Chapter 23
23
MALICE
T he party at my place spills out onto the lawn, across to the cement pad large enough for a dozen large lifted pickup trucks to park, and up the pathway to my parents’ place.
My boys did a fine ass job with the setup. I sip my non-alcoholic lemonade and point at the strips of lights flanking the dirt path, the shop lights on all four corners of the garage’s cement pad, and banquet tables on the deck on the other side of the sliding glass door in the kitchen.
“Nice work pulling this party together on short notice.” Next to me, Seven sips his drink and peers at his girl over his red Solo cup. She is chatting it up with Rue in a spot where my plants were. I found them in Rue’s room.
She had placed my monstera, Sully, in front of her window, next to the other monstera. The primrose she bought for me from the grocery store is on the nightstand next to her bed. I named the plant with pink flowers Boo. My spider plant, Roz, is chilling on Rue’s dresser. Wazoski, an air plant inside a glass orb, is next to Boo.
“Rue helped. She convinced Mason to loan us the shop lights from the auto store. Not sure how she did it. Those buggers are pricey.”
“Is that so?”
“Yeah, bro. She and Leigh worked on the food.”
My gaze drifts to the kitchen counter lined with plates upon plates of food. There’s more on the banquet tables outside.
“They made all that?” When did they find the time?
Seven smirks. “Nah. Rue instructed Shay to tell the senior class that the price of entry to this shindig, or potluck, as she calls it, is drinks or food. Leigh passed on the message to our senior class. No one dares question their star quarterback’s request or my girl’s.”
Leigh says something to Rue that has her looking in my direction. Rue is gorgeous with her hair pulled back in a high ponytail that shows off her elegant profile, her big brown eyes, and full red lips. But why is she dressed in black from head to toe?
She’s wearing a black long-sleeve shirt that hugs her luscious body like a second skin, black cargo pants that show off her tight ass, and black combat boots that can do serious damage to someone’s face.
“You should talk to her.” Seven tips his chin in Rue’s direction.
“I tried, but she heads in the other direction.”
“You did something to piss her off, didn’t you? And now you’re regretting it?”
“Why would I do that?”
“Because you’re a numbnut where Rue is concerned.”
“She’s Red’s girl.”
“How do you figure?”
“Red hasn’t denied it.”
“And Rue?”
“She said they’re friends.”
“Then believe her.”
“That’s not how it works in my family.”
“Your family is crazy, bro.”
But family, nonetheless.
“If Red doesn’t deny Rue is his girl, then she is his girl no matter what she’s said.”
“So, it’s true. Once you Sterling guys sink your claws into a girl, it’s for life.”
“We have a long history of protecting what is ours.”
“Don’t mix up protection with possessiveness. No girl likes to be looked at as a possession.”
“Wise words. Did you learn this lesson the hard way?”
“Yeah, I did.” His gaze falls back on Leigh.
Our girls are on the move. We track them to the front door. Trace arrives with Sorrow at his side. He glances in our direction. Seven lifts his cup. I glare.
Why the fuck hasn’t he broken up with Rue yet? He doesn’t need to be claiming my girl as his when she is, one, more than capable of holding her own with the kids who give her a hard time, and, two, protected from a distance by me. I have spies who I pay good money to take care of the vermin who dare badmouth Rue or her family. It costs me a shit ton of money, but Rue is worth it.
Rue and Leigh surround Sorrow. They say words and then head upstairs to Rue’s room.
Prior to the party starting, I put those kid-proof plastic covers on our doorknobs. With as much alcohol as the kids have brought with them and are guzzling down, I am counting on them not being able to bypass the devices.
While we wait for the girls to leave Rue’s room and return to the party, my boys and I make our rounds and confirm that the designated drivers are not touching the alcohol. The yellow yarn around the designated drivers’ wrists was Rue’s idea when I had asked the partygoers about it.
Trace is back in my good graces again when he pulls a breathalyzer from his back pants pocket. It was a last-minute request, and that boy of mine came through. What did he give up in return to get ahold of that useful tool for checking whether the designated drivers were touching the alcohol or not?
Sorrow and Leigh come down the stairs. Seven can’t take his eyes off his girl. I don’t blame him. She is looking mighty fine in skin-tight jeans and one of those tube tops that shows off a girl’s bare shoulders, perky tits, and smooth abs.
“Look her up and down one more time, and I’ll slash your tires and key that beautiful GT-R, bro.”
I smile. “Noted. Are you protecting her or claiming her as yours?” I ask, curious.
Leigh is not a girl to mess with, but when she lets down her guard, she has insecurities like the rest of us mortals. Seven runs along the lines of possessiveness when it comes to what’s his.
“I’m letting everyone know I belong with and to my Beautiful Defiance.” Seven smirks, then downs his beer. Leigh is wearing yellow yarn on her wrist. “Good luck with Rue,” he says over his shoulder as he steers his girl onto the deck to enjoy the fresh air and roast s’mores over the firepit.
Before they leave through the sliding glass door, Leigh returns and tells me Rue is resting in her darkened room, nursing a headache.
“I’ll shut down the party.” I would do anything if it would help Rue feel better. Plus, I owe her for treating her like crap when I brought Cassie over.
Leigh shakes her head. “She’ll hate herself for ruining your fun. Let her rest. Anyway, your friend just showed up.”
Cassie heads over. “I brought little smokies. Where should I put them?” Cassie is holding onto a black carry bag in her arms.
My gaze shoots to the stairs before I steer Cassie to one of the banquet tables. I’ll check on Rue after I get Cassie feeling comfortable and safe, which could take the entire night with what she went through.
“Thank you for staying by my side.” Cassie loads up her plate. “I’ll be fine in no time.”
The trembling in her voice says differently. I lean in and kiss the top of her head. “He’ll pay for what he did, Cassie.”
“Thank you, Malice.” She leans into me.
I slide my arm across her lower back and anchor her to me with my big paw on her hip. The hem of her pretty dress swishes with the movement, and her bare leg presses against mine. Anyone who looks would think we’re a couple as close as we are and how intimately we’re acting.
Thank fuck Rue isn’t here to witness what I’m doing—caring for a girl who is new and feeling lost in her element, which made Cassie an easy target for a predator who likes his women on the youngish side.
Eddie Bryant is a lying, cheating, predatory monster, and he deserved to be beaten to a pulp for what he did to Cassie and the other girls at our school.
Once he is up and walking again, he will learn a valuable lesson: Never, ever abuse his position as a teacher again. He will also learn this lesson well in prison when I send the files to Cambridge’s sheriff.