Chapter 24
Chapter 24
KINGSTON
W e check in, paying cash of course, and settle into our room. Although I’m relieved at getting them to safety somewhat, I still have far too many questions swirling through my mind. “About my order…” I begin, not sure how to approach this other than to come right out with the truth. I’m not one for sugar coating anything, though the last thing I want to do is upset Iris. “The Brotherhood told me to get close to a woman they want information on. Not necessarily her specifically, but her family.”
They both sit on the edge of the bed, watching me as I pace back and forth, wanting to remember everything and tell them once so I don’t have to ever repeat any of it. Iris grabs Beau’s hand, holding it while they listen. I continue, “At the time, it was no big deal. Every woman on campus wants me so it was a no brainer to find the woman, get what I needed and be done with it. My night took a twisted turn when the woman I was searching for, turned out to be you. I knew then and there you were in danger, most likely because your father had done something, and the society was keeping tabs.”
“Did they say as much?” she asks.
Beau shakes his head. “They don’t tell us anything but the bare minimum.”
“He’s right. But, like I said, the thing standing out to me the most was your safety being in jeopardy, pair it with the fact the woman I’ve dreamed of seeing for years was in front of me, and I was all in from that point on. I made sure you wore my clothes through the party so the multiple witnesses working for the society would report back how I’d made my claim on you. The idiots around campus would be smart enough to back off and the powerful people would realize I was ready to go public with you. Anything happening to you after my silent announcement, and it would’ve been the only thing everyone on campus would be talking about. Not only them, but their parents, and things would get messy for the society. Hell, one call to my father and he’d be throwing a lavish party in our names, making it even more public, so I thought it was a step in the right direction.”
“What about the information they want? I doubt the society would simply give up their search.”
“They didn’t.” I shake my head, running my hand over the back of my neck. “I had to give them your phone and laptop.”
“My phone? But… how? When? It never leaves my side.”
“When you were doing your sorority group activities.”
“Oh my God, I remember now. I had like twenty people call and text then it showed up out of nowhere. I thought I’d been too tired I somehow overlooked it, but the entire thing never sat right with me.”
“Now you know.”
She nods. “And I wouldn’t have noticed my laptop missing if it wasn’t for very long. You and Beau have had my mind tied up in knots, it’s kept me distracted, much more than I typically am.”
Beau leans forward, releasing her hand to rest his elbows on his thighs. He sighs. “I have a feeling there’s a lot we don’t know. And now with the three of us, where do we go from here with this trio?”
“I’m not giving Iris up,” I immediately respond. I love her and I need her in my life. I want both of them. “But I don’t want to give you up either, Beau. This situation has turned into a clusterfuck.”
Iris stands, wrapping her arms around my waist. “It’ll be okay, Kingston. We’ll figure this thing out with the society and us.”
“How?” I grit, my chest tight with emotion. “We all know the consequence of not following an order from the society will be harsh at best.”
“To start, I’m not walking away from either of you, ever again. I love you both, with everything I am. I would never do anything to come between you, but I can’t help how I feel.”
“Baby, we love you too.” Beau pulls her into his lap and tucks a loose strand of hair behind her ear while she smiles and gazes into his eyes. “And for this to work, we have to be completely honest with everyone in this room. There can’t be any secrets.”
Dread enters my veins and even though I’m starting to lose my mind wondering what he’s referring to, I stand in feigned patience in front of them both.
Iris rises to her feet and takes my hands in hers. “Kingston. The past few weeks have been some of my favorite memories and I will cherish them forever. Just like the memories Beau and I have shared through the years.” Her confidence wavers just slightly before she begins again. “My history with Beau goes back to when we were kids.”
“Yeah. And if you remember correctly, I was right there with you both. The three of us were inseparable.”
“Beau was my first. We had sex right before my father made me move away.”
The betrayal of her admission and what it means practically chokes me. The one person I thought I knew better than I know myself has kept this little secret from me for years. He gets the free pass on the recent stuff because he can hide behind the initiation of the society. But the years of our tightly bonded friendship should’ve been reason enough for him to spill the fuckin’ beans on this.
With a huff, I drop her hands and resume my pacing. “When you think you know someone like the back of your fucking hand… and then you discover they’ve had secrets for years. Tell me Beau, do you get off on knowing you fucked her first?”
“No. It wasn’t about you, King. What we shared has never been about you.”
Iris interrupts. “I love you both and I don’t want you two fighting over this. When I fell for each of you doesn’t matter because at the end of it all, I can’t choose between you two and refuse to try. We’re together now, how we’re supposed to be.”
“Baby, this anger I’m feeling isn’t meant for you. This is all for Beau and the years of us talking about missing you and wondering where you were. There were thousands of opportunities for him to come clean about the two of you long before you showed up at Bentley. At one point we’d come up with a plan to go see you and bring you home. It hadn’t happened, but now I can’t help but wonder what would’ve gone down if we had. I was in love with you then, just like I am now.”
Beau sighs, pulling my stare to him. “I should have. And if I could go back in time, it would be the first thing I did.” He remains sitting on the bed, but has his head lowered. “I was in a fucked-up place and I’m not one for talking through shit; you understand me better than anyone and I know you recognized the darkness I was dealing with.”
