Chapter Sixteen – Laina
Jason Miller was an anomaly in this city.
A self-made man, although in the eyes of someone like Tessa, he didn’t have much.
A tiny, old house in a small town. The apparent respect of many younger, tattooed individuals who probably would have thrown their entire lives away had he not stepped in and helped them.
To a woman who wanted the stars, it was nothing, but that’s where Tessa would be wrong.
I understood where Jason came from when he said loyalty to family was everything, and I agreed with him. He’d made a family out there, and he left them to come help his daughter, even after years of going no-contact because she and Kieran were off trying to find bigger and better things.
When I got the file and perused through it, I couldn’t help but wonder what it was like, a town that small. It must’ve been some kind of culture shock for him to come to this city—or maybe small-town life wasn’t all that different from city life when you weren’t afraid to get your hands dirty.
I couldn’t lie, I spent the next few days thinking about Jason a little too much.
While we were all waiting for something—my dad awaited the results from the paternity test, while my guys and I awaited word from Lola and Sylvester about whether or not the doctor was trustworthy or a slippery snake—I spent most of my free time at the house thinking about that tattooed newcomer.
It was ridiculous, I knew it. Having a teeny crush on the guy was insane in multiple ways.
First, I had three boyfriends already. It wasn’t like I was lacking for dick.
Second, he was one of my boyfriend’s father, not to mention the father of the woman who was pretty much my archenemy.
There were a million reasons why having any sort of crush on him wasn’t smart.
It must’ve been true, the saying: the heart wanted what the heart wanted.
The only time I didn’t think about Jason was Friday, and that was because Kieran and I had a little date night planned.
It’d be a little rude to think about his sexy father when the whole point of our date was to drive a few hours away and play chase while he donned his devil mask for the first time since that night at the frat party.
When he claimed me for the first time, back when I had no idea that Kieran and my Devil were one and the same.
The goal of tonight was, of course, to overcome the distance that had been between us, for me to truly accept the fact that they were the same person—and, duh, to have a sexy, wild hunt that ended in some dirty, passionate sex, even if said sex was on the forest floor and I got bits of dead leaves stuck in crevices I’d rather not think about.
I was excited. Honestly, I think I threw myself into college and trying to play normal with Kelly too much.
Now that I wasn’t playing normal, I could breathe a sigh of relief and not have to worry about hiding certain parts of myself.
The dark parts. The parts that would make someone like Kelly wretch with bile.
Tonight I didn’t have to worry about anything. It would just be me and Kieran. Me and my Devil. There’d be no pretending on either of our parts. We could both give in to the animal inside, and I for one could not wait until my Devil had me again.
Because it was a chase, I had to dress comfortably. Nothing too revealing or anything, nothing too loose, pants-wise. Getting my jeans caught on a stick or something while I was trying to run would only give Kieran the upper hand. Obviously, I wanted the chase to last more than sixty seconds.
That guy better give me a head start.
I kinked my hair, even did a little makeup.
I was acting like I was going out clubbing, not the woods for a hunt, but I wanted to make damn sure I looked good.
Kieran, I knew, would take me how I was.
He’d gladly take me with bedhead. The man had seen me chained to a bed for two whole years, so he definitely saw the worst I had to offer.
Logic tried to remind me every now and then I shouldn’t care about him the way I do.
I shouldn’t love him. What he did may have saved my life, but it still wasn’t right.
It wasn’t legal. Love, though, clearly didn’t give a crap about logic or any of that, or maybe it was that darkness within me, the darkness that had only grown since that first kidnapping.
Right or not, I didn’t care. Kieran, my Devil, was mine, and tonight we would celebrate it.
When Kieran messaged me he was on his way, it was after five-thirty. My dad was home, doing something in his office, so I went to see him before I headed downstairs to wait for his car to pull up.
Rounding the open door, I knocked on the trim as I poked my head around, causing my dad to glance up from his tablet.
“Just reminding you I’m going out tonight, and I probably won’t be back until the morning,” I said.
I’d already told him earlier in the week, when Kieran first mentioned it, but he had a habit of forgetting things I said.
