Chapter Thirty-Four
Charlotte
“H e’s so fucked,” Cal tells me over the phone. “The State of Oregon is coming down hard on Ewing. Not only did he have that nasty shit on his computer at home, he had it on his work computer, his iPad, and his phone. Now, girls are coming up left and right to testify against him. He’ll probably spend the rest of his miserable life in prison.”
At least some justice is served.
It’s been a couple weeks since the fire and I’m still wound up from it. Someone tried to kill ten people while they slept. The sickening part is, I’m pretty sure those other nine people were just casualties in the war I brought to their doorstep. Ryan wanted me dead. Plain and simple.
I keep waiting to be surprised.
I’m not.
He’s sadistic and cruel.
“…and make you drink cum for dinner.”
“What?” I choke out, trying to figure out what Cal just said.
“That’s what I thought. You weren’t even listening. What’s wrong?”
“Nothing,” I assure him. “I’m going to eat something, pack a bag, and then I’ll be by tonight. Will you be done at your parents’ by then?”
He’s silent for a beat, not at all convinced that I’m fine, but he bites anyway. “Yeah. We’ll be here a couple more hours and then we’ll head back home.”
“Okay, see you soon. I’ll have Penny run me over there shortly. Love you.”
“Love you too.”
After we hang up, I try not to let the guilt consume me. I feel horrible that every day since the fire, Cal and his parents have been trying to make the little Campfire Chaos cabin their home until they can build something again. All their memories were lost. Because of me.
I swallow down all those negative feelings and leave the bedroom I share with Penny. Dad is out with Elise, leaving Penny and Jace to get up to whatever shenanigans they’re always up to. I find them in the kitchen, staring at Jace’s phone.
“Swipe right?” he asks.
“Dude,” Penny grunts. “That’s T.J. Billings’ mom. Gross. Swipe left.”
“This is fuckin’ lame,” Jace gripes. “You know and hate everyone. What about her?”
“That’s Elise! What a skank! How is she going to be seeing my dad but still have a dating profile?”
“Swipe right and see if she leaves her date,” I say, peeking between them. “What a bitch.”
They swipe left and continue on their hunt for women. I recognize one of the girls as Heidi. Ew.
“This one has nice tits,” Jace says. “I’m not looking for marriage, just a little hot sex. A man has needs.”
“You’re such a dog. And you’re not a man. You’re a beast.” Penny smirks at him. “Try finding someone born in the same decade as you.”
“I like ’em young,” he taunts, snapping his teeth at her. “Like you, little Penny.”
“Sick fuck,” she complains with an elbow to his gut. “You need to get off this stupid dating app and find a woman the old-fashioned way. You know, actually put some effort into getting laid rather than just dialing up pussy on demand. Your dick is gonna fall off, old man.”
Someone knocks on the door, so I leave them to their bickering. I barely get the door open before a body barges in, snatching me up. A shriek of surprise leaves my lips before I recognize the familiar scent.
Loden.
“Missed you, baby,” he groans, nipping at my neck. “They keep calling me back for legal shit and I just want to stay here permanently.”
“I missed you too. Adulting sucks. Better get used to it, though. Pretty soon, you’ll be an average Joe just like everyone else stuck here forever. You sure you’re ready for that boring life?”
“More than ready.” He squeezes my ass with his hands. “I haven’t been laid in forever. I could almost poke you in the ass and pretend you’re not my best friend. Sound like a date?”
“Gross,” I say with a laugh. “You’re such a freak.”
“The freak you’re going to marry when you get bored of Mr. Abercrombie.”
“Cal hates when you call him that.”
“Baby,” Loden says, pulling away to give me a serious look. “Have you seen him? He’s a fucking god with a perfect pierced penis. I’m jealous, you bitch.”
Jace clears his throat harshly. “Don’t call her a bitch.”
Loden rolls his eyes hard. “Can you tell your bodyguard to back off?”
“No,” I tease. “I kind of like watching you squirm.”
Loden plants a sloppy kiss on my cheek. “Well, you’ll get to watch me squirm a lot more now. Mr. Abercrombie’s daddy gave me the keys right before I came over here.”
“You got the cabin?” I ask, grinning wide. “This is finally happening. You’re moving!”
“It needs some work, but David offered me a lower rent if I’ll fix it up in my spare time. I didn’t have the heart to tell that beautiful man I don’t know shit about shit. But a deal’s a deal. How hard can wallpapering a cabin be?”
“Do not wallpaper that cabin,” I tell him in a firm tone.
“Fine. We’ll figure something else out.” He flashes Jace an impish grin. “As much as I’d love to stare at your hot inmate roommate slash quasi-daddy slash bodyguard, we have catching up to do.”
“Want me to kick him out?” Jace offers.
“We can’t kick him out,” I tell Jace. “Lo’s officially a Hornet now.”
“I absolutely love it,” I say to Loden when we pull up to his little cabin. “You have a great view of Horn River. Not even the Campfire Chaos cabin has this view.”
The snow is coming down hard, but it’s so pretty as it blankets everything within view. Loden may have given up picturesque beach views when he left California, but his view now is something straight off a postcard.
“David said normally he rents this one out for a lot because of the view, but it’s run-down and needs a facelift. I don’t know fuck all about carpentry or remodeling a house, but I’m just happy to have a place to stay.”
We climb out of his midnight-black Porsche Cayenne and approach the cabin, trudging through the accumulating snow. If I squint, through the woods I can see Cal’s cabin, smoke billowing from his chimney. This makes me incredibly happy that he’ll be so close to Cal for numerous reasons. Mainly because I’ll get to see Lo more often and that Cal can keep an eye on him.
