Chapter 9
CHAPTER NINE
RAVEN
“W hat happened with you and Michael?” Chelsea asked once the guys had driven down to the track, my stomach twisting.
“Nothing. We talked and danced a little, but that was it.”
“C’mon, Raven. I saw you two sneak upstairs.”
“I don’t want to talk about it.”
“Did that asshole hurt you?”
“Chelsea,” I bit out, calming myself a little before I could cause a scene, lowering my voice. “Leave it.”
The look of pity she gave me made me feel sick. I didn’t want her thinking I was some kind of victim, but talking about it would cause more questions.
“I’m sorry. I should’ve checked on you, but you looked like you were onboard,” she murmured.
“It’s not what you’re thinking. I just don’t want to talk about it. He gave me bad vibes, so I left,” I lied, resting my forearm on the fence. “Good timing, I guess. Ander came back, and we hit it off.”
“That’s Ander? I heard you hated him.”
“I did. He can be awfully convincing,” I grumbled, hearing a snicker beside me and making me glance over to find Vaughn.
“He’s prickly, but he’s loyal. You want a beer?” he offered, holding one out to me.
“I don’t drink,” I said and pulled back, not wanting to drink here with so many people.
“I have soda.”
“It’s fine,” I answered, but he turned to open his car door, rummaging for a second before pulling an unopened can of Coke out. He held it out to me, and I hesitated before taking it. “Thanks.”
“Smart girl not drinking around a bunch of strangers.”
“Even drinking around your friends can turn bad,” I muttered, cracking open the can and taking a sip.
“Not if they were real friends,” he shrugged, eyeing Chelsea behind me. I turned, finding her back to me a couple of meters away as she flirted up a storm with Asher and Levi.
I wasn’t drinking, and Chelsea wasn’t responsible for me, but it still proved my point as to why I had to keep my eyes open at all times. She’d already wandered off, so too bad if we’d been alone.
“So, you guys street race?” I enquired as I gave Vaughn my attention after taking a glance in Ander’s direction. They had another race before theirs it seemed, and he was happily chatting to Riley as he leaned against his car.
“Sometimes. We had to pull back on it for a while thanks to the cops, and we enjoy going to car meets and stuff now. Makes it difficult to get around if your car’s on a wanted poster,” Vaughn grinned, nodding in Ander’s direction. “You ever seen him street race?”
“We got chased once, but that’s it. I don’t like street racing. My boyfriend Reid almost died thanks to Ander’s races, and the girl Ander’s talking to right now almost did too.”
“Yeah, I heard about that prick. I’ve met Reid and Riley before, we’ve raced a time or two. I’m sorry, I thought you were Turbo’s girl?”
“I am.” I wasn’t going to elaborate.
He raised an eyebrow, curiosity in his tone. “It’s like that, is it?”
“Think what you want.”
“All the power to you, girl,” he chuckled, leaning on the fence beside me. “You won’t get any judgment from me.”
“I take it you don’t all play stick the willy in Zeke’s not-girlfriend? ” I deadpanned, and he choked on laughter, smacking his hand on the fence.
“No, we don’t. Zeke would like you, you're funny.”
Vaughn told me about one of the times he’d beaten Ander in a race, but our attention turned to the track when Ander and Kai’s race was called. I was a little giddy, to be honest.
If Kai could race like Ander, that meant it would be a really close race.
The lights started counting down, and when they flashed to go, both cars squealed as they took off.
Asher forgot all about Chelsea as he jumped up on the fence and started shouting for Kai to go faster, whooping into the night air. Levi seemed more interested in the chance of pussy, so he glanced at the track while continuing his conversation with Chelsea.
I climbed up on the fence to see better too, joining in with the cheering and trash talking Asher, who gave it right back on behalf of his buddy.
Both cars screamed around the track, and I almost dropped my drink from all the shouting and jumping around as they became neck and neck on the final stretch.
“Kai! Move your fat ass!” Asher screamed, shaking the fence with frustration when Ander surged ahead at the last second and won. “You slow motherfucker!”
Vaughn huffed out a laugh, lifting his chin at me. “You want to go meet him? We’ll walk you over.”
“You don’t?—”
“We’ll go give Kai shit for losing,” he winked, making sure his car was locked before motioning to Asher. “You coming?”
“I’m giving that useless prick a wedgie,” Asher grumbled as he hopped down from the fence and joined us, my eyes searching for Chelsea and Levi.