“Yeah, I fucking noticed. Hard to miss a broody, miserable asshole.” God, I want to beat his ass. The high road I’m walking right now by not punching him in his fucking face isn’t one I usually take.
“If he had told you back then, I wouldn’t have you both. You would’ve kept your distance from me because he’s your best friend. You and I would’ve never happened. Everything is for a reason and here we are today because of our past. Because of the decisions we made.”
I nod. “Yes. Here we are with death threats coming any moment… all in love, while some of us have no idea just how fucked we are.” I can’t pretend this is all going to turn out perfect with the love of my life, my best friend, and I all playing house together. This is deep shit we’re in and I have no clue how to get us out of it.
“We can figure it out together. We need to talk about everything we know and surely, we’ll find a loophole that’ll help us.” Iris shoots some hope into the room and even though I don’t think there’ll be any chance in hell we’ll get out of this unscathed, I start telling the rest of my story about the society.
IRIS
Kingston explains every conversation he’s had with the society along with the gory details of what he’s done to get this far toward his initiation, and I can’t believe what I’ve heard. Beau takes over and shares his experience, solidifying the severity of what we’re dealing with. Their combined stories and twisted orders leave all three of us silent as we do our best to contemplate a plan.
“Kingston, you’re supposed to kill one of us. What if you leave me in hiding somewhere and go back with Beau…” I try to offer an option, but it gets shot down immediately.
“Not a chance in hell,” they both say in unison.
“They’ll find us if we try to run, and I don’t want to spend the rest of our lives looking behind us.” Beau speaks up once again. “We go back and if they insist you follow through with your order… King you know what to do. And then rain hell on their asses for making you do it.” I know what he’s inferring, and I’m instantly pissed that Beau is even suggesting it.
“That’s not an option.” I’m as quick to deny them as they were me.
“It’s our only option,” Beau responds as he flops back on the bed, sprawling out to stretch his long limbs. The stress has to be eating at the both of them if it’s hitting me this hard and I’ve barely discovered what the deal is.
“Wait… no. Remember, we agreed all three of us would talk this out and decide what to do. Together.” I stand to speak to them both, so they can see the seriousness on my face.
“That’s what we’re doing, baby. But when we’re left with no other choice, we have to face it head on with the dignity we would any other challenge.” Beau rambles what he thinks is logic while Kingston hasn’t uttered a word since he listened to everything Beau said. His stare pierces into me as I turn to persuade him to listen to what I have to say.
“King, I could never live without either of you again. Please don’t make a rash decision without talking to me first. If the society wants me so badly, let them have me. Deliver me to their door as a trade for what they’ve ordered you.” I beg and plead at his feet, while he shows no outward emotion, making it hard for me to read him.
“It doesn’t work like that.” He’s numb in his response, while I’m getting more fired up by the minute.
“We make it work. We come from three of the wealthiest families in the world and money like we have gives us some pull. If our parents knew what the society was demanding… heads would roll.” I’m sure of it, and we all know damn well I’m right… so our options are not as limited as we first thought.
“Come to bed for now. Let’s discuss it all again in the morning.” Beau pats the bed beside him. “I can’t talk about this any longer tonight. My head feels like it’s about to explode.”
“If you promise not to suggest any asinine plans tomorrow, I’ll agree to table this conversation.”
“Sure.” Beau lays his head back on the pillow and reaches for the lamp next to the side of the bed he’s lying on. The room is half cast in darkness when I climb up the middle of the bed and crawl under the covers. One glance across the room and I notice Kingston still glowering at me. He has every right to be mad, but I can’t handle him looking at me like this.
Slipping out of bed, I cross the room to sit on his lap. He relaxes back in his chair to allow me my favorite position. “You have to promise you’ll chose to take me out if you’re forced to kill one of us. I’ll never forgive you if you kill him.” I gaze into his deep blue eyes with the intention of making him promise me.
His stare turns cloudy as he changes the subject, questioning, “Those guys really put you through hell and didn’t expect to pay a penance? How could anyone be so cruel to you, baby?”
My heart sinks. The stories Beau told are weighing heavy on him and he’s not used to dealing with news he can’t seek some revenge for or handle in some sort of way. “Yes, and they’ve paid the ultimate price for doing it.” We have much more to be concerned with than the dead guys of my past.
“I would’ve done the same. Killed for you.”
“I know, baby.” I slide my hand through his blond locks and shift forward, wanting to be closer.
“I’m not sure how the fuck we’re going to get out of this… but we have to. I want us to have the life you’re excited about. You’re the two most important people to me and I can’t possibly imagine having to choose.”
“I won’t let you choose. Now come to bed and we can come up with our next move tomorrow. Maybe if we have a clear head something we’re missing will seem more obvious.” He helps me off his lap and I take his hand, leading us to the bed. I slide under the covers into my spot in the middle, wanting their bodies to keep me warm all night. He strips his clothes off, offering me the delicious view of his toned body, then slips in beside me.
And for the first time, I’m in bed between the two men I love more than life itself.
Beau shifts to his side, tugging me against his torso until my back is firmly pressed against his chest. King slides an arm under my head, adjusting so I’m using his bicep as my pillow, and I couldn’t be more comfortable sandwiched between them. We’re all tangled and connected in the most perfect way, heat surrounding me, sending me into the best sleep I’ve ever had.