Illicit (Perfect for them Book 2)

by Melissa Adams

  “There’s another solution. This is what I came here to offer,” Reid says and I finally meet his gaze, finding that glacial stare that tells me all too clearly how much he despises me. “Chase and I talked about it when I discovered how foolish you two were being and how careless, since Oliver and I saw you kiss behind Murphy’s Law. We were fearing that Oliver might try to use what he knows in some unpleasant way and we discussed about what to do to protect you against that risk. Remember, Chase? Do you remember how I said that we’d have to find some dirt on Oliver so that we could fight back in case things got out of control?”

  Chase nods and Reid continues. “I’ve tried to snoop around, asking people about him. I even called the new Gamma president of the Yale chapter. But Oliver is either cleaner than a saint or people are very loyal to him. Because I came up empty. Until last night.”

  We all look at him confused about what he means, until Reid explains. “I took Valeria home after a Greek Council meeting that turned into a night out. She was drinking a lot, so I decided to stay sober,” he begins and then snaps annoyed at our stunned expressions. “Why thank you. Don’t look that surprised. I know I’ve been partying really hard lately but I decided to cut back on my drinking because lately everything has been a blur and I’ve been waking up in the morning with no recollection of the night before. But I’m not here to talk about my fucking partying, ok?”

  “Sure,” Chase grinds out. “Go ahead.”

  “So I took her home and put her into bed. I stayed to watch her, I was worried because she was really, really wasted.” I know I’m petty but in this moment, I hate Valeria with a ferocity I never thought I possessed. It’s not her fault for having Reid’s attention but I can’t help it. His distance, the fucked up situation, nothing seems to be able to change my feelings for him. My memories of the sweet boy he was three years ago are still indelibly etched in my mind.

  “I took her out for breakfast this morning and I was trying to make sure that she was all right. She seemed to be in a very bad mood. She told me that she’s been fighting with Oliver. That he hasn’t been treating her right. I thought I’d made a huge mistake when I admitted that Oliver definitely isn’t one of my favorite people, because she gave me an odd look. She told me that most of the fighting was about his interest in you Kaya. First he bet with Valeria that he’d convince you to become his girlfriend—”

  “‘Motherfucker!” Chase, Bryce and Parker all say in unison. I’d find it hilarious if the expression in their eyes weren’t murderous.

  “Yeah, my thought exactly. I might have even voiced my opinion with Valeria. But this isn’t why I’m telling you this. She was complaining that Lord Wellesley has always let Oliver have anything he wanted. No outrageous or rude behavior could ever made him cut Oliver off. Not even the reason why he was expelled from Yale. Apparently Oliver didn’t move here because Connecticut was boring. It was a court order. Oliver had an affair with the Dean’s daughter at his old school. He got the girl pregnant and he refused to take responsibility when he was confronted about it. He actually convinced his frat brothers to begin a smear campaign against her, to come forward saying that they’d all slept with her. The girl tried to take her own life because of the bullying that followed. She didn’t die but lost the baby. Charges were pressed and there was lots of evidence, texts, emails that proved what he had done. But Lord Wellesley’s influence and money made it go away. He was given a suspended sentence and five years probation. One of the conditions of his sentence was that he would live in the same state as his father as he was released into his custody.”

  The room grows silent. I feel numb. I knew about the bet. I hated it but it didn’t surprise me because Oliver treats everything like a game that he plays with just one objective: victory. But I never thought he’d be that callous and vicious. I thought that there was a kind, soft center once you got past all the exterior spoiled, rich boy bravado.

  But then again, he promised me that he wouldn’t use what he knew about me and Chase to try and get in my pants and he broke that promise. So what I just learned shouldn’t surprise me at all. My first impression of him was obviously the right one and this new, nicer side I thought I caught a glimpse of was just smoke Oliver threw in my eyes to get what he wanted.

  “Ok, I guess we’ve got something to throw back on the table,” Chase muses. “I know that Oliver cares about his reputation and his image beyond anything else. So if we told him that we know, he should back off.”

