by Doyle, Dawn
I flushed profusely, and this time, it was all my doing. I’d been worse than an idiot. I’d taken my feelings for Maddoc, latched on to the slightest bit of information that gave me a reason to dislike him, and held onto that so tight it’d caused problems between me and my best friend, and also her boyfriend. I’d hated somebody who didn’t deserve it.
I held my face in my hands as my chest grew so tight I felt like I couldn’t breathe.The air caught in my throat behind the lump that had formed. Tears pricked my eyes and I screwed my lids shut to stop them falling. “God, I’m so stupid,” I whispered.
“No, you’re not,” Maddoc said, and I stilled when his warmth wrapped around my wrists, and gently tugged. “I’m just wondering how it got to this point. I thought Daria would’ve said something.”
There was a reason she hadn’t; she didn’t know I’d thought that. Those parts of my crazed obsession with hating Maddoc I’d kept to myself; she and Cash never knew.
I allowed Maddoc to move my hands, and when I lifted my chin, he squeezed. “Nobody talks about you in front of me,” I admitted. “They see how pissed I get, and just say nothing at all. When Cash mentioned Willow, I just assumed… Oh, God, that’s disturbing now that I know.” I closed my eyes. “Your sister. Of all the people... ” His sweet, unassuming sister that was incredibly nice to me when Maddoc was still being an ass.
“What do you mean, of all the people?” he asked, and my head whipped up. A smile played at his lips. “Do you think I’m some kind of man-whore, cupcake?” He chuckled, changing the air around us, the thick tension easing just enough so I could breathe a little better. He folded his arms, and rested them on the table again. “While I’m definitely not a virgin, and haven’t been for a long fucking time, I don’t sleep with just anyone who wants it, Kaia. Did it ever occur to you that the sports teams stereotype is all bullshit? There are guys who don’t play sports who have worse reputations, I assure you.”
Like Anton.
My God, how had I been so wrong?
Because I needed to see him as a bad guy, that’s why.
I did. I needed Maddoc to be the asshole I’d painted him as. I had to loathe him, to want to be as far away as possible from him, to not get butterflies in my damn stomach with just the slightest tilt of his lips. It was clear as fucking day. A girlfriend that was never around, nobody talked about, no stories about an NCAA hockey player’s infidelity all over campus, and the times Maddoc had looked at me in confusion whenever I’d made assumptions about any relationship or mentioned Willow.
I didn’t want to see the truth that had hit me in the face so many times—I refused to.
“Your pancakes and coffee,” the server said, placing our breakfast on the table in front of us. I wanted to die of embarrassment right then and there, and by the fresh coat of lip-gloss, brushed hair, and constant stare at Maddoc, she wanted me to disappear, too. Maddoc paid no attention to her, and when she saw that he didn’t, she faced him completely. “Can I get anything else for you?”
“Privacy with my girl,” he said without looking up, his tone harsh. My insides flip-flopped and my jaw dropped at his words. His focus remained on me, in silence, until the server gave up and left us.
Another flush broke out over my skin. I was gonna have to go see a doctor with the amount of times I burned up, it was fast becoming a permanent fixture on my face.
“Do you get that a lot?” I asked, already aware that he did. I’d seen it with my own eyes, the batting of lashes, the flirtatious smiles and waves… Fuck, I’d thought he was a terrible person for reciprocating when he’d done nothing wrong.
“Yes,” he stated. “And now back to us.”
And just like that, the subject had been dropped with no explanation; he didn’t need to give one. Maddoc’s presence had people flocking to him the second he walked into a room, no doubt about that, so I couldn’t blame the server for trying her luck with him. But, with me sitting there, she had to have assumed we were together.
“What about us?” I asked when he’d chewed a piece of pancake. I sipped my coffee when he answered.
“Well, now you know the truth, we can start over.” He waited for me to talk, but I couldn’t. I bit off a piece of breakfast, prolonging my reply. “You don’t need to hate me any more, cupcake. We could be friends, for real this time.”
