Royal Prick (A Stepbrother Romance)

by J. L. Beck

  “Don’t be so emotional, Jo! I won’t be that far away from you. A city over at most.” It wasn’t a lie, at least not really. I planned to stay close to home, however, that way before Royal came crashing into my life and my mom got a hard on about every little thing I did. I needed an escape, and college would give me just that. The glow of the moon settled onto us, the heat of the night causing sweat to form on the back of my neck. I knew Jordan was getting emotional; it was just the kind of drunk she was.

  “I’m going to be okay, everything is going to be okay.” She sniffled through her sentence, and I couldn’t help but reach across the center console of the Jeep and wrap my arms around her, as much as I could in this small space. She leaned into my body, laying her head on my shoulder. We stayed like that for a short time before she pulled away from me wiping any stray tears from her eyes.

  “Enough of the emotional bullshit from me. We have plans to fuck Sasha’s party up, so let’s get going.” She adjusted herself in the seat, and then took another chug from the Jack Daniel’s bottle before screwing the cap back on and placing the bottle in the backseat, out of sight and reach.

  Just as I placed the car in drive to head toward the party, my phone chimed signaling that I had a text message. My head started to pound at the mere thought of it being my mother. The nagging and lecturing that would ensue if she found out what I was doing right this second.

  Jordan grabbed my cell from the cup holder, her fingers entering the code with ease. Note to self, change password.

  “It’s from Fuckboy.” I could hear the confusion in her voice.

  “Who the hell is Fuckboy?” was the next question asked from her.

  “What did he say?” I asked, instead of answering her. I decided the day that Royal hooked up with Sasha that his name would officially be Fuckboy. He fit the bill more than anyone else I knew.

  Jordan shook her head. “He said: Don’t come to the party tonight. Stay home in the royal palace, princess.” She read the text word for word, more confusion settling into her features. Anger seared through me. Who the hell did he think he was telling me where I could and couldn’t go?

  “Royal is the only guy that calls you princess, what the fuck? Why is his name Fuckboy? Are you fucking him? Did you seriously not tell me?” Jordan started, realization finally hitting her. Great! I rolled my eyes. I didn’t care if Royal didn’t want us— or preferably me— at the party. None of those things mattered to me. He should’ve known telling me not to go would only make me want to rebel against anything he had to say.

  “Were not fucking, Jordan,” I corrected her, heading down the road that lead to Sasha’s house. You could see the dim glow of lights from her house way off in the distance.

  “Whatever,” she scoffed. “You have his name as Fuckboy in your phone. Clearly something is going on, and I’m not in the loop about it.” I didn’t know what to tell Jordan about Royal’s name being Fuckboy in my phone because I didn’t see an issue with it. Just because his name had the word fuck in it didn’t mean we were automatically fucking.

  “There is nothing going on, I promise. He fucks with me which is why I call him that,” I assured her, watching my speedometer rise as I placed my foot heavier against the gas pedal. The whiskey I drank earlier was finally starting to settle into my bloodstream, the warmth of it radiating throughout my body. I focused on getting to the party and nothing else.

  Ten minutes later we pulled into the Master’s estate. A long, paved driveway led up to an enormous house set up on a hill. You could hear the loud pounding of the music from the start of the driveway.

  “House, more like mansion,” I muttered to myself, turning into the driveway and heading toward the house. There were cars parked every which way, some even sideways. I wasn’t quite sure where I should park.

  “Why exactly are we here if Fuckboy said not to come?” Jordan questioned me. I couldn’t exactly tell her I knew he was up to something and I wanted the deets on it, so I just told her a half truth.

  “I’m tired of being tied down and told what to do by other people. My peers, my mother, Royal aka Fuckboy.” I snickered. “I’m done being controlled by others.” I slammed on the brakes just in time as a couple that was just making out ran in front of the car.

  “Keep it moving!” Jordan yelled out the car window at them. They flipped her the bird and kept their lips locked on one another, ignoring the fact that they were almost ran over by a car. The grip I had on the steering wheel was almost painful. My heart raced inside of my chest. I just needed to park the car, take a deep breath, and figure out why Royal didn’t want me at this party.

