Chapter 22
I never thought I’d say those words out loud. The chains around my chest unshackle, freeing something in me.
Her face pales, terror striking her expression.
“Alice,” she says, disdain clinging to each letter, avenging me and trusting me completely.
After I realized what was happening, Alice insisted that no one would believe me, that it was consensual, and I had gotten hard, so of course I wanted it.
I squeeze my eyes shut for a moment. Reliving her fingers digging into my skin as she blew me makes me fucking nauseous. I can barely keep the bile from climbing up my throat. “I was sixteen the first time it happened.”
She swallows, her face contorted in shock. “Sixteen?”
I offer a small nod, letting out a dejected sound.
“That’s why you stiffened when I touched you the first time. I am so sorry.”
She sobs, and I wrap her in my arms. I don’t care about my anguish but wanting to mend hers.
“How can you even touch me?”
I grip her wrist, palming her hand on my cheek. “Don’t you ever say that. Never think that. Your touch has been the only one I’ve ever desired. I’ve never wanted anyone but you, Bailey.”
She calms down, and I brush her tears away with my thumb, continuing. “There were touches here and there long before that, playful innuendos and teasing. A horny teenager who found it hot that his mother’s best friend had a thing for him. I didn’t think much of it. She has been there for me since I can remember.”
“She groomed you.”
“I didn’t know it then. When I showed interest in girls, she said, ‘Let me teach you. I want only the best for you.’”
She cups her mouth. “Oh my god.”
“Then she called me to her house, telling me she needed me for something. I went, not thinking much of it. She had this black kimono on when she opened her door with nothing underneath. And before I could even think of protesting, she palmed my dick.” Bugs crawl up my skin, eating at my flesh. “I got an erection, but I pulled away and told her that we couldn’t do that. It didn’t feel right.”
“Because it wasn’t.”
“But she insisted that it was okay and that she loved me. She said she would teach me all the ways to please girls, so I would end up thanking her.” I gulp, swallowing back the rising bile. “The first time happened quickly. She dropped to her knees and sucked me off. It felt good… She always reminded me of how good she could make me feel. Two years. Each time I tried to end it, she said she would kill herself.”
I close my eyes, needing a moment to distance myself from those memories.
Bailey’s soft touch pulls me back from the past. Lifting my hand to her mouth, she kisses my palm sweetly. “She knew you lost your mother. She’s a fucking manipulative monster.”
“That’s the reason for my need to control. But that ended with you.”
“And with the other girls?” she asks in a meek, almost inaudible voice.
I palm her cheek, and she leans into my touch, both of us needing skin contact.
“I was hoping they could make me feel better, make me forget, but I couldn’t stand it when they touched me. They always reminded me of her, so I never let them do anything. It was all mechanical, using the lessons she taught me about a woman’s body, and soon I got that fucking reputation… In her frequent jealous outbursts, Alice would corner me. She even drugged me. One time, she spiked my drink, and I woke up bound to her bed. She forced me to come so many times my cock hurt. I threw up afterward, and she said that was my punishment for fucking someone other than her.”
Bailey’s hand trembles as she places it on mine, caressing me gently, anchoring me, and giving me the strength to let it all out.
“But that was my breaking point. I filmed her the next time. While she prepared the binds, I placed my phone on her nightstand to record her. I made her talk while telling her how I didn’t want this and never did. She laughed in my face, saying I was a good boy because I always come so hard for her. She also said if it weren’t for her I wouldn’t know how to last longer in bed, that her lessons in stamina were paying off. The next day, I went to her office and played it for her. She was furious because she knew that her career would be over if it got out. She left me alone after the video threat.”
What she’d like to ask is written on Bailey’s face, so I answer instead. “My mom’s death was hard on my father, and telling him about what Alice did would be like he failed. It wasn’t his fault he trusted a predator. Mia would have killed her. I didn’t want her to do that, so I sucked it up and fought, focusing on the mission to return to Greenville and take back what rightfully belongs to the Prescotts.”
