Chapter 23
Twenty-three
HOPE
Ileave work feeling waterlogged with unshed tears, but refreshed in an unexpected, confusing way. The talk with Coach Carpenter, Ben willing to go to bat for me even if he doesn’t know what’s going on, and my guys being consistent in their own ways feels good.
Knox sends me a text saying to take the car with Jaxon because he and Dimitri have to take care of something. He blames Jaxon’s back, but I have a feeling they have something else brewing since he says that he and Dimitri will get a ride with Ben.
I shake my head slightly as Jaxon jogs up to me, a flirty grin on his lips. His arms wrap around me and he picks me up. “Your back!” I squeal.
“Feels great when I’m touching you, sweetheart,” he says, then his lips are on mine. “Us together, all alone at home. Imagine all the ways we can pass the time.” He lets me slide down his body and looks me over. “I’m feeling particularly hungry.”
“Stop that,” I giggle.
“If I lay on my back, I bet you can keep me there if you serve me dinner in bed,” he says, gripping my hips, then my ass. “Just straddle my face and—”
I bite his neck playfully and shake my head. “You’re greedy.”
“I’m injured, still not cleared to play, and desperate for something good,” he says. “And you’re the best thing in my life.”
My heart thuds against my ribs at his words.
“Well, all we can do here is stand and talk,” I grumble.
As we drive, he says we need a date night, not just a hot night. It seems silly, but I’ve never actually been on a date with any of the guys. I’m not really up to going out, so he offers to get us dinner at a fancy restaurant, pick up some extras, and bring it all home.
It sounds too good to resist.
So, I let him drop me off at the apartment and kiss him softly. “Be back soon, okay?”
“As if I would leave you alone for long. I’ve already placed the order,” he promises. “Thirty minutes max. Set a timer.”
I hold up my phone and do just that. He grins that bad-boy smile and leaves me there, thinking about his pierced cock and exactly how good it feels inside me.
Shuddering, I wonder if any of my nice dresses still fit, or if I have something that’s on the sexy side. Although, I could probably wear a pillowcase and he’d think it was sexy.
I laugh at the thought.
But that laughter dies in my throat when I step into the elevator and I’m joined by someone else.
Gauge.
My brows knit, wondering how he got into the building.
He presses the level three button and turns to me, flashes a big smile, inviting, almost kind, but those eyes… There’s something too knowing and too cunning there, like he’s designing something only he can see.
“Hope, how lucky to run into you,” he says brightly. “I’m looking for Jaxon. I know my little brother. He’s going to overdo it and if he’s not here, he must be doing exactly that.”
I glance down at my phone. Twenty minutes.
“He’s taking a nap,” I say. “Sleeping in our bed. The muscle relaxers are intense.”
“In that case, how about we have a chat?” Gauge asks, stepping closer to me.
“I don’t think the guys would approve of that. Since we live together, that makes the answer no,” I say as gently as I can as I maneuver around him to step closer to the exit, ready to bolt once the elevator doors open.
“You really do look like her,” Gauge says.
Every hair on my body stands at attention. I fumble with my keys and glance at him. “Who?”
Gauge keeps watching me.
We both know that I know exactly who he’s talking about. Daisy. They don’t like saying her name. Not that he deserves to. Not after what Jaxon shared. Gauge is just another one of my father’s monstrous creations.
“You should be careful with Jaxon. He’s got a thing for raven haired, blue-eyed beauties,” Gauge murmurs. “But he has a habit of… breaking the things he likes. If you get my meaning.”
I glower at him.
“It’s a friendly warning,” he says, even though his eyes are sharp and unforgiving, making his smile venomous. “I certainly wouldn’t want anything to happen to you.”
“Jaxon would never hurt me. At all. Period. He’s a good man, unlike some,” I say pointedly while looking Gauge over. “He’s unlearned plenty of the worst things he was taught and works hard to be better every day.”
“Sure,” Gauge laughs. “Of course he does. Clearly, his track record speaks for him.”
“You don’t have any idea what you’re talking about.
How long has passed since you two had more than a conversation?
” I demand, slipping my keys between my fingers just in case he tries something.
The elevator comes to a stop. “Jaxon is a wonderful man. He’s good to me in ways you don’t deserve to know about. ”
As the doors open, I quickly slip out, but his hand closes around my arm.
