Chapter 3
the windows and doors
I ran from Talon to the door to the deck.
I was moving so fast that when I hit the railing I thought I was going to go over it.
That would have been a bad thing.
Falling off the deck at this height and angle…
I looked down and saw Xavier coming up the steps.
“Holy fuck,” I whispered.
I spun around and Talon stood in the doorway.
“Xavier is here,” I whispered. “Go.”
“Not until I get my money,” Talon said.
“Are you fucking insane?” I whispered with a growl. “Do you want to get caught?”
“Do you, darling?” Talon asked. “I’m not doing anything wrong.”
“Talon, please,” I said. “You have no idea what’s going on right now…”
“I don’t give a shit.”
“Talon, I thought we were-”
“Wrong,” he said. “Wrong. Wrong.”
I heard the footsteps of Xavier getting closer.
“Fine,” I said. “I’ll pay you. Go fucking hide right now.”
“Promise me, darling?” Talon asked with a grin.
“Go,” I said through gritted teeth.
Talon slipped back into my bedroom.
I walked to the railing and turned my head, hoping I looked casual.
Xavier got to the top step and paused when he saw me.
“You don’t know how to text or go to the front door?” I asked.
“Why would I do that?” he asked.
His dark eyes and muscle laced arms were the perfect distraction to what waited in my bedroom.
I can’t believe this is what I’ve become.
Xavier wore a sleeveless shirt in a way as though it were made just for him. Only him. Nobody else in the world could wear a sleeveless shirt. Ever.
“If you’re here for your hoodie, it’s in my bedroom,” I said.
“Did you just invite me into your bedroom?”
“Sure,” I said. “One track mind, huh?”
“No. But if I see an opportunity, I’m going to take it.”
Now Xavier walked closer to me.
He then turned and faced the ocean, like me, leaning against the railing.
Our shoulders just barely touching.
“What’s going on?” I whispered.
“Nothing,” he said. “Just wanted to see you. Is that a crime?”
“No,” I said. “Easton came to check up on me. Noah sent flowers to Winter Semen. And now you’re here. Any reason for that?”
“Things seem a little better when you’re around, Winter,” Xavier said.
I laughed. “Why? Because you three can manipulate my mind and memories?”
Xavier looked at me and curled his lip. “What does that mean?”
“Seriously? I have Easton telling me we slept together. Noah getting pissed, acting like he’s jealous. You’re so quiet and brooding, I have no clue whether you like me or hope I drop dead.”
I was pushing the limit with what I was saying.
But as long as I kept it vague, I was okay.
“Why would I want you to drop dead?” Xavier asked.
Oh… do you really want to talk about that right now?
I shrugged my shoulders. “I have no memory. How would I know? Maybe I did something to piss you off at some point.”
Xavier leaned closer to me and turned sideways. He reached up and used his middle finger to tuck my hair behind my ear.
“Clean slate.”
“Huh?”
“Clean slate, Winter,” Xavier said. “I don’t care about the past. If there even is one. Not sure I even believe in it. It’s just about what happens now. You can’t take things too seriously.”
“You’re telling me that?” I asked.
After what you did…
“I just wanted to see you for a second, Winter. Make sure you were okay. There’s been a lot of weird shit happening.”
“Like what?”
“The thing with Noah. Easton’s car. Someone busted a window at my shop. Didn’t break in or take anything. Kind of fucked up, you know?”
“Wish I could help,” I said. “But… again…”
“You can’t remember,” Xavier said. “Hey, can I tell you a secret?”
“Sure,” I said.
Xavier got even closer to me. His lips were an inch from mine.
“Sometimes I wish I could forget too,” he whispered. “To not remember… fuck…”
My heart thudded faster.
It felt like Xavier was trying to confess to something.
My lips parted, trying to find words to speak.
Xavier gently pressed his lips to mine.
My eyes went wide.
You can’t kiss him. You can’t kiss these guys. You can’t keep… fuck… you’re going to do this…
I kissed him back.
His right hand grabbed my hip and he pulled me against his body.
That same hand then slid around to the small of my back and down, getting close to grabbing my ass.
The kiss exploded hotter, our tongues colliding, swirling around one another.
He held me so tight against himself I could feel…
I turned my head and broke the kiss.
My body was on fire and my knees felt weak.
I gasped for a breath.
“Goodnight, Xavier,” I said.
He laughed. “Yeah. Goodnight. Hope to see you again soon, Winter. If now, I know where to find you.”
I glanced at him again.
They were all trying to fuck with my head and heart.
But I knew why.
They didn’t know that.
I wondered if I could fuck with them right back.
Win their hearts. All three. Then shatter them.
That almost felt like going down in flames though.
Xavier walked away and I listened to the thumping of his steps get quieter with the distance.
He went down to the beach and vanished into the night.
When I turned around, I gasped and covered my mouth.
The kiss was so hot with Xavier I forgot about Talon in my bedroom.
I got on my hands and knees and reached under my bed.
“Nice angle, darling,” Talon said.
