Chapter 12 Evan #2
She grinned and reached out to adjust them, but they were definitely bent.
I rarely took off the aviator sunglasses.
I hated to see my eyes, and honestly, I figured no one needed to be subjected to the mess of my eye.
The color was a milky white, with a slight burst of blue, but not enough to make me OK with people seeing me.
The scar along my jaw was something I couldn’t hide, and I had contemplated getting a face tattoo, but Anson talked me out of it.
He said Ro told him she thought I looked rugged and sexy with it, especially when I had scruff on my face.
I had no idea if he was being honest or just trying to stop me from fucking myself up further, but even the possibility of her liking it kept me from trying to cover it.
“Perfect,” I murmured, twining my fingers with hers.
Her cheeks flushed at my compliment, making my heart soar. The fact that I could still get that reaction from her after all this time really did something to me.
“I’d like to get you a new ring,” I said, feeling my diamond on her finger. She only wore it when she wasn’t on stage or in the spotlight, which was rarely, but I did notice that she always had it on when she videocalled me.
She frowned. “I like my ring.”
“Yeah?” I pulled her down next to me, my cock slipping free, and held her in my arms. “You deserve a bigger diamond.”
“Mm, no. I like this one.”
I smiled at that. My Ro was never into material things.
We had the money for anything she wanted.
My books did well, and I’d been in negotiations with a studio in L.A.
with my agent for turning one of them into a movie.
Rosalie was all for it, and so were the guys.
I just had to sign, which I planned on doing when I got back.
The money was insane, so I couldn’t let myself turn down something like that.
Add in Rosalie, Anson, and Klaus’s wealth, and we all sat really pretty without a struggle.
Rosalie had a makeup line coming out in the Fall and she was doing a collab design line with Jamie, her best friend. Jamie was the one who visited us. She never came with her guys, which gave me relief.
Things were definitely on the up and up these days, though.
“I want to get you something,” I continued.
“I have everything I could ever want.” She snuggled closer to me. I kissed the top of her head and was quiet for a moment.
“Everything, baby?” I ventured softly.
“Yes.” Her voice was tiny. I knew my girl well enough by now to know when she wasn’t telling me the whole truth.
“You’ve been thinking about them,” I murmured.
She was quiet for a long time. I didn’t think she was going to answer me, but she finally did, her voice shaking.
“Ellis keeps asking about Cole.”
“I know. She asks at home too, although it’s been bad the last few days. That Penelope girl in her class really is a little asshole.”
Rosalie chuckled at that but didn’t disagree.
“I-I guess I don’t know what to do,” she said. “I don’t want to hurt anyone, especially you, Ani, and Klaus. You guys have been her dads…” Her voice trailed off before she spoke again. “Plus, there’s you. They think you’re dead.”
“Baby, I will do whatever you want. I love Ellis so damn much, and I know she wants to know Cole. Knowing Cole, he’d be clawing his skin off to get to her too. This is your call. You know we support you in everything.”
“It’s a bad idea,” she muttered, shaking her head.
“Maybe,” I agreed, “but I think it’s important that we consider all the things before we make a decision.”
“I just have no idea what he’s doing with his life at this point. If he’s with someone else. And if he is, do I want another woman to be part of her life? What if she’s… bad?”
“I know.” I kissed her temple fiercely. “Let’s table it all, OK? Maybe reach out to E. He’s always been levelheaded. I’m sure he’d speak with you if you didn’t want to go straight for Cole.”
“Maybe,” she said, sighing. “I definitely don’t want to talk to Enzo.”
“I understand,” I replied, knowing why she didn’t want to talk to him.
He’d cheated. Got a girl pregnant. Married her.
Last I heard, which was years ago, she died in a house fire, and he got everything since her father, Vander Veer, owned Rustic Rifles and had died months before.
I didn’t want to point fingers, but I was definitely suspicious of the situation.
Knowing that Celeste was a pro-max cunt, I could only imagine Enzo did it for the money and climb.
After all, it was why he’d done any of the shit he’d done.
“I’m afraid,” she continued.
“Of what?” I traced small circles on her soft skin as she spoke.
“I just…” she went quiet.
“You still love them,” I finished for her.
“Do I?”
I tilted her chin up so she could look at me. “I love them, too. It’s OK.”
“I’m scared the feelings will rush back and then…” She shook her head.
“If you reach out to E and the feelings come back, we can talk about it, OK? It’s a lot of steps to take before it’s even an issue. All it will be is you asking about Cole. I know he will answer you. We can go from there when you’re ready. It doesn’t have to be decided today.”
She breathed out. “OK.”
She shifted up and kissed me again. It turned heated in moments, her tongue dancing with mine as my dick came back to life.
But it ended quickly as the bell to our room rang. I frowned as I pulled away from her. We shouldn’t be bothered right now.
“What the hell?” I pulled away from Ro as the bell went off again.
Quickly, I put on some pants while Rosalie dressed, then went to the door to find our security gone, with a box wrapped in paper and a bow waiting.
Dante said he was going to go out and get dinner because he hated hotel food.
I knew it was his small way of giving us time alone.
Frowning, I reached out, picked it up, and brought it inside.
“What is it?” Rosalie asked, coming into the room in one of her long dresses.
“It’s a package with a card addressed to you,” I said, coming into the suite again after locking the door. “Security is gone.”
“What?” Rosalie frowned as I placed the gift on the glass coffee table.
“I’m going to call Klaus. Don’t touch that.” I left the room and went to the bedroom to grab the phone off the nightstand.
It was Rosalie’s scream, though, that made me grab my gun too.