“Oh, everyone knows how good he is to you, Hope,” Gauge says and keeps us between the elevator doors. “How he ‘protected you’ from your dad.” He actually uses air quotes. “Oh wait, he joined in, right? He did nothing to stop Daddy from playing with you.”
My blood freezes. Gauge knows what my father did…
He pulls his shirt down and turns his head to the side to show a long, jagged scar across his throat. “Do you like this? I bet you have a scar from him too.”
“Let me go,” I grit and quickly glance at my phone. Fifteen more minutes.
“He gave it to me when I tried to go to the police for you. When I saw Coach Harbaugh grab your ass once. You were so little, so scared, so empty. Knox threatened me. Dimitri backed Knox up, but Jaxon waited until we got home and gave me this. Said if I stuck out my neck for you and went against Coach, he’d take my head. ”
It’s a lie. I know it’s a lie. Gauge is fucking with me, which is why there’s no remorse, no sadness, nothing but cruel, sadistic pleasure in his eyes. My panic and horror make him think I believe him, but the pieces are coming together.
“But you didn’t go,” I whisper and rip myself free, stepping into the hallway.
“What?”
“You didn’t go to the police…” No one did.
“Oh, he used to talk about how you were coming on to him. Wearing makeup, trying to go out with boys. Sneaking out in slutty clothes. We all knew where it was going, considering how excited he’d get,” Gauge says.
“It was the worst-kept secret. Everyone knew, Hope. Jaxon did this.” He shows his scar again.
“And he could have done it to your dad, or your dad’s cock, but he didn’t. ”
I just stare at him. That’s not… no. Something’s missing.
“I guess I don’t really need to see my brother. Hopefully, you realize you don’t need him either. Bad things happen to people who don’t know when to let go of terrible people,” he says and steps back. His stare makes me shiver and the elevator doors slowly close.
My hands shake as I peel the keys from between my fingers. With a hasty pace, I walk to our apartment and let myself in.
My heart is pounding in my chest, my lungs burning against my ribs. I pour myself some water and take a seat on the couch. I wait for the panic to spread but with every sip of cold water, the tension fades.
Jaxon arrives with five minutes left on the timer. But I can’t stop pondering over my moment with Gauge.
My fingers trail over the scars on my chest.
“Sweetheart?” Jaxon calls out.
“Call the guys, please. They need to come home,” I whisper.
DIMITRI
Hope stares straight ahead, like she’s not really in her body when Knox and I arrive. Jaxon’s trying to get her to eat, but she either doesn’t see him or is ignoring him.
“Baby?” I ask, sitting next to her and rubbing her back.
She jumps, starts to push at my hand, then sees me. She leans into me and nuzzles my neck. Knox immediately takes the other side and hugs her. Jaxon sinks down to his knees in front of her and massages her calves.
“What did I miss?” he asks. “I was gone for twenty-five minutes in total.”
Knox shoots him a murderous look for leaving Hope alone at all.
“Your brother has something to do with the website,” she whispers, finally meeting his eyes.
Jaxon pales. “What?”
She tells us about their run-in at the apartment, the things Gauge said. Every word is precise and damning. Hope shakes her head. “I know you didn’t keep him from telling, Jax. I know you didn’t. You tried to take care of me until my dad commented on it. You talked to me. I know.”
Jaxon settles a bit. “The scar was half-accidental. It was after Daisy… and…”
“How are you sure he’s involved in the website?” Knox redirects.
“He knew what my dad was doing to me. He said he always knew it was going to go there, but he knew that you guys…”
“I didn’t tell him,” Jaxon fills in for Hope. “I didn’t tell him or let it get to him. And I’m not sure to whom Coach showed…”
“Either he got to see it through my… dad, or…” She takes a breath as she fidgets with her fingers. “On the website. He’s one of the viewers. He says everyone knows.”
“He’s involved, and with how he’s trying to mess with our heads…” I fill in.
She nods slowly. “At minimum, he knew a whole lot about Coach, more than you guys even did maybe. But…”
“We have to be sure,” Knox murmurs. “The reason me and Dimitri were late… The website has been dark…”
“It’s online again,” I fill in. “Ben has been helping. But…”
Knox clears his throat. “Someone keeps re-uploading the videos that Dimitri took down.”
“We finally got an address…” I trail off. “We have to go back to town. We might have to go back to the ca—”
“Absolutely not!” Jaxon stands. “Hope’s never going back there again. Never.”