by Tabatha Kiss
“I came with Zeke,” I admit, glancing at the waves. “He has his meeting and I wanted to get out of the city for a while…” I look over at him. “And what about you? What brings you here?”
“Becky dragged me with her,” he says.
“She’s here?” I ask.
“Yep.”
“And why isn’t she lounging on the beach with you?”
Logan chuckles. “Because she’s at the shareholder’s meeting.”
“Mason let her into the meeting?” I speak with genuine shock.
“Well, she does own shares, after all. And she has a vision for the future of the company.”
“Becky has a vision for the future of the company?”
“Apparently.”
I nod my head in approval. “Well, I wish her luck getting it over Mason’s head.”
“She should be doing her presentation right about now,” he says. His expression changes. “Look, Rocky, I didn’t know Becky was going to attack you like that.”
I turn away and focus on the ocean waves.
“Really, Rocky. If I knew she was going to… I would have kept my mouth shut.”
“Why didn’t you?” I ask. “I mean, hell, Logan, it’s Becky freakin’ Belmont. You gave her a live grenade and pointed at us.”
“I know, I know. Believe me. I’m sorry,” Logan says.
“And it’s not like the information has any relevance because things aren’t like that anymore,” I say, pushing the lie. “Zeke and I happened once… and you saw exactly how far it went. You were there. It’s in the past. Why bother bringing it back up again?”
“Is it?” Logan asks.
“Is it what?”
“Is it all in the past?”
I force a laugh. “Of course it is. We were stupid teenagers. We’re adults now.” I look at him and try to keep from cringing.
Logan reaches out and puts his hand on mine. “Good,” he says.
Goosebumps rise across my skin as his touch glides over me. My body goes tense. My eyes move over him, enjoying the more enticing aspects of his body as they glisten in the sunlight.
He reaches out with his other hand and places it on my bare thigh.
“Please don’t do that,” I say.
“Come on, Rocky,” he whispers into my ear, leaning in. “Let’s have some fun.” His lips graze my earlobe.
“I said don’t do that!” I pull away from him.
He doesn’t move and exhales a sigh. “I don’t get it,” he says.
“Don’t get what?” I ask, feeling a twinge of annoyance.
“What you see in him but not in me.”
I sit back. “What do you mean?”
“Come on, Rocky…” He leans back in the sand. His hands drop from my body. “I’ve always been nice to you. I went above and beyond to make you feel welcome when you first showed up…”
“Okay…”
“The least you could do is show me a little gratitude.”
“Gratitude?” I ask. “What the hell are you talking about?”
“Open your damn eyes, Rocky. Jesus…”
I sigh and jump out of my chair. “I don’t have time for this,” I say. “If you want to speak to me like an adult, you know where to find me.”
I grab my bag and toss it over my shoulder. He watches me stand up, his eye once again dropping to look at my body.
“Rocky, wait…”
I pause and give him a sideways glance.
“I’ve always had a thing for you…”
He looks so pathetic. For a moment, I feel sorry for him. “And what about Becky?” I ask. “What happened to always and forever? Isn’t that what you said at the party?”
“Becky…” he sighs. “Becky has just always been there. You know?”
“Logan… ” I step closer to him so I don’t have to shout. I don’t want the ocean waves to drown out what I’m about to say. “I’m sorry. But I don’t owe you anything. You were nice to me. You’ve always been nice to me. And that alone makes you a nice guy. But for you to claim that as a reason that I should sleep with you… that doesn’t make you a nice guy. It makes you a douchebag.”
Anger fills Logan’s eyes.
“Goodbye, Logan,” I say before he has a chance to argue. I turn around and stomp off the beach, kicking sand behind me as I walk. My cheeks are flaming hot, adrenaline pulsing blood through my veins. Strands of hair cling to my sweaty cheeks, tickling my skin as I move.
When I reach the hotel lobby, I pause to slip my flip-flops back on. I glance around the room, spotting suit after suit in the crowded room. All of them look important, their smiles dripping with money. I scan their faces, searching for Zeke, hoping to get a bit of comfort after my encounter with Logan but he’s nowhere to be found.
I exhale a sigh on my way to the elevator, being careful not to touch any of the very important looking men on my way there.
The elevator doors open just as I arrive and I step inside the golden — even in Hawaii, always gold — box after the other passengers climb off. I take a deep breath, feeling the cold air conditioning on my warm skin as I press the button for the thirty-third floor.
Something catches the door before it closes and a pair of hands force the doors open again. Logan steps on board the elevator with tight lips. My heart jumps inside of my chest and for the first time ever around Logan, I feel fear creeping into my conscious mind.
Logan hits the door close button and stands beside me frozen solid until the doors close.
“What do you want now?” I ask.
He closes the short gap between us and grabs my face. I recoil, stepping backwards, but quickly find myself against the wall. Logan plants a kiss on my lips and his tongue probes my mouth.
I push against his muscular chest with all of my strength. “Stop!” I shout.
He refuses and takes another step toward me to pin me against the wall.
“What does he do to you?” he growls, leaning in close. “How does he touch you?”
“Please let me go!” I say, overcome by his strength.