Bailey’s eyes brim with big, fat tears, making it hard to continue my story. But I want all this poison that has been infecting my blood for years gone. “But she broke me. I was never able to feel pleasure with anyone, and after a while, I just stopped trying.”
“You’re not broken. That must have been the response to trauma. And it takes a while.”
“No, it took you for that. I haven’t had a girlfriend until you. I couldn’t even name what you made me feel because I’d never experienced that intensity. And I tried to fight it. I didn’t want anyone to see that part of me, or worse, use me again.” I close my eyes for a moment. I could have ruined the best thing in my life because I was afraid.
“I’d never do that,” she says softly.
“I know, angel.”
With my story out, my head drops, shame pouring over me. If that hadn’t happened to me, I would have long ago realized my feelings for Bailey, been the best version of myself for her, and not behaved like an immature prick.
She jumps into my arms, holding me tight. “You’re so strong, Hunter. Look at me and see how I see you.”
I lift my chin slowly to find only adoration and awe brimming in her eyes. Burying my face in her neck, I break out in tears. I wrap my arms around hers, but she’s the one holding me together. I am safe with her.
“I love you. I’m never going to leave you. I have you,” she repeats, lulling me into a cocoon of pure security. That teenager in me feels safe for the first time, and I can finally forgive myself.
She dabs my tears away with soft strokes and kisses my eyelids gently. “It was not your fault. Do you hear me? There’s no reason to be ashamed. You’re a survivor of abuse. That only makes you strong and never weak.”
Every word coming out of her mouth is dipped in belief, easing everything in me.
“You always say the right things.” I doubt this woman will ever cease to amaze me. Her power over me is not terrifying but healing.
Her eyes lock onto mine. “You said you don’t deserve me. I only wish to deserve you. Tell me what you need. Take whatever you want from me.”
Her words ignite a fiery demand in me to connect to her and never let her go. All I desire is to belong to her. Now that I found her, I will never let her go. She rooted herself in my life’s fabric and stitched together all the holes in my being. There’s nothing but peace, rapture, and love. That is such a surreal experience. I touch her to assure myself she’s real and I haven’t conjured her even though I could have never pictured something this perfect.
Rolling her onto her back, I lay on my palms above her while she gazes at me with unadulterated love and pure softness. I will take care of her, protect her at any cost, and always make sure I am worthy of this precious gift and the wonder of my life. All mine. All perfect.
Brushing my nose against hers, I say, “You’re perfect, my beautiful girl. So damn perfect.”
“Can I touch you?”
“Bailey—”
She cuts me off by quickly adding, “You never had a choice then. But this is your first time, okay? There was no one before me. There’s only ever me.”
I am aware of what she’s doing and, fuck, she ruins me in the best way.
“I’m bloody mad about you. You can touch me. I only want your touch. Now and forever.”
She lifts her dainty hands and holds my face. We stay like this for a while, savoring the skin-on-skin contact. Her gentle touch caresses me like a cleansing balm, healing me inch by inch. There’s nothing sexual about this moment, even though desire thrums under my skin, reverberating through my body. But for now, it’s just us and the need to cherish.
“I want only your touch too.”
“You better. You’re mine and mine alone, kitten.”
A radiant smile blooms on her face. “No complaints on my part.”
Our faces draw nearer, and when our mouths seal, nothing else exists. She tethers me to her, grounding me in safety. She’s my home, what I look forward to. We have been corrupting each other in some ways, but what we have done even more is save each other. I’ve finally stopped running around, no longer desperate to stay ahead of my demons.
“You’re my first and my last, Bailey.”
She tugs at my shirt, lifts my arms, then scoots up and throws it to the side. I stand up and unbutton my jeans while she undresses herself.
“No, you’re mine to unwrap. You’re my present, love. And if all that mental and physical abuse meant I get to have you, it was worth it. I’d endure it a hundred times over because I know what all the torment would bring me in the end. You.”
“Yours, Hunter… from the inside out.” Her fingers still as she stares at my naked body. To witness the spark in her eyes, loving what she sees, is such a potent high. “It’s unreal the way you look…”
“I better remain in shape then.”
