Mine : You Can't Help Who You Fall In Love With... (The Winterburg Series Book 1)

by Linzvonc

  GRETCHEN:

  I’m ready if you are?

  CAL:

  Always ready to see you. Gimme fifteen.

  I looked up to see Luke headed towards me, a determined look on his face. His legs strode up the steps two at a time, and I dropped my skates to the floor. I couldn’t get my trainers on quick enough, as his voice boomed my name.

  “Gretchen.”

  CAL:

  Almost there. Happy to warm you up if you’re cold…

  “Gretchen.,” Luke repeated, with a hint of impatience.

  “What, Luke?!” I retorted as I glanced at my phone with a smile.

  The thought of Cal warming me up was enough to thaw out this entire stadium.

  I slipped my blade guards on, as Luke’s hand gripped mine, dragging it to his chest against his heart.

  “I love you, Gretchen,” he swallowed.

  I moved my hand back like I’d been burnt. His ocean blue eyes gazed at me, pleading with me to say it back.

  “We could go back to normal, if we love each other enough—”

  “Luke! You cheated on me for a year!” I hissed as I pushed past him, dragging my skates with me.

  Despite being with Cal, it still hurt me.

  I’d adored him, and until Cal, I’d never so much as looked at someone else.

  “It wasn’t like I was with her every fucking day, Gretch,” Luke protested as he jogged beside me.

  I shot him a look of disgust as I pushed through the exit.

  “Come on, Gretchen, for fuck’s sake,” Luke snapped, his hand on mine as he tugged me back towards him.

  “You don’t get it, do you?” I cried. “I fucked up by hurting you, but I didn’t sleep with him! You, though? You slept with Krystal for—”

  “Because you wouldn’t!” Luke yelled. His eyes bulged as he grabbed my arms. “I swear—”

  “No, Luke, we’re over,” I shook my head at him as I backed away.

  “For him? Come on, I am the better man, not that fucking criminal—-” It was then that his gaze moved behind me, his eyes darkening. “What a fucking surprise,” Luke muttered.

  I felt his presence before I saw him, but then the tell-tale scent of smoke and cologne wrapped around me like a second skin and I knew.

  Cal was here.

  I turned to see the black leather jacket that he wore over the white t-shirt, his messy blonde hair loose to his neck. But it was his eyes that drew me in, the way they flickered over to me, the smile that told me I was safe.

  I exhaled as I moved into his arms, muttering that we needed to leave.

  “You and I are going to have a real problem,” Cal warned, his thumb dragging across my cheek as he gazed at me. He frowned, turning his attention back to Luke. “If you don’t leave my girl alone.”

  Luke scoffed; his lips twisted into a sneer.

  “She won’t stay with you. What can you give her? You won’t even finish school, you’re a deadbeat—”

  “But he isn’t a cheat,” I hissed as Cal rolled his eyes. “Leave me alone, Luke. Please.”

  A battle of will locked their eyes together, chaos threatening to escape at any moment.

  “Cal,” I pleaded, my fingers on his jaw as I turned his head towards me.

  His eyes met mine, and I smiled, stroking his face as I studied him. His eyes hid his real age; the pain and hurt mirrored in them told me stories his lips didn’t. He nodded, so briefly that I almost missed it.

  Luke muttered something, and I ignored him, sliding my hand into Cal’s.

  I didn’t care about Luke anymore; but I didn’t want them to fight. It was exhausting.

  “Coming to mine?” Cal drawled, his arm around my shoulders.

  “I’d love to, but I need to be home at some point tonight. My mom is getting suspicious that she’s not seeing me much lately,” I groaned as we reached Cal’s car.

  I went to open the door, but Cal spun me around, so he pressed me between his body and the car.

  “He called me a criminal, and you didn’t flinch,” Cal said, as his breath fanned my cheek. His fingers slipped into my back pockets, his eyes on my lips as he held his breath.

  “Luke spoke to me today,” I admitted, “He told me some things…” My voice trailed off as he lifted a brow.

  “Some things, Raven?”

