since I’d brought her back to my place. “You can be anything you want to be. Unless there’s something I don’t know about, you control his empire.”

“I don’t want to control any of it. I want to destroy it.”

I moved closer and wrapped my arm around her shoulders, the slight hint of cherry blossom hitting my nose. “Maybe not, but it’s all yours. The money. The house. The business. You can do whatever the fuck you want with them. Keep ’em, sell ’em, doesn’t matter. But you can use the money to change your name, get new clothes, even move to a new city where no one knows who you are. Whatever the hell you want.”

She sighed. “You make it sound so simple.”

“That’s because it is. Once he’s been missing for a while we can have you file for divorce. You can even go back to being a blonde if you want.” Against my better judgment, I wrapped my hand around her nape and brought her face closer. Her eyes were glassy and unfocused, but I couldn’t tear my gaze from them. Her tongue darted out to lick her lips and I was unable to stop. I pressed my lips to hers. The familiar taste of cherry invaded my senses. I slipped my tongue out and parted her lips. She leaned into the kiss, her hands sliding up my chest to grip my shoulders.

Deep down, I knew it was wrong. But I couldn’t stop myself. The feel of her warm body tight against mine took me to a place I hadn’t been in a long time. I’d fucked women, but there was something different about Amanda. Her name brought me to my senses. I broke the kiss, both of us panting. My heart raced in my chest.

What the fuck was I doing?

The woman had basically been held captive by a man who forced her to be someone she wasn’t. She’d been kidnapped by me and found out I killed her husband, all in one night. On top of all that, she was drunk. There was no way she was emotionally ready to jump into bed with me. No matter how much I wanted her to. Besides, I’d already been down this road before. I wasn’t sure I wanted to travel it again.

“Why did you stop?” she rasped.

“Because I’m not sure this is a good idea for either of us. You’re drunk.”

Amanda wrapped her hand around my nape. “Who gives a shit? I want you.”

I raised a brow at her.

“Now take me upstairs.”