“They’re in his car,” Vaughn said when he noticed me looking for her, and I rolled my eyes.
“Of course they are. He won’t murder her while I’m gone?”
“He’s likely to make sure she’s hydrated and fed before sending her packing. Don’t worry,” Asher joked, looking over at his friend's car. It was the same as Vaughn’s, but silver. “That’s if he sends her packing. He likes bringing strays home.”
When I hesitated, Vaughn walked over to the car and knocked on the window, cracking the door enough to talk. “Sorry. We’re heading over to see Kai and Turbo. Raven wanted to make sure her friend was okay being molested by you.”
I snorted, but Chelsea’s voice reached me. “I’m good, girl! See you another time!”
“Okay. Have fun, I guess!” I called back, hearing her laugh as Vaughn shut the door to give them privacy again as he moved back towards us. “Thanks. I’ve been burned by friends before and?—”
“I heard you earlier. It’s good if you girls look out for each other,” he shrugged, motioning for me to walk. They fell into step on either side of me, Asher giving us a play-by-play as if we hadn’t just watched the race with our own eyes, and Vaughn gave me an apologetic look.
I was laughing by the time we got near the gate to the track where Kai and Ander were talking to people, my steps faltering slightly when I found Blake’s car parked beside Riley’s and Ander’s. He had her bicep in his hand, talking a mile a minute to her in a panic.
“Uh oh,” Asher said with way too much amusement, and I forced myself to keep walking.
“You know Blake?” I asked lightly, and Vaughn replied.
“Yeah. We’ve raced with her. Last time I saw her, she was dating Turbo. I guess you didn’t know she was coming tonight?”
“I didn’t know she was back in town. She’s been gone for months,” I mumbled, noticing Riley wince when she saw me.
What the fuck were they all talking about?
“What’s going on?” I asked as I joined them, not expecting Ander to practically brush me off.
“I’m just dealing with something. I’ll come and find you after.”
Blake smiled at me, laughing slightly. “Don’t worry about me, I’m used to his manhandling. Raven, right?”
“Yeah. I’m his?—”
“You girls don’t take anything fucking seriously,” Ander hissed, literally dragging Blake away from us and seeming to freak out at her.
“Sorry, Raven. I didn’t know she was coming,” Riley said carefully.
“Did he know? What’s he so mad about?” I demanded, feeling like my chest was being crushed.
With all the lies Ander had told us, was he lying about Blake too?
“No,” she said firmly, stepping closer to me. “With everything happening around here, he’s freaking out about her showing up. That’s all. It’s not what you think.”
“He told her we’re together?” I knew he hadn’t, and more doubt trickled in when Blake put a hand on his chest to push him back a step, leaving it there to try and calm him down.
He wasn’t pushing her away, if anything, he kept stepping closer.
“Raven, I swear—” Riley started, but I cut her off.
“Don’t worry about it. You wouldn’t tell me if he was doing the wrong thing anyway. You two are tight,” I snapped, turning and stalking back the way I’d come from. I wasn’t going to cry in front of people, and I felt like my skin was crawling as people glanced at me as I made my way back to where Logan and Reid had been parked.
“Hey, slow down. This isn’t the kind of cardio my body’s made for,” Asher puffed as he jogged to catch up.
“Go away.”
“We’re buddies now! Vaughn said to stay with you, so here I am. There could be weirdos anywhere here,” he said as he caught up, ignoring my fuck off vibes and dropping an arm around my shoulders. “Where are we going? To grab a sharp object?”
“I already have one of those in my bra.”
“Got it. Do you have a car? Are you running him down? Go back and take the keys to the Supra and hit him with his own car. That would be super embarrassing for him.”
“Don’t you have somewhere else to be? Go tag team Chelsea with Levi or something,” I scowled, shaking him off.
“Have you tried tag teaming in a car? I’m six foot, babe. I feel like I barely fit in a car for the purpose of driving, let alone extracurricular activities,” he joked. “You can’t tell me you and asshat back there haven't messed around in his car before. You know how tight that space is.”
Logan and Reid were leaning on Reid’s car talking to Jett and Beckett, and Logan started moving towards me the second he noticed me stalking in their direction.
“Hey, what’s wrong? Who’s this clown? Wait, hasn’t Reid raced you before somewhere?”
“The clown’s name is Asher,” Asher deadpanned. “And yes, I’ve raced you guys. Logan, right? I was told by Vaughn to stay with her since Turbo is preoccupied.”
