35. Bay
THIRTY-FIVE
bay
Like a battered wife being summoned to her husband, I’m sitting in a room with six well-dressed men and Emilio headed at the front of the elongated table. They’re eating lunch and chuckling haughtily about the Hamptons, golf tournaments, and subtle hints of deliveries while my sperm donor wanted me to “drop by” and say hello.
I dropped by, I said hello through my teeth, and now Emilio is pawning me off like a prized dog that he needs puppies from.
And the studs are a few of these assholes’ sons.
“My son attended Harvard,” a heavy-set man presents as he shoves more pasta salad in his mouth. “He loves brunettes.”
“Get me out of here,” I mumble to Emilio, because I’ve already made it clear to him once that I don’t mind starting a scene.
In fact, I’d love to.
“Bay is going to Oceanview to become an Occupational Therapist,” Emilio replies for me. “And she’s actually going to be late now if she doesn’t hurry along.”
“Yeah.” I give the man who offered up his son like a piece of T-bone steak my best smile. “It was really nice to meet you.”
“Emilio, bring her to the charity event next week. You’ve been wanting to dabble your way more into politics, Bay would be a wonderful asset to?—”
“I don’t want to get in the way of her studies,” my father retorts, placing a hand on my lower back. “But maybe.”
Another man with a cigar in his mouth raises his hand like he’s in class to gain Emilio’s attention. “What about that boy…the one who’s always?—”
The herd of nails on hardwood floors and panting sprint closer to the room before the doors bust all the way open, revealing Torin’s two Rottweilers driving straight toward me like a stampede.
“Whoa,” I order, holding out my hands to stop them from barreling into me. “Hey, guys.” They stop right at my feet and sit, lowering my anxiety as I pet both of their heads as their short tails wag. Both huge animals look at me expectedly like I’m an answer they were looking for. Then Emilio’s hand gives me an impatient shove to take them out of here. “Alright, gentlemen, I need to get these crazy beasts out of here and head uptown. Have a good rest of your lunch.”
The men give me their goodbyes, and I don’t bother with Emilio. I’ll see him when I’m requested for again.
The dogs follow me out into the large foyer and onto the white marble floor, watching me as they do, like I’m about to pull a treat out of my pocket.
“Whatcha guys doing?” I ask, as if they can respond. “Where’s your daddy?” A firm body presses into my back when an arm follows, the smell of fresh air and pine filling my nostrils and I’m mindlessly sinking into that body like it’s something I’ve done a million times before.
“Right here, baby.”
A smile plagues my face that I didn’t mean to appear, and the two dogs continue to gape at me like I’m about to become their new mommy.
Sorry, no.
“Your dogs hunt people down?” Torin only hums in response, pulling me closer to his body as his fingers splay across my stomach. I can feel the faint grazing of his face along my hair, and it’s hard not to hold my breath for his next move. “What are their names again?”
“Koda and Kona.”
“You couldn’t pick anything that didn’t sound almost the same?”
“No.” He presses a soft kiss to my temple and inhales my hair, conjuring a shiver to form and goosebumps to splay all over my body. “I like people being confused.”
He runs his fingers down to my pelvis and lower until I mindlessly snatch his forearm. “Behave, Wildes.”
“You said that like I’m capable of it.”
“You need to when your daddy is in the other room.”
Torin turns me around to face him, slapping me with those golden eyes. The tawny-colored stumble along his chiseled jawline only makes me want to run the pads of my fingers along it just to see how rough it feels.
And I always seem to want to touch Torin Wildes.
It’s no secret to myself that, even though I’ve kept this man at arm’s length, I’m drawn to him in a different way than I am Reeve.
While my surfer boy is easy to get along with, Torin is my challenge. Nothing with him comes easy. He pushes when I pull. There’s nothing that Torin allows to make me feel comfortable. He’s always shoving the bar and keeping me on my feet.
It’s like training for a fight with him. I never know when he’s going to throw a punch to which I’d have to dodge out of the way.
“Why is it that every time you’re around, you look more fuckin’ edible than the last?”
I blush.
Blush.
Cheeks flaming red, and Torin notices without a doubt as a cocky smirk coils at his perfect set of lips.
“What was it that you were saying?” he asks.
“I said behave,” I chide lightly, hating my body for never being able to chill the hell out when he’s around. “Your daddy is in the other room.”
Torin’s face lifts as if what I’m saying is stupid because we’re not children who can get grounded for groping each other in the foyer. “No, your daddy is in the other room. Mine’s dead.”
My face immediately falls. “Torin…”
“Yeah?”
