Chapter 4 – CARTER
4
CARTER
“ H ere alone, Cole?”
I raised my brows at the man speaking to me. Nathanael Hsu, heir to his father’s shipping company and a Harvard-educated douchebag. We had nothing in common, yet he was trying to talk to me like I was a peer.
Once upon a time, when I was a poor kid and he was the star at his prep school, Nathanael would have spit on me before he attempted small talk. I wanted to rub that in his smug little face. To make him choke on the fact that we were equals now, both invited to the same charity gala.
Instead, I forced myself to play the game.
“I’m flying solo tonight,” I told him.
“Shame,” he said, shaking his head. “Usually you’ve got the only pretty little thing worth looking at.”
He was usually right, but tonight, I sent my original plus one on a flight back to Prague. Katerina was supposed to leave after accompanying me to the gala, but I didn’t want her on my arm tonight. Truth be told, I didn’t ever want to see her again. I could still feel the foul press of her mouth against mine.
Though, even if Katerina had been perfect, I wouldn’t have invited her to attend with me, not after I learned Hudson Vaughn would be re-introducing his daughter to society tonight at this very same gala.
Anna.
My Anna.
The woman who had haunted me for the past six years, her memory lingering like a vengeful ghost.
The rumors had already spread. Before she even showed her face, Anna Vaughn was all any of the assholes here could talk about. They all seemed to have heard the same story: Oh, Anna’s been in Malawi, building houses for the less fortunate . None of them were smart enough to recognize it for the obvious bullshit it was.
Certainly not Nathanael Hsu, anyway.
“You heard Anna Vaughn’s showing up tonight?” he said. “She was such a hottie back at Langford Prep. I always wanted to tap that.”
My grip on my whiskey tightened so hard, I could practically hear the glass cracking. This asshole didn’t deserve to touch Anna. If he even got within breathing distance of her, I would take a pair of pliers and remove his fingernails, one by one. I’d consider it a fucking honor.
“Excuse me,” I said, before I did something I’d regret.
I peeled off and made my way into the crowd of guests mingling with fluted glasses of overpriced champagne, listening to them prattle on as if they truly thought they were making a fucking difference in the world.
The gala was a fundraiser held by the Yates Foundation. Darren Yates was the governor before Anna’s dad won his first term. Since then, he’d stepped back from politics and run the charity with his wife. They did a lot of underprivileged youth outreach causes. Get our kids off the drugs and into the classroom. That kind of stuff.
As a former underprivileged youth, I could barely stand the stench of bullshit. School wasn’t going to do much for me when my dad was beating me up every night and I always fell asleep in class because I needed to work two jobs.
Education was good, but it wasn’t the only way to get to the top. Once you found a foothold, it was easy to figure out that being smart alone didn’t help you climb. Being ruthless and cunning did.
It’s why I only came to these rich assholes’ parties when I had my own agenda to fulfill. Tonight, that was finding Derek Hobbes. A task that got bumped to second place on the list of priorities the instant I knew she would be here. But seeing as the illustrious Hudson Vaughn hadn’t shown his face yet, I figured I had time to get the second priority out of the way.
I scanned the crowd, trying to find the shorter man. He was the CEO of a small construction company in the area. Once upon a time, Hobbes Construction was a behemoth, one of the biggest companies in California. But decades of mismanagement had shrunken it to a tiny vanity project, worth only a few million. I could barely call it a competitor to my much larger construction business.
I wanted it anyway.
My people and Hobbes’ had been working it out behind the scenes for months, and as long as an antitrust suit didn’t pop us, the deal was all but done. Hobbes Construction would be mine, once Derek signed on the dotted line.
I came to the party tonight to make sure that happened.
Moving through the guests, I shook hands and exchanged pleasantries. I kept conversations as short as possible, looking over their shoulders to find either of the people I was really looking for. I knew for sure that Derek would be there.
