Chapter 13
The first thing I felt as I woke up from a deep dreamless sleep was a sensation of warmth pressed against my back and a muscular arm draped possessively around my waist. From the position I remember falling asleep in I assumed it was Cole spooning me.
For a brief moment I relaxed into the comfort of it until the memories of last night came rushing back.
How someone had tried to kill me, and how Logan, Ryder and Cole had been the ones to protect me.
I must have moved because the arm covering me tensed and I was dragged back into hot solid muscle, with the hardening length along my back proving very difficult to ignore.
I tried to gently extract myself from the grip but the arm clamped down further and I heard Cole begin to mutter almost frantically.
“No, she’s too young, don’t… oh no please I’m sorry…
” The raw anguish in his voice froze me in place.
This wasn't the confident, controlled Cole I knew.
Whatever he was dreaming about had nothing to do with me and everything to do with some past trauma that still haunted him.
I lay there, uncertain whether to wake him or let him work through whatever nightmare gripped him.
Before I could decide, the bedroom door burst open with a bang, and Ryder came bouncing into the room like an overgrown puppy, radiating excited energy.
"Rise and shine, sleepyheads!" he sang out, practically vibrating with enthusiasm.
"Today's the big day!" Cole jolted awake behind me, his arm instantly releasing me as he sat up.
I scrambled to put some distance between us, pulling the covers up to my chin despite being fully clothed in my pyjamas.
"What the fuck, Ryder?" Cole growled, running a hand through his sleep-mussed hair. Ryder ignored him completely, his attention focused entirely on me.
"I've got the perfect outfit for our trip, Poison," he announced, holding up a garment bag with a flourish.
I bit back a retort about being dressed up like their personal doll again, but my annoyance faded when he unzipped the bag to reveal a pale lilac sundress adorned with delicate white flowers.
It was... unexpectedly beautiful. Elegant but simple.
Nothing like the provocative outfits they usually selected for me.
"I..." I stared at the dress, genuinely confused by the thoughtfulness behind it. "It's pretty." Ryder beamed at me, his blue eyes sparkling with delight at my acceptance.
"I know! Now hurry up and shower. We need to leave early." He bounced on his toes, then spun around and headed for the door. "Be ready in thirty minutes!"
As the door closed behind him, I turned to look at Cole, who was now sitting on the edge of the bed, his back to me.
"What was that all about?" I asked, gesturing toward the door. "Where exactly are we going?" Cole was quiet for a moment, then he turned to face me, his eyes serious. "Today is important for Ryder."
"Why? What's happening today?"
"He's taking you to meet his mother." Cole's voice was carefully neutral, but something in his expression made my stomach tighten with apprehension.
"His mother?" I echoed, confused. "Why would he want me to meet his mother?" Cole stood up, straightening his rumpled clothes. He ran a hand through his hair again and turned to face me.
“Because to him, this…” he waved his arm at me, “this is real, even if he doesn’t realise it.
Ryder is completely obsessed with you.” A weight dropped in my stomach.
I knew he was telling the truth. And after last night it was getting harder to see the guys as the awful men they are, and that scared the fuck out of me.
“I don’t want him to be obsessed with me though,” I countered, “I don’t want any of this, and you all know it.” Cole shrugged like I had said I don’t want milk in my coffee.
“I don’t think you have a choice in it,” he said.
He moved closer climbing onto the bed and caging me against the headboard.
“At this point pet, none of us have a choice in this fucked up situation anymore.” He leant forward until his face was pushed against my hair and took a deep breath.
“Or maybe you do have a choice, you could choose to enjoy the ride.” His lips brushed against my neck and I felt a shiver of excitement through my body.
“And we could each make this the ride of your fucking life,” he whispered in my ear, “You just have to buy the ticket.” My breath stuttered as he kissed my neck briefly, otherwise staying completely still.
Then I felt his body tense again, and he was off me and the bed in a second.
He stood watching me while I tried to figure if I could breathe again, before turning around and walking towards the door.