  Jesus. He isn’t taking any prisoners tonight.

  Yet as I met his intense gaze, I felt no fear, I just wanted to know everything about him.

  “You’re not called Cal, are you?”

  He closed his eyes, exhaling into my face as I cupped his cheek.

  “Please tell me,” I said softly.

  “Luke is a fucking dead man,” he rasped through gritted teeth.

  “I want to know who you are—”

  “It’s complicated,” he barked, slamming his hands either side of me on the car.

  My heart raced in my chest; my eyes darted around us anxiously as I swallowed.

  “Who are you, really?” I demanded, refusing to back down. I wanted to know who this man was. The stories he hid so well, I wanted to hear them.

  “I can’t tell you that,” he breathed, “Please understand, I can’t tell you a great deal other than I really fucked up. I tried to tell you the other night...” He trailed off as he watched Luke come out of the stadium, his head bowed and his hands in his pockets. He looked crushed, but the hatred in Cal’s eyes scared me.

  “I want to kill that bastard for ever having you. Do you know what it does to me every time I see him? I hate him. Now he has told you something that was mine to tell.”

  “Whoever the fuck you are, tell me what you did. I need to know who I am falling in love with,” I exclaimed as I moved his face to mine. His eyes widened as he swallowed, his brow furrowed.

  “You’re falling in love with me? It’s been three days...” his voice trailed off when I narrowed my eyes.

  “Tell me about it. I spend a year with someone who I don’t sleep with or fall in love with. I spend three days with a stranger, and I do both.”

  He stroked my face, and I closed my eyes, his fingertips invoking demons deep within me I didn’t know existed.

  Being with Cal was like swimming in wild waters, your lungs desperate for air as you fought your way to the surface. Cal was that first breath you took,that deep, relieved inhalation. Cal was my oxygen.

  “I don’t want to hurt you,” he whispered hoarsely.

  “Then don’t.”

  Cal exhaled, looking at me sadly. “When I was a kid, I just wanted to be rich. I spent my days researching rich people. What did they do to get to where they were?”

  I listened closely, afraid to interrupt.

  ‘Some were bankers, most were famous, and some invented things. I didn’t want to be rich from inheritance, I wanted to earn my money, myself. When I went to school, I made out I didn’t have much money. I smoked pot, I stole and lied. My parents didn’t know what to do. They tried moving me schools, but I still ended up with the crowd I felt that I identified with. The ones that were cool, but for the wrong reasons. Anyway, there was a girl at our school. She was rich, arrived at school with her driver, designer clothes and bags. Her pops was stupidly loaded." He closed his eyes. “Someone suggested we rob her house. They’d researched it. All I can tell you is that I did what I was told to do. I was only fifteen.”

  I slid my fingers into his hand and clasped it tightly.

  “We broke in. All I had to do was throw the loot onto the ground. Easy. Except the girl was home.”

  I could barely breathe as he continued.

  “She was fifteen, too. I can promise you I had no part in what happened to her. But I didn’t stop it either. I was a coward. I was there with boys of my age and up. The oldest was a man in his forties.”

  He leaned his head back, and I saw the raw pain in his eyes, the way they crinkled up in the corners as though he watched the memory play out on a screen only he could see.

  “They left her for dead. I
just ran, and I didn’t look back.”

  I couldn’t imagine the trauma my man had been through. I squeezed his hand tightly as I lifted it to my lips.

  “So, what happened?” I mumbled against it, closing my eyes as he cleared his throat.

  “Well, she survived. Only just. Turns out her dad was rich illegally as well as legally; he had his fingers in all the pies. We were all caught. There were six of us in total. Four are now dead.”

  He smiled wistfully as I gasped.

  “I got a hefty fine which my family paid, and we moved here under witness protection. I don’t know how long I will be here though; her father won’t let me get away with it. I may have to keep moving, Gretchen.”

  I froze as I absorbed the information. My heart hammered against my chest painfully.

  “But you didn’t hurt his daughter,” I argued as he bowed his head.

