THE LAST FEW weeks have been rough between the fights, the secrets, and the revelations. Cole broke up with Harper. Believe it or not, Ashton doesn’t seem to care; she’s moved on to the varsity baseball team’s superstar. Kali broke things off with Lucas. My mom still isn’t speaking to Cam.
But on a high note, Zach and I are good.
Chelsea has texted me a few times. She and Justin are going strong. Reagan has kept her distance, which means she’s probably off somewhere trying to ruin someone else’s relationship.
Today, Zach is out on the boat with his dad and Logan. Things have been tense at Zach’s house after the big blowout, and the truth came out that Mike cheated on Liz with Chelsea’s mom, Rebecca. It happened over twenty years ago, they were kids, but the whole time, Liz thought it was my mom who’d betrayed her. This time Mimi and Zach’s grandma Kate, have stepped in to help mend our families, as well as my mom and Liz’s friendship.
Zach has lost a lot of respect for his dad. Unfortunately, he can’t disassociate himself from his own father. Mike made a mistake and Liz made the choice to forgive him. Zach needs to accept it. Mike has been a good husband to Liz and a good father to his sons. That’s what Zach needs to focus on.
So, with all that drama behind us, the girls and I hit the mall for a little retail therapy. I even brought my two favorite girls along for a trip to Build-A-Bear.
After a little shopping, lunch, and two hours in Build-A-Bear with Willow and Zoe, who are clearly overdue for a nap, I’m ready for a nap myself, and some alone time with my guy.
“Let me call my mom and tell her to meet us at the car.” Lexi and Kali rode with her, since I had two car seats in my backseat. Mom and Mimi left us at Build-A-Bear while they went to pick up some shoes Mom had on hold at Nordstrom. The plan was for us to meet up at the exit leading to the second level of the parking garage so we could all leave together, since my mom gave our bodyguards the day off. No signal. “The call won’t go through.”
“You guys go ahead. I’ll go down to the shoe department and let her know we’re ready,” Lexi offers.
“Okay. Thanks,” I say, then turn to Harper. “You stay here with the girls and Kali and I will go get the car.” In my excitement of picking up the babies for a trip to the mall, I forgot to bring a stroller, so I had to rent one.
Kali and I leave Harper in the vestibule with Zoe and Willow and head to the car with our bags. I pass my bags over to Kali so I can dig out my keys.
Parking garages have always given me the creeps. Like someone is gonna jump out and grab me. So, when the overwhelming feeling of unease settles in the pit of my stomach and my instincts are telling me to turn around and go back inside the mall, I should do just that.
But—
“Kalista!” an unfamiliar male voice calls out and Kali jerks to a stop.
“Oh fuck!” she whispers, her voice laced with panic.
Pulling my keys from my purse, I look over at Kali to see her pale and frightened face. Turning my head, I follow her line of sight and see two guys leaning against the trunk of my mom’s Maserati.
“Is he talking to you?” I ask.
One is tall with dark brown hair and the other is blond, a few inches shorter but stockier. They’re both clean-cut, preppy, and look like they’re in their early twenties.
“I can’t believe he found me.” She looks over at me with sad eyes. “I’m so sorry, Jay.”
“What are you talking about, Kali?” I whisper. “Who are they?”
Before Kali can say another word, the dark-haired guy is standing in front of her, hands in his pockets and a triumphant gleam in his eyes. “I’ve missed you, Kalista,” he says sweetly, contradicting the anger pouring off him.
“Why?” Kali snips. “Couldn’t find another punching bag?”
In a flash, he moves, grabbing a fistful of Kali’s short hair, yanking her head back so she’s looking up at him. “Watch your mouth, Kalista,” he says through gritted teeth before he slams his mouth down on hers. Kali struggles and, when he pulls away, she turns her face to suck in a breath. “I’ve missed this mouth.” He grabs her face in a vice-like grip and jerks her head to face his. “This little hide-n-seek game is over. It’s time to come home. We have a wedding to plan and you need to do something about this fucking hair. You look like a boy.”
I gasp, prompting him to turn his leering eyes on me. “Who’s your pretty friend?”
“I’m Jay. Who are you?” I shoot back.
“I’m Austin. Kalista’s fiancé.” He nods toward his blond friend. “This is Tripp.”
Tripp winks and crosses his arms over his chest. “You look familiar,” Tripp says, tilting his head and narrowing his eyes, scanning my face for recognition. “I know you from somewhere. You a model or something?”
I scoff nervously. Fuck. “No.” The key fob digs into the palm of my clenched fist, and then I remember. The panic button. Unclenching my fist, I slide my thumb over the key fob until I feel the oddly shaped panic button, press down and hold. Three seconds.
