Chapter 22 Cove
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
cove
“Whatever our souls are made of, his and mine are the same.”
Emily Bronte.
“You look ravishing tonight, princess.” A nauseating sound invades my ear. “I guess we could call this our first date, huh?”
And here I hoped my revulsion toward this man would subside slightly by tonight. But then he opens his mouth again, and I want to bang my head against a wall.
“You call me princess again, and it’ll be our last.” I smile wide for good measure, grinding my teeth in agitation. I never knew I could loathe a nickname the way I do that one. I thought Stetson was ready to aim the bow at his face at the range this morning. Not sure I would have stopped him.
“Ah.” Austin retreats for a moment, and I think he might surrender. “It’s a term of endearment,” he whispers against the length of my neck, and it takes all of my restraint not to shrug away. “You know you like it.”
I cringe. “Guess I’ll have to get used to it…” I let out a nervous laugh. I’m not nervous. I’m disturbed. My mother better know how much I love her for this.
“Should we head inside?” I whisper, voice struggling to sound convincing. “I think I heard Nathaniel looking for us.”
“In a moment.” Austin shrugs off his suit jacket and lays the heavy fabric across my shoulders. “Your father can wait. Speaking of…tell me first why you call him Nathaniel. Seems odd a man of such power would allow his daughter to call him by his first name.”
Shit. Am I making my hatred for Nathaniel obvious? I’ve avoided him when possible, but I think I’ve masked my dislike well.
“Oh. Well. That’s just my way of acclimating myself to your world, Austin. I can’t be calling him Daddy in front of clients now, can I?”
“I guess not.”
I turn to face him and muster the courage to place a chaste kiss on his cheek. “How about we get inside and show my father just how much I fit in your world, huh?”
A beam bright enough to blind me ignites his face. “Nothing has ever sounded sweeter.” I taste vomit.
Austin leads me out the door of our room, my arm linked with his as we enter the outdoor patio area where dinner is served.
A long wooden table, large enough to seat twenty, is set up with tall candlestick lighting, fresh eucalyptus, likely picked from Stetson’s herb garden, along the table, and white opal dining wear arranged in front of each wooden seat.
The charm can’t be missed.
The space has been transformed with muted yellow string lights hung from above, soft music playing in the background, and an old Coca-Cola refrigerator to the side, stocked full of beer and what I’ve learned to be Stetson’s liquor of choice—Johnny Walker Black.
The tasteful decor is distracting at first sight, but the eyes staring daggers back at me hinder any further examination I can make of the space.
Ever since I arrived in Waterstone, Stetson has been slowly breaking.
I hate that I can’t tell him the real reason why I’m here, or that Austin really isn’t my boyfriend. Well, at least not for long.
This is supposed to be a week of him celebrating his birthday with the people he loves, and instead, I’m here, reminding him of what he can’t have.
It’s so fucked up.
I keep my head up despite wanting to let it drop in humiliation, and avoid his eyes at the head of the table as Austin steers us toward our vacant seats by Nathaniel. The chatter among the guests, thankfully, fills any silence stolen by Stetson’s larger-than-life presence.
I’m not sure I could handle looking at him right now.
“There you are,” Nathaniel comments, surprising me by pulling me into a hug. “We’ve been waiting,” he murmurs in my ear, his hug doing nothing to comfort me.
“We—” I’m interrupted by Austin. “We got a little distracted,” he grins, and it’s disgusting, pretending to adjust a button on his dress shirt.
I attempt a laugh, but it’s stiff and detached.
Before taking my seat, I attempt to remove Austin’s jacket, but his hands meet my shoulders faster than I can react, pinning the jacket in place. “Nonsense. Wouldn’t want you to catch a cold.”
“Can’t have that,” I mumble, sitting between asshole one and asshole two once again.
How did I get so lucky?
It’s when I hear Abigail call my name from the opposite side of the table that I finally decide to look up, and…
bad move. Bad, bad move. Because there’s Stetson, over fifteen bodies away from me, with his elbows on the table and a fist at his mouth.
His eyes, though? They’re looking right at me.
Not at my eyes, but at the jacket across my shoulders.
I can see the shakes rattling through his large frame from here. He’s fuming, doing everything in his power to channel what very little restraint he has left.
“Are you enjoying yourself, Cove?” Abigail asks me, without the slightest clue how deeply maddened her big brother is beside her.