She tilts her head, looking me in the eye. “I’d love you, anyway. My love is not conditional.”
I believe her because a calmness envelops me.
“But I won’t lie and say I don’t love all that physical perfection. No wonder all those girls can’t keep staring at you—like vultures.”
I burst into laughter. She’s indeed a fairy, a magical creature that chose me to show all the wonders of her world.
“My love, while your jealousy does things to me, you’re all I see, all I desire, and all I love—all that matters. You have my all, and that means my complete loyalty.”
I can’t contain my hunger for her anymore and climb into bed, pulling at her shirt while kissing her. I am in no hurry. I will have a lifetime of her, and I want to remember my first time. Between me kissing every inch of exposed skin and her leisurely caressing me, everything else vanishes. We’re in our own world where we’re the absolute rulers, free to do what we want, take as much time as we need, and explore each other unperturbed.
“A pussy for my pussy,” I say as I trace my fingertip over her necklace.
“You didn’t just say that. That is so corny.” She giggles, and I smirk in response.
“I love seeing that charm on you while I have my way with you.”
“That’s not what you usually call it…” she says, biting into her lower lip.
I push two fingers inside of her, and she’s so wet—squeezing and drenching my fingers at the same time. While she says she’s just as mad about me, I want even more. All her thoughts, all her heartbeats, her now and forever—everything she can give me and more.
“Cunt. My sweet cunt that has me worshipping it.”
Her pupils almost swallow the green and blue in her eyes, liking my dirty talk. “It was me who was inside her first. I made this cunt mine and mine alone.”
A shiver rocks through her body, and she arches her spine, wanting more.
“And I’ll be the last. I’ll fuck this cunt again and again till my last breath.”
“Hunter, please.”
“What does my girl need?”
She pierces me with a heated look, knowing full well that I am aware of what she wants.
“You want my cock in your tight cunt, so I lose my mind when I am inside you.”
“Yesss.”
“Then let me hear you.”
“I want.” She licks her lips, inhaling deeply before gulping. “Your…”
“Say it, Bailey, or you won’t get it, kitten.”
She blurts out. “Your cock in my pussy. Just fuck me already.”
I can’t refuse her anything. “I live to please you.”
Gripping my steel-hard cock, I bring it to her entrance. She sucks in a breath. I want to trap that first moan when I am inside her, so I crash my mouth on hers and thrust inside of her. She breathes life inside of me with that long moan. I stay like that, buried deep inside her as our eyes lock.
“Hi, my life,” I say, brushing a kiss on the tip of her nose. “I’m home.”
“I have been waiting for you.”
We don’t lose eye contact as we move together, making love. Skin to skin, heartbeat to heartbeat, we rock together, not chasing but riding the pleasure. There’s no hurry, no desperation. We just exist in this bubble of carnal and emotional bliss.
And when we come together, something clicks shut in me. She’s it.
Crashing beside her, spent yet energized, I press her to my side. She turns in my arms, giggling, trying to mimic my deep voice as she says, “Just one week. Just while we’re on vacation.”
She reminds me of my idiocy when I was hooked on her from the first taste.
The corners of my lips pull up. “A losing battle… I am waving the white flag.”
“I am hard to stay away from, huh?”
She wants validation. I’ll give it to her daily until she no longer needs it. “Impossible.”
Sighing contentedly, she drops her head onto my chest, her breathing deepening as she falls asleep. With her in my arms, contentment settles in, and I close my eyes, drifting to the most peaceful sleep of my life.
But when I wake up, she’s not in bed with me. I can’t have that. Sliding on a pair of sweatpants and a T-shirt, I follow the soft music down the stairs, and the view has me rooted in place. She’s moving her hips to a pop song, humming. Wearing a crop top and shorts that ride up her ass, her hair is pulled into a loose bun on top of her head.
“I feel you staring.”
“Just enjoying the view.”
She looks at me over her shoulder. “So you like what you see?”
“I love it. Is my girl fishing for compliments?”