Three seconds doesn’t seem like a long time, but when every second counts it feels like a lifetime. I can only hope that it’s been three seconds when Tripp reaches out, grabs me by the ponytail, and spins me around so my back is pressed against his chest. He pins my arms to my side and presses his forearm against my windpipe, making me drop my purse and keys.
I struggle to break free from his hold and suddenly everything I learned about self-defense escapes me. The more I struggle, the tighter his grip becomes. The scruff along his jaw feels like sandpaper against my cheek. He drags his lips over my jaw, up to my ear, before he bites down on my earlobe hard enough to make me flinch. “Keep fighting and wiggling that sexy ass, pretty girl,” he hisses, thrusting his hips forward. “Mmm. You smell good.” He trails his lips down my neck, nipping at the skin where my neck and shoulder meet.
“Leave her alone, Tripp,” Kali pleads, then turns to Austin. “Let her go and I’ll go home with you. Please, just leave her out of this.”
Austin’s expression is blank as he seems to be considering her plea, but the anger is still there in his eyes. He’s not gonna let me go.
Suddenly, he reaches out and snatches Kali by her hair again, slams his fist into her face repeatedly before he shoves her to the ground and proceeds to kick her in the side. “You don’t get to call the shots, Kalista.”
A small cry escapes me seeing my tiny friend curled up on the ground, not moving.
Austin shakes out his hand and runs it through his hair before he turns to me. My body trembles as tears stream down my face. Rage surges through my veins. I want so badly to rip this motherfucker’s head off.
Austin reaches out and grabs my face the same way he did Kali’s and slams his mouth down on mine. He presses his fingers deeper into my cheeks, forcing my lips apart, and pushing his tongue into my mouth. His other hand travels roughly up to my breasts and down over the front of my jeans. I flinch when he pulls away and drags his teeth over my bottom lip. I jerk my head to the side, out of his grip, and gasp for air. Tripp continues to press down on my windpipe. “She tastes good,” Austin says to him, keeping his eyes on me, slowly allowing them to travel lower. “I’ll bet she feels even better.”
“Mmm,” Tripp hums close to my ear as he grinds his hips into me from behind. “She’s got a nice little ass.”
Austin reaches out and squeezes my breast through my shirt. “Nice set of tits too. A little skinny, but I could have fun with this one.”
I try to convince myself that they’re just trying to scare me, but my gut tells me they’re serious. Closing my eyes, I inhale through my nose, forcing myself to remain calm as I pray someone shows up to help. How is there no one around in broad daylight?
Someone gasps and then I hear a familiar sweet voice. “JJ?”
Willow.
Then Zoe starts to cry.
Sucking in a breath, I can’t turn my head, but I can see Harper out of the corner of my eye, standing there shocked and wide-eyed with two confused toddlers at her side. Her eyes fall to Kali curled up on the pavement and slowly she begins to back away.
“Where do you think you’re going, red?” Austin says with a smile. He looks over at Tripp. “All these pretty girls. My day just keeps getting better.”
You’re a fighter, Princess.
My protective instincts kick in and, with everything I have, I lift my leg and kick Austin in the balls hard enough to drop him to his knees. I’ve never been more grateful for my long-ass legs than I am right now. “Run, Harper!” I choke out before bringing the pointy heel of my boot down on the top of Tripp’s foot.
Tripp howls in pain, his hold on me loosening just enough for me to throw my head back and connect with his face. He stumbles back and cups his hand over his nose. “Fuck! She broke my nose.” His cry is all muffled and nasally. Obviously, these guys aren’t used to girls fighting back. And I’m not done. I throw my elbow back and connect with his jaw, dropping his ass to the ground.
B would be proud.
Then I run.
“Get that bitch!”
Harper screams for help as she runs back to the mall entrance, dragging Zoe and Willow by the arms. A pair of arms wrap around my thighs from behind, bringing me to the ground. I put my hands out to brace myself, but it only softens the blow as my head slams against the pavement with a smack and a sharp pain shoots through my head, down to my toes.
I’m disoriented as I’m rolled over on my back and dragged before Austin straddles my chest and wraps his hand around my throat.
They say that right before you die your whole life flashes before your eyes. Like photographs on shutter speed. But as I drift in and out of consciousness, it’s not my life that flashes before my eyes; it’s the faces of the people I love, and the fear of leaving them behind.
And regret for everything I’ve taken for granted.
I buck my hips and kick my legs, trying to knock Austin off me, but he’s too heavy and I’m fading fast. My lungs burn, begging for air as I switch between clawing at the hand around my throat and blocking the blows to my head, face, and ribs.
My limbs grow heavy.
I’m so tired.
Austin’s rage-filled face blurs and fades to black.
“No! No! Jayla! Nooo!” Mom.
“Motherfucker!”
Oomph!