Heat rushed to my face as I got the money for Talon.
I quickly stood up, everything about me flustered and flushed.
I threw the money to the bed.
Talon laughed.
“What’s so funny?”
“This,” he said. “Us together. Secret. Money on the bed. Your cheeks red because I was looking at your ass.”
“Please leave,” I said.
“I’m getting there,” Talon said. “By the way, I like what you’re doing there. Getting close to them like that. They have no idea, Winter. No fucking idea.”
“Yeah, well, if I’m doing all the work, then I don’t really need you, do I?”
“I guess it pays to make yourself needed,” Talon said. “You need me, darling. To keep my mouth shut. Right?”
“Just get out,” I said. “If you don’t, I’ll call the police. You want to run your mouth, go ahead?”
Talon nodded. “Calling my bluff is dangerous.”
I stepped toward him and put my hand to his chest. “You’re a Troc. You care about two things. I have both things. Cash. And ass. You’ve got one of the two. As long as you know it’s there, you won’t do a thing. And you’re dumb enough to not realize the ass thing will never happen. So you’ll keep coming back. Now get the fuck out of my bedroom. I can’t wait to hear what your next idea is for Noah, Easton, and Xavier.”
I kissed the air.
Talon smiled and finally backed away.
He climbed out of the window he had climbed through and was gone.
I didn’t understand why he didn’t use the steps and the deck to get to my room.
But he w
as a Troc. They were just…
I heard a knocking sound behind me.
I spun around, wondering what the hell was going to happen next.
The person I thought I was going to see standing there…
“Gia.”
She stepped into the bedroom and looked around.
“Are you alone?” she whispered.
“Of course I am,” I said.
Great. Back to lying…
I opened my mouth and sighed. “Fuck. No. I mean, yes. I’m alone right now. But I wasn’t. Talon was here. Then Xavier showed up. Then-”
“What?” Gia yelled. “They were here together?”
“They didn’t know.”
Gia’s face turned red. “Are you… wait…”
“Gia,” I said. “I can’t do this with you anymore. You’ve been a ghost since I walked away on the beach. And I’m so sorry about that. What you told me though…”
I felt my chest tightening.
I felt trapped.
In my own bedroom.
I took a breath and slowly sat down on the edge of the bed.
“I feel sick,” I said.
Gia hurried toward me and dropped to her knees. “Is it your head again? The pain?”
I blinked and stared into Gia’s eyes. “Why are you doing this to me?”
“Doing what, Winter?”
“You ignored me. For days now. And then you ran right by me on the beach and didn’t even-”
“When?” Gia asked.
“Are you kidding me?”
Gia’s jaw dropped. “Oh… fuck…”
“What?”
Gia lowered her head. She shook her head. “This is my fault. Winter, I’m so sorry.”
“What are you sorry for?” I asked.
Gia lifted her head and her eyes were full of tears.
“Gia?” I asked.
She wiped her cheeks. “What I told you…” She shook her head. “It made me spiral. I lost track of time. I…”
She inched back and sat down on my bedroom floor. She hugged her knees.
I scooted myself off the bed and down to the floor too.
“What is it?” I asked.
“I didn’t even see you,” she said. “I didn’t realize it was you. I was just running. I was so focused. So anxious and sad. I’ve been… lost. When you walked away, I yelled to you that I was going away for two days. There’s this retreat type thing. It’s kind of stupid but kind of fun. We go into the woods and make a pact to leave our phones behind. Just to unplug. I needed it after what I told you.”
“What?” I asked. “Are you serious?”
Gia nodded. “Yeah.”
“Gia, I thought… that’s why your mother was here.”
“My mother was here?”
“She came by to tell me not to give up on you. I had no idea what she was talking about.”
“Ohmygod,” Gia said. She touched her forehead. “I’m so embarrassed.”
“Why?”
“This is what I do. I get into these moods and just lose myself. I break plans. I mess up friendships. And I don’t care about anything. I hurt everyone around me. I hurt you, Winter.”
“No you didn’t,” I said. “I was… scared.”
“Of what?”
“You told me Xavier is your brother,” I said. “Oh, fuck, I just said Xavier was here. Are you okay?”
“No,” Gia said. “Not at all.”
“Look, I know this is all crazy,” I said. “I’m so sorry I lied to you, Gia. I just wanted to figure something out. It all happened so fast. You know? I swear when I woke up from the accident I knew nothing. I called my father Mr. Seacrum.”
“But now you remember?” Gia asked.
I nodded. “Yeah. Everyone started showing up to visit me. Evie and Darcy were there making idiots of themselves. And then in the back of the gathering I spotted… Noah, Easton, and Xavier. And it all came rushing back to me. I heard them talking in Xavier’s shop about me. Wanting to do something to me. And then the accident… I couldn’t do anything to stop it. I couldn’t turn the wheel. I couldn’t hit the brakes. So I jumped into the back as it crashed. I guess that saved my life.”
Gia stared in disbelief.
I waited a few seconds.
She didn’t talk.
So I kept going.