Anna, on the other hand, might be little more than a rumor. The whispers said that Hudson Vaugn would be unveiling her like some sportscar tonight. His perfect daughter, back in town and ready to take up the Vaughn mantle again, be his precious doll.
I didn’t believe it.
Couldn’t seem to make myself.
She couldn’t be back after all this time. Just like that. After searching and searching . She wouldn’t just be here, in this room, so close I could smell her, touch her, see the way her hair would shine under the iridescent lighting.
I scanned the crowd for her furiously between handshakes, needing to put it to rest. To be certain that it was only gossip and she wasn’t back. Then I could go home and open the good bourbon to wash away the memory of her face for another night.
Every roughly 5’7” woman with rich brown hair made me do a double take.
Finally, I spotted Derek Hobbes at the dessert table, loading up a plate with passionfruit tarts. I moved smoothly toward him, greeting him with a hearty slap on the shoulder. He practically jumped out of his skin at the touch.
“Derek! So good to see you here,” I said, not bothering to pretend and sound warm.
He gulped. “Carter. You’re…here.”
“So I am.” I had a good foot on him, and an excellent view of his thinning blond hair. “We haven’t had a chance to meet in person about my acquisition.”
“Yes, er , I usually send my representative for that,” Hobbes says. He was obviously nervous seeing me, which could mean one of two things. Either he’s as high strung as his miniature poodles around an alpha dog, or he was second-guessing my purchase of his company.
Which would royally piss me off.
“I hope you still find my offer attractive,” I said. “I was told the last meeting ended well.”
Hobbes’ ruddy complexion went pale. “Yes, well. Certain things have come to light that I have to investigate. Legal issues, you know…”
Fuck . He was getting cold feet. Either he had a higher bidder in mind or someone was threatening an antitrust suit.
I placed a hand on his shoulder and squeezed hard enough to bruise. “I’m sure it’s nothing our lawyers can’t work out between them,” I said smoothly. “I would hate for us to be on opposite sides.”
Hobbes physically cringed. Good—he knew my reputation. That might be enough to scare him off. I wasn’t opposed to a little bloodshed in the boardroom, but I hated wasting leverage on a small fish like Hobbes.
“So true,” he croaked out. “Well, I should be going…”
He turned and practically ran away, the plate of tarts clutched to his chest. I would have laughed at the pathetic display if I hadn’t spotted my other target. Seeing the two of them, my entire body went cold.
Hudson Vaughn was hard to miss. Tall with excellent posture, even as a man in his sixties. He moved smoothly through his second gubernatorial term and rumor had it he had his eye on the presidency afterward. We made eye contact, and I was not to scowl at the man. We met often at things like this and every time we went through the motions of pretending we were on good terms.
That man was responsible for one of the worst days of my life. If he were anyone else, I’d have killed him. But he was Anna’s father, and she had the heart of a goddamned saint.
Usually, he was with his wife at these events and tonight was no different. Michelle Vaughn smiled broadly in a white evening gown at his right hand side. On his left was…
Her.
I couldn’t be certain at first, but then she lifted her chin to greet a man coming to welcome her home and there was absolutely no mistaking it, even from across the room.
Anna Vaughn.
She was in a fitted lilac gown that swept the floor. Her hair was curled old Hollywood style, waving down one side of her face. The face that’d haunted my waking and sleeping hours for the last six years.
Her lips were painted soft pink and there was a delicate diamond necklace around her slender throat.
God.
I wanted to use that necklace to pull her to me, making the platinum and diamonds cut into her delicate skin. I bet she would moan. I could hear it, that sound. Like sounds she made that time on the beach when I entered her for the first time. That little whimper of pain that morphed into the most beautiful sound as she moaned my name.
Fuck.
Fuck.
I wanted to smudge that perfect lipstick with my cock. Wipe away the tears trickling down her high cheekbones while she gagged on it, submitting to me like she used to. Making foolish teenage promises to be mine forever.
