“I’d never make you do anything,’’ he says hurt, standing up to walk over to me.
I watch him closely, so many emotions running through me, one of them embarrassment. I can’t believe they have seen me like this, that Max saw me like this.
“Where is Max?’’ I whisper, looking away and down at my blanket.
“He’s gone to get some food. We didn’t want to leave you like this.’’
“You can go,’’ I whisper, not wanting to torture him anymore than he already is. It’s obvious this is bothering him and I hate that I’m hurting him like this. I just want him to hold me, to tell me everything is okay, but I know it’s not going to be now. The way he’s looking at me, it’s something I never wanted.
“I’m not going anywhere, Kayla. I need you to tell me who it is. Is it your dad?’’
I laugh, and I laugh hard, not caring about the ache in my side or that Myles is looking at me like I’m crazy. If only he fucking knew which of them was the crazy one.
“My dad has never laid a finger on me. No one did. I’m just clumsy. I fell in the shower,’’ I lie and I know he knows I’m lying because I can’t look him in the eye when I tell him. My inner thoughts are screaming at me to tell him, to finally let go of all this pain my mom has made me carry around for years. She blamed me for having to move house after I was attacked, she blamed me for everything.
“You’re lying, goddamn it. Who did this, Kayla? Why won’t you tell me?’’ he shouts, his voice piercing my ears.
“Yo, bro, chill,’’ Max calls, as he walks into the room. His eyes flick to me quickly before they move back to his brother and I envy their twin bond. I envy their whole family. They are always there for each other no matter and if one is hurt, they all hurt, but they all fight back.
“Not now, Max,’’ Myles grits out, his eyes watering as he runs his fingers through his hair, pulling at the ends in frustration. He looks lost on what to do and I did that to him. I feel myself becoming angry. Angry at myself, at my mom and at the whole world.
“I fell in the shower. Please, don’t make me talk about it,’’ I yell. “Why won’t you just believe me, why? If you don’t want to be here then just go, I never asked you to come.’’ Tears run down my face and I wipe them away not looking away from Myles. Max moves so he’s closer to us before kneeling down by the side of my bed. His huge frame in my room makes the bedroom look like a tiny box room.
“Why don’t you want to talk about it?’’ He asks softly and Myles’ eyes meet mine, intrigued in hearing my answer.
“I just don’t. Please. I just don’t,’’ I plead, looking away from Myles to Max. He nods his head looking like he understands then puts his hand on the bed next to mine.
“Then don’t. But I do think you should. If someone is hurting you then we can stop it. We’re here and we can protect you. I know we didn’t do a good job with the other two, but with Harlow and Denny, we were like training GI Joe’s,’’ he jokes, making me chuckle. Harlow and Denny have had their own troubles, their own demons and they’ve come through it. Hearing him put it like that has me wondering if I’ll be safe to tell them. My biggest problem is no one believing me.
“We need to know who it is, though, Kayla. Maybe we can help,’’ Myles speaks up, his voice full of emotion.
“I’m fine, I promise. It’s just a few bruises.’’
“It’s more than a few bruises,’’ he grits out, his eyes hard, lingering on the bruises that are showing on left arm.
“Myles,’’ Max warns. “Look, we’re not going to push you tonight, but until you decide to tell us who it is that’s hurting you, then you’re going to have to put up with the both of us, possibly Maverick too, as Mason and Malik are all loved the fuck up. Not that they wouldn’t help if we asked,’’ he shrugs and my mind screams out in alert.
“No! No! You can’t talk about this. It was an accident. It’s not like it’s happened before,’’ I rush out, lying my ass off again.
“If you say so,’’ Max says eyeing me curiously and Myles just looks pissed.
“Please don’t be mad at me. I didn’t want you to see me like this. I didn’t want you to know,’’ I tell him softly and hear him take in a deep breath.
“Kayla, someone is hurting you. I came back to check on you because I’ve been worried all goddamn day thinking the worst, and when I get here it’s so much worse. This isn’t the first time it’s happened, I can see it in your eyes, but I’ve also seen bruises on you before. I always believed your excuses. I’ll let it go until we’re back from the weekend, but after that all bets are off, and if I have to find out myself then I won’t be happy,’’ he growls and this is a side to Myles I’ve never seen before. I’ve never had anyone want to protect me the way he wants to right now and it’s warming my heart to know I have that when I’ve never had it before.