  “Are you okay?” Jordan’s voice was soft, and I could feel her hand on my shoulder trying to comfort me. Tonight I broke a lot of rules; rules that weren’t set by me, but by the law and by my mother. I almost hit people because they were being reckless and careless, but so was I. Reckless and free. Did I even know how to act those two words out?

  It was all kinds of fucking scary, but it was also exhilarating. I never broke the rules, not until Royal came along, shaking up my entire life. He flipped everything on its axis, turning my world completely upside down. It was in that view that I finally felt like I could see everything for what it really was.

  “Noelle?” Jordan said my name again, her hands cupping my cheeks and forcing me to focus my attention on nothing but her face.

  “What?” I finally got the words out, swallowing past the fear that was lodged in my throat. I could do this. I could explore and go beyond my boundaries.

  “Are you okay?” The worry in her eyes was blatantly obvious, and the concern in her voice matched it. My best friend was worried about me, all because things were changing; all because I was changing.

  “Never been better,” I revealed. Jordan didn’t look convinced, not even a tiny bit. I pulled my face from her hands and reached for the car door handle.

  “I don’t believe you.” She was hurt. I knew she felt like I was keeping something from her. I wasn’t, and I didn’t know how else to explain what was going on inside of me.

  “Then I’ll show you,” I warned, knowing that showing her was the only way I could get my point across. I was cracked wide open, the old Noelle slowly dissipating into the air; the new Noelle growing to life right before my eyes. Now if only to show Royal what he did to me. To prove that change could come for all of us.

  Chapter Eleven

  -Royal

  The beat of the music pounded throughout the mansion that Sasha called home. I watched the crowd sway with the tempo of the music from the top of the grand staircase. Everyone’s movements were jerky and liquor induced. Half of them wouldn’t even remember what they did tonight or tomorrow morning.

  “If you come with me back to my bedroom, I can make your time here worth the while.” Sasha’s manicured hand landed against my chest. Her voice purred against my ear. I could practically see her digging her claws into me, laying claim when there was no claim to be laid.

  “You know that’s not what I came here for.” I ignored her advancements. I could fuck whatever girl I wanted, when I wanted. Things with Sasha were out of pure boredom and nothing else. Tonight I wasn’t bored, instead I was ready for a fight, one that she promised to have here. Her bottom lip jutted out in a pout, and her nails raked across my chest. I could feel the tips of her razor-sharp nails through my t-shirt.

  “I’ve kept my promise, Royal. Dom is already here, and he’s ready for a fight. The bets have been placed, and the place is packed….” There was a but part of this sentence that she hadn’t spoken yet, I could feel it, and that alone caused irritation to prick at the surface of my skin. I grabbed her hand, shoving it out of my space, and removing it from my chest.

  “You knew what this was about long before I asked you to set this fight up.” I narrowed my eyes at her, gesturing between us. “This isn’t going to happen. I don’t do relationships… I just fuck…” I lowered my voice at her, hinting at a warning. I didn’t
want to have to explain myself to her a million and one fucking times, and I knew she was smart enough to understand what was occurring between us. It wasn’t my fault she wanted it to be more than it was.

  “I’ve done all of this for you,” she whined, her red high heel stomping against the marble floor. I couldn’t help but roll my eyes at her. How childish was it that she was making a huge deal out of nothing? It didn’t bother me, though, it wasn’t me who looked dumb in front of all of these people.

  “And I’ve told you thank you more than once.” I gritted my teeth while speaking.

  “Then prove it and make it official between us.” She pursed her lips. The challenge in her eyes made my cock hard. I loved the darkness in her, but the shit coming out of her mouth shattered the mood. She wanted what she couldn’t have and what I wasn’t willing to give to anyone.

  Except Noelle.

  “Why don’t you get on your knees right here, right now, and suck my cock.” I tilted my head at her, meeting her eyes with the same challenge as I reached for the button on my jeans. I was serious as fuck, and I was sure she didn’t believe me.

