Devious

by Suzannah Daniels

  Dedication:

  To everyone who’s ever been in love.

  Devious

  (Dangerous #2)

  by

  Suzannah Daniels

  Copyright © 2013 by Suzannah Daniels

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the author.

  This book is a work of fiction. Any similarities to any person, living or dead, events, businesses, or places are coincidental and not intended by the author.

  First Electronic Edition: August 2013

  Devious (Dangerous #2) / by Suzannah Daniels

  www.SuzannahDaniels.com

  Table of Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Other Books by Suzannah Daniels

  About the Author

  Chapter 1

  Stone

  “She didn’t come.”

  Her voice was nothing more than a whisper brimming with dejection, and I glanced up from my seat on the couch as Dara knelt at my feet.

  She laid her cheek against my knee, and I smoothed wisps of soft, blond hair away from her face. I searched for the words that would ease her pain and brighten her spirits, but somehow I knew they couldn’t detract her from the betrayal and disappointment that had seeped into her soul.

  Anger boiled within me, and I took a deep breath, attempting to retain my control. Dara was my world, and as much as I wanted to think there was no way in hell I would let anyone hurt her, some things were out of my control.

  She covered her face with her palm, and her slender shoulders began trembling. I hated to see her cry, and my hands instinctively reached for her.

  This was not what I had planned.

  How often does a girl turn eighteen? I had wanted Dara’s birthday to be special, and I thought I’d done a pretty good job, considering it was the first birthday party I’d ever thrown. But now, I felt like I had failed her.

  I urged her up from the floor and pulled her into my lap, tucking her face into my neck and muffling her sobs. I said nothing, just held her, stroked her, soothed her.

  When she finally quieted, I scooped her in my arms, stood, and then set her on the couch. “I’ll be right back.”

  I kicked a plump, pink balloon out of my path and went to find my mother. In the last eight months since Dara and I had agreed to date exclusively, my mother had grown to love Dara almost as much as I did. Mom agreed to have the party at our house, and she took it a step further by insisting that we have the whole thing catered. I had decorated our living room in pink and white streamers with a boatload of matching balloons, some filled with helium and some drifting along the hardwood floor.

  As I had watched Dara walk the last guests, Crimson and Scarlet Cruze, to the front door, I thought she was happy. It was obvious now that she had pasted on a smile and laughed with her two best friends in an effort to hide what she was really feeling.

  I rammed my hand in my hair, wishing I knew how to make her world right again.

  My mother was in the kitchen, wrapping plastic around leftover food.

  I briefly explained the situation.

  “I’ll take care of everything here,” my mom assured me.

  I bent down and kissed her on the cheek. “Thanks, Mom.” I grabbed a pink mint off the plate in her hands and popped it in my mouth. “Have I told you how awesome you are?”

  “You might’ve mentioned it a time or two, but moms never get tired of hearing it.” She finished pressing the plastic on the edge of the plate and shooed me with her hands. “Now go take care of Dara.”

  I joined Dara on the couch. “I know what you need,” I said, wrapping my arm around her shoulders and hoping to lighten her mood.

  “What?”

  “You need a motorcycle ride with one extremely good-looking guy.”

  The corners of her mouth tilted upward. “Well, let me know when you find one, and maybe I’ll give it a try.”

  I stood, pulling her to her feet. “As luck would have it, I didn’t have to look very far.”

  She glanced over her shoulder, wiping away any remnants of her tears. “Where is he? I don’t see him.”

  “Be nice, Dara Golding, or I won’t let you rev my engine.”

  “Is that supposed to be an enticement? Because….”

  I put my forefinger over her lips to silence them. “It’s your birthday. You win. Since you can’t seem to find a good-looking guy, I guess I’ll have to do. Where do you want to go?”

  “I want to go to our spot,” she whispered, the playfulness gone from her voice.

  I cupped her cheek, rubbing my thumb across her silky skin, and nodded my head in acquiescence.

  I took her hand in mine and led her out the front door and down the meandering sidewalk until we reached my motorcycle, which was parked in the driveway. She and I both tugged on our helmets, and I settled into the seat as I waited for her to mount the bike and press her body against mine as she clung to my torso. As much as I loved riding alone and the freedom that I felt when it was just me and my bike, I equally loved having Dara behind me.

  I barreled down the long driveway, causing her to squeeze my ribs as she acclimated herself to the speed.

  A short ride later, we arrived at Quail Mountain Park. We had come here on our first outing together, and it had quickly become one of our favorite spots. Before the weather had grown cold, we had spent many evenings sitting beneath the lone willow tree that stood tall and proud in the middle of a grassy field. I knew that’s where she wanted to go.

  I parked the bike as close to the tree as possible and waited for her to climb off. We placed the helmets on the mirrors and walked silently, our hands clasped together, to the tree. We ducked below the hanging branches that were greening with new growth, and I sat at the base of the trunk. I held my arms open to her and motioned for her to sit in my lap.

  “Are you okay?” I asked as she plopped across my thighs.