“That sounds better than my idea,’’ Max mumbles and Myles and I look to him confused.
“You said you’d let it go,’’ I snap.
“Yeah, to you. Didn’t mean I wouldn’t beat your fucking dad up to get some answers.’’
I look at him with wide horrified eyes and he just chuckles looking at me with a smirk. “Don’t worry, daddy is safe…. For now.’’
“He hasn’t done anything,’’ I snap back furiously. He holds his hands up in surrender and I wish I could wipe that smirk off his face.
“Well, until Sunday,’’ he winks and I frown, hoping like hell I can think of something before we’re back on Sunday. There is no way I can tell them who it is, if that’s what they’ll do. Not that I think they’ll hit a woman, but I’ve seen Max, he loves playing pranks on people, and my mom will most likely wake up glued to her bed or some shit.
I just shake my head then my empty stomach growls, echoing around the quiet room and both boys look to me with big grins.
“Luckily I got us a Chinese,’’ Max grins, then stands up walking over to the door. “I’ll go get it plated up.’’
“We’ll be down in a sec,’’ Myles says, and I can feel his eyes on me still as I watch Max leave the room, leaving me alone with Myles, the tension is still thick in the room.
“Are you okay? Do you need painkillers? I wasn’t sure if you’d took any,’’ he asks softly, his face full of worry and concern.
“I’ll wait until after I’ve eaten. It looks worse than what it actually is.’’
“Yeah, and Max is a virgin,’’ he mutters standing up. “Where’s your robe?’’
“Oh, here,’’ I mutter, grabbing it from the end of the bed where I dumped it before going to sleep. I step out of bed once it’s secured around me, hiding the bruises from his prying eyes. I can feel them burning into my skin where I know marks cover my body.
After eating, Max puts all our dishes in the dishwasher before walking back in and deciding we were all watching a film. When I go to stand up my body is sore and stiff and I wheeze out a breath. Max hears me and moves to my side, and for a second my body freezes until I remember it’s Max, Myles’ brother.
“What’s going on?’’ Myles asks walking into the room with three cans of pop.
“She’s just stiff,’’ Max says, his eyes on mine as he carefully lifts me from the sofa. He guides me to the hall and by the time we reach the stairs my body is stretched and the pain lessens somewhat.
“I’ll grab you some painkillers once we get upstairs,’’ Myles tells me, and I’m not all that surprised he knows where they are with the amount of time he spends here.
Settling in on the bed, Max sits next to the wall, I sit down next to him and when Myles walks in, looking at us, he takes the space next to me and I become a Carter twin sandwich.
Myles hands me a glass of water along with two painkillers and I take them greedily, wanting the dull ache in my side to ease off a little. Max has been quiet since we got into my room and Myles has just been as bad and it’s driving me nuts, and calming me at the same time. I can feel the tension suffocating the air in t
he room and sandwiched between the two boys, it’s starting to suffocate me. Deciding to just go with it and let them deal with it on their own, I snuggle down in the bed, thankful Max thought to grab the extra pillows I keep on my beanie.
“Getting comfy?’’ Max grunts and that’s when I notice he’s trying not to touch me. I’m not sure whether that’s because Myles is in the room, or because he doesn’t want to hurt me, so I decide to give him some space and snuggle closer to Myles, who seems to be okay with that. He looks down at me with a small smile, his arm going around me and pulling me closer so I have no choice but to use his head as a pillow.
“Ahem,’’ I grunt, my lips twitching a little when I feel him shift again, my eyes feeling droopy once the sound of the movie starts to play.
Chapter Thirteen
MYLES
I’ve tossed and turned all night long, so when my eyes open in the morning from the sound of my phone alarm blaring, I groan. A warm body is cocooned tightly around me and I look down to find Kayla’s wild red hair falling all over my chest, her face snuggled into my chest. I smile slowly, loving the feel of her wrapped around me and I want to show her just how much by kissing the ever-loving-shit out of her.