“When…” I suddenly feel nervous for asking, because we just don’t talk about things besides fucking, staying out of The Landings, and his dick. “When did he die?”
“When I was six. Emilio killed him.” The oxygen in my lungs flees my body at the same time my gut twists. A small gasp leaves my lips, and Torin gives me a small smile. “He was abusive. Hit my mom a lot. There’s no loss there.”
One of the dogs nudges my thigh with its nose, but I don’t steer my focus from Torin. Losing my dad would be devastating for me, but it doesn’t sound like Torin’s father was present and, if he was, not a good role model for such a young kid.
“Are you sure?”
Torin pulls me tighter into his chest. “Positive.”
“How do you know?”
“How do I know what?”
“That he was a bad man. You remember him?”
He shakes his head. “No, my brother told me.”
I nod. “Ramsey.”
“Lennox.”
My face lifts. “Who?”
Torin stares down at me. His expression is void of any emotion as if he’s explaining physics or how lightning is formed. “My other brother. He’s dead, so—” My arms wrap around Torin’s waist as I place the side of my face along his chest in a hug.
I don’t want to hear anymore, but it’s the reality.
I know Torin is a grade-A asshole, but I’d never wish this for him. First his father than his brother…I’m praying to God that Emilio didn’t off him too for not eating his Spagetti-O’s.
Torin returns my hug with one of his own, resting his face into the nest of my hair as he lightly squeezes me to his body. “That’s why I’ve been tryin’ to tell you to stay away from Emilio, Wildfire. Rival gangs are no joke. My brother died at the hands of his enemies to get back at him. My stepfather has no bounds. There’s no limit to what he would do. And, in turn, you would become collateral damage.”
“What about you?” I mutter into his chest, feeling my eyes burn in empathy for him. That he’d suffer at such a young age over the loss of his family. “Have you—” The crook of Torin’s finger tucks under my chin as he pulls my face up to look at him.
“I can’t hear you,” he croons, immediately noticing my eyes swelling up with tears. “And don’t cry for me. It is what it is.”
I rock my head back and forth. “It’s not supposed to be like that. You were supposed to be loved?—”
“Not all kids are given that opportunity. You know that.”
I do, but I still despise it just the same. “I’m sorry. You deserve more.”
“So, do you. Way more than some fucked-up rivalry and two dudes who screwed you in the back of my car. I wouldn’t say a prince would suit you, Wildfire, but maybe less drama.”
“I’d be bored without it.”
He smiles at me. “Is that why you keep pushing me?”
“No.” I lift my chin defiantly, but can’t deny that I do enjoy getting a rise out of him. “I do it because you’re not the boss of me.”
“I’d never want to be the boss of you.” His fingers splay along the base of my spine. “However, I can think of one place I’d like to have all the control.”
I look heavenward to hide any glint in my eye that this man has already secured my interest in that playing field. “I’m sure you would.”
“Do you understand now why I keep hounding you about Emilio?”
“Yes.” His fingers press harder into my hip, to the point that I actually yelp a bit in discomfort. “I said yes .”
“Say it again,” he orders. His golden eyes steel into not giving him any bullshit. “I want to make sure nothing is lost in translation this time.”
“I understand, Pretty Boy. You don’t have—” I’m nudged again, peering down at one of the identical dogs at my side. “Gosh, they’re as needy as you.”
“You’re addicting.”
I roll my eyes off another smile and look back at him. “You say that as if I’m supposed to believe you.”
“And what would make you believe me? I’ve only been chasin’ you around for years, Wildfire. I don’t do that with anyone else.”
“And what are we supposed to do? I’m not tied into South Shore anymore. You can’t gain anything from me?—”
“This isn’t about South Shore and everything to do with me and you. It’d be nice for Wallace not to want to kill me every two seconds. However, I’m not gonna let that deter me.”
“And Reeve?”
“Reeve will always remain at my side. And, since I know he wants you?—”
“You don’t share.”
He smirks at me. “I don’t. Yet, he’s my brother, and I owe him more than my life. Reeve has saved my ass on more than one occasion. The least I can do is share my girl.”
My brows ascend. “Share your girl?”
“Our girl. Him and me only. You’re exclusive to?—”
“That’s never going to work,” I retort evenly. “What am I supposed to tell my dad? My sisters?”
“We’ll cross that bridge when we get to it. You’re not involved in any gang shit, and I’ve let it go.”
I perk a brow. “You finally caught on to that?”
“Girl told me to stop fuckin’ asking,” he muses with a shrug. “So I stopped.”