  “No, I didn’t. But I didn’t stop them, did I? That’s as good as doing it—in his eyes.”

  His voice was so soft I barely heard the last part.

  “I understand if you want to end this. I don’t want you to get hurt. If they find me, which I think they will, I don’t want them coming for you. You mean too much, and I couldn’t protect you, no matter how much I would try,” his voice choked on emotion, his forehead resting against mine.

  I reached for him; my hands wrapped around his neck.

  “I won’t lie to you; I’m terrified. But I meant what I said—I’m falling for you. I can’t be without you.”

  I mean it.

  His life was at risk, which made mine at risk, too. But could I really break off with him and carry on like he never existed?

  What if something happens to him?

  I shuddered at the thought.

  He kissed my head before his lips grazed against mine. “Now you see why school doesn’t matter overly to me,” he chuckled. “I’m just focusing on surviving.” His eyes filled with regret and anguish.

  I want to soothe him, but I don’t know how.

  “Can we go somewhere, anywhere where no one will know us?” I asked him, no longer caring about anyone or anything else.

  He searched my eyes, pressing his lips against mine as he nodded. He moved away from me, and we both got into the car.

  After a while we pulled onto the freeway, pulling into the second motel we passed.

  “What was wrong with the first one?” I yawned as I stretched my tired limbs.

  “Nothing. But I never use the first one I get to,” Cal mumbled as he turned the engine off. He pulled a wad of cash from his pocket, ignoring my raised eyebrows. “Go get us a room,” he grinned at me.

  I strode to the reception door and pushed it open. A bell rang somewhere, announcing my arrival. A bored-looking man played with his phone, paying me no attention.

  “Yes?” He drawled out, without lifting his head up.

  “Uh, I need a room?” I stammered as I licked my lips nervously.

  “Fifty bucks. Seventy if you want WIFI.”

  I handed the cash over, and he gave me the key.

  No questions asked.

  Was it really that easy to rent a room?

  Cal read the room number and held my hand as he led the way to our new home for the night. The room was basic; a bed in the middle and a small tv set on a stand at the end of the bed. The bathroom was at the other end.

  “Well, I don’t think it's too bad,” I declared, as I slung my bag on the bed.

  Cal stood against the door and watched me without seeing me. His eyes glazed over, and I knew he was lost in another memory.

  I beckoned him over and he strolled towards me, the slow, steady walk he had mastered so well.

  I moved his hair out of his eyes as he turned to look at me. My heart burst with love for this man; he had been through so much, and somehow the universe saw fit to give him to me.

  “I meant what I said, Raven. You don’t need a part in any of this,” he said gruffly, his eyes filled with misery.

  A lump rose in my throat as I stroked his face. “I know that... but I can’t imagine myself not being with you,” I swallowed as he held my face in his hands.

  His eyes locked on mine and I saw his jaw tighten. “You could go back to your life, living the American dream.”

  “Ever since the minute I met you, I knew I would have to have you in my life in any capacity...I literally don’t know how I existed before you,” I confessed, as he shifted and broke eye contact first.

  I’m terrified.

  The thought of him cutting off my oxygen was enough to make me weep.

  “I really didn’t want to fall in love with you, you know,” he murmured. I held my breath as he rested his forehead against mine, as blood filled my ears with anticipation. “But then I did...” his green eyes stared into mine.

  We fell onto the bed, our limbs tangled together as our mouths searched the other urgently.

  It felt as though there was no world other than the one we existed in right at that moment.

  He whipped his t-shirt off, revealing his tanned torso. I clawed my shirt off, my hair covering my face as I did. He reached behind me and unclipped my bra with ease, my breasts revealed as he bit his lip.

  I laid back on the bed as he leaned down, soft lips grazed against my stomach before they trailed down to my waistband.

  He smirked as he slid his fingers into my jeans and underwear, which he tossed to the floor moments later. My breathing deepened as he loosened the buckle on his belt impatiently. I stared at his body in awe as he climbed back on the bed.