Then he happens.
“Please don’t have a boner while I’m in the bed with you. This just feels so fucking wrong,’’ Max groans rubbing his eyes. My head turns fully to him and I give him a glare, forgetting he was even in the bed with us.
“What the fuck are you still doing in here?’’ I snap.
“Jesus, calm the fuck down. One, your girl’s legs were lying across mine, she’s freaking flexible,’’ he grins and a low growl comes from my throat. He just rolls his eyes at me, ignoring the line he’s crossing. “And two, I didn’t want to risk sneaking out and her dad catching me. He’d walk in here wanting answers and if he saw you here to he’d wonder what the fuck we were doing here,’’ he whispers quickly to me.
“So you stayed, because?’’ I deadpan, not caring for his excuses.
“Fuck’s sake, I was comfy as fuck. We only freaking slept. I didn’t even cop a feel,’’ he smirks and I lean across with my one arm and smack him across the head, nearly squashing Kayla in the process.
“Please tell me you’re really good at voice impersonating Max, and that he’s not lying next to me?’’ Kayla groans sleepily, making both Max and I burst into a fit of laughter.
“Sorry babe, I’m here,’’ he teases, and tickles her under her armpits making her squeal and jump closer to me giggling.
“Please stop! Stop!’’ She laughs and I watch with amusement as my brother makes her laugh, careful not harm her bruises. “Please, stop. Mercy! I’m going to pee myself,’’ she yells through laughter.
“That’s my queue to get to the loo before you,’’ Max shouts jumping over the both of us and off the bed. “Fuck, that rhymed,’’ he laughs, walking out of the room still fully dressed.
I roll us over so we’re on our sides and I give her a soft smile. And in return she gifts me with a lazy, soft smile. Fuck, she’s beautiful all of the time, but when she smiles it’s something else and it causes my chest to tighten. Every. Single. Time.
“Morning,’’ I rasp, giving her a peck on the nose. She relaxes into me, her hands finding my shoulders as she looks up at me with those big doe eyes.
Leaning in I give her another kiss, not able to stop myself, only this time opening my mouth to taste her. She goes to pull away from me, mumbling something about morning breath, but I couldn’t give a fuck. She tastes even better than she normally does. She doesn’t try to fight me for long, her mouth opens and her sweet tongue touches mine and I lose all senses. Shit, she can fucking kiss. She has my balls drawn up so tight she’s given ‘blue balls’ a whole new meaning.
“Good morning to you too,’’ she rasps out when I pull away and I grin down at her. Then I remember last night and I lose my smile. She looks at me worriedly, losing her own smile.
“How are you feeling?’’
“Okay, I guess. Those tablets worked, but my skin still feels tender when I move.’’
My face hardens and I know I’m going to kill her dad. I’ll never be able to look at him again and not want to beat the ever-loving-shit out of him. He has to be the one hurting her. He was the last person to see her yesterday and he lives with her. I just don’t get why. He seems so protective of her, adores her, yet he hurts her. I just don’t get it. If she lived with her mom on the other hand, I’d totally get her hurting her. Her mom is a raving lunatic. I swear I wish she was a bloke for the shit she has put Kayla through. It makes me furious to think of all the stuff she pulled after Kayla was attacked. The bitch has karma coming for her.
“Relax, otherwise your face will stick like it with all those frown lines,’’ Kayla whispers.
I relax, and decide to change the subject and to make sure she has a banging time this weekend. “How’d ya sleep? Did you have a nightmare?’’ This is a question I’ve wanted to ask her for a while now. Every night I’ve stayed I’ve not woken up to her screaming out in her sleep, or found her already awake.
“No, I didn’t have a nightmare,’’ she smiles, but it doesn’t reach her eyes. She seems to be mulling that over in her head, so I ask another question.
“Have you not been having them? The last few times I’ve stayed you’ve not had one.’’
“I’ve had them…’’ she stops for a second before her eyes go wide.
“What?’’ I ask worried.