  The others all agree with Chase but I don’t say anything, looking at my own hands and shifting uncomfortably in Parker’s lap. “I don’t feel so good about it.” I finally manage to admit.

  “What do you mean?” Bryce asks.

  “I don’t know, I hate all this. How does counter-blackmail make us better people than Oliver?”

  The guys try to explain that they hate this as much as I do but that we need to protect the secret of my relationship with Chase.

  “You should have thought about which of your moral values you were prepared to compromise on when you started seeing my brother, Kaya. You knew full well how my father felt about it but that didn’t stop you. Nor did it make you act discreetly. So I’m afraid that beggars can’t be choosers.”

  I don’t meet Reid’s gaze. He isn’t completely wrong.

  Oliver

  I’M BLOODY DONE. YOU know all my stupid talk about how love was overrated? Maybe it was because I’d never been in love before. I mean, I don’t know if I am now, this is completely uncharted territory for me but since I met Kaya, things changed for me. I groan as I turn into the private road that leads to the Hudson’s estate. The next Zeta party and pledge event is being held there while Karen and Dustin are away for business in New York City. I don’t know if I’m in love, I don’t know if it’s even possible for me to be in love but the unusual, new feelings that keep sprouting out of nowhere make me definitely suspect that I might have fallen for her. I talked to Valeria about our wager and I told her to forget about it. I still want Kaya but not because of a bet. I want her because she makes me feel alive like nothing and no one has ever done before. It’s maddening and confusing and I suspect that I might be headed toward heartbreak at breakneck speed but it’s becoming harder and harder to deny the way I feel.

  Obviously Valeria wasn’t happy, she likes to win as much as I do and she called me a pussy for getting out of our bet. She said I was too scared to lose because her and Reid are growing closer and I’m not making any progress with Kaya. She can think whatever she wants, I’m just not into it, into my stepsister anymore. I’ll always love her but my desire for her is gone. Bloody hell, my desire for anyone but Kaya is gone.

  I park the Aston in the huge driveway, already crowded with a few cars. I’ve only been here once before, for Kaya’s birthday about six weeks ago, when rush week had just ended and we spent time on the beach. Now we’re just a few weeks away from winter break and while Northern California isn’t as cold as the UK, I doubt anyone will want to go swimming.

  Tonight’s the last pledge event and after this there’ll be initiations and we’ll have new, fully fledged Zetas and Gammas. I guess tonight’s my last chance to dare Kaya to kiss me or to try and get close to her with the pretext of the pledging. After this is done, I’ll have to man up and ask her out for real. I know it won’t be easy to convince her, I know she isn’t single and I can see that she’s loyal to her boyfriends. Those lucky bastards.

  The party has already started when I enter the ballroom style formal living room where we had Kaya’s birthday cake. I spot Hoyt dancing with Erin and grin at the look on my frat’s brother’s face. He must’ve been pregaming and he looks like more than dancing, he’s being dragged around the dance floor. Shit, I hope people aren’t already wasted or the party won’t last too long.

  My stepsister is in a corner whispering into Rachelle’s ear and she throws an annoyed glare at me when she sees me looking around the room. Reid, Parker, Chase and Bryce are not far away
giving our pledges some pink lace underwear and telling them their dare is to convince one Zeta, not a pledge, to wear them and show the rest of the room when prompted.

  That’s a classic game. I nod at the guys but they barely acknowledge me. It’s really odd, they’ve been giving me the cold shoulder since last weekend’s booze cruise. Maybe I really did push my luck with Kaya with those seven minutes in heaven but I don’t bloody regret one second of it. Seeing Kaya come apart in my arms, even if she didn’t want to is one of the best memories of my life. I’m not even ashamed to admit that I’ve been wanking to it all week.

  I’ve been texting Kaya on messenger, I know she loves dogs so I started sending her funny dog videos and telling her every time something made me think about her. She’s replied every time, albeit a bit more coldly than I expected. I know that we aren’t exactly friends but I’m trying to get to know her. I want to get to know her.

  And talking about the object of my affection, she’s directing the housekeeper to set some food down on a long table that has been pushed near one of the full length windows to allow people to dance.