Foolish or not, the promise was made, and I was going to make damn sure she kept her end because I’d made her a promise too.
That my heart was hers. That I’d never give it to anyone else.
And I hadn’t.
I’d kept my promise.
Now it was time for Anna to keep hers.
I reached for a glass of champagne from a passing tray, swallowing down the dry tang of it to quench the burn in my throat and douse the fire in my stomach. I had six years’ worth of things to say to her.
The crowd parted for me as I stalked toward them.
“Hudson,” I said in greeting. “How good to see you.”
The whole family could obviously hear the venom in my words, because Hudson’s practiced smile went flat. The blood drained from Anna’s already pale face. Only Michelle was able to keep her smile, probably thanks to the vodka martini in her hand. I doubted it was her first.
“Carter,” she said, extending her manicured hand. “Thank you for your generous donation.”
That’s right—she was on the board for the Yates Foundation, perfect society wife that she was.
“I’m happy to give to a good cause,” I said, bowing my head. “Hudson, you’re looking well.”
Unfortunately, that much was true. Whatever deal he’d struck with the devil had given him a handsome, vibrant exterior, no matter how decayed he was on the inside.
Hudson only answered me with a polite nod. Just as well—even hearing his voice made my skin prickle with fury.
Them out of the way, I let my eyes fall to her and only her, willing her to meet my gaze as she curled her hands into the silky fabric of her gown at her sides, clenching enough to leave angry creases as her knuckles turned white.
“Anna,” I said, my voice low and rough, “It’s been a long time.”
Her jewel-bright eyes lifted to mine, and for a moment, it was like we were right back there on the beach, her dark hair loose and textured with salt, her perfect skin wiped clear of make-up. An electric charge transferred between us without even having to touch.
Then she blinked, and we were back in the moment, with her painted-on face and hair perfectly highlighted and coiffed. I could see how time had changed her. Anna had always looked thoughtful, almost mournful. Her face was slimmer and more angular now, all her baby fat gone. The smooth lines of her jaw, cheeks, and nose were so familiar to me but I ached to trace them with my hands again. To relearn every inch of her.
Then to rip away every false piece, every stupid society air and expensive product, until she was left bared to me.
Anna’s eyes widened, and I saw a flash of real fear in them.
Good. She should be scared of who I am now .
Without another word, without even acknowledging me, she spun on her heel and walked into the crowd. My fist clenched as I watched her flee.
“You’ll excuse us, won’t you, Carter?” Hudson said, not bothering to hide his smugness. “I should say hello to the hosts. Do enjoy the event.”
It took everything in me not to yank him back by his hair plugs and break his jaw.
He strolled away, leaving Michelle and me standing together. I had nothing to say to the woman who stood by while her husband tried to shove Anna into a mold of perfection she would never fit into. As far as I was concerned, Michelle Vaughn was a shell of a person, content to be a pawn in someone else’s game. Not worthy of my time. Yet, I couldn’t walk away from her.
Mostly because I didn’t trust myself to move until Hudson was further out of reach.
“You really are looking well, Carter,” she said in a soft tone. “You’ve obviously made something of yourself since you and Anna were friends. I’ve never seen a business empire rise so quickly.”
I could barely conceal my surprise. Based on what Anna had told me and what I’d witnessed myself at past events, Mrs. Vaughn took too many pills to notice what was going on in her life. I didn’t think she had any idea I existed six years ago, much less that I knew her daughter. Maybe Michelle Vaughn was a more useful source of information than I thought.
“So, Anna’s back.” I took another glass of champagne from a passing tray and forced myself to sip it like a normal person.
“Ah, yes. Anna was working on housing development in Southern Africa for the past few years.”
The same bullshit story. I raised a questioning brow, but Michelle didn’t cave. She just smiled and said, “We’re happy to have her back. I hope you two get the opportunity to catch up.”
I barely stopped myself from laughing out loud. No doubt Michelle wanted me as far away as possible from her little princess, just like her husband did.
