“I don’t understand.”
Nessie smiled and she suddenly looked much older than her years. She unfolded her arms and slipped the lace sleeve of her dress up over the crook of her elbow, revealing a mess of needle marks all in various stages of healing.
“Just remember it can always get worse. Pissing him off is a guaranteed ticket to shitsville.”
A sudden commotion on the other side of the room allowed Holly to finally drag her gaze away from Nessie’s arm. Marcus’ voice from the hall raised the hairs along the back of her neck and she crossed the room.
“You’ve got some nerve,” Marcus said as Holly stepped into the hall and froze.
Riley stood inside the door, a wide grin on his handsome face as he shrugged out of his coat.
The sight of him was enough to drive all the air from Holly’s lungs, as though someone had driven their fist through her chest. She wavered on her feet, gripping the doorjamb as she fought to steady herself.
What the hell was he doing here?
The man behind Riley stepped forward, his icy blond hair sparkling beneath the hall lights and Holly instantly recognised Anderson Clarke.
“You wanted me at your table, Marcus, this is the price,” Anderson said, his expression serious and calculating as he stared Marcus down.
Holly expected Marcus to explode. The colour that flooded his face made him look unstable and from the tensing of his shoulders she knew he was seconds away from launching himself across the space at Riley.
“Marcus, they’re waiting for you,” Victor said, his voice low and calm as though he were talking to a small child on the verge of a tantrum. “Think of what you’re trying to achieve.”
It was enough to diffuse him and Holly watched as he seemed to give himself a mental shake before turning and stalking back into the living room.
Victor started to follow him but he paused as he reached the door.
“It’s fine, Victor, I’ll be just a moment,” Holly said, knowing he was waiting for her to follow suit.
He stared down into her face and a flickering of jealousy crossed through his eyes, making her a little nervous before he stalked off, his back straight and shoulders stiff.
“What the hell are you doing here? Have you completely lost your mind?” Holly whispered as Riley crossed the hall towards her.
She backed up until she felt the cold press of the wall behind her and she was left with nowhere to go.
“I want to protect you. Leave with me—leave right now—and he won’t even know you’re gone until we’re far enough away from this place that it doesn’t matter how angry he gets.”
She shook her head, her eyes filling with tears as his hand cupped the side of her cheek.
“I can’t, Riley, you know that, I’ve told you. If I go, what’ll he do to my father? to…” She cut herself off before she had the chance to let her mother’s name slip out.
Until she could find a way to protect the people she loved, there was nothing she could do but carry on with the plan and marry Marcus.
“I can protect your father—I can protect all of you—you’ve just got to trust me.”
“I want to, I really do, but it’s not a risk I’m willing to take.”
Riley’s fingers stroked down against her cheek, his hand pausing against the edge of her bruising. She’d tried to cover the marks but there was only so much concealer and makeup could do and the dress was so revealing that there was no way to hide the marks around her neck and collarbone.
“He did this to you?”
Holly nodded, her mouth going suddenly dry. Riley’s expression hardened and he jerked away from her.
“I’ll kill him for this.”
Holly grabbed his arm, halting him from bursting into the living room. She could feel the tension in his body, his muscles flexing beneath the touch of her hand.
“Don’t, Riley, please. You’ll only make it worse and I couldn’t bear to see anything happen to you.”
“Holly, nothing is going to happen to me, I’ll be fine. He’s just a man and I’m not going to let him get away with something like this. I won’t let him hurt you anymore.”
She shook her head as the tears began to drip down her cheeks.
“Please, Riley, you don’t know what he’s capable of. He’s dangerous.”
Riley laughed but it wasn’t a pleasant sound.
“It’s not just me, there’s far more at stake than you understand. He’s not working alone and the man he’s working for is far more powerful. He has connections, Riley, and you’re going to get yourself killed if you don’t back off.”
Holly let out a sigh of relief as Riley paused and stared down into her face.
“You know who he’s working for?”
“Not yet, but I’m getting closer. They’re dangerous, but Marcus won’t do anything to me. He needs me, he needs what I can give him.”
“I can’t leave you here to face him, Holly. I won’t.”
Holly pushed the ache in her chest down into her body but it only made her feel hollow inside.
“This isn’t your choice to make, Riley. I told you last night and I meant it. There’s no future for us. The more you interfere, the worse you make the situation. If you really cared for me, if you ever loved me, you’d walk away and let me deal with this myself.”
She watched as his face seemed to visibly pale, hurt and anger chasing across his face until his expression hardened into resolve.
“You may have given up on a future for us, Holly, but I haven’t and I’m not about to start now.”
He pulled out of her grip and strode into the living room.
She stood in the hall, waiting to hear the sounds of a fight breaking out.
Marcus would kill Riley.
The murmured sounds of laughter and conversation continued and Holly crept forward towards the living room door.
Was her mind playing tricks on her? Was it just protecting her from what she knew had to be occurring in the room?
