by Amity Hope
She squirmed into a sitting position and pulled out her Chemistry textbook as she scooted to one end of the couch, Gabe to the other.
He grabbed a magazine of Molly’s that had been left on the end table.
“Get to work,” he told Ava as he flipped it open and settled against the cushions.
At first, Ava thought he was joking but he was being surprisingly cooperative. She watched him flip a few more pages until he found an article that he was seemingly interested in. After a few moments she managed to pull her gaze away from him so she could devote her full attention to the information they were being tested on.
She read the entire chapter, then pulled out her notebook and skimmed through her notes as well. She hadn’t thought she’d be able to study but to her relief, she felt that she was retaining most, though definitely not all, of the information. When she was finished she debated reviewing one more time but decided against it. She had a decent enough grade that she didn’t need to ace the test. She decided not to waste any more time on it.
She stuffed her Chemistry book back into the bag.
“Done?” Gabe asked with a hopeful look.
She shook her head and pulled out the dreaded Civics textbook. “No, I still have this to do,” she said as she held up a packet of papers. “But I’m so glad you planned this for tonight. With such a busy week I wasn’t sure when I was going to see you again.”
“How about Friday night? We can come back here,” Gabe suggested as he took her hand and started toying with her fingers.
Ava thought she would like nothing better than that. For the first time she started to think that moving into the cabin after her birthday might not be such a bad idea after all. She could have privacy. They could have privacy. On the other hand, maybe it would be a dangerous idea because resisting Gabe was hard enough already.
apte"24" align="justify">But that was a thought for another time.
She started to shake her head.
Gabe’s face clouded with confusion. “No to Friday? You won’t have to worry about homework. You’ll have the whole weekend for that.”
Ava bit her lip for just a second. “I can’t,” she hesitantly admitted. “There’s this party I’m going to…” she trailed off at the questioning look on Gabe’s face. “Well, I’m not sure party is even the right word. At least, not what you would probably expect from a party. It’ll be more of a get together. Just some of my friends, some of the senior class, celebrating the end of the year. I kind of already agreed with Molly and Julia that we could make a girls’ night out of it.”
It was hard to find a balance between her friends and her boyfriend but it was something that was important to her so she was determined to find a way. She had never been one of those girls that ditched her friends for a guy and she had no plans of becoming that kind of person any time soon.
Despite how tempting Gabe could be.
“Oh,” he said as he leaned back into the couch. “Okay.”
Ava was surprised by the disappointed look on his face. “I would’ve invited you,” she told him, “but I don’t think you’d have much fun. It just really doesn’t sound like it would be your kind of thing.”
“No,” he scoffed. “It’s fine. You need to spend time with your friends.”
“You’re okay with that?” she asked.
He nodded. “Yeah, of course.” Then he grinned. “But it does make me glad that I have you to myself tonight.”
He slid over, pulling her body into his.
“Gabe,” Ava chastised, “I should really be filling out these worksheets.”
“You can,” Gabe said as he kissed the inside of her wrist. “I’m entirely capable of entertaining myself while you study,” he informed her as he proceeded to leave a trail of kisses up the length of her arm and finally, a lingering kiss on her neck. “See,” he said as he moved his lips to her ear, “I can keep very, very busy.”
She giggled as she playfully pushed him away. Already she knew she wouldn’t be getting any more homework done. She did a quick mental calculation of her grade and decided she probably had enough extra credit points that not finishing her study packet from Civics wouldn’t matter too much. Instead, she tossed it aside.
Gabe gave her a victorious grin as he gently pushed her down onto the couch.
She couldn’t stop the not-so-quiet moan that escaped her lips as an intoxicating warmth rushed through her body at the feel of Gabe’s hands on her once again. “You are such a bad influence on me,” Ava murmured, teasing as she wrapped her arms around him
He cut off any more half-hearted protests with a hungry kiss, wondering just how bad of an influence she was going to allow him to be.
Chapter 13
He did not want to admit to himself how his week had dragged on incessantly. More specifically, he did not want to admit why.
They’d spent several hours at her cabin and he hadn’t seen her since. That night it had been clear that ^n>
Just a little.
In the meantime, in the following days, he’d kept himself entertained with thoughts of that night. Embellished thoughts, but thoughts nonetheless.
He found that the less he saw of her, the less he had of her, the more he wanted her.
He was used to spending the weekends with her but she was with her friends. He was sure that she had been right. He wouldn’t have had any fun if she would’ve invited him along.
Of course she was right. What fun would he have at a party where they were probably bobbing for apples, pinning the tail on a donkey or doing whatever mundane thing it was that good kids did for fun? So he hadn’t complained.
But now he found himself wanting to be where she was because…did he actually miss her?
Impossible, he told himself. He didn’t miss her.
At first he had been worried that Ava would be angry about him not agreeing to hear her sing. It was the first time he’d ever really denied her anything. Initially because he needed to win her over, later because he found himself—to his bewilderment—wanting to do whatever it took to keep her happy. When he talked to her about it he realized she wasn’t angry at all. But she was a little sad.