“Tell me and I’ll do it. I’ll do it for you.”
“Stop—”
“Does he do this?” His hands fill themselves with my breasts and he gives them a tight squeeze.
I try to push him away. “Stop it, Logan!”
“This is how you like it, isn’t it?!” he shouts at my face. His warm breath covers my skin. He sticks out his tongue and licks up my cheek. “You taste so good, Rocky!”
“Get off me!”
The elevator dings and the doors slid open.
I reach out, hoping that whoever opened the doors will help me.
“Get away from her. Now.”
My heart jumps for joy as Zeke’s voice fills my ears.
Logan loosens his grip but keeps me pinned. “Zeke…” he says, his voice full of amusement. “We were just talking about you.”
“Get away from her,” Zeke repeats. I catch sight of his eyes as his gray irises turn black.
“Oh, so now you act like the protective brother, huh?” I try to shove him away again but he stays firm. “What do you say? Want to take turns on Rocky? But I want to go first.”
Zeke steps inside the elevator and grabs Logan’s shoulders. He pulls Logan away from me and maneuvers his own body between us. With quick precision, he grabs my arm, pulls me toward him, and pushes me off the elevator just in time to hear the loud ding of closing doors.
I slam into the wall of the hallway and try to pick myself up before the doors close. But it’s too late. The doors close in front of me just as I see the two of them lunge at each other.
I push my ear against the doors and listen to the sounds of fists trading blows and bodies slamming against the inner walls. My eyes sting with tears as I imagine the violence occurring behind them. It’s impossible to know which of them is taking the most of the beating.
I lose all track of time, listening to the bouncing grunts until the noises finally stop. Fa
int sounds of breathing fight to be heard behind the doors. I hold my own breath as I try and place the voice behind it.
Ding!
I pull away from the doors and lean against the wall for support, hoping and praying that Zeke stood on the other side.
I breathe a sigh of relief as Zeke steps off the elevator but a feeling a dread quickly consumes me. His knuckles are scratched to bits. Blood pours from his nose. His nice suit was torn apart, exposing the fresh bruises and scratches along his chest.
“Zeke!” I cry, throwing my arms around his body. I look around him and spot Logan in a crumpled heap on the elevator’s floor.
“Is he…”
Zeke grabs my cheeks and pulls my face up to his. His eyes lock on mine. “Are you okay?” he asks.
I nod. My eyes bounce from his face toward the unconscious mass just a few feet away.
“He’ll live,” Zeke assures me. “Get to the room. Now.”
I turn my body, keeping one arm wrapped around Zeke as we stumble down the hallway toward our room.
Twenty
Rocky
“I’ll get the first aid kit,” I say as we enter our suite.
“I’m fine—” Zeke says.
I ignore him and step into the bathroom. If this hotel is anything like the one back home, there should be a first aid kit stashed under the sink. I kneel down and open the cabinets, all the while keeping one eye on Zeke. He says he’s fine, but judging by the way he just lost his balance and plopped down on the bed, I know he’s lying.
He eyes me as I come back into the room and get down on one knee by the bed. “Come here,” I say as I tear open a packet of antibiotic ointment. I grab some tissues and hold them out for him. “Stick these in your nose.”
“What were you doing with him?” he asks, cringing as his skin burns above his eye. He wipes the blood from his nose and tosses the tissues aside.
“Hold still,” I tell him. “And I wasn’t with him. We ran into each other on the beach.”
“And?”
“And… he came on to me.” I check his face for a reaction. “You don’t seem surprised.”
“Logan’s always been soft on you.”
“Jeez…” I say. “Am I the only one that didn’t know about that?”
“Probably.”
I rip open a bandage and lay it across the gash on his forehead before moving on to his split lip. The puzzle pieces together in my head. “Wait, so when he saw us in the pool house?”
Zeke nods. “It devastated him. Our friendship fell apart after that.”
“I wondered why,” I say. “I never thought for a second it was because of me…”
“What did he do to you?”
I lower my hand from his face. “He followed me onto the elevator and held me against the wall. He asked me what you do to me…”
“I’ll kill him.”
“No, you won’t,” I argue. “You’ve done enough to him already.”
“At least I made it in time.”
I sit back on the floor. “How did you make it in time?”
“The conference broke for lunch, so I came up to see if you were still in the room,” he explains. “I decided to go down and check the beach, but then I heard you screaming on the elevator.”
I sigh and attack the fresh cuts on his hand with a new antibiotic wipe. “Well… thank you, Zeke. I’m sure someone would have boarded eventually, but not before he…” My words trail off as I look into his eyes. “And I’m once again screwing things up for you.”
“Rocky, no. Don’t go there again.”
I brush a tear from my eye. “This is going to get out, Zeke. Especially now.”
“I can handle Logan,” he claims.
“And what about Becky?”
“What about Becky?”
I take a deep breath. “She knows about us, Zeke. Logan told her about the night in the pool house and she’s basically figured out the current situation.”
“How do you know?”
“She came to my room last night and told me,” I say. “She said…” Tears sting my eyes. I wanted to keep all of this to myself and let the memory of it die eventually. But I know now that it’s impossible. “She said that if our relationship gets out, it’ll ruin the family.”