Pushing the door open, her eyes scanned the room, finally coming to rest on Riley on the other side of the room deep in conversation with Anderson. She released her breath, the air sliding out from between her lips and she could feel her body deflating like a balloon.
Had she gotten through to him? Was he finally listening?
She could only hope he was.
Chapter 17
“If she’s right, then the last thing you should be doing is creating trouble,” Anderson warned.
Riley couldn’t help but notice his friend’s surreptitious glances at those gathered in the room and it made him even happier that he was with him. Two sets of eyes at the end of the day were better than one.
“Anderson, you saw the bruises, do you really expect me to leave her here with him? Weren’t you the one who said I needed to get her out of here as soon as possible?”
“Yeah, but you want it to be right. If you help her escape, what’s to stop him from coming after her again?”
“I’ll be there to stop him.”
“And if you get hurt or worse? What happens then, Riley? What happens to Holly then?”
“Why is everyone so convinced that I can’t take him, that he’ll put me on my ass?”
“Because if Holly is right, then Marcus is as ruthless as they come. A man like that has nothing to lose, so he wouldn’t hesitate to kill you. But you’d hesitate to take a life.”
“Not if I was protecting the people I love.”
Riley watched as his friend shook his head before swallowing down a mouthful of the scotch he’d ordered from the waitress the moment they’d entered the room. Riley could tell he didn’t approve of what he was planning but there was nothing he could do about that.
Marcus crossed the room towards them, the look on his face less than friendly but the fact that he’d allowed him to stay meant something. Riley just couldn’t quite get a read on what it was that Marcus was really planning.
“I’m so glad you could make
it, Anderson, although I admit I don’t remember saying you could bring a date.”
Riley dipped his head and hid a smile behind the glass of water he’d accepted.
“Well, you did say this was a business dinner, Marcus, so you can’t really hold a business dinner and not invite Riley Reynolds. His family holds far too much sway in this town. Anyway, I value his opinion…”
Marcus stiffened and Riley could practically see the cogs turning inside his thick skull as he processed Anderson’s statement.
“I’d have thought you were your own man, Anderson, capable of making up your own mind. Or was last night nothing more than front?”
Anderson laughed, the sound bouncing around the room and drawing the attention of some of the other guests gathered.
“You know, Marcus, if you’ve got a problem with me, then you should just say it to my face instead of dancing around the issue. But you should remember that I’m a member of the council and planning committee, and if you’re hoping to start up a business in this town you’re going to need our approval.”
Marcus turned his attention to Riley, his eyes cold and callous and Riley could imagine how a lesser man might feel intimidated by the expression in his gaze.
“Members of the council can always be replaced. You think you’re important, Riley Reynolds. Your father was as arrogant as you are. His death was a terrible tragedy, or so I heard, your mother too…” Marcus paused, a small smile curling just the corners of his lips and Riley fought the urge to wipe it from his face. “They never did catch the driver of the other car, did they? It’d be a terrible shame for Breaker’s Point if something similar happened to you…”
Anger boiled in Riley’s veins and he took a step closer to Marcus, putting him practically nose to nose with the other man.
“What the hell do you know about the death of my parents?” He kept his voice low and deliberate, in an attempt to curb his temper.
Marcus’ smile widened and he took a step back and spread his arms wide. “Absolutely nothing, Riley, how could I? It was a tragic accident, after all…”
Anderson’s hand on Riley’s arm was the only thing that stopped him from knocking Marcus to the floor with his fists. The thought of pummelling him until he begged for mercy was overwhelming but Riley glanced up and caught Holly’s piercing gaze.
The fear in her eyes was enough to take the wind completely out of his sails and he let out a slow and steady breath, burying his anger back down inside himself where it could be nurtured in preparation for when he got his chance to put Marcus in his place once and for all.
“I never took you for a coward, Riley,” Marcus said, disappointment evident in his voice.
He’d obviously been spoiling for a fight and yet Riley couldn’t shake the feeling that what he’d said about his parents had an air of truth to it.
“And I didn’t think you were a fool, but I guess we’re both wrong. Just remember this: if any harm comes to Holly, I’ll take great pleasure in hunting you down and ripping you limb from limb. Do you understand me?”
“I look forward to it,” Marcus said, his voice filled with the arrogance of a man used to being the toughest one in the room.
He moved away and it took all of Riley’s willpower to watch him walk away. He couldn’t think of another person on the planet that he hated more in that moment.
“If you need to leave, I understand. I’ll stay and see what Marcus proposes,” Anderson said, leaning in towards Riley.
Riley shook his head, his gaze never leaving Holly’s beautiful face. No, no matter what Marcus had said or alluded to, Riley knew if he left now it would make him the coward that bastard had said he was.
And anyway, what good would it do Holly if he was to just turn tail and run away at the first sign of trouble? He would see it through to the end no matter what happened.
Chapter 18
The evening dragged. The sound of Marcus’ braying laughter and the sideways glances from the other men he’d invited left Holly feeling as though she’d been covered in a fine layer of dirt.