“We will,” I said, the promise sounding more like a threat as I stalked into the crowd.
I wasn’t letting Anna go again.
Not when I’d finally gotten close enough to taste her.
As soon as I got her alone, I’d make sure she couldn’t fucking forget me.
The room had filled even more, and enough women were wearing lilac or dusty purple gowns that tracking down Anna was harder than I’d hoped. The elite wanted their women all looking the same—chaste, expensive—untouchable in pastels and ivory. Fucking prudes.
Anna would look ten times more beautiful once I’d stripped her down and ruined her. She wouldn’t be getting away from me again, even if I had to break her so thoroughly that I was the only man she could fit with.
A few business acquaintances tried to stop me to chat, but I looked right through them. I was done wasting my goddamn time with them.
I finally found her, standing at a minibar, ordering a glass of red wine. I couldn’t stop the wicked smile spreading across my face. I quietly stalked behind her, enjoying the view of her gorgeous backside in the silky gown. I was going to own that tight little ass.
“Boo,” I murmured in her ear, and she jerked away, whirling with a gasp. “I found you, Anna.”
Fuck, she still smelled the same. Like ylang-ylang and vanilla. Her skin looked so soft, it felt like I could bruise it just by touching it. God, I wanted to mark her everywhere.
Her eyes darted to the people around us. Obviously, she was deciding whether she could ignore me in front of the bartender and all the guests standing close to us. Hudson Vaughn’s perfect little princess could never be ill-mannered in public, of course.
“How long are you going to pretend that you don’t see me?” I whispered, leaning in close.
She inhaled sharply before turning to face me, her wooden smile firmly in place.
“Carter Cole? How are you? It’s been so long.”
That overly polite, sing-song voice came from years of practice doing things like this. She had never used it with me before. This was the girl who used to cry in my arms because her maniac father didn’t let her breathe without his consent. She was and yet wasn’t the same person.
“Too long,” I said. I stepped forward and she shifted back. The movement was natural, maybe even a reflex but she didn’t want to be close to me. I took a slow breath to keep myself calm. She was lucky we had so many eyes on us.
“So,” she said.
Her eyes, usually pools of emotion, were impossible to read.
“That’s all you have to say to me?”
Her practiced smile didn’t falter for a second.
“The last time we talked, you told me I was a spoiled brat who didn’t have any real problems. That you got what you wanted from me and never wanted to see me again.”
“So you do remember me,” I said with a smirk.
“I do. You remember me too, which makes me wonder why you think I would have anything to say to you.”
When I said I never wanted to see her again, she had actually left. I knew she would, she had to but she hadn’t just left. She fucking disappeared . She dropped off the map completely. I knew she did, I’d looked. She wasn’t in Malawi building houses. She wasn’t at Yale. Photos of her didn’t exist on the internet. She was gone. I even looked for an obituary just in case she was dead.
But I’d never stopped thinking about her, never stopped craving her. Even now, when I pumped my cock in the shower, it was her I pictured kneeling in front of me. My obsession with her was the only thing keeping my dark heart beating, even if the only thing powering it was memories of her.
That was about to change. She might have still been angry with me, but I’d make her fucking forgive me. Then, I’d learn every fucking thing I missed during our time apart, until I recognized every dark corner of her soul again. It wouldn’t take long. Even after all the time that passed, I still knew her down to her fucking core, just like she knew me. She was the only person still alive who ever saw any real softness in me.
And if I couldn’t give that to her, then she’d take the hard parts. She was strong enough to survive that.
“You’re still angry,” I murmured. “So be angry. Make me hurt like I hurt you, Anna. I might even like it.”
Her green eyes widened with shock then came alight with fury. There she was: the fiery, rebellious girl I remembered. She opened her mouth to tell me off.