  She looked down at her hands, studying her freshly painted nails intently, and nodded her head. Lifting her face to mine, she gently kissed my lips. “Thank you for the party.”

  “Anything for my girl.”

  She laid her head against my shoulder and exhaled softly.

  “I called her,” I said.

  “I know.”

  “She told me that she would come.”

  “I know.”

  “Maybe she had car trouble,” I suggested. “Why don’t you try to call her?”

  “I want to, but I’m afraid of what I’ll find out. That she just didn’t want to come. Or that she forgot. Do you think she forgot?”

  She looked at me with vibrant, green eyes, expecting an answer, but I remained quiet.

  Her chin quivered, and I closed my eyes, hating to know that she was in so much pain. I squeezed her fingers, silently letting her know that she still had me.

  “I think that’s what scares me the most,” she whispered, her voice quaking. “To find out that my mother doesn’t even think I’m worth remembering.”

  Damn it. I felt like calling her mother and chewing her ass out. How could she treat her only daughter like this?

  “You’re definitely worth remembering. Whatever problems your mother has, they’re her problems, not yours. Stop driving yourself crazy
. Just call and ask her.”

  She pulled her phone out of her pocket and dialed the number. She stood up and walked to the edge of the dangling branches, waiting for her mother to answer. As she turned, her eyes sought mine, a look of horror in them.

  My mind worked furiously, trying to decipher her expression.

  “Her number’s been disconnected,” she gasped. “She’s changed her number and didn’t even give me her new one. I never got her address, so that I could send her my graduation invitation.”

  “There’s still time,” I told her.

  “I had hoped that at least one of my parents would see me graduate,” she continued, “but I guess she’ll miss that, too.”

  “Most likely, she’s having money problems. She’ll probably get paid in a few days and have her phone turned back on. Come here.” I patted the ground between my thighs.

  She walked toward me and sat between my legs. I gathered her hair, pushing it over her shoulder, and began massaging her tense flesh. “Just give her some time. She’ll call you.”

  “I waited for her for so long, Stone.”

  “I know.”

  “Maybe it would’ve been better if she never came back.”

  I squeezed her shoulders. “No, it wouldn’t. You’d have all kinds of questions screwing with your head. Over the last few months, you’ve come a long way with building a relationship with her. Just give her the benefit of the doubt. And no matter what her reasons are for not showing, don’t let her spoil your day.”

  She leaned against my chest, and I wrapped my arms around her waist and rested my chin on the top of her head as I listened to the birds chirp loudly in the branches above us.

  “What would I do without you?” she asked, resting her hands on top of mine.

  “I’d rather imagine what you could do with me,” I said, running my fingertips along the edge of her jeans.

  “You’re shameless,” she scolded, grabbing my hand and brushing her sweet lips across my knuckles.

  “Yeah, I kinda am.” I slid my hands under her shirt and traced tiny circles along her flat abdomen with my fingertips.

  She giggled, shot up, and turned to face me, lowering her bottom back to my thighs. I leaned against the tree trunk and watched her, relieved to see a smile back on her face. She placed her palms on my chest and brought her face close to mine. I remained still, my head tilted back against the trunk, and waited to see what she would do.

  She watched me with hooded eyes, all traces of her smile gone. Her shimmering pink lips parted softly as if she were anticipating a kiss. Her palms slid up my chest until they reached my neck, and her fingertips skimmed upward until they were tracing my jawline.

  “You’re beautiful,” she whispered, leaning in closer.

  I didn’t respond. I just watched her as her fingertips explored my face.

  “I’m so in love with you, Stone,” she said as she finally lowered her lips to mine. My hands grabbed her butt and pulled her closer to me while my mouth took control of the kiss.

  “Damn, Dara. You don’t know what you do to me,” I groaned against her mouth while my palms continued to press her against my body.

  I kissed her with all the urgency that rushed through my veins, with all the desire that was locked inside of me for this amazing girl who had become my world.

  “I love you, too,” I whispered, trailing searing kisses along her lips, continuing along her jaw until I reached the slender column of her neck, where her pulse thundered mercilessly against my intense affections. She tossed her head back, giving me complete access to the tender flesh, and my lips blazed further downward until I reached her collarbone.

  Her splayed fingers clung to my face, bringing my lips back to her own. She pulled away, watching me, her thumbs caressing the corners of my mouth.

  “Your hands are cold,” I said, capturing them in my own palms to chase away the chill. The sunny, April day was moderately warm, but a cool wind oscillated the hanging branches of the willow. “Do you want to sit in the sun?”

  “No. I want to sit here, in our spot, with you.” She folded her arms between us and leaned against my chest. I wrapped my arms around her back and held her close, pressing my lips against her forehead and smelling her strawberry-scented hair. A year ago, I couldn’t have imagined myself so wrapped up in a girl. It scared the hell out of me. Loving someone meant relinquishing my control, leaving myself vulnerable to the whims of someone else.

  I didn’t like vulnerable. I had been exposed enough when my twin brother, Luke, died. It had taken me years to come to terms with his death, and I still struggled with it daily.

