Chapter 10 #2
“Reid doesn’t like a lot of people, and the ones he does like, he’s very protective of.” Wyatt paused as if to ponder his next words. “He’s threatened by you.”
“Because he thinks I’ll ruin the plans you guys have?”
He glanced at me out of the corner of his eye for a second before facing forward again. “I see you heard that.”
“What are your plans? Or are you not allowed to tell me?”
“It’s not a secret.” He let out a heavy sigh. “As soon as Roe and I graduate, the three of us plan on leaving Summerhaven. It all depends on which college Roe gets accepted to. That will determine where we go.”
“Why are you leaving?”
“Because we don’t want to get sucked into the club. If we stay here, we undoubtedly will. We’ve seen it with our dads, cousins, and friends time and time again. The club is like a siren. All the good parts about it pull on you. And once you’re in, there’s no out.”
I remembered Wyatt being very opposed to joining the Haven’s Rebels at the café.
“Ever since Bram became president, the club has been better. Less crooked, you could say,” he explained. “But when Bram’s dad, Rhett, was president before him, they were up to all kinds of shady shit to make money. My dad is in prison until the end of time because of it.”
Wyatt had said his dad had been caught with a lot of cocaine. Had the club been selling drugs? I guessed the Haven’s Rebels had used to be as bad as rumors said.
“Roe’s mom took off because of the things Rhett kept pulling Noble into.” Wyatt let out a sigh again. “Then there’s Reid’s dad, who’s the fucking definition of a scumbag. He used to...” Wyatt shook his head. “That isn’t my story to tell. Just know that he was a really bad man.”
I squeezed his hand gently to reassure him. “Okay.”
“It’s good that the club is making changes for the better, but the damage has been done.
And as Roe likes to say, just because things have gone good with Bram doesn’t mean shit won’t go back to bad when the next prez takes over.
Nearly everyone in the club now was there during Rhett’s…
we’ll say reign. They took part in all the shady shit Rhett brought to the table and there are still some who miss the money they made during that time.
I will not be like my dad or like his dad, who was one of the original Haven’s Rebels. Roe and Reid feel the same.”
I understood wanting to run away from a fate you hadn’t chosen. A little part of me was jealous they were going to get to do it. “Why does Reid think I would ruin your plans?”
Wyatt smiled. “Because you’re the first girl Roe has ever brought around us.”
“Pretty sure I invaded your little group at that party.”
Wyatt chuckled. “Is that what you think happened?”
That was exactly what had happened, but I wasn’t going to argue with him. “I still don’t see how I’m going to derail your plans. You don’t seem…threatened by me.”
Wyatt stopped walking and stared down at me. “It’s because I find you smokin’ hot.”
I rolled my eyes and tried to keep walking.
“I’m kidding.” He pulled me back by my hand. “Sort of.”
Trying not to smile, I bit down on my lip and looked anywhere but him.
He tucked my hair behind my ear. The act stunned me, and my eyes found their way back to his.
“Let’s just say I’m an optimistic person,” he said. “We should head back now. I’d bet money that by the time we get there, they will have made up.”
As we walked back, two men on motorcycles drove down the street heading in our direction. The loud rumbling completely obliterated the quiet night. The ground vibrated beneath my feet until long after they’d passed us.
“A lot of members live in this neighborhood,” Wyatt said.
When we were a few houses away, I could see Roe standing on the sidewalk in front of his house. He noticed and started walking our way.
“You all right?” he asked me.
I nodded.
“Reid still inside?” Wyatt asked.
“Yeah. Let’s head back in,” Roe said, and we followed him back into his house.
Reid was in the same spot at the far end of the couch. His whiskey eyes found me the moment I walked in. He sighed. “I’m sorry.” His tone told me his words were forced.
Roe came to stand next to me with his arms folded over his chest. “For?”
Reid looked away. “For being an asshole.”
Forced or not, I’d accept it. “Okay.”
“Great. Then let’s finish eating,” Wyatt said, returning to the recliner.
I went back to the spot where I’d been sitting earlier on the couch.
“Want to put a movie on or are we going to continue playing?” Roe asked as he sat next to me.
“Playing,” Reid and Wyatt said at the same time.
As I watched them, my phone vibrated in my hand. I glanced down at it—a text from Prue. I tapped it and read that Clay had left.
I could go home if I wanted to.
“Everything all right?” Roe asked.
I put my phone on the armrest of the couch. “Yes. My mother is out of town and one of the house staff was just checking on me.”
“How long is she out of town for?” Roe asked.
“A little over three weeks,” I said.
“Three weeks with the house to yourself? Nice,” Wyatt said.
“She doesn’t have the house to herself. She has staff,” Reid pointed out.
Roe gave him a look of warning.
I glanced at Wyatt. “Yeah, it’s nice.”
I could go home and enjoy the relief of Mother not being there. In an empty house, I wouldn’t have to worry about keeping up lies or hiding anything. It sounded blissful, but lonely.
I leaned forward to grab my plate off the coffee table. As I took a bite of now-cold pizza, which was surprisingly still good, I realized I wanted to be here more.