“She threatened you?” he asks.
“No, it’s just the logical conclusion,” I argue. “You’ll lose your reputation in the company. Mason and everyone else will be humiliated. And I’ll be back on the streets.”
Zeke leans in closer and grabs my hands. “That’s not what will happen.”
“Of course that’s what will happen, Zeke.”
“You don’t know that.”
“It’s only a matter of time,” I say. “I’m sorry, Zeke, but… when we get back to the city, I’m leaving.”
Zeke sighs heavily, but for some reason, he maintains his smile. “Get dressed,” he says.
“Why?”
“Just do it.” He stands up off the bed and grabs a fresh dress shirt from his suitcase. I watch him move. The wheels spin in his head, but I can’t figure out what he’s thinking.
“Zeke…”
“Get dressed, Rocky,” he repeats.
Twenty-One
Zeke
“Zeke, what the hell did you do to him?”
Becky’s voice slithers into our ears the second Rocky and I step off the elevator.
“Ask Rocky,” I say, refusing to reduce our pace as I lead us toward the boardroom just off the lobby.
I glance back at Rocky. My beautiful Rocky. She wears a blue top and a tight pencil skirt to match. Dressed for Belmont business. Part of me is proud but the other part prefers the normal girl I fell for when we were just kids.
After today, I’ll have her back.
“He has a shattered nose, two black eyes, and probably some broken ribs,” Becky says on my other side, easily matching my wide strides.
“I don’t look that different but you don’t seem to be offering me any sympathies.”
She grabs my arm and forces me to stop. “Just tell me what happened, Zeke.”
I spin around to face her but I don’t want to. I want to slam the door to life in her damn face. “He tried to force himself on Rocky — that’s what happened.”
I squeeze Rocky’s hand even tighter and pull her along with me down the hallway.
“He wouldn’t do that,” I hear Becky squeak behind us. “Zeke, look at me.”
“No.” I grind to a stop again. “Look at her. Look at Rocky and tell me I’m wrong.”
Finally, Becky acknowledges her existence but she doesn’t say a word.
I take a step closer to tower over my sister. “How dare you threaten her,” I growl.
“Zeke, everything I’ve done, I’ve done it for you. For us!”
“Stop talking,” I snap. “I never want to hear your voice ever again. The only reason why you’re not sprawled on the floor of the elevator with Logan right now is because you’re my sister. And the only reason why I’m about to do what I’m about to do is because it will ensure that I never have to see you again.”
Her jaw drops. She shoots another harsh look at Rocky, one full of cold desperation. I don’t wait around to see what she has to say next. I don’t fucking care.
I look into Rocky’s stunned face. Just a few more minutes and I’ll have her in my arms. I promise.
We reach the boardroom and I shove the doors open. Various associates and members of the board lounge around as they wait for the lunch recess to be over.
My father sits at the head of the table, chatting casually with a few others. I don’t bother checking who. I focus on him.
He looks up at me and his smile drops.
“Zeke, what in god’s name happened to your face?”
I take a breath. I let it settle in my gut but it spreads all over. I’ve pictured this moment a thousand times before but I never imagined it to be so easy to say these words than it is.
“Dad, I’
m in love with Rocky Ramone,” I say.
Rocky lays a hand on my arm. “Zeke, what are you—”
“We’ve been seeing each other for a few weeks,” I say over her. “But, honestly, I’ve been in love with her since the day we met.”
My father rises from his chair, prompting Rocky to take a quick step behind me but I keep my hold on her hand.
“This isn’t the time or place for this discussion,” he bites with a hard whisper.
“Actually, it’s the perfect time,” I say. “Since I know this relationship will bring embarrassment to you, our family, and this company, I officially resign my position. Effective immediately.”
The room falls silent. I can feel them staring at me but I don’t look away from my father.
“This is absurd,” he says.
“Then, give us your blessing,” I say, negotiating with a steady voice — just like he always taught me, ironically. “If you can do that, then I will gladly continue working for this company.”
My father hesitates. He scans the room behind me, looking into the faces of his colleagues but never once at Rocky. I grit my teeth in anger. Still, even now, she doesn’t exist to him.
“Zeke, I’ve primed your for this job your entire life,” he argues. “You can’t just—”
“I never asked you to,” I interrupt. “In fact, I nominate Rebecca Belmont as my replacement.”
I hear my sister’s soft gasp somewhere behind me.
My father scoffs. “Don’t be ridiculous.”
I let myself look back over my shoulder just in time to see pure sadness shadow Becky’s face.
“She’s far more qualified than I am,” I say. “She’s wanted to be a part of this since she was a child and I know I’m not the only person in the room that was impressed with her presentation today.” I glance at the other men surrounding the table. “Isn’t that correct?”
My father squints his dark eyes as they nod their heads.
“She has some good ideas, Mason,” someone says. I don’t see who. “I wouldn’t hesitate to give her a shot.”
For the first time, I watch my father falter. He stumbles on his words and fidgets in his shoes as he taps nonsense against the table beside us. “This isn’t how things are done here, Zeke,” he manages to spit out.
