The Punk and the Plaything (When Rivals Play Book 3)

by B. B. Reid

  “Sorry?” Jason spat. “How can I believe that when you won’t even say her name!”

  Jason’s hands slammed into Ever’s chest, shoving him back. Four hugged herself as her worried gaze bounced between Jason and Ever. Any other time, Vaughn and I would have wasted no time pouncing on him but not today. Ever didn’t seem inclined to defend himself either as he stared at the ground in shame. Never had I seen my cousin so humbled before. I realized then that this was the first time they actually talked about Olivia and probably the first time Ever bothered to apologize. The few interactions they’ve had since Jason blew back into town usually ended in blows.

  “Olivia,” Ever croaked when he finally found what was left of his voice. His gaze glazed over, and I knew he was probably picturing the face that haunted him every day since she slit her wrists in front him. “Her name is Olivia, and I am sorry. So fucking sorry.”

  Jason dropped his head, but not before we saw the tear that fell. He seemed defeated, and I was sure not one of us felt triumphant about that. “Was.”

  Ever’s head shot up, his face a mix of confusion and disbelief while my entire body went cold.

  No.

  That’s not what he told me. He’d said—

  Suddenly, I remembered the grief in his eyes when he told me she was better now, and I realized what he’d meant.

  I was distantly aware of Bee’s hand slipping from mine in shock. “What?”

  “Her name was Olivia.” Sniffling, Jason finally lifted his head. “You weren’t there to save her the second time. No one was.” Before anyone could find the words to say, Jason continued. “I’ll never forget what you did,” he said as he backed away from us, “and I’m not sure I have it in me to forgive you, but my sister wouldn’t want me to waste another second on you. You’re not even worth it.”

  He turned, and no one stopped him when he got in his car and sped away.

  Four’s first pro-am race hadn’t gone quite as expected. Out of eighteen riders, fifth place wasn’t bad, but for Four, who for years had been undefeated, it was a massive disappointment. She now had thirteen of the sixty points she needed for her license, but her small victory did nothing to erase the scowl from her lips.

  After that bomb Jason had dropped, I could understand why Four’s heart hadn’t been in the race. A cloud had followed us all the way from Blackwood Keep, and Ever had barely spoken two words since.

  Olivia had killed herself.

  And even though my gut told me Ever wasn’t the reason, nothing would stop him from feeling guilty. I almost wished I hadn’t forced him into talking to Jason, but the truth would have come out eventually. At least they both were able to speak their piece. I knew Ever had wanted to apologize, but his ego wouldn’t allow him after Jason made it a point to be a massive pain in the ass. He’d even gone so far as to target Four last Halloween, which had temporarily pushed aside all Ever’s guilt.

  “So should we head home?” Vaughn asked, breaking the silence as I drove us back to NaMara. We’d left our stuff at the hotel after we decided to celebrate Four’s win tonight. Who knew?

  “We should celebrate,” Bee announced. She then turned in her seat next to me, briefly stealing my attention from the road. “I know it might not seem like much,” she told Four, “but I think you kicked ass out there and took thirteen riders’ names today. I hope I can call you my friend because nothing would give me more pride.”

  I looked in the rearview mirror in time to see Four, after only a moment of hesitation, smile and nod.

  Bee then turned her attention to Ever. “I know you’re determined to blame yourself for Olivia, but you didn’t break her. Maybe her family will never know what did, but until they stop wallowing in hatred, they’ll never get the closure they need.”

  Ever’s only response was to lean his head back as he closed his eyes tight. Bee was right, even if my cousin wasn’t ready to admit it. Ever shouldn’t have slept with his friend’s sister—a girl he never bothered to look at twice—but that didn’t make him a murderer. The Portlands were too busy pointing in one direction to see the many reasons Olivia couldn’t bear this world anymore, and until they opened their eyes, they’d never see.

  “And you,” Bee said, addressing Vaughn. “You need to find a way to get us some more beers since you drank them all.”