“I never felt like this… It feels too good that I am afraid I am dreaming or that it won’t last, which sounds like I am so damn self-conscious, which makes it worse.”
In three long strides, I cut the distance between us. “I feel the same. Your beauty captivates me. I have trouble focusing on anything else when you’re in the room.”
“You didn’t even like that I was on your mind before. You were always downing a glass of whiskey or glaring at me every chance you got,” she says, a frown digging between her brows.
Incapable of not touching her, I run my knuckles along her neck. “And you glared right back, which didn’t help at all with me being all over the place anyway.”
“It was more a reaction to yours… It hurt thinking you can’t stand me,” she says meekly.
“I behaved like a jerk. I am sorry.”
The frown finally disappears, replaced by a bright grin. “You’ll have a lifetime of making it up to me.”
“I intend to hold you to that promise. Now go change before the others come down.”
Her head falls back, her laughter echoing around us. “You’re not serious.”
“I’m very serious.”
“Is it that important to you?” she asks, not dismissing my crazy demand.
“I am territorial and possessive, wanting you for my eyes only. Fuck, I sound like a madman. It’s my issue, not yours. Sorry, angel.”
“I’ll change, but you set the table.” Lifting onto her toes, she kisses me. “I love you, madman.”
I’m so damn lucky. I have no idea what I did to deserve her, but fuck if I won’t do anything in my power so that she never questions her love for me. Hearing her say that is how I want to start and end my days. I am needy as fuck, apparently, entirely dependent on her, and I don’t even care.
In the kitchen, while I set the table, my sister comes in, studying me. “You look different.”
I’ve tried to hide everything about Alice from Mia, hoping she’d never get close to knowing the truth. I thought I’d succeeded, but of course, she caught on to the differences.
“You must be seeing things.”
“I’ve been thinking a lot and intensely lately.”
“Mia…”
Her shoulders droop. Chin quivering, she looks so damn sad and hurt.
“When you started pulling away from me, I thought it was normal—part of dealing with our loss and witnessing Mom passing. I failed you because I accepted your change without question. I blamed your misery first on Mom’s death, then on hormonal changes—anything just to make it easier for me. That makes me the most selfish twin in the world.” She inhales deeply before adding, “But now, I see you with Bailey, and I realize there was more to my belief that you’re just a playboy. I even made fun of it. But it all stopped once we came here—completely and entirely. Why?”
“Sis, I don’t want to talk about it. It was not your fault. I preferred it to be like that…”
Her glistening eyes bore into mine. “What are you protecting me from exactly? It must be bad.”
Right then, Bailey enters, and my twin asks, “Does she know?”
I jerk my chin in a nod, and Mia sighs at Bailey, “You wouldn’t tell me, would you?”
Bailey sweeps her gaze from her to me. She won’t say anything, and the shaking of her head confirms it.
“I’m sorry, Mia. It’s Hunter’s story to tell. He needs that, and I think it would do you both good.”
Blake comes downstairs, and reading the room, he goes straight to Mia, wrapping her in his arms. “What’s wrong, Silver?”
“I am a terrible sister. That’s what I am,” she says and runs up the stairs. My chest constricts seeing her so upset.
Blake cocks his head at me, glaring. “I don’t fucking care what you do, but you fix this, got it?” and then he takes after her.
When Bailey and I are alone, I breathe a deep puff of air. “You saw how she is about not knowing the truth…”
“But she needs to know. Not telling her still gives that monster power.”
There’s a heavy tension around the table once everyone arrives for breakfast.
“So, who’s going to start?” Kaden says, training his eyes on each of us.
Nothing gets past this guy. He will make a good patriarch, at least as long as he has Celine. To maintain harmony in the Family, I need to protect his queen, which I would do anyway. But it’s more than us individually; it’s us as an entity. If there’s friction and secrets in the group, that will set a precedent. The past has shown how dangerous that was. I decide to come clean with mine, but the first to know will be my sister.
“Don’t look at me. I am all for not keeping secrets that could affect our group dynamic,” Abi says, looking my way.