“Friends,” I said when I’d swallowed. Maddoc licked his lips, his lower one staying between his teeth for a split-second before they popped open. God, his lips were phenomenal. I remembered every sensation they’d caused when they’d pressed against mine. The way he held me close, his breath on my skin…
“Kaia?”
I blinked quickly. “Friends, yes, we can get along just fine,” I blurted out, sounding like a damn fool who was caught thinking things they shouldn’t.
Maddoc chuckled and shook his head. “Damn, cupcake.”
“What?” My chest pounded, my breaths quickening as I blushed yet again. Why was he laughing at me? What had I done while I’d been reliving my teenaged dream?
“Nothing. You’ll figure it out soon, I bet.”
“Don’t, Maddoc,” I warned. “Don’t act like that and not tell me why.”
That made him laugh harder. “Oh, let’s just say I’m a lot happier now. We’re gonna be the best of friends, I just know it.”
Maddoc
“I’ll be back in an hour,” I said, climbing back into my driver’s seat, and Kaia waved her hand while walking away in silence.
Swaying hips, the kind that weren’t trying to be alluring, had me fucking drooling. Kaia had gotten out of the truck, with my help, of course, and I wanted to touch her burning cheeks when she avoided eye-contact with me. Since I saw her watching my mouth, right after I’d licked my lips, she hadn’t held my gaze for more than a second. While I didn’t like that, because her eyes were fucking gorgeous, I loved how she fumbled her way through the rest of breakfast, almost spilling coffee on herself more than a few times.
I made Kaia nervous. Kaia Levine, the girl that had fought me almost every day, was a mess whenever I moved closer to her. I guessed that once she knew the truth, and she no longer had the dislike she held onto to overpower her, her true feelings shone through. And oh how they were like the brightest star in the fucking universe.
I smiled as I watched her walk, her pert ass moving, her toned legs tensing with every step, and cupped my junk. “Not the time,” I told my cock. I’d been fucking hard most of the morning, which was difficult since I’d had to relieve myself a couple of times before I left the house, especially after her video. Morning hair, just woken up face… The second I saw her, I was rising to the sight of her and her usual attitude.
Stunning.
I drove slowly past her home, the humble building a representation of her parents’ desire to blend in as much as they could, given their status in the sports world. The twins, however, were another story. A black Aston Martin was parked diagonally next to the Cherokee Kaia had driven. I had no doubt the other brother had one identical to it. They were a pair in every way, and if the thoughts going through my head—of what I was prepared to do—got out to them, I’d have two targets on my back.
But it’s so worth it.
I smacked my head back against my rest as I pushed down on the gas, and groaned to myself. “How the hell can I pull this off?”
My phone rang as I turned out of the street, Cash’s name across the console screen. “Hey, Cash.”
“Hey, man. Just a head’s up, Anton got back about ten minutes ago, smacked up to shit. His shirt was torn and caked in mud, too. Was it you?”
I sat upright in an instant, gripping the wheel so fucking hard my knuckles ached. “No, but I’ve got two guesses who it was—two identical guesses.” Where the hell had the fucker been if he’d only just gotten back? Had he stuck around longer? Had he been watching Kaia? I took off my cap and threw it across to the passenger seat, and raked my hand down my face.
“So Anton did t
urn up at her house,” he said. “Did Kaia mention anything?”
“No, but I’m picking her up in an hour.” My muscles bunched under my skin, anger coursing through me.
“Sounds cosy,” he joked.
“Fuck off, we’re heading back to campus.” I couldn’t tell Cash anything, not yet. I had to make sure Anton wasn’t a factor in my plans. “Did he say anything?” Anton had crossed way over the line, and so far that there was no way for him to come back from his actions.
“Nah. Just showed up with a red-ass face, the beginnings of a black eye, and a few cuts on his mouth.” There was a little mumbling in the background, and a female voice drew closer.
“Was Kaia okay when you dropped her off?” Daria asked. “I haven’t spoken to her since you guys were on your way there. I don’t normally until she’s on her way back, but with Anton showing up…”
So, that’s who Kaia was texting.