“So I decided to, uh, to do something about it,” I said. “I pretended not to have my memory while I was in the hospital. Just so I could think. It was a lot to take in at once. Then I got home… to the castle… that’s what I call Dad’s house. My mother was there. I haven’t seen her in forever. She took off on us when I was young. I ended up here because she called me out on not remembering being fake.”
“She knew right away,” Gia said.
“Yeah,” I said. “That was wild. She wanted to help me. Dad had to leave for business. So it made sense. I came here to rest and figure things out. I was going to get revenge and Talon caught me so-”
“Talon… right…”
“Gia, I’m not fooling around with him,” I said. “A Troc? No. It’s not like that at all. He said he could help. And I kind of need him to keep this a secret. So I pay him.”
“You give Talon money?” Gia asked.
“Yeah.”
“Ohmygod, Winter,” she said. “This is madness. I feel like I’m dreaming.”
“Join the club,” I said. “Talon shows up whenever he wants and does what he wants. He’s the one who set up framing Noah. He took me to watch Easton’s car get blown up. And he took me to throw a rock through Xavier’s window at the shop. He wants to get them worried and rattled, and it’s working. I have no idea what the end looks like, Gia. I just want them to suffer a little. And I’m afraid if I say something they’ll try to do something again. I’m lost. I’m pissed. Yet when I talk to them, they act like nothing is wrong. They look at me…” I swallowed hard. “It’s almost like they want me. They touch me. They kiss me.”
“You’ve kissed them?” Gia asked.
“I know. It’s fucked up. Maybe I’m doing it on purpose. To get to their hearts. I don’t know.”
I abruptly stopped talking.
Gia slowly got to her feet.
I looked up at her.
“So this is a misunderstanding between us?” I asked.
“I have to go.”
“What?”
Gia darted toward the door.
I jumped to my feet and ran after her.
To my shock, I caught up to her.
I managed to grab her shoulder and stop her.
I tried to turn her and she threw an elbow, almost hitting me in the face.
As a last second move, I kicked at her left ankle.
Gia toppled to the floor with a hard thud.
I gasped and covered my mouth.
“That hurt,” she said.
“Gia, I’m so sorry.”
I fell to the floor next to her.
She was on her hands and knees and looked at me. “Are you sure about this?”
“About what?”
“What I’m going to tell you.”
“Gia, I’m not sure of anything in my life right now.”
Chapter 4
not the way you think
We sat outside my bedroom in the dark hallway.
Gia was nothing more than a silhouette as she sat across from me.
“Anything else you need to tell me?” Gia asked.
“I don’t know,” I said. “After what you said to me on the beach… I just shut down. I didn’t hear a thing you said when I ran away. I freaked out. I panicked. All I could picture was you running home to tell Xavier what was going on. I’ve honestly been thinking about leaving here. I can go back to the castle. Or I can just leave. Find somewhere else to live. Change my name. Cut my hair.”
“Winter…”
“I know. It’s crazy. What am I supposed to do? You’re my best friend. And Xavier is your brother? I can’t even… I mean… how did I not know that?
”
“It’s because nobody knows that, Winter,” Gia said.
Silence fell between us.
“Gia?” I asked.
“I’m here,” she said. “Is your mother home?”
“No.”
“Okay. I don’t know if she knows or not. Here’s the deal, Winter. Xavier’s parents are split up. Forest. Deb. Those are his parents. You know that though.”
“Right,” I said. “I vaguely remember hearing something like that at one point. There were always rumors about marriage and divorce. Money and power. People fucking each other. Typical stuff around here. Right?”
“Think about what you just said,” Gia said.
“What did I just say?”
“Everything,” she said.
“Gia… I’m tired. I’m confused.”
“Xavier’s father fucked my mother!” Gia yelled.
Her voice bounced off the walls.
I refrained from asking what even though I felt like screaming it.
“Think about that,” Gia said.
“I am. I just don’t know what to say next. Without sounding cliché.”
“You want to know how, why, what happened,” Gia said.
“Yes.”
Gia leaned forward and I could see her face in the light leaking from my bedroom.
Tears streamed down her cheeks. “This is my fucking life, Winter. Nothing but a giant secret.”
“Secret?”
“My mother is Xavier’s mother,” she said. “She gave birth to him.”
My jaw slowly started to drop.
Gia wasn’t done.
“Then Xavier’s mother paid my mother to take him away.”
I slid the glass across the counter and Gia grabbed and drank from it.
She chugged the entire drink and then slid the glass back and nodded.
I poured more.
For me, I just drank from the bottle.
We stared at each other.
I wasn’t going to ask questions.
I was just going to listen.
Because this was getting more twisted than I could have ever imagined.
“Here’s what I know,” Gia said. “My mother and father… they had me. Obviously. My father met someone overseas and decided to stay there. Japan. He sent my mother a bunch of money and told her to never bother him. He literally got on a plane for work and never came back. He left all of his belongings behind too.”
Damaged Love (Bay Falls High NEXT Book 2) Page 3