“Thank you, but I’m fine now,” I gritted out, wanting him to go the fuck away. He was nice, but this had nothing to do with him.
“We told Turbo?—”
“Fuck Turbo . Logan and Reid are my boyfriends too, so you’re not needed,” I said sharply, not at all surprised when Reid appeared between me and Asher as Logan tucked me under his arm.
“Well, damn, Raven. Good for you,” Asher grinned, holding his hand out to Reid. “Good to see you again.”
“What happened?” Reid asked, not reaching out to shake hands. “Why are you watching her?”
“Turbo wanted to race Kai, and Raven was talking to some chick by our cars, so Vaughn promised to look after her. You might want to go get your boy though before he gets himself in trouble,” Asher said, not offended by Reid’s lack of friendliness in the slightest.
“What’s he doing?” Reid frowned, glancing back at me. His expression hardened when I just shook my head, my eyes burning with unshed tears. It was stupid to cry over a boy, and I sure as fuck wasn’t doing it here.
He’d acted like he barely knew me the second she rolled back into town.
“Rae, talk to me,” Logan murmured, tugging his hoodie off and forcing me into it so he could put the hood up.
He knew I didn’t want anyone to see me upset, and that almost made me lose it.
“Blake’s back,” I forced out, my throat going tight. “Take me home.”
Reid looked pissed, but he walked closer and gave me a quick kiss, his voice soft. “You go with Logan. I’ll find Zav, he’s off with Maddox somewhere.”
Asher winced as I went to leave. “Nice meeting you, Raven.”
I nodded but didn’t reply, not trusting myself not to fucking cry.
Just when I learned to trust Ander again, he made me doubt it all over again.
Was it always going to be like this?
Logan opened the passenger door for me and I climbed in, blowing out a breath to try and contain my emotions. He shut the door and jogged around to the driver’s side, starting his car and heading towards the road without speaking.
Then a stupid tear leaked and I couldn’t stop them as more followed.
Ander
“You’re not listening! You need to leave town!” I hissed at Blake, getting in her face. “It’s not safe!”
“Can you calm down? You’re causing a scene,” Blake warned, her palm on my chest. “Talk to me.”
“I can’t tell you, you just need to?—”
“You can tell me anything, Ander. What’s going on?” she asked softly, cupping my cheek and making me pull back. “What’s gotten into you?”
“You chose a shit time to come back,” Riley said as she appeared beside us. “Oh, your ex-boyfriend here is the son of a pissed off Italian mafia man, who’s currently trying to gun down a bunch of people in a fit of rage.”
“Dammit, Riley,” I bit out, but she rolled her eyes.
“It’s hardly a secret. Didn’t you learn that secrets are bad?”
“Whoa, time out,” Blake said as she put her hands up in front of her. “What about the mafia?”
“My dad is the head of the Italian mafia,” I said, not bothering to fight it. “He’s going after those around me that I care about, so you need to skip town before he catches wind of you. Go home to Kate, I mean it.”
I stumbled as I was jerked back, turning with the intention of punching my attacker, but it was Reid.
“You stupid prick,” he spat, keeping hold of my shirt. “What are you playing at?”
“You know what’s happening. Tell her to leave before she gets herself killed,” I replied tightly, but he stared at me like I was crazy.
“No offense, but fuck Blake. Stay away from her and no one would even know you two were connected. You causing a scene is drawing eyes to you both though. Shouldn’t you be more worried about Raven?”
“Um, ouch. Good to see you too, Barron. Can’t you worry about Raven? It’s your job, isn’t it?” Blake joked, Reid’s expression somehow getting angrier.
He scoffed, letting me go and shaking his head. “You know what? I’m not helping you, Lavaro. This is your problem. Hi, Blake. It’s nice to see you.”
Vaughn chuckled, deciding to join the conversation and making me frown. I thought Raven had been with him a second ago, but I couldn’t see her now.
“You guys are a messy bunch, you know that?”
“Where the fuck did Raven go? I told you—” I didn’t get to finish my sentence.
“Raven went home,” Reid bit out, panic hitting me.
“Why? Is she okay?”
“You really do suck with girls,” Riley muttered, tapping her baseball bat against the toe of her shoe. “She was trying to talk to you and you practically told her to fuck off.”
“He was busy,” Blake exclaimed, trying to take my hand but I took a step back from her. “Ander?”
