Chapter Twenty-Nine
“I’ll be back!” I shouted to Ryker as I left his house.
After last night, getting to see him game and be in his environment, I knew I didn’t want to spend more time away from him when I didn’t have to. He had obligations today with his next stream, so I was going to head home this morning to grab a weekend bag.
I sped home, plugging in my phone and blasting music from my favorite artist in the car. Jemma had texted me about an hour ago, but I hadn’t checked it yet. I would just see her when I got back to the house.
Or maybe not if Beckett was still there.
I was curious about how things were going between them. On some days, it felt like she was being open with her heart, and on others, it felt like the brick wall was a little higher than the day before.
I pulled down my street and into the driveway. It was still early enough that no one was stirring yet for a Saturday morning.
Which was why it was odd to find someone sitting on the swing in front of my house. I was hesitant to get out of the car when Jemma came running across her lawn. I opened the car door just as she came up to me.
“Fucking read your texts, damn it.”
I looked at my phone and saw the one message she sent.
Jemma: DON’T COME HOME.
“What’s going on?” I said, panicked. I looked over to where the person had been sitting, but they were gone. A flash of them caught in my rearview mirror.
“Baby.” Parker’s voice came as a shock to me as he rounded the back side of my car. He was in a pair of black sweatpants and a hoodie that he had lifted over his head. He was hunched forward, looking up at me through hooded eyes. “I’m so glad you’re home.”
He stumbled toward us, and Jemma partially closed my door and stood in the opening, blocking him from me.
“I told you, Parker, you need to leave,” Jemma warned him.
“My ride is coming; it’s just going to be a bit.”
“A ride doesn’t take over an hour to get here.”
“Leave me alone.” He hiccupped as he came closer.
“Don’t you fucking dare move any closer.” It was Beckett who was walking toward us this time. He stalked out of Jemma’s house, pulling a shirt over his head. Parker listened to Beckett, freezing in the driveway, not far from them.
“You’ve got a whole fucking backup team now.” Parker laughed and pointed at Jemma and Beckett. “Looks like you grew a backbone, baby.”
“Do not call me that.” I cringed at the word coming from him.
My shoulder rose to my ears, and my back hugged the seat of the car, unable to move.
I had no idea what Parker might do. It was clear he wasn’t in the right state of mind; he’d never been one to hit me, but he knew how to use his words to cut deep enough.
“You need to leave, Parker. If that means walking until someone can pick you up somewhere else, then so be it, but fucking leave, now.” Jemma was shaking in front of me.
I wanted to move to comfort her as she protected me, but I was frozen.
Unsure of how to help. I looked over her shoulder to see Beckett standing between her and Parker.
Parker was right. I did have a backup team.
“I’m not leaving until I tell her what I came here for.”
“No one cares,” Jemma said angrily, all penitence for Parker’s antics gone.
I sat there, frozen, unsure of how I’d gone from planning a weekend getaway at Ryker’s to being at my house, terrified to move.
I just wanted Ryker. My phone sat in my hand, but I wasn’t processing how to hit the call button or send a message that indicated I needed him here.
I was scared and had no idea what was going to happen or come out of Parker’s mouth.
“She will once I tell her. I was looking everywhere for you and when I found you at the beach, it was like the universe was telling me to make us work. That I needed to make you mine again, make sure no one is in our way.” Parker pointed to me over Beckett’s shoulder.
“Your precious boy has a secret as to who he really is.”
Everyone’s attention snapped to Parker. I had no idea what he had up his sleeve, but if he knew about Ryker, this was the worst-case scenario.
“What?” I said, finally moving out of the car, pushing past Jemma, but she held onto my waist, making sure I didn’t get far. That I was still safe with her. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
I wanted to give Parker nothing to fuel whatever he might think he knew, but my initial reaction and jumping out of the car had sealed my fate. He tossed back the hood of his jacket, and the smile on his face grew. He knew he had me, that he had information I wanted.
He tried to take a step closer, but Beckett placed a hand on his, and Parker pushed him out of the way, but Beckett was on him in a second, his hand wrapped around his throat, feet dangling off the ground by an inch. Parker laughed while staring down at Beckett and then back at me.