  Vaughn responded with a lazy grin. Yesterday and this morning, he’d chosen to drown his sorrows in an entire case of beer.

  When Bee’s gaze fell on me, I flashed her my most flirtatious smile. “I love it when you take charge, kitten. If we were alone, I’d pull over right now.”

  “Don’t let me stop you,” Vaughn drunkenly slurred. “I already know Four and Ever got to see you do it.”

  Unintentionally, my foot slammed on the brakes. How the hell did he know?

  “Who told you?” Bee screeched.

  “Tyra.”

  Everyone’s gaze fell on Four.

  “Well, I didn’t tell her!” Four screamed. “I didn’t even know she knew.”

  “Lou told Tyra, and Tyra told me,” Vaughn explained. It was amazing we had as many secrets as we did since none of us seemed able to keep them for long—most especially me.

  The back of my neck grew hot when I felt Bee’s gaze. I made sure to keep mine firmly fixed on the road as I picked up speed again.

  “Don’t even try it,” Bee snapped. “I already know you told Lou.”

  “What’s the big fucking deal?” Vaughn said while chortling. “We’re teenagers. Banging while other people are in the room is like a rite of passage. I’ve done it at least four times.”

  “Please tell me Tyra wasn’t one of those times,” Four fussed. One glance in the rearview showed her glaring at the six-foot-plus, broad-shouldered quarterback as if she could actually take him. Hell, she probably could.

  “It wasn’t Tyra,” I answered for Vaughn. “She’s definitely still a virgin.”

  “And how do you know that?” Bee questioned.

  My jeans tightened a little at her jealous scowl. “Because she acts like she needs dick in her life.”

  We all looked to Vaughn for confirmation and realized he’d passed out. Heavy snores could already be heard coming from him. Five minutes later, we were pulling into the hotel’s garage.

  “Should we wake him up?” Bee questioned as we climbed out of my Jeep.

  “Hell, no,” Ever groused. “I’m not carrying his drunk ass upstairs. We’re all the way up in the penthouse. Let him sleep it off here.”

  “We can’t just leave him in the car,” Four argued.

  “Yes, we can,” I said, siding with my cousin. “I’ll crack the windows.”

  Bee and Four stood back with their arms crossed as I did just that. It was easy for them to expect us to help him since they weren’t the ones who’d have to carry his heavy ass. Vaughn had trained every muscle in his body, putting both Ever’s and mine to shame.

  “He drank an awful lot,” Four remarked. “Was he close to Olivia?”

  “He barely fucking knew her,” I answered before sighing. “This is something else.” My guess was his prick of a father was the culprit. Franklin Rees was a bad fucking man, who would stop at nothing to corrupt his only son.

  “Have you talked to him lately?” Four asked Ever.

  Ever rubbed the back of his neck. “Whenever I try, he just shrugs me off and says that nothing is wrong. He’s so closed off now that I feel like I barely know him anymore.”

  When you had a father willing to exploit any weakness, no matter how cruel or contemptible, it was no wonder Vaughn remained a blank canvas to everyone except himself. And maybe Tyra. The tiny slip of a girl had gotten through to him more than any of us could, and we’d known him longer. I just wondered if it would be enough when it was all said and done.

  Sighing, I stared at my sleeping friend. I guess we’ll all just have to wait and see.

  Vaughn was dead to the world with his head back and mouth wide open. Unable to resist, I stol
e the pen I knew I’d find in Bee’s purse and drew a picture of my dick and balls on his cheek. Maybe that will cheer him up.

  Glancing over my shoulder, I met Bee’s blue gaze. “Look familiar?”

  She pursed her lips.

  Shutting the door, I locked it before kissing her deeply and leading her by the hand to the private elevator. NaMara had an oceanfront location with five-star-quality amenities for a hefty price. Of course, our stay here was complementary since my family owned the joint. The penthouse suite had three bedrooms, a living room, dining room, wet bar, kitchen, and an outdoor terrace with a panoramic view of the Atlantic. We even had a private beach cabana, which I made a mental note to make use of before we left tomorrow.

