25. Romeo
25
Romeo
T he shrill tone of my phone pulled my attention from the boring-ass conversation I had to endure with my father, uncle and my brother. The phone stopped ringing as soon as I looked at it showing that Valencia had called. Her name popped up again and the call ended quickly.
Uneasiness hit me as I got up and dialed her number. It rang and rang until I was met with silence.
“Say something or I swear to god I will?—”
“Beau, don’t start with me,” she said, sounding exasperated.
Who the fuck was Beau and who the fuck names their kid, Beau?
“Mamacita?” I walked into the kitchen.
A sigh came through.
“Ro,” she said, her tone was off.
“What happened?” I almost snarled as a wave of panic hit me.
“Can I come over?” she asked, her voice cracking.
“What happened?” I asked again, trying not to get upset.
“I'd rather talk in person.” Her voice was a little shaky.
“I can pick you up,” I said, grabbing my jacket.
“No, I can come to you,” she said, her voice not as shaky. “Send me the address please.”
She hung up.
My stomach churned with anxiety.
“Hey, I have to go,” I said to no one specifically, but it didn’t matter because no one responded, but I did see Tomás look my way.
The moment I left, I dialed Hunter’s number as I got into my Jeep.
“Hey, miss me already?” he chuckled. “You think two back-to-back games would leave you satiated.”
“Val just called me asking to come over,” I said, backing out of the driveway. “Something happened, her voice was shaky and she sounded… she sounded like she was agitated.”
“I’m on my way,” he said, all playfulness had left his tone as I heard movement. “She didn’t say anything?”
“No, but when the call connected, someone was saying something about calling me,” I said, making a turn slowly, feeling my tires slide a little.
“Ok, I’ll see you soon,” he said, hanging up.
I drove as quickly as possible to my house, thankfully I made it there before she did. My house was always relatively clean since I was barely here. My father had ingrained it in me to keep a clean living space. I lit a candle wondering what else I should do because I had no idea what was going to happen. Since it was cold, I turned the fireplace on, knowing she would appreciate it.
Putting a kettle on just in case she wanted tea. I set out her favorite tea as my mind wandered on everything that could have happened. What if this was the end? What if the person on the phone was a boyfriend or what if it was that asshole? Clenching my jaw, I had to believe she wouldn’t put herself in that position.
A knock made me queasy as I strode to the door. Taking a deep breath, I opened the door to see Hunter.
“Hey,” I said, feeling a little bit of tension, but when I noticed the murderous glare on his face, uneasiness filled me again.
He was covered in snow and the snow was worse than before. He shook off the snow, untying his boots.
“Something happened at The Atelier,” he growled, coming inside and taking off everything. His face was a little red from the cold, but dammit, he was so damn sexy.
“Did she call you?” I closed the door and followed him into the living room.
“No, but I remembered her saying she was going tonight because she was going to collab with the other cam boy,” he said, sitting down. “You think he laid his hands on her?”
The fury on his face shouldn’t have turned me on, but Hunter protective and angry, fuck my life. If I could get pregnant, it would have happened right now.
“I don’t know, but if he did, I know a guy who can get us his address,” I said, opening my phone to look up his contact.
A soft knock had us running to the door and when I opened it, I knew something bad had happened. Fucking Beau, he would regret fucking with her for the rest of his life.
“Hi,” she said softly, stomping her feet to get the snow off.
It was a small grimace, enough to make me look at her legs when I noticed they were scraped up.
“Mamacita,” I said, keeping the growl out of my voice.
Hunter scooped her up, making her squeal and protest about getting snow in the house and on the sofa he just sat her down on. I trusted him to get her warm when I went to the bathroom for my first aid kit. They were quiet as Hunter took off her boots.
I could feel his anger simmering just below the surface. His face was stoic as he looked over her legs. He grabbed her jacket and boots, and took them to the front door to the mat I had there for our shoes.
