Chapter 18 Alex
ALEX
Spending the night with Dante was the absolute fucking best. I hadn’t had sleep that soundly in I don’t know when. Having your brains fucked out will do that, apparently.
He jerked me off before we got out of bed. I was sure he was going to have to cut his run short, but while I loved what it did for his body, I didn’t mind making him late.
Fortunately, no one was up when I got back to the frat house. Mitch was snoring with the covers over his head. I fell into bed and indulged in a few more hours’ sleep.
Mitch was gone when I woke up, but I ran into him in the dining room
“Where were you last night?” he asked. “Clyde and I were going to see if you want to go to Bourbon Street.”
“I was on a date.”
“Oh, so she let you stay over?”
“I spent the night.” I decided to avoid gendered pronouns.
He grinned. “Was it good?”
“Yeah.” No need to lie about that.
“Onetime thing or…”
“Not sure yet. We’ll see.” Fortunately, Mitch was sleepy and hungry, and he didn’t ask me any more questions.
I went through the motions of the day without comprehending much of what was going on.
I managed to answer a few questions in my classes and not make a fool of myself, but I spent my lunch break staring into space, not even remembering to eat my sandwich until I was nearly late for a class.
I texted Dante a few times. He texted me back eventually, but not as fast as I’d like.
I knew he wasn’t likely to invite me over again a second night in a row, no matter how much I would rather be at his house than at the stupid frat.
Hours passed without him answering my last text.
I didn’t like it, even though he could be busy with any of a number of things.
I still didn’t know a lot about how involved he was with his extended family.
I wanted to ask but hadn’t had the nerve.
As much as I wanted to know all about him, I knew there were parts of his life that were none of my business.
You shouldn’t be involved with him at all.
But I was. And I wanted him to text me now. I didn’t want to wait. Why the fuck was I so clingy? I’d never needed anyone the way I needed him. My dates were usually the ones chasing my attention.
After dinner, I got in my car and headed toward his house. I knew better, but I couldn’t help myself. I was just going to drive by and see if he was home. That was all. I wouldn’t stop. I wouldn’t do anything else. Fuck, I was a mess.
I was a block down the street when I saw Dante come out of his house. He was dressed in a black T-shirt and black cargo pants. He looked like he was part of a SWAT team.
He opened the trunk of his car, looked at the contents, then shut it, ran around, and hopped in the driver’s seat. I pulled over and parked. Did he know what kind of car I drove? Would he see me? What would he do if he did?
I watched as he backed out of the driveway and started down the street, then I followed him. I wanted—needed—to know where he was going.
How likely was it that he’d realize he was being followed? Was he trained to watch for that? I guess I’d find out if he was just a professor who had chosen to wear an all-black outfit or a man working with a New Orleans crime lord.
The city was full of fucking Theriots. The rumors that he was related to Remington Theriot could all be false, but then what about how he’d sent someone to threaten Randall and all the talk about me not knowing who he really was? I shivered as I continued to follow him.
As we moved through the city, and I had a hard time keeping up with him. It wasn’t like I had much practice following people, except when the stakes were low, and I could always use GPS instead.
We headed out toward Metairie. I was driving through a rough neighborhood, one my aunt and uncle would never dare set foot in. Suddenly, a car pulled out in front of me. I swerved to the side to avoid hitting them, and they stayed there, blocking my path.
I looked around. This wasn’t a good place to be stopped.
The driver opened the door of his truck and jumped down.
I started to reverse, but he pulled out a gun and pointed it at me. I could see the glint of it in my headlight beams. I didn’t see anyone else. Dante’s car was long gone.
What the fuck was I going to do? I didn’t have a weapon. Oh my God. Was I going to die because I’d been too fucking curious, because I’d turned into a stalker? No one even knew where I was.
The man motioned for me to open my door. Would he shoot me if I didn’t? I rolled the window down a crack. “I’m sorry, I didn’t see you. Please, just let me go.”
When he saw my face, the man smiled and lowered his gun. “It is you.”
Was he a psycho? Was I dreaming? “I don’t think I know you.”
“You’re Alex. I’m the one that talked to your friend Randall. You’ve got to stop following my brother. You’re not safe out here, not when you might run into guys like me.”
I studied him more closely and realized he had a strong resemblance to Dante. “You’re Dante’s brother?”
He made a slight bow. “Rafael Theriot at your service. You can call me Rafe.”
I rolled the window down the rest of the way. He held out his hand, so I took it and shook. “I’m Alex, but you know that already.”
“I do. I looked you up. I had to learn everything I could about the young man who captured my brother’s attention.”
My hands were shaking, so I put them in my lap, not wanting him to see. “You did?”
“I won’t hurt you. He’d fucking kill me if I did.”
I wasn’t sure how to take that. Most people would mean it figuratively. With this family, I didn’t know.
“You’ve got to go home. You can’t have any part in what we’re doing tonight. Dante wants you safe, and you wouldn’t be safe where we’re going.”
“Then he’s not safe either.”
Rafe smiled. “Nice of you to be concerned, but he knows what he’s doing. He’ll be fine.”
“But what if—”
“He’ll be back to you as soon as he can.”
“Tonight?” I didn’t like this. What were they involved in?
“Maybe don’t worry if you don’t hear from him until tomorrow. I’ve got his back. Now, go. If I see you anywhere near us again, there will be consequences, and they won’t be pleasant.”
Before Rafe left, I needed to know how he’d tracked me down. “Did Dante know I was following him? Did he call you?”
“He knew someone was following him. He had a suspicion it was you, but he wasn’t sure. He called me to check it out.” Rafe gestured toward the road. “Get moving, or I’ll get yelled at for being late.”
He walked away, hopped in his truck, and took off. I sat there a few more minutes, trying to remember how to breathe, and then I turned the car around and headed back to the city.
How the hell was I going to wait for Dante without losing my mind? I’d never be able to sleep knowing he was out doing something dangerous and surely illegal.
He wouldn’t let me do that.
I laughed. Could he really stop me? Well, a normal guy couldn’t, but he probably could. I should be scared by that. I should hate it. But I didn’t. I liked that he wanted to make sure I was safe.