  As we stepped inside the suite, I snickered when Four and Bee looked around in awe as if they were seeing it for the first time.

  Ever immediately grabbed Four before she could do whatever it was she was about to do. “Come take a shower with me.”

  The look Four gave him told me she was on to him, and I watched Ever enthrall her with his hooded gaze as he pulled her toward their room and shut the door.

  Alone at last.

  Bee was sitting cross-legged on the couch, staring at the blank TV screen. It was obvious something was on her mind, and I’d been patiently waiting all day for her to tell me what was eating her. Lifting the charcuterie that room service had set out, I carried it over and placed it on the coffee table in front of her.

  “Hungry?”

  She smiled before picking up one of the meats.

  I watched her bite and chew for a few seconds before saying, “Tell me what’s wrong.”

  She swallowed and licked her lips, refusing to meet my gaze. “I tried to run away once. I packed a bag, stole my father’s car, and I just drove away. Actually, it was more like I sped away. I could actually smell the burning rubber from the tires.” She chuckled as a tear slipped from her eye, and she wiped it away before I could. “I didn’t know what I was doing. I was five miles outside of town when I ran a stop sign. A cop pulled me over and called my parents. My dad was furious. It was the first time he’d used something to beat me with other than his hand.”

  Jesus Christ.

  Bee didn’t know how hard it was for me to sit there and listen to her when all I wanted was to drive back to Blackwood Keep. If I ever got Elliot’s throat in my hands again, I wouldn’t stop squeezing. It had been all I could do to keep from killing him the first time. The only thing that stopped me was the realization that I wouldn’t be able to protect Bee from jail.

  Not able to stand the distance between us anymore, I pulled her into my lap.

  “It was right after I found out your father had died,” she continued with a whisper.

  My ravaged heart twisted in my chest at the thought of my father. At the time, nothing else had mattered except every last precious moment I had left with him, but a part of me still wished I could have been there for Bee.

  “Where were you going to go?” I was sure if Bee got away, no one would have ever found her, and even though I couldn’t stand the thought of never seeing her, I couldn’t help but wish she had. At least she would have been safe.

  Bee hid her face in my neck, and I held her close as her silent sobs shook her body. “Scotland. I know it was stupid to try, but I just couldn’t stand the thought of you needing me as much as I needed you and not being there.”

  My head fell back onto the couch, and I closed my eyes.

  Fuck.

  All this time, I’d been the one place she felt safe, and while she’d been fighting her way back to me, I had already written her off. And my first act in discarding her had been losing the virginity that I had promised to her.

  When Ever had made that bet to see who could lose theirs first, I’d been tempted but reluctant. I didn’t want my first time with Barbette to be because of a stupid bet. Even after discovering that Bee had betrayed me for Ever, I hesitated. I didn’t realize it was because I was still hoping for us until Bee stayed with Ever after he cheated with Olivia. I knew then that there was nothing left of us to hold on to. I thought she’d wanted Ever no matter what—even if he was unfaithful to her.

  Angry at Bee for being so goddamn weak, I’d given myself to the first pretty girl who batted her lashes at me. I thought I would finally move on after. Instead, I’d found my revenge.

  Every single girl I’d screwed after Lindsey Muir was my way of punishing Bee and breaking my promise to her as thoroughly as she’d broken me. I might have slept with half a dozen girls before I realized I was only punishing myself. After a while, not wanting to give them more of me than was necessary, I stopped looking for pleasure when there was none to be found, and I’d simply get them off before walking away.

  The mountain of mistakes Bee and I made in the last five years kept rising higher and higher.

  “Jamie?”

  I slowly opened my eyes to find Bee watching me, her blue eyes rimmed with red. “I don’t want you to feel guilty.”

  Ah, it’s much too late for that, kitten.

  “Then how should I be feeling knowing that I wasn’t there to protect you?”

  She leaned in, and I met her halfway, kissing her lips. “That’s not your fault,” she whispered against mine. “You’re here now. We can protect each other.”