“What happened?” I asked, kneeling in front of her, looking her over for other injuries. “Did Beau do this to you or his friends?”
Her brows furrowed before understanding fell on her face.
“No, Beau saved me,” she said, biting her lips.
“Tell us,” Hunter said, his voice deep with violence as I gave him a look to chill out.
“Can I shower first?”
I didn’t answer her, scooping her up to take her to my bathroom. My shower wasn’t huge, but it was fine for the two of us. I couldn’t leave her alone, so I showered with her. She leaned against my chest as the hot water enveloped us. Hunter went in and out of the bathroom a few times, looking at us with a concerned expression.
I washed her hair, getting a grimace when she saw the two in one shampoo and conditioner. I pretended not to notice as she scrubbed her body and I washed my hair. Her skin was turning pink as I took the soap away from her, afraid she might scrub the top layer of skin off her.
Her lip quivered as I washed her legs but seeing the scrapes ignited the anger again. If it wasn’t Beau, I could still find whoever it was and I’m sure Hunter and I could scare the poor bastard silly. Hunter took her from me, getting her dressed in my shirt and boxers, taking her to the living room. He sat her down in front of the fireplace.
“Tea?” Hunter asked, as I put ointment on her scrapes and a bandage.
“Please,” she said, looking at the fire.
The glow accentuated her sadness. I hated it and I didn’t like this one bit. Once Hunter brought her some tea, and each of us a beer, he started to brush her hair. She took a sip of the tea, her eyes widened before she looked at me.
My cheeks felt hot as she gave me a soft smile.
“It’s my favorite tea,” she said softly.
“I got it just in case you ever stayed here,” I said, rubbing the back of my neck.
“Thank you,” she said, biting her lip. “I….”
She looked up at the ceiling as her lip trembled as she took a deep breath. Hunter and I stole a glance at each other as we waited for her to talk.
“I saw him,” she said, staring into the flames. “He asked for a night together and I told him no.”
Hunter looked at me, violence swimming in his eyes. I opened my mouth to ask who, when she continued talking.
“He then shamed me, and I had had enough, so I told him to go fuck himself as nicely as I could and I tried to leave, but he was in the garage,” she said shivering, and I didn’t think it was from the cold. “Beau offered to walk me to my car, but I was cold, and I just ran to my car. I’m such an idiot. Thank god, Beau was there.”
I resisted the urge to roll my eyes because, fuck Beau. I know I should have been grateful, but I didn’t like that she needed him to protect her. One of us should have been with her.
“Who was it?” I asked, worried about the answer.
We took a collective deep breath.
“My old Dom,” she whispered, like she was ashamed.
“Did he know it was you?” Hunter asked, as he got his phone out of his pocket.
“I don’t know, but before he was scared away, my wig and mask weren’t on properly,” she said, looking scared.
Hunter put his phone up to his ear before walking away. Hurt crossed her face, and I scooted closer to her.
“What the fuck happened?” Hunter snarled.
Valencia’s eyes grew wide.
“She was assaulted in your parking garage,” he clipped.
“What the hell is he doing?” She looked uneasy.
“Probably yelling at someone from the club,” I said, shrugging.
“Oh fuck,” she said, getting red.
“I don’t give a shit, he needs to have his membership revoked and someone else needs to know he’s a fucking creep.” Hunter paced in front of us.
“Hunter,” Valencia growled. “I don’t know?—”
“I don’t give a shit,” he clipped. “He could have hurt her more.”
“Valencia, he needs to be held accountable,” I said, trying to calm the situation.
“What’s his name?” Hunter snapped at her.
I glared at him. “Hunter,” I snapped at him.
“Look, I didn’t come here so that you could be fucking rude and try to do something about it, I just?—”
“You expect me not to do anything?” Hunter’s nostrils flared as he interrupted her.
Valencia looked angry and we needed to focus on her. She didn’t need Hunter blowing a gasket.
“Hunt,” I said, standing up in front of him.