“It’s super cute. I still can’t believe you’re here permanently.” We stop at the front steps and I look up at him. Snowflakes dust his black hair and dot his inky eyelashes. “Where do you think you’ll work?”
He shrugs and toys with his tongue ring, lost in thought. “I thought I’d look to see if I could find something with music. Teach guitar lessons or something. I don’t want to perform anymore.”
I can understand that. Knowing Loden and how good he is, it wouldn’t take long before he’d become the talk of the town here too.
“Do you have money to get you by until you figure it all out?”
He smirks. “We settled the suit. The label raped me harder than a guy named Bruce I gave my virginity to in a truck stop bathroom when I was fifteen.”
I grimace and gape at him in horror. Of course he laughs.
“But they didn’t take it all. I’m going to be okay,” he assures me.
I stand on my toes and kiss his cold, rosy cheek. “Good. Come to me if ever you’re not. That’s what friends do. They look out for each other.”
His playfulness fades as vulnerability shines through. “Do you ever think things happen for a reason? Maybe a shit storm decimates everything because then it puts a rainbow right in your path, somehow making you appreciate all the beauty around you?”
“That’s a good way of looking at it,” I agree.
“I hit rock bottom and ended up in rehab. I met you and you just get me, baby. Unlike Mena or Dad or anyone. It’s nice when someone understands.” He flashes me a wolfish grin. “Now can we have butt sex?”
I smack his arm. “Way to undo all the poetic shit in one statement.”
We’re both laughing when we head inside. Since he came by earlier and turned on the heat, it’s nice and warm inside. It’s a small cabin nearly identical to Cal’s being that it’s two bedrooms and two bathrooms with a small dining room, kitchen, and living room. Cal’s is more modernized while this unit seems to still have drapes from the seventies. Orange and brown and yellow are the color scheme. It makes me want to tear it all down. Loden doesn’t seem horrified by the colors, though. In fact, there’s a pep in his step and he bounces around the place showing me every little detail.
He’s proud.
The man who was a rock god, lived in a friggin’ mansion in California, and drives a Porsche is proud of a tiny, fixer-upper cabin in the middle of Nowhere, Oregon.
“I’ll order pizza and you can help me unpack,” Loden says.
“Ahh, the real reason I’m here. To do the hard work.”
He shrugs, grinning. “A trick, yes. A man’s gotta do what a man’s gotta do.”
I flip him off but then tackle the mountain of clothes that have been dumped onto his bed.
Me: I’ll be by soon. Miss you.
Chaos Hornet: It drives me crazy knowing you’re literally two hundred feet away. I want to storm over there, toss you over my shoulder, and bring you home.
Home.
My heart does a little patter in my chest.
Me: Twenty more minutes. I’ll say goodbye and then head that way.
Chaos Hornet: Clock is ticking, loser.
I laugh just as Loden exits his bedroom. He took a quick shower to wash off the grime from unpacking. Of course he’s your typical rock god. Tattooed. Muscular. Pierced. He’s a walking work of art. One day, he’s going to find the right guy who will not just love the gorgeous man on the outside, but want to protect and care for the broken, imperfect one inside. I hope Horn River will lead him right to his happy rainbow.
“If you want to give me a blowie, baby, all you gotta do is ask,” he says, winking my way.
I roll my eyes. “Pass.”
“Then roll up your tongue, woman.”
“You know you’re hot. Anyone with working eyeballs knows you’re hot. Doesn’t mean I want to suck your dick.”
He chuckles, dropping down onto the sofa. “Thank fuck. I got a blowjob from a chick once. She was fucking terrible. I mean, I’m willing to go the extra mile since you’re my friend and all, but I’d hate a sloppy, shitty blowjob to ruin our friendship.”
“Cal has no complaints,” I throw back, giggling.
“Maybe I should watch you give him one. You know, to critique your form.”
“Bad boy,” I tease.
He’s still smiling when he picks up his acoustic guitar off the coffee table. Leaning back on the sofa, he strums a few chords, his eyes closing. In this moment, he’s the most relaxed I’ve ever seen him.
“I’m going to head out,” I say, leaning forward to kiss his forehead. “Call me tomorrow.”
“Want me to walk you?”
“I’m good. I’m going to surprise Cal a few minutes early.” I waggle my brows at him. “See if I can’t practice my blowjob skills.”
He laughs. “Love you, dirty bitch.”
“Love you too.”
I throw on my coat and grab my purse, stuffing my phone inside. When I open the door, icy wind blasts my face. Pulling my hood over my head, I trudge through the snow, keeping my head down low to hide my face from the harsh elements.
Cal’s truck is parked crooked and crazy. It’s one of the cute things I like about him. That he drives that big dumb truck and parks it wherever he wants like he owns the world. I walk past his truck toward the steps of his porch, slowly so I don’t fall, when I hear a crunch.
I turn my head toward the sound, wondering if Cal’s come out to try and scare me.
Smack!
Pain explodes inside my head as I crumple to the snow in a heap. Something hit me in the head. Hard. Metal. Powerful.
A small groan rattles from me as I’m lifted into someone’s arms. As soon as I get a whiff of the familiar scent, I try desperately to open my eyes.
No.
Please, no.
My words don’t work because I’m blacking out as this monster carries me away from my happily ever after and right into what I know will be a haunting nightmare.
Please, God, no.