  Shoving aside the past because there was nothing we could do to change it, I smiled against her lips. “I stand when I piss,” I said with a growl rising in my chest. “That means protecting is my job. Means I get to make the decisions, too.”

  I almost snickered when she glowered.

  “Oh, is that the only requirement? Well, we both sit when we shit, and I’d say you’re full of it right about now.”

  I was ready to retort when the sound of moaning stopped me. The blush suddenly warming Bee’s cheeks told me she heard it, too. Standing up, I set her on her feet and kissed her as I removed her shorts and the black T-shirt with the words ‘nothing,’ ‘sense,’ and ‘we’re.’ Each word was stacked on top of each other. Mine was white with ‘makes,’ ‘when,’ and ‘apart’ in the same style.

  Once she was naked, I removed a rubber from my wallet before shedding my clothes. After I rolled the condom on, I lifted her up and wrapped her long legs around my waist.

  “Where are you going?” she questioned when I headed in the opposite direction of our room. “Our room is that way.” She pointed behind me as I opened one of the bedroom doors. I could hear the shower running and the sound of wet skin slapping. “Oh, my God!” Bee squealed. “Jamie, what are you doing?”

  “Payback.”

  I slowly lowered her onto my cock, making her gasp as her wet pussy wrapped around me like a glove. Steam filled every inch of the bathroom when I carried her inside and headed for the occupied shower. It was a glass enclosure with a rainforest showerhead and more than enough room for four people.

  Revenge was most definitely sweet.

  Bee could barely keep her eyes open as I toweled her hair dry in our room. We had to take a second shower after the hottest sex I’d ever had. I lost count of how many times I’d almost blown my load prematurely.

  “What?” Bee asked when she noticed me watching her curiously.

  “I’m starting to think you and Four bat for more than one team.” My gaze narrowed as I replayed the way their hands and lips had wandered and explored each other more than once.

  Batting her lashes, she pursed her lips that had been wrapped around my dick an hour ago. “Jealous?”

  “Insanely.” I dropped the towel and tossed her onto the bed before climbing between her legs. “I won’t share you.”

  “I’m not asking you to.” Sliding her hand between us, she began stroking me. “I only want you.”

  Feeling my toes curl, I quickly reached for the box of condoms resting on the nightstand. For some reason, I believed her and didn’t stop to question my sanity. I’d wanted to hear those words for so long that I wasn’t about to look a gift horse in t
he mouth.

  “One more time?” I pleaded, figuring she might be too sore or tired. Bee’s only response was to spread her legs as she watched me roll the condom on through lowered lids. “Just a warning…” I teased her slick entrance with the head of my cock before sliding right inside. “This will be quick. I’m talking five or six pumps, tops.” I tried and failed not to moan like a bitch when I felt her hot pussy gripping me.

  Wrapping her arms around my neck and her legs around my waist, she smiled, and for a moment, I was starstruck. “It wouldn’t be the first time.”

  Goddamn, I love this girl.

  Sinking my teeth into her shoulder to hide my grin, I made her eat those fucking words.

  I SAT CROSS-LEGGED ON JAMIE’S bed, wearing nothing but his T-shirt and mismatched socks as I watched him frantically search for a clean tie. We’d just arrived in from Atlantic City a couple of hours ago, and Jamie just had to get that quickie, knowing he’d be late for work. I wasn’t sure what he did around the office, considering he had no business experience, but his uncle was adamant that he show up, especially today, after missing all last week.

  As Jamie searched through another pile, I made a mental note to clean up this mess once he left. The first thing to go would be the poster of Nicki Minaj crouched in nothing but a thong, bra, and sneakers. No offense to the rapper, but my ass was the only one I wanted Jamie staring at. Also, I could barely see the floor. When I’d searched his dresser earlier for something to wear, I found it mostly empty. All his clothes, clean and dirty, were in piles on the floor.

  “What about that one?” When he turned his irritated frown on me, I pointed to the dark-green tie with white stripes hanging from the closet doorknob.