“She was fine, Dar. I don’t know if she saw Anton—she hasn’t mentioned anything to me.”
“Why would she?” She gasped. “Oh my God, have you guys been hanging out?” she asked, her tone raising with humor.
I winced at my slip. “If hanging, you mean the length of rope she wants to tighten around my neck, then not really.” But that noose had loosened a hell of a lot, and enough so I could breathe easier than ever before.
“Just make sure my friend is in a good mood when she gets back, you hear me? If you give her any reason to be upset today, I will end you.”
“Sounds serious.”
“Oh, you bet your ass it is,” she replied, her vicious tone vibrating through the phone.
“I’ll try to find out what happened, okay? Be safe, man,” Cash said, then ended the call.
***
“Give it here,” I sighed when Kaia attempted to lift her case into the bed. “You’ll cause yourself an injury stretching up like that.”
“Sorry I’m not a giant,” she shot back.
“Ooh, I thought we discussed no attitude?” I joked. “You have to lose it before getting in my truck, cupcake.”
Kaia’s balled fists relaxed, her hands disappearing inside the lose cuffs of her baggy green sweater, and damn if the shade didn’t make her look like a sexy pixie.
Calm down, it’s just a fucking sweater.
“I didn’t mean to snap, sorry. I’ve been dealing with a little issue.” She walked to the passenger side and opened the door. I used that time to check out the charcoal skinny jeans currently hugging her magnificent ass. Round, pert, just waiting for… “What are you looking at?”
“Nothing,” I said quickly, smiling innocently, the kind that got me out of a lot of shit back in school. Kaia’s eyes narrowed. “I was just waiting to help you up.”
“Yeah, I think I got this part,” she said, and took her place.
“So, what issue?” I probed as I buckled up. I started the engine and pulled away, starting our journey back to campus.
“Anton,” she growled, her hands waving around, and I swear she actually signed a few bad words in there without realizing it. “I wasn’t going to mention it, but the dick showed up here when I was at your house.”
“He did?” I hoped I was convincing as I leaned into my mock surprise. “Did you see him at all?”
She shook her head and huffed out a sharp breath. “No, but he told the guys he dumped me! Do you believe that?”
“Cupcake, I believe after what he did to you, he’s capable of so much more.” His stalker book proved as such. The guy was one-step away from a criminal record, I swear.
“Right? They believed him, Maddoc! I put them straight, and I thought that because of the game, they’d leave it alone, but oh no, I shouldn’t have thought that for a second.” She almost jumped in her seat to face me. “They told me they went looking for me to join me on my hike, to apologize for embarrassing me, and found him waiting at the entrance to the trail I go to. And, you know what they did, Maddoc?”
“No, babe, I don’t.” But I damn sure wanted to know, but it wasn’t enough because the shit was still able to walk. “But you can tell me.”
She lifted her hand up in exasperation. “They pushed him around. Don’t they know the trouble they could get in for that? They’re damn lucky they haven’t been kicked off the team before now. Actions like this could end their career, or land them in prison.”
I eyed her. “Are you worried about Anton?”
She shook her head and frowned. “God, no. He followed me home, then told my family lies so I’d agree to talk to him. If I’d been there, I would’ve punched him myself.” She huffed, her frown deepening. “He never even met my family, never once asked to come with me, so to pull this crap is fucking unbelievable.”
He hadn’t even met her family?
“Wow, cupcake, I never thought you had this wild side to you.” I chuckled while taking in her emotion-filled tirade, and it was amazing. “In fact, I’m a little intimidated right now.”
“You should be,” she snorted and folded her arms. “I’m so mad right now I could tear someone’s arms off and beat them with the bloody stumps, namely those two idiots for risking themselves.”
I held back my laugh. “Maybe I can help with that,” I offered, and reached behind me to grab the plastic bag. “I was saving this for a break in the journey, but I think you need it right now.”
“What is it?” Kaia’s suspicious gaze traveled between me and the white bag.
“Look inside.” I knew the moment Kaia saw what I’d brought when her loud gasp filled the cab.
“Is this…?”