He was frustrated that he felt bad about that, but really, there was nothing he could do. Going to a church was not an option. If the cross had caused him discomfort, well, he didn’t want to contemplate exactly what kind of havoc would be bestowed upon him if he stepped foot on sacred ground.
But that didn’t explain why he was so agitated sitting home alone on a Friday night. He could go out. To Rafe’s consternation Gabe had actually managed to make a few friends at the radio station. Kara, for example, had invited him to join her and her friends yet again. For the first time, he’d told her not to bother asking him anymore.
He wandered into the main house to raid the fridge since his was pathetically empty. He rummaged around in the freezer, not really finding anything of interest. This in itself was another odd occurrence as he was typically satisfied to eat anything and everything. The listless feeling was becoming bothersome. He finally settled on a family size box of chicken enchiladas. He was walking through the kitchen with them when Rafe entered.
“Shouldn’t you be out?” he asked.
Gabe shrugged. “I’m taking the night off.”
“Seems like you’ve taken almost every night off this week,” Rafe noted. He looked displeased and Gabe was annoyed with how closely he resembled their father.
Gabe tried to sidestep him so he could get back to the guest house. Rafe blocked the door.
“What do you care?” he finally asked.
“Father would prefer more contact time,” Rafe told him.
“And why, exactly, does he want that?” Gabe pressed. “I’ve been doing my part for a few months now. I think it’s about time someone enlighten me as to why I’ve been doing this.”
“Don’t tell me you haven’t enjoyed it?” Rafe countered with a satisfied sneer.
“I don’t enjoy not knowi
ng what’s going on,” Gabe grated out.
“You’ll be finding out soon enough.”
An incessant vibration erupted in Gabe’s pocket. He pulled out the phone and an unwanted pleasant feeling spread through him at the sight of Ava’s number.
Rafe had been watching him closely. He was not sure if he’d managed to keep his face neutral at the realization of who was calling.
“Hey,” he said into the phone. He slid into the hallway, out of Rafe’s sight but not out of hearing range.
“Gabe?” an unfamiliar voice hesitantly replied.
“Who is this?” he asked because it sure wasn’t Ava.
“Molly,” she said and instantly her voice was familiar to him. “I’ve got a problem. A huge problem and I didn’t know who else to call.”
“So you’re calling me?” he asked in puzzlement. No one had ever called him to request help with a problem before. He already didn’t like it. “Why are you using Ava’s phone?” he snapped.
“Because Ava’s the one who needs help,” she snapped back. “And even though her judgment is obviously impaired, I have to agree with her because our options are severely limited.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” He tried to keep his face from giving anything away to Rafe who had now followed him into the foyer. The loathsome smirk he wore caused a tightening in Gabe’s stomach. Whatever trouble Ava was in, he knew Rafe was responsible.
So had it started? Had their father instigated his next step? Or was this something else entirely?
“It means,” Molly huffed, “that someone dumped a bucket load of vodka into the punchbowl. I’m not sure how much Ava drank by the time I got there. But as far as I know the only alcohol she’s ever had has been in the form of communion wine. In all honesty, she probably only had a couple of glasses but it was more than enough.”
Gabe hurried out of the house. He was sure to close the door behind him in an effort to keep Rafe from listening in. “Is she okay?”
“No, she’s not okay,” Molly’s tone softened the instant Gabe’s did. “She’s sleeping.”
“You mean she’s passed out,” he corrected.
“Whatever. Anyhow, she was supposed to spend the night at my house tonight but there is no way I can sneak her in. I have to check in with my parents when I get home. I cannot tell you the drama this would cause with my mom. I can’t bring her back to her house like this.” She paused for such a long time Gabe wondered if he had lost the connection. He held his phone out to check the display but the call hadn’t been lost.
“And?” he prompted.
“She asked me to call you,” Molly told him. “Look, I think this is a bad idea but here’s the thing. Do you remember last weekend when she mentioned her dad’s mentor was coming for a visit? Well, he’s here and he’s staying at their house this weekend. I think Ava would rather die than risk humiliating her parents over this so I can’t take her home. Julia, as you can imagine, is no help at all. And I can’t bring her home with me…”
Gabe grinned at the obvious frustration the confession caused Molly. He liked Molly but he could tell by her voice that this request was troubling to her.
“So what do you want me to do? Are you saying you want me to come get her? You want me to keep her overnight?” He couldn’t keep the amusement out of his voice.
Molly bristled on the other end. “No,” she said brusquely. “Maybe. I don’t know. I’d bring her to her cabin but she doesn’t have the key. But obviously calling you was a horrible idea.”
“Wait!” He could sense she was about to disconnect. “Don’t hang up,” he said, his voice taking on a convenient apologetic air. “I’ll come get her. I’ll be a perfect gentleman. I promise.”
Molly hesitated. “I’m actually driving right now. As soon as I caught up to her at the party I figured out what happened. I got her out to my car and she seemed at least semi-reasonable…until she just conked right out. Before that though, after she realized what happened, she was pretty freaked out. I think her parents would understand the mistake but she’s just so worried about the impression she’d make on their company. The timing of this couldn’t be worse. What horrible luck.”
Luck, Gabe knew, had nothing to do with it.