“She’s more important right now,” I said, hoping that it pulled him out of his angry outburst.
I gave him a look of, ‘let’s do this later’ and hoped he understood it.
“I’ll call you back.” Hunter hung the phone up, taking a few calm breaths.
I turned around to see Valencia hugging her legs looking at the fireplace.
“I don’t need you to save me, I just need… I didn't want to be alone” she said softly.
“It’s hard not to want to protect you, Mamacita,” I said, sitting by her, softly touching her legs.
“He put his hands on you. He hurt you and he deserves to pay for it,” Hunter said, sitting on the other side of her. “What if Beau wasn’t there? He deserves more than just getting his membership revoked and what if he’s doing this to other women?”
Valencia looked up, her lip quivered, and I braced myself for her crying. It was making me more murderous each time I saw that sad look in her eyes.
“His name is Maxwell Hollingsworth,” she said, looking over at Hunter.
“I’m sorry for how I reacted,” Hunter said, pulling her onto his lap. “But I won’t be sorry for keeping you safe. You don’t deserve to be looking over your shoulder wondering if he is there or anywhere near you.”
“We just wanna keep you safe,” I said, scooting closer to them.
“What if he saw it was me?” she shuddered. “What if he tells the world or worse, my boss?”
“You said your wig and mask were skewed, that doesn’t mean he saw you,” I said, with a false sense of confidence.
“If that happens, he can’t prove anything,” Hunter said, holding on to her tighter. “We can sick Easton on him. You don’t show your face, and unless he got a picture, he has nothing.”
I felt better knowing he didn't have a picture, and I hoped she did too.
“I… I hate him so much,” she said, burying her face in his neck. “How did he find me? There are so many clubs closer to him. Why Denver, and is this a coincidence?”
I hated that I didn’t have the answers for her. Looking up at Hunter, it looked like he didn’t either.
“We have his name and maybe I can get someone to look into him,” I said, wondering if this was the right idea, but one look at her told me this was just the beginning of what I would do to keep her safe.
“I think that sounds good,” Hunter agreed.
She pulled away from Hunter. “I think that sounds good too, but please don’t do anything illegal. Last thing the team needs is for you to get arrested while trying to defend my honor and then we also get outed.”
“I won’t,” I said, not promising anything.
“I’m sorry I dragged you into this,” she said, looking so tired.
“We talked about this. We need to be honest, even if you think it’s something you don’t want to talk about,” Hunter said, rubbing her back.
“Come on, let’s watch something funny before we go to bed,” I said, hoping to lighten the mood. “Find something to watch and I’ll be back with snacks.”
I went into the kitchen, grabbed a tray, loaded it up with her favorite candy, popcorn and some nuts. I grabbed sparkling waters and more beers, so we didn’t have to get up. Valencia was coming out of my room with a blanket and some pillows, pushing my ottoman to my sofa. She just made a spot for all of us to fit comfortably and I loved that she did it without asking.
I set the tray next to me as I sat in the corner. Hunter finished picking a movie, settling in between my legs and Valencia in between his. She threw a blanket over herself, pulling Hunter’s arm over her and squeezing the bottom of my leg close to them.
“Thank you,” Valencia whispered, as the movie started, and while we didn’t do anything to that fucker, I was glad we could ease her worry.
I knew without a doubt, Hunter and I would do whatever we had to keep her safe.
The way we were laying didn’t seem like a comfortable position, but once we all relaxed enough, it felt amazing. I ran my hand through Hunter’s hair who was now laying on my chest and my hand rested on Valencia’s shoulder. We didn’t get through half the move before Valencia passed out and so did Hunter.
As tired as I was, I couldn’t go to sleep enjoying them close and relaxed. What we had was nothing like the contract I had before. I might not be experienced in relationships, but this felt like what one might be like. This didn't feel like a contract anymore, it felt like more. I didn’t know if I could stop what was happening. I didn’t think I wanted to.