The only thing that kept her hanging on was the fact that Riley stood no more than a few feet from her.
It gave her the chance to study him, to watch him up close and in person. It was something she hadn’t been able to do in a long time.
The strong line of his jaw, the way his hair fell into his eyes when he tipped his head forward. The crinkling of his eyes as he laughed…
She found herself focusing in on his lips, and her mind instantly transported her back to the kiss they’d shared in this room.
The feel of his hands on her body as he’d held her close, the way his lips crushed against hers, demanding her complete and utter surrender. And she had given it to him; she would always surrender to him. It hurt to think about it but Holly knew deep down she was meant to love Riley. Her body had been created to pleasure—and be pleasured by—him.
Heat flooded her cheeks and she dipped her head as she realised Riley had caught her staring at him.
Chancing a glance back up in his direction, the secretive smile that curved that demanding mouth of his almost made her believe that he could read her mind.
And if he could, she couldn’t help but wonder if he enjoyed her recollections of her time spent in his arms.
“You’re having a party and you didn’t invite me?”
Holly’s heart sank as the familiar sound of her father’s slurred voice in the hall caught her attention. Hurrying from the room, she almost ran into Victor’s broad frame as he manhandled Niall McCombe back from the door.
“Victor, please don’t hurt him,” she pleaded, reaching around to place her hand over his on her father’s shirt collar.
“I won’t, I’m going to help him back to his room, that’s all.” Victor’s eyes were dark and hungry as he stared unabashed down the front of her dress.
She jerked her hand away from him as though he’d burned her. His expression made her more than a little uncomfortable and a hell of a lot afraid of him. He’d always been careful to mask his feelings when he was around her, allowing only traces of his true intentions to leak out, until now.
Something had obviously changed and Holly had no idea what it was.
“You should go back to the party or Marcus is going to be upset,” he said as Niall struggled in his grip once more.
“Dad, please don’t fight it. You’re not missing anything at the party and I’ll come up and see you as soon as I can.” It hurt to watch him get locked away in his own house. But the alternative was far worse and if Marcus caught him out of his room he’d only lock him back in the garage or something else equally monstrous.
Her father stopped struggling against Victor’s hold, his glassy, bloodshot eyes focusing in on Holly’s face.
Holly took a stumbling step backwards as he spat at her. It hit her face and her hand automatically went to her cheek.
Her face burned as though she’d been slapped and the hollow pit that had opened up in her gut seemed to widen. How long would it be before the empty feeling spread and swallowed her whole?
“Dirty whore, you’re no daughter of mine. Any bitch that gives herself to that monster is just as bad as he is…”
“I’m doing this for you. Do you really think I want anything to do with him? Do you really think I relish the thought of shackling myself to a man I despise?”
But she knew from the look on her father’s face that none of her words meant anything to him. The alcohol had helped make his mind up for him about what she was doing and Holly knew there was no point in arguing with a man who was so drunk he probably couldn’t remember how to spell his own name.
She let Victor drag him away and watched as he slumped down into his arms, the look in his eyes one of someone who had lost everything.
And he had lost everything. But her father’s addiction had a funny way of twisting the truth to make it everyone else’s fault but his own.
Just run.
It would
be so easy to just run. Walk away from the house, the situation, the marriage to Marcus. After all, everyone else in her life had checked out.
Her father had buried himself in alcohol, leaving her to struggle on against Marcus alone. Her mother had walked out on her father years before, when his issues had first began.
The more she thought about it, the more she started to believe she came from a long line of quitters anyway, so why not join them?
But the thought of leaving her father and her mother to the whims of a monster like Marcus filled her with guilt. She couldn’t leave them. If she did that then she’d be no better than the monster she was trying to save them from.
* * *
Riley and Anderson along with a few other stragglers were one of the last groups to leave. Watching him as he walked out the door filled Holly with a sense of loss and it was a struggle to remain standing in the centre of the room and not race out the door after him.
Her thoughts from earlier resurfaced once more. Just run, chase after the man you love and let everyone else fend for themselves. But she just couldn’t bring herself to do it.
Holly didn’t wait for Marcus to give her permission to go upstairs, he was far too engrossed in Nessie and his celebrating whatever success he thought he’d achieved from the evening’s events to care.
As she made her way up the stairs, the house was quiet. The only sounds that met her ears were the giggles coming from Nessie and Marcus’ low rumbling voice.
Pausing at the top of the hall, Holly stared down in the direction of her father’s room. She could check in on him, do as she’d promised and spend some time with him. But, really, what was the point? He’d made himself clear earlier in the evening and Holly knew from experience that his continued drinking wouldn’t endear her to him.
Reaching the bedroom, she pushed the door open and stepped inside, the darkness wrapping around her like a familiar blanket. She let the door slide shut behind her and quickly flipped the key in the lock as she flipped on the light.
Holly froze. Her gaze locked onto Victor’s dark and hungry one.
Breaker's Point Bad Boy Billionaires Boxset Page 26