“Abigail knows all my secrets. If there’s one that she thinks needs sharing with the group, so be it,” Dane offers, his voice firm.
“I’ve learned my lesson,” Blake mutters, glancing away.
Mia looks down at her hands, her voice barely a whisper. “I’m not the one keeping a secret.”
“I need to talk to Mia. Alone,” I say, my heart pounding.
Hurt glistens in Celine’s eyes before she quickly masks it. “You’ll be the next to know,” I tell her, adding solemnly, “Lead by example, right? Well, I’ll tell you all tonight.”
“I’m proud of you,” Bailey whispers, squeezing my thigh. I place my palm on hers, gathering strength from her touch.
When she stands up, she kisses me and leaves the house with the others. Celine stays behind but moves to the couch in the living room.
Alone with my sister, I ready myself to tell her what happened to me. I don’t embellish or soften it—I just let the words out in one long breath. “Alice sexually abused me.”
“I’m going to fucking kill her and make it hurt.” Mia screams a string of butchered sounds and jumps into my arms, sobbing her eyes out.
The commotion must have gotten Celine’s attention because she bolts inside.
“I’m so sorry. Please forgive me,” my twin hiccups, face blotched from crying, while I hold her. “I can’t believe you went through that alone, you stubborn idiot.”
“What is happening here? Please, just tell me,” Celine asks in a shaky voice, placing her hand on my arm.
My throat clamps. With potent emotions lodged there, it’s hard to swallow. “Alice raped me for years.” Each time I say it, it gets easier.
“She fucking did what?” she screeches, fury clinging to each syllable.
Celine drops in the other chair as if her legs can’t hold her any longer, and they both hug me. Surrounded by my twin and best friend’s love and support, there’s nothing but acceptance. I am loved, and what happened to me will never define me.
“I’m okay. Now.”
“But you weren’t for a long time, and that doesn’t just go away. Oh, she will pay for what she did to you,” Celine says, and the girls exchange a look. Knowing them, they are planning their revenge. But Alice has consumed my thoughts and invaded my sleep for so long that I don’t want to give her one more inch of space in my head.
“I will deal with her, but no one is doing anything before the Felix situation is resolved. Priorities are important.” The last thing I need is to keep these two from doing something stupid. While I love their care and worry, I am resolute to do things my way.
They hold on to me for a long time. It will take a while until they accept that I am all right. Damn, I should have told them sooner.
“Okay, enough, you’re wetting my shirt,” I say, trying to escape their hold, or we’ll stay here forever.
“You insensitive asshole,” Celine says, swatting the side of my head, but hugs me again. “You’re lucky I love you.”
“I love you, too,” I grumble, hugging her back, hoping this will do.
“Will you tell Dad?” Mia asks, embracing me as if she’ll never let me out of her sight again.
“Not now. So please keep it in the group. We really need to focus on finding Felix.”
“I’m sure the bitch won’t go anywhere. But what if she does that to someone else?” Celine asks, her expression murderous.
“Not after I threatened her. I was the only one who she was able to groom.”
“Oh, the bitch will regret that,” my sister vows.
When we walk to our classes, Mia and Celine flank me as if afraid I will break apart at any moment. I love them, but this attention is too much.
“Are you going to stay glued to my ass forever now?”
Celine shrugs. “Maybe, so deal with it.”
Kaden and Blake are waiting for us on the main campus. I grin, knowing even if they wanted to, these two crazy guys wouldn’t allow that. When Mia and Celine see their boyfriends, they sigh, aware of that too.
“So, Bailey, huh?” Celine elbows me.
“You always said I’d fall in love one day. Here I am. Thoroughly fallen.”
“She’s the only one we’d approve of,” my twin says with a big smile.
Nodding at them, I leave with a pep in my step as I go to my first class. For a moment, it feels too normal. I could get used to it. What I will never get used to is seeing my girlfriend with another guy.
Eric is eager to meet my fist. His time will come. Bloody calm down. She’s yours .
When she notices me, Bailey excuses herself quickly, her eyes locking onto mine as she rushes over. The bastard stares at me from the other side of the alcove. I wave at him, incapable of not fucking with him. What a pathetic excuse for a human being.