  I wait until she’s done and greet her when the housekeeper takes her leave. “Hey beautiful. How are you tonight?” Her gaze is cold and hard when she meets mine. She doesn’t look at me the same way she did on that railing when we jumped off my father’s yacht.

  “Just the guy I wanted to see,” she greets me. “Can I talk to you in private?”

  “Sure,” I agree and she grabs my hand dragging me out of one of the full length windows and onto a large balcony. The night is clear but chilly and when she shivers after closing the glass paned door behind her, I instinctively wrap one arm around her shoulder. She immediately shrugs me away. It hurts but I’m not entirely surprised. I know that she’s fighting this thing between us. Not just because she’s taken but mostly because I’ve been a bit of a dick to her and to her guys.

  “My answer is no,” she grinds out, folding her arms over her gorgeous tits. She isn’t wearing anything revealing but it’s impossible to hide her sexy body.

  “No?” I ask, confused.

  “You heard me,” she confirms, standing her ground.

  “Ok,” I say with a smirk. “Can I at least know what are you saying no to? I haven’t even dared you to kiss me yet. Not that I wasn’t planning to.” I finish off my little taunt with a wink.

  “Oliver, stop!” She scolds me. “This isn’t one of your games.”

  The way she normally says my name makes me hard but this time, I’m distracted by the hardness in her tone. “Angel, you really aren’t making any sense. Honestly. I know I’ve been quite the insufferable arsehole lately but I have no bloody idea what you’re on about. So do you care to explain? I know I probably won’t like it but what are you saying no to?”

  “To going on a date with you. I’m not going out with you. Not now, not ever. I don’t care if you tell my stepdad about me and Chase. You’re a bully and—”

  “Whoa, whoa, whoa. Slow down, darling. I was planning to ask you out later, let me at least ask before you turn me down, all right? And what’s this malarkey about me telling on you and Chase? I told you that I thought about bargaining with you about it but I decided against it. What’s gotten into you?”

  She narrows her gorgeous green eyes. “Yeah, right. That’s what you made me believe at first and I almost fell for it. You know what? The nice guy act you’ve been trying to put on lately doesn’t become you. It’s as false as every single word that leaves your mouth. So cut the crap, Oliver. I was hoping we could be friends but obviously winning your stupid game is more important than that. Whatever. I’m not going out with you. What are you gonna do about it, huh?”

  Her fiery tone and attitude makes it hard to focus on what she’s saying, because aside from making no sense whatsoever, she’s sexy as hell. “Fine. But next time, let a guy ask you out before you say no.” I tease her, still unsure of what’s going on.

  “Oliver, be fucking serious. This isn’t a joke. If you tell Dustin about me and Chase, you’ll destroy our family. How do you expect me to go out with you under that kind of threat?”

  This feels like the twilight zone. “This is exactly why I was trying to get to know you better before I asked you, Kaya. And at the risk of repeating myself, this is also why I have no intention of revealing your secret.”

  Kaya’s voice breaks. “Quit playing your stupid games. What do you have to say about this?” She takes a piece of thick paper from her pocket and slaps me in the chest with it. I look at it curiously.

  I’ve tried everything, I’ve dared you, I helped you, I even made you come and you won’t give me a chance. An English lord always wins, so now we’ll play my game with my rules. You have one week to accept my request for a date. If by next weekend, you don’t set a date to go out with me, your stepfather will learn how you really spend your nights. He’ll learn that you’re fucking Chase and both his friends. The ball is in your court, darling. Sweet dreams. Oliver.

  It takes me a second to really register what the bloody hell I’m looking at. The card and the little envelope it came in come from the Queen Rena. There’s the same standard stationary in every cabin except the master cabin where the stationary has the Wellesley family crest. “I’ve never seen this note before, Kaya.” I inform her but I’m not surprised when she doesn’t believe me.

  “Do you think I’m that stupid? Who else could it be?” She attacks me.