“Nothing. It’s just…well, I had a nightmare the night before, but now you’ve mentioned it, I don’t remember having one when you’ve been in bed with me,’’ she says, biting her bottom lip.
“Maverick is on his way in fifteen minutes so I’d get a move on if I was you. I’m going to make something to eat, is that okay, Kayla?’’ Max calls interrupting.
“That’s fine,’’ she calls back and looks back at me with excitement shining in her eyes. She kneels up off the bed before climbing over me and making her way to her drawers. “Let me just have a quick shower. I’ve packed everything already, but I need to put last minute things in.’’
“Take your time,’’ I grin, happy to see her excited.
*** *** *** ***
“Max, will you just pick one fucking song and let it play?’’ Maverick snaps and Kayla giggles beside me. We’re sat in the far back of the people carrier with Harlow. Malik, who is currently sulking after being separated by Harlow, is sat in front of us with Denny and Mason. Poor Maverick got the short straw and had Max up front. Unlucky is all I can say.
“How long we got left till we get there?’’ Max whines again for the fiftieth time since we left Kayla’s two hours ago. “I’m hungry and I’m bored.’’
“You ate twenty minutes ago, Max, plus you had breakfast at Kayla’s, made us take you to McDonalds and when we stopped off at the garage you bought a shit ton of crap to eat. And we’d get there sooner if you’d stop making us fucking stop every ten minutes.’’
“You just said I ate twenty minutes ago, not ten. Don’t be so dramatic. I’m a growing lad.’’
Kayla giggles again beside me and I look down at her, amused. She hasn’t moved away from me since we got in the carrier. I didn’t even have to put my arm around her and pull her closer, she just got in and snuggled up next to me. When everyone started staring at us with wide eyes and their mouths hanging open, she just smiled and waved like it was no big deal. It made my fucking heart swell, I swear, and something else but I don’t want to go there. I feel fucking good with her in my arms, but what has the permanent grin upon my face is the fact I’ve chased her nightmares away. I just wish when I wasn’t with her that they’d leave her alone to, but knowing that I chase them away for her is incredible and makes me feel really fucking good.
“Pass me that,’’ Maverick snaps, and I look up in time to see him snatch the phone from Max’s hand.
“No, don’t,’’ he protests, and Maverick glares chucking the
phone behind him to Mason.
“Pick some music,’’ he tells Mason. The car radio doesn’t work and none of us thought to bring CDs with us. Thankfully Maverick had thought of the cable that connects a phone to the cars stereo system, but so far, Max hasn’t let a damn song play all the way through.
“What the fuck?’’ Mason roars with laughter, and Max stops fighting to get it back and turns back in his seat, slumping down in a huff. “He has lists of music.’’
“So fucking play one already,’’ Maverick snaps, clearly getting annoyed with his younger siblings.
“You sure?’’ Mason laughs again and it has me looking over his shoulder at the screen. As soon as I read the first few, I burst out laughing along with him.
“What’s so funny?’’ Kayla asks me the same time Denny starts giggling. Next thing you know Cotton Eye Joe starts playing over the radio and everyone bursts out laughing, including Maverick. He looks over to Max with a huge grin on his face.
“Seriously, Max?’’ he laughs then shouts over his shoulder to Mason. “What else does he have?’’
A Disney song starts to play and everyone laughs harder. “Frozen, Max? Fucking, Frozen?’’ I laugh.
“It’s catching, so fuck off,’’ he grunts.
“Sing it then?’’ Mason taunts and the girls start singing along with it, not able to stop through their laughter. When Max finally joins in, his voice overpowers theirs. That’s when I notice Malik has finally snapped out of his sulk and is recording Max singing wildly to Love Is An Open Door with an evil smirk on his face.
A car horn honks from the side of us and I’ve never laughed so hard in all my life when a group of girls in a mini convertible with the hood down drive next to us.
I didn’t even notice we had hit slow moving traffic and were gaining an audience.
When the girls start laughing, Max turns around in his seat and glares at all of us. “I’ll get you back, you bunch of pricks.’’
One of the girls shouts something to him and he rolls down his window, sticking his head out.
Myles (Carter Brother#3) Page 15