“Just like that?”
“Just like that. If I don’t give you some rope to hang yourself with than how will I ever move forward with you?”
“That was morbid as fuck, but true. However, why bother? The headache would be a brutal one.”
Torin leans forward, taunting the closeness with his lips. “Because I’ve never been a pussy and I’m an entitled prick. If I want something, I’m going to get it. Except, you’ve been runnin’ from me forever.”
“For good reason.”
“Give me one.”
“Matteo would’ve killed me.”
Torin freezes at my comment before he gives me a slight bob of his head. The gold in his eyes darkens, but he paints on a blank face. “That bad?”
“That bad.”
“He’s dead.”
“Torin—”
“I’m not gonna ask you for details just yet, because I really don’t want to break this up. If you utter a single word about the shit he did, I will leave this house and come back with his head.”
“You already know he was a fucking ass clown to me,” I argue. “What changes?—”
“ Everything changes when you’re mine,” he gripes back, his hot breath mingling with mine. “Everything, Bay. I’ve heard stories. I’ve used my imagination. But the moment you confirm it, it’ll be over. So…don’t.”
I solely believe that Torin’s actions are as petty as my own, so I keep my mouth shut. And I don’t want him to leave. “Okay.”
“Good.” Torin presses a kiss to the tip of my nose, and I’m surprised that he doesn’t take it a step further when he pulls away. “Now, where are you going?”
“Home.”
“Can I take you to a Coney Island for French fries and Cokes, or is that too candid for you?”
I roll my eyes. “You’re a fucker.”
“I’d love to fuck her, but she won’t let me get too close. You practically threw Reeve and me out of your house the other night when you were putting Ellie and Mae to bed.”
“I didn’t want you to lose any more of your money to Mae and her goldfish skills,” I retort, even though they played with suckers and he let her win. “And you’re gambling too much, Pretty Boy.”
“I know,” he mutters, reaching up to twirl a piece of my hair around his finger. “But I’d rather risk it with you than leave you alone. I’d rather watch you, get pissed off, than have Emilio take advantage of you.”
“You’re risking a lot.”
“Fully aware.”
I slice my attention to the doors I just exited and jerk my head for Torin to follow. Where I’m going, I’m not sure, but I don’t trust anything or anyone in this house.
Shoot, I wouldn’t even be surprised if I stepped on a trap door and fell into some torture dungeon.
When I get to the small hallway that I remember Reeve guiding me to so I could go to the bathroom, Torin’s hand falls on my shoulder and he gently pushes my back into the wall. And, instead of crowding me like he always seems to do, he leans against the opposite one.
“Why don’t you like him?” I ask genuinely. “You try to ward me off him, but you haven’t done anything to him yourself, so what gives?”
“Who said that?”
I cock my head to the side. “You’ve done something to him?”
“If I answered that question, I’d have to kill you, baby. And I’m very much looking forward to seeing what the future holds.”
“Why do you hate him so much then?”
“Besides the fact that I’m deaf in one ear and he thinks I’m an idiot?” I just stare at him. My brain is going backward on every single encounter with him in it and why I’ve never picked up on that fact.
Reeve was motioning with his hands. He’s asked me to repeat myself several times when I’m speaking under my breath.
“Add on the fact that Emilio was always wanting more,” Torin continues through my silence. “That my brother is dead, and my mom can’t stay off her pills on some random island she’s living on. I’m not someone he believes he can rely on.”
“Just because…you have trouble hearing doesn’t mean?—”
“He wanted more substance in a child. Ramsey and I obviously didn’t know that he had literal walking DNA so close to him. There always seemed to be that missing element. Like he always knew you were out there somewhere. When Lennox died, that was one son out. He would’ve taken the Titan seat.”
“You don’t want it?”
“I was never offered it.”
“But…you’d take it?”
“Maybe.”
I bob my head because he should. I mean…I know it’s not what Levi wanted, but Torin doesn’t seem to want to continue Emilio’s reign.
Or maybe that’s what he wants me to believe.
“Technically, that goes to you,” Torin professes. “And Emilio is getting impatient.”
“With what?”
“Your relationship not taking off as he hoped.”
My brows clash. “I’ve only known he’s existed for two seconds.”
“And that’s all it takes for him to lose his temper. But, you’re in a bind. You leave, he’ll find you. You keep pushing him, he’ll find a way to sway you.” Mae and Ellie. “You act like daughter of the year, and he won’t believe you.”
My stomach clenches and not in a good way. “I…don’t see a way out of this. He found me and I’m trapped.”