  “Well angel, to begin with I’ll have you know that that’s not my handwriting. Secondly, that stationary could’ve come from any cabin on that yacht. So you better start thinking who you or Chase pissed off because it isn’t me. I don’t particularly like your stepbrothers or their friends but since telling what I saw outside that bar would hurt you, I’m not doing it.”

  She still looks like she isn’t convinced. “Who else could it be? Reid said he was with you when he saw me and Chase.”

  I shrug. “Silly as it might sound, do you think your stepbrother could be the author of that note? He looked extremely pissed when he saw you kissing his twin.” I offer.

  “No way.” She immediately reacts. “Reid would never do that.”

  I don’t waste any time dwelling on how hurt I feel that she’d believe that I’d blackmail her but Reid wouldn’t. In all fairness I seriously thought about it, right before I realized how much I really like Kaya and how there would be no chance to come back from something like that. “Well then, my guess is as good as yours. I promise you on everything that is dearest to me that I didn’t write that nasty note.”

  Her next words make me realize that I have a long way to go before Kaya would ever even consider me a friend. “And what would that be? What do you hold dear, Oliver?”

  I try to lighten the mood. “I don’t know, angel. I guess my title, my money ... definitely my bell-end.”

  She doesn’t catch on. “Your what?”

  “My bell-end,” I explain seriously. “The head of my dick.”

  She looks at me like I’m insane. “That isn’t even a word. Why would you call it—”

  “Think about it, Kaya. A bell-end is the top part of a bell tower. If you think of a cock, the shaft looks like the tower and the top part looks like ...”

  “The roof,” she finishes and I nod.

  “Exactly. The bell-end.”

  She laughs, the first real laugh I’ve seen tonight. “You Brits are weirdos.”

  My grin widens. “We might be. But now think about it. Would I ever swear an oath on the part of me that I care the most for?”

  She doesn’t think about it for too long. “Fuck. I believe you.” Then she turns pensive. “But if it wasn’t you, who?”

  “I honestly don’t know. I haven’t told anyone. Just you. But you guys were out in the open. Anybody could have walked out and seen you. And anyone on that boat could have written the note.”

  We stand there in the chilly night, quiet for a moment.

  And then a thought h
its me. I don’t want to believe it but it’s inevitable and truth be told, it’s the only thing that makes sense.

  Valeria.

  She was at the bar that night and she’s into Reid. I haven’t missed the way Reid looks at Kaya, it’s the same way I do. My stepsister isn’t an idiot and the competitive streak is something we have in common. She must have noticed that Reid might be hanging out with her but his eyes never leave his stepsister, when he thinks that no one’s watching. I guess me telling her that I had lost interest in our wager didn’t help matters. She felt rejected and she might’ve lashed out.

  I clench my fists. This isn’t something I can let slide. It would’ve been ok to mess with me and honestly the note was a stroke of genius. Whatever chances I might have had with Kaya, whatever progress our relationship could have made, that note would make sure to destroy it. I’m lucky that Kaya believes me. Not that she does because I earned her trust, I know I haven’t even started to do that. But this is one of the things I find irresistible about Kaya: she’s a logical creature.

  I worry that this might just be the beginning of a witch hunt. If Valeria is jealous of Kaya, she might not stop until she destroys her perceived rival. For a second I think about another girl my stepsister used to hate. But I push the thought of my ex out of my mind. It hurts too much, I wronged her and I’ll never be able to fix what my selfishness has broken. I didn’t do half the stuff I was accused of in court but I got her in trouble and I got scared at the idea of the responsibility of a baby. When I came to my senses, it was too late. Valeria was whispering in my ear the whole time that my ex wasn’t faithful and that baby could’ve been anyone’s. I’ve always wondered if the bullying that cost my baby’s life due to my ex’s suicide attempt was her doing but I had no proof. The whole situation was my fault anyway for not manning up. So I need to find out if my stepsister is involved in this blackmail. Not just to clear my name but because I can’t let her destroy Kaya and Chase’s lives. I know it’s hypocritical that up to a couple of weeks ago all I wanted was to play with Kaya but – I bloody hate feelings. They make you weak.