  His warm body sends me into oblivion with each touch whilst my fingers explored him like an ocean I was desperate to navigate.

  It was only my second time with him, yet there were no nerves. I wanted him so much it was a visceral yearning.

  It was softer, calmer, and slower.

  Each move pleasured one, if not both of us, our bodies in sync throughout. His touch drove me insane, and I never wanted it to end.

  The pleasure was intense.

  He held me after, his fingers on my arm as they drew invisible patterns.

  “That was amazing, wasn’t it?” I grinned as I reached for my clothes.

  “I’m struggling to label it; it was fucking delicious. You are fucking delicious,” his eyes wandered over me as I dressed. “Do you feel okay?”

  I loved that he didn’t want to hurt me. I nodded happily, yawning as I crept into bed next to him. My body curled against his, and I savoured the warmth he gave me. My eyelids drooped, and his lips brushed against them softly.

  “Get some sleep beautiful,” he murmured as I fell asleep to the sound of his breathing.

  Chapter Nineteen

  GRETCHEN

  I knew my parents would ground me.

  In fact, I thought they would murder me; so grounded was an improvement.

  I was eighteen, and I’d spent the night away from home without touching base with my parents once. In hindsight, I could’ve sent a text; I was so wrapped up in Cal I didn’t think of them, and I was in serious shit.

  Mom was puce, her eyes wide as she gestured to me with rage.“She is changing, Ted. Trust me, I was her age once. This is not a good sign,” mom glared at me. “Staying out all night, without thinking to tell us where she was? She barely sees her friends— there’s some new boy called Cal she is hanging around with—”

  “Leave Cal out of it,” I interrupted, as my dad raised his eyebrows in surprise.

  “Don’t you understand how scared we were? We didn’t know if something had happened to you. We woke up this morning to see your bed empty; all your things gone. Then you walk in wearing the clothes you wore yesterday?” He murmurs, his voice full of hurt. “What’s happening, Gretchen?”

  “You wouldn’t understand,” I whispered as my Mom folded her arms, narrowing her eyes.

  “Actually, I think I might. Luke came over last night to see you.”

  I looked up in shock.

  “What?”
r />   “He’s worried about you. So are we, Gretchen. Luke said this boy is his cousin. He said his last school expelled him for fighting and that he skips school regularly.”

  She cursed under her breath; her hand rubbing her temples, as my Dad’s mouth opens then closes as he stares at me with disappointment.

  A surge of hatred towards Luke zipped through my body, knowing that he did this on purpose to fuck me over.

  “Good God, Gretchen, I absolutely forbid you to see him anymore. What were you thinking?!” my Dad demanded, his eyes flashing with anger.

  I cried then, huge sobs that racked my body at his thunderous tone.

  “Go to your room, Gretchen, you’re grounded. Completely. Until you are out of college.” He yelled, walking away from us.

  My mother was furious, avoiding my desperate gaze.

  I grabbed my bag and ran up the stairs to my room, my chest heaving with the thought of not seeing Cal anymore. I had to calm down, but I just couldn’t, I was dizzy and nauseous, my heart rate going through the roof as I tried to breathe normally.

  Why is Luke doing this to us?

  So he was hurting; but he had his tongue down Krystal’s throat earlier, so it couldn’t be that bad.

  My door opened and my father stood in the doorway, disappointment etched on his face. His jaw clenched as he studied me. “Give me your phone and your laptop. I will not have you communicating with him. We’ll take you to school and drop you off from now on. The only way you could see him would be at school, and by the sounds of that, he doesn’t go,” he shook his head in disbelief. “This is for your own good.”

  I threw myself onto my bed as I sobbed into my pillow, as my father disconnected my laptop and left my room quietly.

  Why are my parents so controlling and involved?

  I couldn’t wait until I could leave and do whatever I pleased.

  Until then, how was I going to cope?

  Cals POV

  It had begun.

  A letter addressed to Leonardo Cape arrived today.

  I stared out of my window into the street, the familiar fury rising within me. I punched the wall, hot white pain shooting up my arm.