Torin reaches down and grabs one of my hands, lacing his fingers with mine in a gentle and meaningful gesture to tell me that I’m not alone. “Ask him for things. Make him feel wanted. It’ll buy you some time until we find another alternative.”
“We?” I can’t help the one-word question from spilling from my lips, but Torin doesn’t hold back on how we’re a team.
“Why are you here?”
“He invited me over to show me off to his friends.”
“Which means he’s openly and publicly stating that he’s moving forward with you. That may not be what you wanted, but it’s the best sign you could wish for. It means that he hopes this will work.”
“But I don’t want?—”
“It has to work, Wildfire,” Torin digresses. “Keep the words killing and waste of time out of his head and you’ll be alright. If he mentions the seat, tell him that you don’t think you can handle it. Show weakness. He’ll only want to help.”
My nose scrunches. “Do I look like someone who could handle a Titan seat? I can’t even keep up with bills.”
“That’s beside the point. South Shore has ports to use and that could?—”
“That costs money. Have you ever rented a barge before?”
“Can’t say that I have.”
“Add on that The Landings is literally blocking us into the ocean, and we can barely get through to do anything. Emilio has such a locked hold on us that we’re choking to death. And I’ve just been hustling since Dad stroked out. A nine-to-five job isn’t going to cut it for me and holding down a Titan seat is the last thing I can handle right now.”
“And you’re really going to school?”
A mirthless chuckle that’s so disgusted at the prospect of my even finishing forms from my chest. “Barely. I’m making up work now, but…it seems pretty pointless right now.” I hold his gaze and my stomach coils again. “Take the seat, Torin. You’d be much better at it and I’m not one to shoot out orders?—”
“If I claim it, that means several things, Wildfire. It means you and I might come to a crossroads where you may have to take it from me.”
“What? Why would I?—”
“If Levi ever moves against me, I won’t hold back. If he tries to pull the same bullshit that he has on Emilio and tries to throw a hit on my head every other week, I’ll kill him.”
This is all wrong.
The goal was for me to nab the seat, but just thinking of it makes me sick. It only provides more targets on my head, more reasons for someone to sneak into South Shore. It might not be for long; it could be the only way to protect my family, but there are too many players in this game and not enough me.
And, I’d never allow Levi to put a hit out on Torin, no matter their history. Yes, I couldn’t stop him when he decided to ship Reeve off but we’re not going to be separated forever. This could be the time to make peace. For Torin and Levi to work together to take down Emilio.
“You ever think of callin’ a meeting with Levi?” I ask. “To work together?—”
“He hates me as much as I hate him,” Torin exhorts, as if that’s just a normal day in the life. “There’s no way I’d be able to trust him.”
“But have you given him enough rope to hang himself with?” Because he has me and this could work.
It has to work.
You’re going off the plan with Levi.
Torin smiles. “No. But I don’t want to fuck him either.”
“Geezus Christ.” I shove him away, but Torin doesn’t release his grip on me.
“If there is one thing you can count on with me, Wildfire, is that I’m not a liar. I’m not going to muddle your brain with bullshit. Consider it my peace offering.”
“I think you gave me one with your secrets.”
“Not a total secret. Wallace knows about it. Let me give you something with De Leon’s death, and we’ll call us square.”
“And what do you want in return?”
“You.”
His admission fucks me up. Right then and there. He’s never faltered with that fact. Only that he wanted me to stay the hell out of his way and his brother. To not get too deep in with Emilio and, if you really look at it…it is to protect me.
And himself.
“I’ve shot you,” I return before his lips press a soft kiss to my cheek.
“You were flirting with me.” His tongue licks at my skin, and he repeats those kisses, making a trail to my temple. “You got my attention, Wildfire.”
“You sure you’re not related to Emilio, because you’re demented.”
He chuckles. “Yeah, well…try to charm you and see where it gets you.” With one last peck, he straightens his spine and rises over me. “I’m hungry. And you could eat.”
I lift a brow. “You tryin’ to play daddy now?”
His mouth curves into that cock smirk that plagues my brain with how much self-assurance and confidence he has. “Baby, my dick is already hard for you. Don’t tease me.”
“Don’t get too excited. I’m not fucking you in the car, asshole.”
“I know.” He knocks lightly on my chest with his. “Since we’re worried about parents sneaking up on us and getting caught, I was thinking about sliding through your bedroom window and fucking you in your bed.”
“You worming your way through bushes and windows, Pretty Boy?” I tsk. “I’d love to see that.”
Torin smiles. “Bet.”