  I watched as she visibly sucked in a breath, her face puckering like she ate something sour. Clearly she wasn’t happy with that idea. I felt the same about her wanting to me make it official between the two of us. The only thing official about us was the fact that we fucked.

  “Sasha?” One of her many friends, a chick that went by the name of Max, walked up behind her, saying her name as if she had a question.

  “What!?” she snarled, her tone pissy and filled with anger. The girl seemed more frightened than anything as she bit at her bottom lip.

  Since when did people treat their friends like garbage?

  “You told us to be on the lookout for a girl….” Max looked between Sasha and I. She could feel the tension, just like I was sure everyone in the room could.

  “What girl?” I asked before Sasha could answer her. If this had anything to do with Noelle, I would cut Sasha the fuck off so fast her head would spin. I might be engaging in sexual affairs with her, but Noelle wasn’t, which meant she didn’t have to deal with childish bullshit antics Sasha put out there. I had already warned Sasha that fucking with Noelle was like fucking with me. It wasn’t something you did without being prepared to take a fist to the face.

  Max shifted from one leg to another as she stared at Sasha as if she was asking with her eyes if it was okay to tell me.

  Think real hard before either of you answer me. What was left of my patience was quickly wearing thin.

  I flexed my fists and asked again, my eyes scanning the floor before coming back to Sasha and Max. There was no one that matched Noelle’s description in the crowd, at least not within my sight.

  “I’m not going to repeat myself again. What girl?” My anger was mounting with each second they waited to speak.

  “Ummm…” Max stuttered again, and I could tell she was scared. She probably wasn’t even one of Sasha’s friends, but nothing more than a groupie, one of the people that Sasha appointed to do shit for her.

  “Sasha!” I ordered her, raising my voice. I could feel eyes on me. They started to drift toward us. We were drawing attention and I didn’t like it, not in the least fucking bit.

  “Jesus, Royal. It’s your little bitch of a stepsister, Noelle. Happy?” The way she spoke of Noelle antagonized me. I shoved from the railing, pissed that I had to pry the information out of Sasha, and even more pissed that Noelle had come even after I told her not to.

  “Is this the part where you run off and rescue her?” I wanted to strangle the hell out of Sasha, but ignored her comment while I descended the stairs without hesitation. I stopped at the second to last step, scanning the crowd. My fists tightened in rage as my eyes clashed with Dom’s from across the room. A smirk marred his face as he wrapped his scuzzy arm around a sexy girl with sunshine colored hair.

  Noelle. My Noelle.

  “Oh, fuck no!” I bellowed out, jumping from the stairs and landing feet first on the floor. Pain radiated up my legs, but I kept moving as I shoved through the mass of bodies, sweat and the smell of alcohol filling my nostrils almost instantly.

  Panic filled me as I pushed through the masses, losing sight of Noelle and Dom almost instantly. There were too many people here, making it harder to tell people apart. Air filtered into my lungs. I would kill him if he hurt her. The thought popped in my head, and I had no time to recognize what it meant. All I wanted to do was find her and leave. The fight didn’t matter anymore, nor did the money that was placed on it. All that mattered was protecting Noelle.

  Mine. The alpha in me told me what I needed to do. That I needed to find her, throw her over my shoulder, and take her back home ravishing her sweet ass the whole way, proving just how in charge I was.

  “Noelle!” I called out her name, the panic in my voice rising as I shoved through the rest of the crowd, coming out on the other side where her and Dom were just standing minutes ago. Where the hell did she go, and why didn’t she listen to me?

  God, why the fuck did she have to decide tonight would the night to be rebellious?

  As I looked around the room, my eyes snagged on her best friend Jordan sitting in the kitchen on the granite countertop. Quickly making my way over to her, I stopped directly in front of where she was, grabbing firmly onto her shoulders and bringing her face up to mine.

  “Where is Noelle?” I ordered, roughly shaking her, and forcing her to look at me and focus on what I was saying. She startled, sucking in a breath before speaking. She smelt like a bottle of Jack Daniels.