  For a long time, it felt like I was being punished for choices that I had made. Some days, it still felt that way. Since I started dating Dara, I tried to contemplate the consequences of my actions before I acted, but I was impulsive. How did one fight his very nature?

  I sucked at it, which was why the thought of something happening to Dara terrified me. I didn’t want karma to retaliate against something I’d done by taking her away.

  She exhaled contentedly, her rhythmic breathing revealing the level of comfort she found in my arms. It made me want to protect her from all the disappointments of this world, including her mother.

  “You know,” I said quietly against her temple. “I haven’t given you your present yet.”

  I had expected her to sit up, but she just snuggled against my chest. “My party was present enough. Being here with you is enough.”

  I slid my fingertips into the back pockets of her jeans. “Well, you’re right. Being here with me is a damn good present.”

  She thumped her fist half-heartedly against my chest. “Conceited much?”

  “With a sweet, little honey like you draped all over me, how can I not be conceited? I must be doing something right.”

  This time, she did sit up, her gorgeous, green eyes studying my face intently. “You do a lot of things right, Stone.”

  “Remember those words when you’re mad at me,” I suggested, knowing that sooner or later, I’d do something to piss her off. “But I did do this right,” I continued, snaking my right hand behind my back to fetch the slender box that I had tucked inside the waistband of my jeans. I handed it to her. “Sorry that I didn’t have time to wrap it.”

  She took the box in her hands, hesitating as she glanced back up at me.

  “Open it.”

  Her gaze fell back to the box, and she carefully lifted the lid. Her mouth gaped, and her eyes widened. “They’re so pretty!”

  A small surge of satisfaction coursed through my veins. I could tell by her reaction that she liked them. “Beautiful diamonds for my beautiful hummingbird.”

  “Did you know they were my birthstone?”

  She had no idea how long I had been hunting her present. Not only did I know that diamonds were her birthstone, but I had laboriously drudged through every jewelry store in a twenty-mile radius to make sure that I had the perfect present for her. I had finally settled on a pair of princess cut diamond earrings. They were dainty, high-quality diamonds that sparkled brilliantly, much like Dara’s goodness.

  “Yeah, babe, I knew they were your birthstone.”

  She immediately removed the earrings that were in her second piercing and replaced them with the diamonds. Pulling her silky, blond hair back with her fingertips, she asked, “How do they look?”

  “Sexy.”

  Releasing her hair, she smiled. After dropping the old earrings in the box and setting it on the ground beside her, she entwined her icy fingers with the warmth of mine. “Thank you,” she said softly.

  I was relieved that Dara seemed momentarily distracted from her mother’s absence, but I knew it would only be temporary. I hated knowing that she thought her mother didn’t care enough about her to come to her party, and I hoped that her mother resurfaced before graduation. Silently, I vowed that I would make her pain go away.

  And damn it, that was one promise I was going to keep.

&n
bsp; Chapter 2

  Dara

  I watched my boyfriend, Stone Hamilton, exit the cafeteria doors. Squinting from the bright sunlight, he sauntered toward me in the courtyard. His tall, muscular frame stopped in front of me, and he tossed two bags of chips beside me. Pulling a bottle of orange juice from each pocket of his black, leather jacket, he offered one to me.

  “I wish I’d gotten my jacket out of my locker,” I said, annoyed by the goose bumps that made every hair on my arm stand at attention.

  Without saying a word, Stone set down his orange juice and pulled off his jacket, holding it out for me while I pushed my arms into it and savored his warmth. “Oh, my gosh, this feels so good. Are you cold?” As much as I relished his preheated jacket, I didn’t want to be toasty at his expense.

  He shot me a crooked grin. “How could I be cold when I’m this close to a hottie?”

  A tiny sliver of awkwardness shivered along my spine, and I couldn’t conceal the grin that forced its way onto my face. I didn’t know if I’d ever get used to him talking to me like that, but I had to confess that I liked it.

  He sat beside me, his rock-hard biceps peeking out from his short sleeves as he moved his arms. Since the weather had started getting warmer, he and I had begun eating outside instead of in the overcrowded, noisy lunchroom.

  He leaned over and kissed me on the temple. “So how’s your day going?”

  “Pretty good, I guess. How ‘bout you?”

  “It’s a helluva lot better now,” he said, kissing me on the lips. He pulled open a bag of potato chips and handed them to me. Then, he picked up the other bag and opened them. “Did you ever hear from your mother?”

  It had been three days since my party, and I hadn’t heard one word from her. “Nope.”

  His jaw clenched.

  “I’ve tried to call her, but her number is still disconnected,” I added. He turned and looked at me, and I could see the concern in his eyes as I tried to determine the color of them. They were definitely blue, but they seemed to alternate between a light, icy shade and a more brilliant blue, depending on his mood or the lighting or maybe the color of his clothing. In all honesty, I wasn’t sure why the color seemed to vary, but I decided that right now, they reminded me of the gulf.