"Just so you know, Ryder has only ever taken one other girl to meet his mother." He paused, at the door without looking around.
“W-what happened with her?” I asked, knowing it was exactly what he wanted me to ask.
“Let’s just say, it didn’t end well.” He turned to look at me, something close to vulnerability shining in his eyes. “And that is what scares me the most.” With that cryptic statement hanging in the air, Cole walked out of the room, closing the door softly behind him.
I sat there for a moment, trying to process what he'd said. I hadn’t heard much about Ryder’s mother, other than what Luce had told me.
Even that was vague. All I knew was that Ryder’s mother had been important to Luce growing us, since her own mother was out of the picture, and then something had happened when they were kids that meant that she was no longer living with Ryder.
Part of me wondered if he had grown up with a loving mother it would have made a difference on his behaviour now.
Saying that I grew up without a mother and I didn’t grow up to be a raging possessive alpha dickhead, so maybe there is more to it than that.
With a sigh, I pushed aside the covers and headed for the shower.
Whatever was going on, I clearly didn't have much choice in the matter.
The hot water helped clear my head, but it did nothing to settle the nervous flutter in my stomach.
I dried my hair quickly and applied light makeup, my movements mechanical as my mind raced with questions.
Why did I feel so nervous about meeting Ryder's mother?
It wasn't like I actually had feelings for him... did I? My mind flitted back to last night when he had helped me; he had been so gentle. Non of the bullshit that I had had from him or the others for the past month or so. It was a completely different side of all of them. But I quickly squished the thoughts. These were three men who were holding my family’s future over my head.
It was the same three men who forced me to my knees and did horrendous things to me.
I was not going to allow myself to have fucking fluffy feelings for them.
Still, as I slipped the lilac sundress over my head, I couldn't deny the butterflies in my stomach.
The soft fabric settled against my skin, the fit perfect, of course it was, they seemed to know my measurements better than I did.
I looked in the mirror and barely recognised myself.
With my faded purple hair and the delicate dress, I looked almost..
. innocent. Vulnerable. I shook my head at my reflection and turned away.
As I made my way downstairs, I noticed the office door was ajar, voices spilling out into the hallway. I slowed my steps, listening.
"—been searching all night, but we haven't found any trace of him yet," a male voice I didn't immediately recognise was saying.
I inched closer and saw all three guys in the office with one of the Housemen.
From what I could see it looked like one of the final year guys Chris.
He had always seemed nice in passing, but I rarely spent any time with any of the Housemen, something about tradition, which basically meant chauvinistic shit.
"Archive and Syndicate have joined the search too," Chris continued. "They're taking this very seriously. An attack on a Consort is unprecedented."
"When I find the bastard," Ryder's voice seethed with rage, "I'm going to dismember him slowly. First his fingers, then-"
"Ryder." Logan's voice cut in sharply. "That's enough."
I stepped closer to the doorway, peering in to get a better look. Logan sat behind the desk, still wearing the clothes from last night, his eyes bloodshot from lack of sleep. He looked up and caught me standing there, his expression softening almost imperceptibly.
"Cadence," he acknowledged with a nod. Cole, who had been leaning against the wall, straightened and walked toward me.
"You look beautiful," he said softly, then brushed a kiss against my cheek as he passed by. The casual intimacy of the gesture caught me off guard, and I felt heat rise to my face. Logan turned back to Chris.
"Keep me informed of any developments. I want hourly updates, and if anyone finds anything, I want to know immediately."
"Yes, sir," Chris nodded, then slipped past me with a respectful nod.
Ryder bounded out of the office, his eyes lighting up when he saw me.
"Perfect! You look amazing, Poison." He grabbed my hand.
"We need to go now." I glanced back at Logan, who was already refocused on his computer screen, the dark circles under his eyes testament to his sleepless night.
Despite everything, I felt a twinge of..
. something. Not gratitude, exactly, but the recognition that he had spent the entire night searching for my attacker.
"You haven't slept," I said to Logan, the words escaping before I could stop them. His eyes met mine, something unreadable flickering in their depths.
"I've been busy."