  “Mmmmm…. Fuckboy?” She squinted her eyes as if she couldn’t really tell who I was at first.

  “What?” I was so fucking confused. “Fuckboy? You have got to be kidding me,” I huffed out, getting more frustrated with each second that passed. I should’ve known she would be of no help to me, when she was already ten sheets to the wind.

  “Noelle’s phone, your name is Fuckboy.” She giggled and hiccupped, excusing herself with another bout of laughter. I could barely understand her as her words slurred together all becoming one. I took a deep breath in through my nose and exhaled it out of my mouth trying to calm myself.

  You’ll find her.

  The thought of anything happening to her lit my body on fire.

  I was seconds away from coming unhinged, my body temperature was rising, and the need to destroy something becoming stronger. Noelle was going to fucking kill me if she didn’t make an appearance here shortly.

  “Jordan,” I growled her name, “I need you to think really hard, really fucking hard on where you think she could be.” I wasn’t above pleading to find her. Noelle was too good for a place like this, surrounded by a bunch of drunk idiots that could easily take advantage of her. We both knew there was no way I was going to let that happen to her.

  She was mine, every last drop of pure innocence that radiated from her.

  Jordan’s movements were wobbly as she lifted a finger placing it against her nose. “She likessss youuuuu, you knowwww?” Again her words were slurred. I wasn’t sure this was even worth it. It only seemed to be adding to the anger I was already feeling.

  I exhaled. “That’s not what I asked you, Jordan! Please focus; just think. Please.” I released my hold on Jordan long ago, afraid that if I didn’t I would squeeze the life out of her. Now my fingers gripped the edge of the counter, looking out the French doors that opened up into the back yard. There was a large crowd that started to form outside.

  This chick needed a glass of water. She was far too wasted to be of any use to me and was probably a danger to everyone here, including herself. Walking over to the stainless steel fridge, I yanked open the door and found a few bottles of cold water. I grabbed three of them and brought them back over to Jordan.

  “Here, drink these. You’re plastered and need to sober up.” I done my one good deed of the day, and now I needed to find Noelle.

  “No, and I know what you aske
d, Fuckboy. I’m just telling you that she L.I.K.E.S…” she spelt the words out and poked me in the chest. “You.” I was frustrated, irritated, and annoyed beyond disbelief. I grabbed one of the water bottles that I had placed next to her, and twisted the cap off, shoving the water into one of her hands.

  “Drink it,” I ordered.

  “No. She like’s youuuuuu, Fuckboy.” A bubble of laughter hiccuped out of her mouth.

  “I don’t care if she likes me, because she’s going to hate me once I find her ass. Now less talking and more drinking of the water,” I hissed out. I just finished speaking when Noelle’s squeals of laughter met my ears.

  I knew for sure it was hers because of the softness and hiccup that resonated from deep in her throat. I shoved away from the counter with one final glance at Jordan saying, “Drink that water, I will be back for you as soon as I find Noelle.” Walking down out onto the deck and into the back yard, I saw her standing right next to the fire pit. That asshole, Dom, with his arm wrapped tightly around her shoulder, snuggling her into his chest.

  MINE. This motherfucker was going to pay for touching what’s mine.

  You could say right then and there something snapped in me, or you could say I snapped long before that moment.

  Who did he think he was, and why the fuck was she letting him touch her? I couldn’t think anymore; all I could do was act. Nothing I would say would prove my point. Bone against bone. Blood pooling beneath a body. Those were all the things that would prove a point.

  I ran the rest of the distance that separated us, lifting my fist with precision and the right angle to hit him straight in the back of the head. I didn’t care if it was a cheap shot, or if it made me look like an asshole. All I cared about was getting back what was mine.

  The second my fist made contact with his skull, mayhem ensued. Dom fell to the ground with a groan, bringing Noelle down with him. They landed in a heap on the grass. She rolled away from him, fear forcing her to back away from the whole situation. When her eyes met mine, I lost it.