Her Filthy Mistake (Sinfully Forbidden #2)

Chapter One

Zoe

As the engines roar to life, I sit stiff as a board with a bland expression on my face, hoping to pull off the perfect ‘flying doesn’t scare the shit out of me’ face. Unfortunately, it probably comes off as a ‘terrified of flying’ face or resting bitch face. I love the destination parts of my mother and stepfather’s family trips, but I hate the getting there parts.

The early arrivals to the airport are an inconvenience. The forgetting to wear socks when going through security and having to walk barefoot through the body scanner is disgusting. You’d think I’d only forget that once, but it happened again. The hours of sitting thigh to thigh with a stranger while watching every move the flight attendants make to ensure they aren’t freaking out, so I don’t have to freak out harder, is exhausting.

At least my brother is on one side of me which allows me to scoot closer to him and farther away from the overweight, bald man who’s spent most of our wait on the tarmac smacking his gum. Apparently, chewing gum with your mouth open keeps your ears from popping. So he says.

What’s he going to do when we take off, and the gum has disintegrated?

“Seriously?” Zayden nudges me with his elbow.

“What?” I glare at him out of the corner of my eye.

“You’re acting like a baby. We’ve already been on two other flights today.”

“So what?” I shrug and shift from one butt cheek to the other. If it was anyone else, I’d play it off that I’m not petrified of crashing in the middle of a pasture with a floatation device wrapped around my neck. But it’s Zayden, he knows when I’m full of shit. So, there’s no use pretending.

Granted, we’re getting ready to fly over the ocean, so the floatation device will have an actual purpose during this leg of the flight. I shudder involuntarily at the thought.

“You’ve flown before, so act like it.” He shifts lower into his seat like he doesn’t have a care in the world.

“I don’t like flying,” I mutter under my breath as the flight attendant goes through her spiel about all the safety equipment and who’s responsible for rescuing the other passengers if there happens to be an ‘untimely’ landing.

‘Untimely’ landing? My teeth grind together. Her speech isn’t doing anything to appease my fears, which is why I’m seated halfway between the wing and the back of the plane. I don’t want to be responsible for anyone else.

Ten minutes later, we’re off the ground and onto the final stage of our journey. Soon, we’ll be in Saint Lucia, and I can forget the pain of traveling until the return trip.

Every year, my mom and stepfather have a big celebration for Christmas. A trip to a ski lodge one year. The desert another year. We’ve often met at their house for games, ugly sweater contests, and white elephant gifts. But this year, they’re going on a holiday cruise, so they wanted everyone to get together for their anniversary.

This is our second trip to the Caribbean with our last one being almost three years ago. My teeth grind together as the altitude pops my ears.

“You should have taken the gum I offered.” The man looks expectantly at me and points at his ears. “My ears are fine.”

“I’m glad.” I stare straight ahead. Ignore him, and don’t think about the last trip. It was a mess. My mom invited my dad and his second wife because he always complained about not seeing us during the Christmas holiday. And they came.

That was bad enough. But Jace, my stepfather’s half-brother, was also there. Asshole. I stare out the window at the sea of clouds below the plane. I’d rather envision dying a fiery death with the airplane’s fuselage crashing around me than think about Jace.

Zayden taps furiously on his phone, returning my attention back to the present. The second we get on each connecting flight; he pays for the airplane Wi-Fi service like he’s a 16-year-old girl who has left her 18-year-old boyfriend at home while she goes on vacation. And suspects he’s up to no good.

“What’s going on?’

“It’s a case I’m working on. My partner messaged and said things are heating up.” He shakes his head as his jaw flexes. “I knew I shouldn’t have come.”

“And suffer Mom’s wrath?” I wouldn’t have heard the end of it from Mom if I ditched.

“This case has been on the periphery since I joined the force, and someone has finally come forward with a claim against a prominent….” He pauses as if he’s said too much already and then continues, “A person of interest.”

“That’s good news, right?” Although he must keep the specifics of his job under wraps, I know as an undercover police officer, he spends most of his time working criminal syndicate investigations.

“It’s great news, but I want to be on the ground when he gets caught.” His eyes flash with anger, causing the hairs on my arms to rise. He’s working something big because I’ve seen him talk about drug dealers and serial arsonists like they were kindergarteners.

“How long?”

“I don’t know. The person just came forward, so it could be as short as a week, or it might drag out like it’s been doing. I’d give anything to be in the middle of it when everything goes down.”

I pat his arm and shake my head. “I’m proud of you. Even though I’m secretly relieved you’re here and not back home.”

“Zoe, I’m careful.”

“I know.”

As he returns to reading and responding to his messages, I close my eyes and rest my head against the back of the seat. In no time, we’ll be at the resort, surrounded by blue-green water, crystal blue skies, white beaches, palm trees, and warm, moist breezes.

While back home, we’re leaving behind bad guys with guns, mosquitoes, and brown grass.

Slowly, I drift off to sleep, and there he is. Jace. My stepfather’s younger half-brother. The most gorgeous, angst-ridden man I’ve ever laid eyes on.

Christmas in Jamaica–Two Years Ago

I smiled at him. “Thank you for entertaining me this weekend. I’m sorry you got stuck with me.” Before I lost my nerve, I stood on my tiptoes and kissed his cheek. The rough stubble brushed my lips. He inhaled as his body tightened like a bow string ready to strike.