Before she could, a bright flash went off to our right, and Anna cringed away. An event photographer snapped photos of two couples near us, no doubt getting pictures for the local society papers. I prepared myself to paste on a smile and fake it. I’d been photographed at parties with dates more times than I could count, because it was good publicity for my business.
But for some reason, Anna ran, darting between guests to get away.
What the fuck?
I got the sense it wasn’t that she didn’t want to be photographed with me. I saw her fearful dear-in-the-headlights look just before she bolted.
I followed her through the crowd and out a set of French doors into the cool evening garden below. A few people had abandoned their empty glasses out here, but it was too cold for anyone to linger. Anna and I were finally alone.
She stood facing away from me. Her dress had a low dip in the back, and her spine and shoulder blades showed through her skin. It was normal to lose some roundness with age, but she looked weak. Almost frail. I had watched my mother battle cancer. I knew healthy weight loss didn’t look like that.
How hadn’t I noticed back inside?
At the curve in her back was a partially hidden yellow-brown mark. A bruise. My vision went red as rage crashed over me. My muscles tightened, ready to fight whoever had dared to fucking touch her.
Barely thinking, I grabbed her arm, probably too tightly. She spun around, pulling it out of my grasp.
“Carter, what the hell are you?—”
“What happened to your back?” I demanded.
“My what?” she asked, confused.
“Your back. Who did that to you?”
“My… oh .” Her confusion cleared.
“Was it your father?”
I wouldn’t put it above him. Hudson Vaughn was a dirty, dangerous man. It took one to know one. Both of our sperm donors were hell bent on ruining our lives when we were younger. I got away from mine but Hudson was still in Anna’s life.
“My what? What are you talking about?” she said. I could see right through her; I knew a healing bruise when I saw one. I also knew when she was lying to me.
And was that more bruising under the layers of makeup on her face? Her neck?
It was hard to tell, but the more I looked the more I thought I was right.
My throat went dry as hell and my blood heated.
“You know what I’m talking about,” I said through gritted teeth. “Someone hurt you.”
Her face went totally blank. “It’s none of your business.”
I stepped in closer, backing her into a vine covered trellis but she only jutted her chin out defiantly, staring with the fire of a thousand suns into my eyes. Refusing to back down.
“Oh? Not my business?”
I jerked her chin up and to the left, trying to get a better look at the bruise Hudson’s makeup artists couldn’t quite erase on her cheekbone.
She pulled away from my touch and shoved me hard in the chest, her own heaving. “I’m perfectly capable of taking care of myself,” she snapped. “Which is convenient for you, since you already got everything you wanted from me a long time ago.”
“Anna.”
She pushed past me.
“ Anna. ”
She whirled, rage in her green eyes. Rage and pain. “Fuck you, Carter Cole. You’re not allowed to care. Not after…”
Her lips pressed tight against a quiver, face pinching trying to hold all that emotion in. All of the evidence of the truth—that she still felt something for me. That maybe, she never stopped.
It was all the proof I needed.
My stomach soured and the beating thing in my chest remembered how to ache as she tore her eyes away from me, shook her head, and stormed out of the garden and back inside.
This time, I didn’t bother stopping her.
Because she was right. I pushed her away. I did this to us. To her.
I deserved the cold looks, her distance, even much worse.
When Anna and I were younger, I used to think she was ashamed of me but that wasn’t true. I was ashamed of myself.
I was punching way above my weight class and it ate at me. She didn’t care about the divide between us, but I did. I never felt like I was enough for her. Not smart enough. Not polite enough. Not wealthy enough.
Not meant for a girl like her.
But I was different now. I’d transformed myself into a man worthy of her.
Just as intimidating, powerful, and domineering as her father, and I’d let my soul be corrupted, just like he had. The only difference between us was I at least had a code I lived by. I’d never steal from the poor or the destitute.
No, I ate the rich and gave them my leftovers.
Now, I didn’t care about what I deserved. I just took what I wanted.
I couldn’t have her back then, but now, I intended to fucking keep her.