Theo #2
“Look at her.” He turned his phone toward me, showing off a pretty blonde woman. My stomach twisted knowing he had his sights set on her.
I said nothing, though. I just dipped my chin and brought my beer to my lips again.
Guilt always ate away at me when he did shit like this—showed off his next conquest. I didn’t know how to stop him, how to get these girls to not talk to him. I’d tried before, but when he tossed his last name around, all the girls saw were dollar signs.
I didn’t blame them for that. They were trying to make it in this fucked-up world as much as anyone else. And if they could use their looks and their bodies to get ahead, who was I to judge them? I’d done the same thing before. It didn’t make them bad people—but it did open them up to predators.
Like Sean.
“So, where we going first tonight, boys?” Arch asked, rubbing his hands together. A wicked grin spread across his face as he flicked his eyes between Jordy and me, pretending like Sean wasn’t even there.
“I thought we could hit up Nocturne first,” I said, and Arch nodded, jabbing his elbow into Jordy’s arm. “Then bar hop for a while, and end our night at Havoc?”
Jordy shook his head. “No strip clubs. That was the agreement.”
“But it’s Havoc,” Arch whined. “We have to go.”
“Carly will murder me,” Jordy said. “No way.”
“She doesn’t have to know.” Arch wiggled his eyebrows, and even Trent groaned.
“The number one thing I see at work?—”
“Everything can’t be a number one thing ,” Arch said, rolling his eyes dramatically.
Trent ignored him and continued. “The number one thing I see at work is that when one spouse lies, the other will always find out. Usually, resulting in a messy divorce.”
“Not always,” Archer argued, and Trent nodded.
“Always.”
“Look at this one,” Sean said, pulling all the attention toward him. He spun his phone around with a laugh, showing the girl off. “She’s kinda fat, but she’s hot. I’ve always heard big girls give the best head—like they’re just thankful for the chance to have a dick in their mouth.”
My stomach twisted and dipped, bile rising in my throat.
Familiar red hair. Golden brown eyes. A tattoo snaking down her arm. Curves that went on for days.
Brynne Hughes.
My little sister’s best friend.
And the woman who had taken up residence in all my fantasies for the last two weeks.
“Don’t talk about her like that,” I snapped. Sean’s gaze flitted to mine, and I knew I’d made a mistake. His lips curled into a grin.
“Why not?” he taunted. “Have you fucked her?”
I said nothing. My anger was rising too quickly, and I knew if I opened my mouth, something scathing would come out.
“Maybe I’ll fuck her,” he continued, looking back at his phone. “She is really hot. Her tits are amazing, and those hips—” He was truly eye-fucking her right then and there, with all of us staring at him.
I scoffed. “I bet you she’d fuck me before she ever even looked in your direction.”
His gaze shifted to mine once more, and the pure hatred burning in his eyes made my palms sweat. But I didn’t care. If he said one more thing about Brynne, I’d throw him out the fucking window.
“Like hell she would,” he shot back.
I grinned as I leaned forward. “She’ll be screaming my name before she ever learns yours.”
I immediately regretted the words as soon as they left my mouth. It was too much—too far. This was Brynne I was talking about. Not some nameless, faceless woman. She wasn’t a conquest. She was…Brynne.
Before Sean could get a word out, there was a knock at the door, shattering the tension in the room. Thank fuck.
I didn’t give Sean a backward glance as I headed to the door. Jordy and Archer began talking again, but I felt Sean’s eyes stabbing into my back with every step.
He didn’t know who Brynne was to me—only Jordy, Trent, and Archer had ever met her when she and Trin came to visit a few years ago. A part of me thought about texting her and letting her know to stay the fuck away from Sean, but she was a smart girl. She wouldn’t give him the time of day.
I wrapped my hand around the doorknob, wondering why the guys were knocking instead of just barging in like they always did. I pulled it open and paused.
A thin blonde woman stood in front of me, her hair tied into a sleek bun at the back of her head. She had a pair of tiny square glasses on, a pencil skirt, and white button down.
I threw my head back and laughed. “Seriously, guys? We’re going to Havoc later. You didn’t need to bring the stripper here.” I turned back toward her and waved my hand into the apartment. “Come in, sweetheart.”
The delicate column of her throat bobbed as she swallowed. She smoothed her hand over her skirt.
“Theodore Caldwell?” she asked, lifting her pointed chin. A ding echoed through the foyer, and the elevator doors slid open. I expected my friends to step out. Instead, a cop walked toward us.
“Yes.” Was this all part of their act? Were they a duo? I’d never had a male and female stripper before, but there was a first time for everything. “Are you both?—”
“I’m Elizabth Wright,” she said, holding her hand out. The cop stopped behind her, his thumb hooked in his belt. “And I’m a social worker.” Archer and Jordy erupted into a roar of laughter, and she leaned forward. “Is there somewhere we can talk privately?”
My throat was dry. “You’re a social worker?” I repeated, and she nodded. “Is it my mom? My sister?” I stepped into the foyer and shut the door behind me. “Is my family alright?”
Had Trin tried to kill herself again? Was my mother dead? Was Ronan shot in the line of duty? Or Adam? Was he okay?
My mind spiraled with worst-case scenarios.
“As far as I know, they’re fine,” she said softly. She glanced at the cop behind her before taking a deep breath. “We’re here to talk about your daughter.”
I blinked at her.
“I don’t have a daughter.”
There was a pause. Then she glanced at the cop again before looking at me.
“You do,” she said gently, stepping forward. Her eyes flicked between mine, her expression soft. “Her name is Scout Levitt. And you’re her new guardian.”