“It’s not a problem.” Jace shrugged and returned to hiking back to the resort. We’d spent half an hour down by the water watching the dolphins.

The day had been perfect. The sun beamed down on his golden skin, and I’d caught him checking me out in my hot pink string bikini more than once.

“It was sweet of you.” I placed my hand on his forearm, drawing him to a stop. I bit my lower lip and gave him a wide-eyed stare. The kind that says I’m innocent, but I want you to sully me. His skin sizzled under my fingertips.

“Um, you’re welcome.” He dodged my gaze and stared out into the distance toward the resort’s dining area.

We weren’t visible to the other guests from where we were standing, tucked behind a row of plants. But the sounds of the utensils clattering against plates filtered down to our location. The rest of our family were inside the resort, finishing brunch before we headed to the airport and returned to reality.

I wanted to stay right there with him.

“It was what was expected of me. We were the only singles.” His Adam’s apple bobbed as he shrugged. “Besides, we’re family.”

Family? Yes, we’re family, but not in the weird sense. I was 15 by the time I met him. The real issue was his ex. When was he ever going to get over her and notice me? I wanted to stomp my foot and pout.

“Maybe it would help if you didn’t keep singing about her.” The words are out of my mouth before I can stop them.

“What?” His brow was furrowed as he swung his head back around to face me.

“That woe is me look that’s always on your face. You could probably get rid of it faster if you stopped thinking and singing about her all the time.” I hated jealousy. It was an ugly, useless emotion, but it raged through me, nonetheless. And it made me look like a complete fool begging for him to pay attention to me. I was even embarrassed by how I was acting.

“Forget I said anything.” I dropped my arm to my side.

Everyone knew his girlfriend cheated on him with the bass player for their band and broke up their group. That was nearly two years prior, and he was still wallowing around like a heartbroken dog. Yes, he’d moved on to another band, but he still wrote and sang songs about her.

“You don’t know anything about it.” His eyes flashed with anger. “This has nothing to do with Samantha.”

“It doesn’t?” I crossed my arms over my chest. Not believing a word he said.

“No, it doesn’t.” He raked a hand through his hair as a saltwater breeze made a strand of my hair dance in front of my face. “You don’t know the first thing about being an adult and wishing for things you can’t have.” He shook his head and stepped back, putting distance between us. “You’re still a child who’s been sheltered by her mom….”

I swallowed hard to keep tears from forming. The urge to shout ‘I was a 20-year-old woman going to college and not a child’ was strong, but I kept from speaking the words into existence. He wouldn’t have cared. He had his mind made up. I was a child.

“My brother and her father.” The last words were bit out and laced with disdain.

My back tensed. I knew he and my stepdad sometimes had a strained relationship, but I wasn’t aware it was this volatile. Or was his anger directed toward my father? As far as I knew, they’d barely said more than hi and bye to each other over the years.

“You have a roof over your head. Your college is paid for. You have boys wrapped around your little finger while slinking around in a tiny two-piece bikini. You probably think it’s funny that you drive them crazy.” His hands balled into fists as a seagull swooped down and glided above our heads.

“You’re mean.” Tears stung my eyes. “It’s not my fault that I’m young or that I have people who care for me.”

“No. It’s not. But you need to stop following me around like a love-starved puppy. You’re too young for me. And even if you weren’t, you’re not my type.”

“You’re right,” I bit back and stepped forward, making him stumble backward to keep from touching me. “I’m classy, and you go for the drunk, drugged-out groupie type that’ll straddle whatever pole gets them a free ride.” I laughed to keep the tears at bay. “And I guess yours wasn’t getting her anywhere, was it?” I straightened my shoulders and flipped my black hair behind my shoulder. “Did she make you watch as she did your best friend? I bet that hurt. But it couldn’t have happened to a better guy. I hope she gave you a parting gift. A nice pus-oozing dick to match your personality.” I spun on my heel and marched toward our cabin.

Unfortunately, it was hard to hold my head high when I was stomping on burning sand, and my swimsuit bottom was wedged up my ass. But I held my own the best I could.

This is the last time I’ll swoon over Jace Michael Graham. The rock god.

What an epic joke. He’s 28 years old and lives on a bus. So, what if his abs have abs, and you can drown in his sea-blue eyes that remind you of rocking in a hammock on the beach? Or that he sings like a fallen angel. Asshole.

I could’ve sworn the previous night, when he was playing his guitar under the stars as our family gathered around a crackling bonfire, that his words were for me. His eyes never left mine. But it was an illusion. The same fantasy he puts on for the stage.

What a joke. And apparently, I’m not the only one that thinks that, or he’d have a record deal by now.

The airplane jolts, and I scream, sitting upright and glancing in all directions. Son of a bitch. I clutch my hip where the seatbelt that I refused to remove bites into my skin.

“Calm down, drama queen.” My brother laughs and slaps his thigh. “You crack me up. I can’t wait to get to our bungalow and tell Jace how you almost hit your head on the roof of the plane, thinking we were going to crash.”

“Jace?” My mouth barely moves as panic claws at my chest. Mom told me he wasn’t coming. I’ve spent the last two plus years avoiding him. If he was attending a family event, I showed up after he left or begged off with a headache the second he arrived.

“He’s crashing in our bungalow. There weren’t any more available units by the time he found out he could get away. So, I offered to let him share our place.”

Fuck my life.