“The same one. Willow wouldn’t let me leave without some. She said if you need to beat me, then that slice should sort you out, and if it doesn’t, then you have her permission to just smack me upside the head a little.” I caught a smile tugging at her lips, spreading wider until I saw a full grin, and I swear my heart skipped a beat…or seven. “If I knew cake would make you smile like that, I would’ve gotten Willow to bake something sooner.”
“She made this herself?” Kaia asked, then shoved a forkful into her mouth. Her eyes crossed and she let out the sexiest fucking sound I’d ever heard in my life. Her moan made my dick so fucking hard, I prayed she wouldn’t notice the extension in my jeans. “This is so good.”
“Yeah, she wants to have her own bakery someday. She’s got gifts, that girl, and I’m more than happy to trial anything she bakes.” I held up a finger. “Except her honey cookies. When you see her again, and if she gets you to try some, run. Run for your life.” That wasn’t all she was good at, had been good at, but now she could follow her dreams without a fight.
Kaia laughed, the melodic sound so different than what I was used to from her. It was like a song, a wordless melody that I could listen to all day.
Fuck me, what’s going on?
She shook her head. “I bet they’re just fine.”
“You don’t understand,” I managed to choke out, trying to stop my chest from imploding. “Not only did I get the sweats, I projectile vomited so hard, that I had to take a shower after. It was in my hair, up my nose… My throat was on fire. I tried her next batch, thinking it was just some ingredient that had gone bad.”
“And?” Kaia asked, and when I glanced at her, she was hanging on my word, a forkful of blueberry cream next to her parted lips.
Jesus Christ.
“Same. I thought Willow was trying to kill me. I swear I’d done a full session of abs with the amount my insides had contracted.” When Kaia remained silent, I quickly shot her a glance. A light flush danced across her cheeks, coloring the tips of her ears. I held my grin, keeping my jaw tight so I wouldn’t bring up the locker room where she’d been staring at my stomach.
Oh, Kaia, this is going to get so much more interesting than ever before.
“Understandable,” Kaia replied, then cleared her throat. She then shoveled more cake into her mouth, and I was awed at how she showed no signs of slowing down. “Puking causes all the
core muscles to contract simultaneously to eject the contents of your stomach.” She shrugged once. “If you didn’t train as much as you did, you probably would’ve suffered a strain with how much you threw up.”
I glanced back and forth between Kaia and the road. “Informative, yet so gross.”
“You’re welcome,” she said, and smiled, taking my fucking breath away. It reached her eyes, making the blue sparkle like the diamond in that Titanic movie. Willow had made me watch it with her, and I could safely say, Kaia’s eyes were more fucking precious than that stone.
I stared out of the windshield, and gripped the steering wheel so hard it squeaked under my palms. “Can I ask you something?”
“Sure.” She nodded, then waved the fork over the remainder of her piece. “This cake is fucking amazing. Seriously, I’ll have to put in an order with Willow.” She moaned around another bite, then spoke around the blueberry cream. “You wanted to ask me something.”
Shit, yeah. “Why Anton?” I blurted out, and Kaia froze before she could finish her dessert. “It’s just he’s…” I lifted a hand and tilted it side to side, “…okay, I have to say it—he’s a prick.”
“That he is,” she sighed, looking down at the small bite left in the container. “And I wonder that myself.”
“So why date him?” I asked, pushing for more.
Kaia blew out a long breath and gazed out of her window, her warm breath fogging the glass for a second before it disappeared. “It seemed like a good idea at the time,” she muttered.
I wondered what was going through her mind when she lifted her hand, her fingers trembling as she rubbed them in the center of her forehead. “And you realized he was a bit psycho when it was too late? ”
Her head whipped in my direction, the intensity of her incredulous stare burning in to me. “Are you serious?” When I nodded, she rolled her eyes. “Oh, of course you are.”
“Just a question, babe. Since the guys and I set up operation dorm storm, and invaded the building to retrieve your lost treasures, I wondered how a guy like that caught your eye.” I’d had an idea. I’d thought it was stupid at first, but the more I thought about it, the more it clicked into place.