A server offers me a beer, and I take it faster than necessary, gulping a quarter of it down at once. “Have some class, Cove,” Nathaniel berates in my ear, but I ignore him.
“I am. It’s lovely here.” I take a moment to register the faces at the table, recognizing most of them from the first night here. It’s clear some are staying elsewhere, only joining us for events throughout the week. “You’ve done a beautiful job, Stetson.”
A gritty chuckle vibrates across the table, and I swear to all things holy, his anger is tangible through the perfectly carved wooden surface. “Well, you know, I’m loyal to the things I care about. I invest my time.”
Oh, he wants to be a dick now, does he?
Two can play that game, Stetson Cole.
“Oh, trust me. I understand that well. Isn’t that right, Daddy? Our bond is something incredibly special.” I turn to face Nathaniel, waiting for his response.
“Of course,” he nods, playing the part. “That’s what we do for the people and things we love. We protect and take care of them.”
Something tells me he’s not saying that to me…
What a fucking joke. I’m pretending to love my father, and he’s pretending to love me. This is so sick and twisted.
Austin’s arm wraps around my shoulder leisurely, pulling me into his side. Stetson dials into his hand, running circles along my bicep.
He has no idea how much I hate Austin’s touch. How much I actually crave him more than my next breath. If there’s anything I’ve learned while being here, it’s that I’m useless at fighting how I feel about Stetson.
Not that my understanding of that benefits me in any way now.
If anything, it just hurts more.
“How about a toast?” Nathaniel stands, holding his whiskey glass high.
“Great idea!” Abigail proclaims, ushering everyone to lift their glasses to join.
“To Stetson,” Nathaniel announces with pride in his voice. “My best friend. My brother. My family. You’ve always been steadfast in everything you do. I trust you more than I trust myself. And I’m confident that’ll never change. Happy birthday. Here’s to fifty years of age and only getting richer.”
“Cheers!” the table shouts, sipping their drinks in unison. Stetson locks eyes with Nathaniel as he sips his whiskey with a look of skepticism he makes no effort to hide.
“Okay. My turn,” Abigail squeals, standing to her full height.
Her long brown hair is curled in bouncy waves, paired with the prettiest black cocktail dress.
She’s stunning, and there’s no mistaking that she and Stetson are siblings.
“To my brother. You’re old as molasses now, but you’d never know it.
Actually, that’s a lie. I know it. You do the same thing every day and never take risks.
I want you to take risks, big brother. Do something out of the ordinary.
Live your life in a way that matters. Find the thing that matters to you and never let it go.
Don’t wait until we’re celebrating your life after death to start.
Tomorrow is never guaranteed. You know how much I love you.
It’s an honor to be in your village, Stetson. Cheers!”
I smile genuinely at her words, only to find Stetson’s eyes on me. I drop it quickly, feeling guilty. But I wish I didn’t have to because it feels authentic and pure, despite the frustration he clearly feels toward me.
However, our eyes? They lock without wavering as we sip our drinks together, tuning out the rest.
My heart is in such a tight place. It hurts to hear the love Abigail has for her brother.
I’ve never had that. Someone other than my mom loving me so fully that they want to express that love publicly.
Like it’s impossible to contain it. But I’m also so happy for Stetson.
Happy that he has someone like Abigail to cheer for him.
Someone who wants to see him win at life and make it count.
It’s a beautiful thing to witness.
Beautiful until Austin stands and ruins it. “Stetson, if you don’t mind, I’d like to make a toast.”
“I mind—”
Abigail places her hand on Stetson’s shoulder to stop him. “Go right ahead, Austin. The floor is yours.”
Austin grins and reaches for my hand. “Princess.” He guides me to stand, and I try not to panic, joining him with uncertainty. I’m spiraling. My nerves bundle inside of me, fearful of anything unexpected as is, but even more so in close proximity to Stetson.
I know this is killing him, and there’s nothing I can do to stop it without ruining everything.
Austin pushes his shoulders back and runs his thumb along the backside of my neck as he addresses the table.
“First off, I want to thank Stetson and Abigail for allowing my girlfriend, Cove, and me to join you this week. You’ve made us feel like family, and for that, we are grateful.
And Nathaniel”—he looks down at him with a grin—“you’ve given me the greatest gift. Your daughter.”
A cough resounds from the end of the table, followed by the slamming of a glass. “Stetson.” Nathaniel directs his attention. “Is there a problem?”
Stetson lifts his cowboy hat with the shake of his head. “Something in my throat.”