“How did it go?” she asks, hope shining in her eyes.
“Ripped it off like a Band-Aid. Now you have to help me keep those two in line.”
“Mm-hmm.”
It doesn’t escape me that she doesn’t promise me. Instead, she smiles, and I forget my own damn name.
“Did you end the fake relationship he has with you in his head? I’m losing my patience here.” I am about to grab her hand when she pulls it away, and a growl rumbles in my throat.
She brushes her pinkie against mine, surely to placate me. “I’m yours. But priorities, right?”
“All priorities will fucking end if he dares to touch you.”
“Fine.”
I accompany her to her next class, waiting for her to get seated. When I turn around, I come face-to-face with Eric. He’s harder to evade than a rat-infested sewage.
“I don’t like how you look at my girlfriend,” he parrots. I swear, delusion has nothing on this guy.
Like he’s a fly that bugs me, I swat him away by pushing him to the side. “Get out of my fucking face before I rearrange yours.”
Every second I spend in his vicinity brings me closer to losing it.
“Stay away,” he says, and something dark crosses his eyes. The fucker is nothing more than bark.
I smirk, passing him by. “Can’t do that. We live together.”
“She’ll be mine. Mark my words.”
Clenching and unclenching my fists at my sides, I call for patience. If I preach about priorities, I must deal with my anger issues. Bailey thinks this bastard could help, so I let it slide.
“If you say so.”
I fucking know better. She’s mine, and I focus on that knowledge to stay centered.
After my classes, I wait for Bailey. When she comes out, we walk side-by-side to the house. It takes everything in me not to slide my hand into hers and pull her to me.
She tells me about the new program she’s developing, and that her professor is impressed with her coding.
“Why do I have to lead the media company?” she sighs a long breath.
I hate when something bothers my girl.
“What do you want, Bailey?”
Tell me so I can make every one of your wishes come true.
“I have to lead the media company, but cybersecurity is more like my jam.”
If it were up to her, she would only be behind a screen. Racking my brain for a solution, my steps slow down to a stop and she automatically does too.
“What if we just co-lead both of them?” I suggest.
Her eyes widen into two pools of wonder. “You’d do that for me? But—”
“No buts, let’s be the best team and power couple this world has ever seen.”
A bright smile colors her face as she whispers, “I’d love that.”
I’d give her every-fucking-thing and more.
The moment we’re inside the house, we walk into the living room, where all our friends are gathered, looking somber. An unopened bottle of whiskey sits in the middle of the coffee table. I remember I promised I would tell them my secret tonight. But if I am quick, I can be alone with Bailey sooner. The thought of her calms my racing heart.
“Fine. I don’t need a drink…” I start by recounting the sordid story in not so many details.
Abigail’s face drains of color as she stands up from the couch. “I want her complete name and address right fucking now.”
The Barbie is lethal when she wants to be. It warms my chest that my friends have my back.
“Are you okay, man?” Dane inquires, concern etched on his face. He knows all about battling internal demons. As I nod, it’s like we agree they will always be a part of us, but we won’t let them control our lives.
Kaden comes to my side, and he squeezes my shoulder. “Whatever you want to do, I will stand by you. No one touches our family and remains unpunished.”
“I have your back. Always,” Blake says, coming to stand by my side as well.
These fuckers do it—I am so bloody emotional my vision blurs. They swallow me up in a group hug, but I push through them to drag to me the only one I truly need. Bailey.
Seeing my friends so shaken up, hurt and angry on my behalf, I give in. Opening the bottle, I pour each of us a glass, then raise mine. “To Family.”
“To Family,” they reply, and we clink our glasses.
The atmosphere lightens as we prepare popcorn bags, and then we move to the theater room. It’s been a while since we watched a movie, but it’s the first time Bailey is cuddled to my side, which I enjoy most.
They are my family, and that infuses me with purpose. I’ll do whatever it takes to keep my family intact.
Once Felix is taken care of, I will create the strongest foundation on which to build our legacy.