“Okay,” he said as he ran his free hand through his hair. “So where are you? Do you want me to meet you somewhere?”
“Actually, I can be at your house in just a few minutes. Ava gave me directions. It sounds pretty easy to find. I have to say, I don’t like this. I’m warning you…if you do anything you shouldn’t be doing…I’ll hunt you down and...I don’t know exactly what but I’ll do something very, very bad to you.”
“Yeah, all right,” Gabe said agreeably. “Just don’t pull up to the main house. I stay in the guesthouse so follow the curve in the driveway. I’ll see you in a few minutes.” He shoved his phone back into his pocket and jumped at the sound of Rafe’s laughter.
“Spiking the punch is pretty much a cliché,” Rafe sneered. “But yet again, ‘you’re welcome’, all the same.”
Gabe didn’t bother responding. He was losing his touch. He hadn’t noticed Rafe creeping up behind him. Without looking back he headed to the guest house. Berating himself for allowing this.
What was he thinking? He already knew he shouldn’t have agreed to this. Especially if it was a situation that Rafe had engineered. If Rafe had put this plan into motion, it meant their father had requested it. Anything that their father requested typically resulted in harm being done to that person.
His heart thudded in his chest as he tossed the box of food into the freezer. His appetite was suddenly gone. Was his father coming to collect Ava tonight? Was that what this was about?
He was seized with panic, an emotion he was well acquainted with, but always in regard to himself. Never in regard to anyone else. This time, however, there was no denying his panic was for Ava’s safety. Which really, he reminded himself, was ridiculous. He knew the time was coming, he knew that this, whatever they had, wasn’t real. It never had been.
Despite how real it all suddenly felt to him.
Gabe watched through the window in the front door. When he saw Molly’s headlights appear he let himself out into the darkness. He was not sure if it was a simple case of unease causing him to feel wary or if it was something more sinister.
As Molly’s car crept slowly down the driveway, her headlights swept out into the night, across the expanse of the main house and then to the wooded area beyond. Nothing seemed amiss in the arcing beam of light. Yet Gabe would swear he felt the burning eyes of evil searing into his back, no matter which way he turned. The sting of trepidation clawed its way up his spine.
He glanced about but Rafe seemed to have disappeared back into the house. Yet Gabe felt sure someone was watching them. Was it one of their father’s wickedly willing cohorts? Was Rafe watching from a darkened window? Or worse?
Gabe feared h cGabg from is father was here, in the flesh. The very thought tore his emotions into tattered shreds.
As the car came to a stop, Gabe continued to cast surreptitious glances all around. His eyes cutting through the night far better than if he’d been burdened with the paltry eyesight of a human.
He felt, all the way to the core of his being, that he ought to send Ava back with Molly. And still…a greedy, selfish part of him needed to see her. That part, wanting to keep her with him, won out.
It confirmed what he believed of himself all along. He was a monster. No better than his father or his brother.
“I’ve never, in all my life, been so happy to be Baptist,” Molly proclaimed as she got out of the car.
“What does that have to do with anything?” Gabe wondered as he pushed away all of the annoyingly bothersome feelings with a vicious mental shove.
“It means my mother won’t see her mother in church Sunday morning so the details of this whole disastrous night will not come up,” she explained.
“Is this a bad idea?” Ava asked as she
slid from Molly’s car. “This is probably a bad idea, isn’t it?” she asked Gabe, though it was Molly who was emphatically nodding her agreement.
“It’s not a bad idea,” Gabe told her even though he felt certain it was a horrible idea. “You can sleep it off. We can get you up bright and early so you can go home and pretend nothing happened.”
Molly scowled as Ava stumbled when the tarred drive turned into the grass lawn. Gabe caught her and she slipped into the security of his arms.
“Don’t even think of trying anything,” Molly warned him.
“Molly, I’ll be fine,” Ava assured her. “Right?” she asked Gabe.
“Right,” he agreed, wanting it to be true.
“Okay, well, have her home by nine tomorrow. That’s early enough that her parents won’t be calling to look for her but late enough that it won’t be suspicious,” Molly instructed Gabe. “And I’ll see you tomorrow afternoon,” she told Ava.
Gabe was tugging Ava into the house before Molly was even out of the driveway. He locked the door behind him.
A pointless act since a locked door would never stop his father.
“This is really nice,” Ava said as she wandered around. When she nearly tripped over the coffee table Gabe pulled her into his arms again.
“So now what?” she asked. Her eyes had a slightly glassy look that he cloo pullewas not accustomed to seeing on her. He knew the flirty way she smirked at him might be problematic.
He eyed the locked doorway. As far as he knew, his father wasn’t around. Did that mean she was safe for tonight? When it came to his father, he was no match. He decided to try not to think about it.
“I’m going to tuck you in and you’re going to sleep this off, just like I told Molly,” Gabe informed her.
He’d never been under an obligation to behave himself before. He wasn’t sure how to go about it. He led her to his bedroom wondering if he should just shove her inside and shut the door behind her. That would be the safest option.
Instead, he found himself being led over to his bed. She pulled him down to her. He could have easily resisted if he’d wanted to.