“I’m dating Raven,” I blurted out, her eyebrows practically shooting up to her hairline.
“She hates you.”
“Look, Blake. I don’t want you dragged into this shit, so can you please leave? Just because we didn’t work out, doesn’t mean I want you to get hurt. I need to go.”
“Wait, I don’t?—”
I pulled my keys out and moved towards my car, but Reid plucked them from my hands and held them hostage.
“We need to talk.”
“Barron, give those back and let me?—”
“Shut up and listen to me. Do you fucking love Raven?” he asked, his voice low so only I could hear him.
“Yes.”
“Then why didn’t you tell Blake about her? Why did you shoo Raven away so you could talk to Blake? You keep breaking her trust, man. We need to find Zav, and he can take my car while you and I go for a drive, okay?”
“But Raven?—”
“Raven needs to cool off. She’s with Logan, she’s fine. I get that you want to protect Blake, she’s one of us, but don’t push Raven away for her,” he warned, and I shook my head.
“I didn’t?—”
“You did, dude,” Asher said as he leaned against my car. “You didn’t see her face when she saw Blake, let alone when you told her you’d find her later. You brushed her off for your ex. That’s a bit of a dick move.”
“Raven knows I want her. She doesn’t need to worry,” I answered with frustration, trying to wrack my brain to remember what Raven sounded like when she was trying to talk to me in my panic.
Hurt. Definitely hurt.
“Raven thinks I chose Blake, doesn’t she?” I groaned, scrubbing a hand over my face. “Blake and Kate are unprotected, so I?—”
“I get why you freaked, dude,” Reid replied, not hiding the irritation on his face. “I just don’t get why you pushed Raven aside. You know she’s insecure around other girls, and Blake was someone you cared about a lot. You guys have history, and she was also the one girl you genuinely loved.”
“I don’t even know what I felt for Blake,” I said quietly, not wanting Blake to hear me from her place beside Riley as she kept glancing over at me. “What I felt for Blake? That was nothing compared to how I feel about Raven. Not even close.”
“Then help me track down Zav so we can go. Give her some space with Logan and I’ll call him when we’re on the way home.”
He handed my keys back and as much as I wanted to take off, I didn’t.
I did pull my phone out to text Raven though, not wanting her thinking I wasn’t running after her because I didn’t want to.
Ander: I’m so fucking sorry. I was an ass. We’re leaving now, but we’ll give you some space first. I only want you, Bluebird. I promise. We’ll talk more when I get home.
Reid gave me a look of disapproval, but he would’ve done the same damn thing. The last thing I wanted Raven thinking was that I was here messing around with Blake.
I drove my car to where Reid’s was parked, my chest aching at the sight of Logan’s being gone. Beckett was smoking against her car, her eyes on me as I climbed out and walked towards her.
“Hey, where’s Lopez?”
“No idea,” she said flatly, pissing me off.
“Beckett, this isn’t the time. Where’s Zavier?”
She eyed me for a moment before rolling her eyes and motioning to some cars further down. “Over there talking to Maddox. Something wrong?”
“Nope,” I said as I walked past her, heading in the direction she’d told me.
“Lopez, let’s go,” I called out, drawing his attention.
“Already?”
Reid appeared, tossing him his keys. “You’re taking mine, I’m going with Lavaro.”
“What the fuck happened? Where’s Rae and Logan?”
“Long story short,” Reid said as he motioned to me. “Logan took Raven home because jackass over here was stressing over Blake being here and managed to make our girl feel less than. So we’re giving them space then going home.”
“Jesus Christ, you’re a fucking idiot,” Zavier muttered jiggling the keys. “Where are we going? Want me to head home?”
“Let Logan spend some time alone with her. She’s really upset,” Reid replied, giving me the stink eye. “Let’s all meet at Devil’s Dungeon and sit there for an hour before going home. Let them talk. She needs to get her emotions out so when Ander gets home, she’s just mad and not fucking crying.”
“Was she crying?” I asked with alarm.
“Close. I’m considering punching you.”
“I’d let you,” I mumbled, ignoring Maddox who was glaring at me. He was one hundred percent going to rat me out to Beckett, and she’d probably accuse me of cheating and then kill me.
Zavier didn’t look at me as he walked past to head to Reid’s car, and that made me feel even worse.
These guys were my family, and as usual, I’d caused tension among us by hurting Raven.
If she didn’t give me another chance, I wouldn’t fucking blame her.