I mean, the guy had a lot going on right now, so I couldn’t be too upset.
My dad ran a hand through his hair as he leaned back in his leather chair, then he pinched the bridge of his nose. “Right. You did mention that before. I guess I forgot. Did you eat something already?”
“No, Kieran and I will grab something.”
He set his hands in his lap. “I want to preface this by saying I’m not trying to tell you what to do, but… are you certain you can trust Kieran?”
“I trust him with my life, dad. So did you, not that long ago.”
“Yes, but that was before…” He rubbed the side of his face with a groan. “…everything happened. I just want to make sure nothing is going to happen to you again. It’s something I always worry about.”
Stepping inside his office, I told him, “I’m okay, Dad.
Right now, I’m worried about you.” I could immediately tell he didn’t quite get what I meant by that, so I had to say, “I don’t have any evidence yet, but Tessa’s playing with you.
I know she is. There’s not a doubt in my mind this is some twisted game on her part to integrate herself back into your life. ”
My dad didn’t say anything to that.
“You can provide the life she’s always wanted.
She probably assumes it’ll be easier to get back with you than it would to find another man who can give her what she wants.
She came from nothing. A life like this?
People would kill for it, which she is obviously more than willing to do, in case you forgot. ”
“I know, I know. You don’t have to worry about me inviting her back into our lives. Maybe that’s what she wants, but I won’t do it. I will, however, agree to co-parent and try to have a healthy relationship with her moving forward, for the sake of the baby—”
“And what if, say, that baby isn’t real? What then?”
He sighed a harsh sigh that practically shook the room. “I think you’ve been watching too much TV. It might work in TV shows and movies, but I don’t think faking a pregnancy is as easy as you think it is. Besides, I met with her doctor. I’m getting a paternity test done, remember?”
Still, I wouldn’t give it up. “Have you actually seen her belly? Have you felt it?”
The look on my dad’s face told me it all: no.
“Just be careful,” I warned him. “Don’t trust her.
I’m telling you, Dad, something is off with her.
” I could feel it in my bones, but I didn’t say that much.
I could tell the more I told him not to trust her, the more he’d checked out of this conversation.
He was so focused on that theoretical baby in her belly that he wasn’t fully open to other possibilities.
Sure, faking a pregnancy wasn’t as easy as they made it look on TV shows. Life wasn’t a soap opera. But in a city like this, everyone could be bought with a price, including doctors. To me, it was better to be skeptical than to blindly believe a well-known liar like Tessa.
“You be careful with Kieran, too,” my dad said, “and be safe tonight.”
That’s as much as I would get from him, so I gave him a smile and turned to leave his office. Until I discovered what Tessa’s ultimate plan was, I’d have to keep an eye on my dad. It was probably good that I was back here, living with him, if only for that reason.
And Kelly? Once she got over the traumatic experience, she’d be fine. She was surely safer without me in her life, that much was true.
I waited for Kieran in the front room. I made sure to slip on comfortable shoes I didn’t mind getting muddy.
I wore a semi-loose long-sleeve shirt, something I didn’t often wear because typically sleeves bugged the shit out of me.
But when it came to tonight, I’d rather have a long-sleeved shirt on than a jacket.
I had the feeling I’d get way too hot in any sort of coat.
My blood would surely be pumping enough to keep me warm, provided the chase lasted longer than thirty seconds.
I hoped it would. I’d never been chased before. I didn’t know what to expect, but it had to be a fun time, especially if it ended in a claiming. A claiming that was a long time coming.
Kieran’s car pulled into the driveway, rolling to the front door, which I raced out of the moment I saw him coming up. I was all grins when I got into his car. I leaned over the center console to give him a quick kiss before buckling in.
He smirked. “You seem excited. Anything in particular you’re excited about, my lady?
” His voice took on a slight English tone, and that grin only grew when he turned the car around and pulled us out.
The directions were already loaded into his car’s GPS.
Our destination was a good three and a half hours away, although it’d take us longer to get there since we would be stopping for dinner on the way.
Had to be out of the city somewhere. Nowhere close by, for reasons that should have been obvious.