“He’s CovertRetriever. Your so-called boyfriend is hiding the biggest secret the world would die to know.” A car pulled into the drive, and the door opened as Parker finally confessed to what he knew.
“And if you don’t want to be sued, I suggest you keep your fucking mouth shut.” I watched as Beckett’s hand tightened around Parker’s neck. The smile on Parker’s face grew wider, more sinister.
“I second that statement.” Melody agreed and made her way over to where Parker and Beckett were. The smile quickly faded from Parker’s face as he realized his assistant was here. Beckett released Parker from his grip; he stumbled back into Melody, who caught him with an unenthusiastic humph.
“About fucking time.” Jemma shot her a glare.
“It’s a bit of a ride from Buffalo, okay?” Melody was trying to wrangle Parker to stand on his own, but all he could do was lean his whole body against her.
I stood watching all of this happen, but all I could think about was how Parker would have found out. How could he know? I spent days with that man, and I had no idea. A pit in my stomach dropped at the thought of Parker outing Ryker. A man that I let into Ryker’s life.
This was all my fault.
My legs became weak, and Jemma’s arm tightened around me.
“I’ve got you.” She whispered in my ear.
“You’ll want this.” Melody reached into her pocket and handed Beckett a card. She turned toward Parker and pointed him toward her car. “And you need to come with me.”
“I don’t want to.”
“Not right now, Parker.” She grabbed his arm, dragging the grown man away from us. “Get in the fucking car.”
She shoved him into the back seat and closed the door.
We stood there watching as they drove away, leaving us alone, finally. But it still felt like Parker was here. He had something over us all now.
Beckett turned to look at us. I expected him to be angry that Parker knew, but he didn’t look worried. He pocketed the card that Melody had given him and came over to Jemma and me, making sure we were okay.
“We’ve got this; don’t worry, it’s not the first time something like this has happened.” He tried to reassure me.
Not the first time.
Probably not the first time someone went hunting and found out, and they could take care of it.
“This is different,” I whispered the words and pulled out of Jemma’s hold. I backed up from them, hands in the air, trying to hold them back as Jemma took a step toward me.
“Odette,” Jemma said my name in caution as I took a deep breath, tears starting to well in my eyes. My knees folded, and I stood there hunched over, trying not to fall to the ground.
This wasn’t some random person on the internet interested in who Ryker was.
This was Parker looking for any way to weasel back into my life, to ruin it, to make himself the center of attention.
No one had confirmed his accusation, but with Beckett speaking up and me showing interest, I knew he wouldn’t let it go, no matter the threat of being sued.
“What if he tells someone?” The first question came out of my mouth, and I tried to suck in air, but nothing came.
“We’ll make sure he doesn’t.” Jemma stepped toward me, and my knees were on the ground. Tears streaking out of my eyes.
“What if he already has?” I looked up at her, and she was on me in a second, her hands on my shoulders. I tried to breathe, but nothing came in, and my chest moved up and down. My body was trying to gain air as quickly as possible.
“Odette,” Beckett said my name, his face falling in concern. He was following Jemma’s lead and, on the ground, next to us in a flash.
I pushed them away, but Jemma’s hold on me tightened.
“No.” Jemma’s word was firm as she closed her arms around me, not letting me move. I felt Beckett’s arms gather around us both, casing us in his own hold. “I won’t let you go.”
“But what if I ruined it all?” I pulled away enough to get my keys out of my pocket.
I looked down at the little bright blue key that signaled the entrance to my home.
I could push away and get inside, hide from the world, and lock myself away from Jemma’s worried eyes, Beckett’s regret as he told Ryker later how this was a horrible idea, letting me into his life.
I had ruined everything.
“You didn’t, honey.” Jemma tried to reassure me.
“You didn’t ruin anything, Odette.” Beckett tried to join in.
“But what if?” I pleaded, finally looking at Jemma through tear-soaked eyes. She was blurry, and I had no idea what look she was giving me, but her voice broke as she tried to speak.
“Honey—” Jemma reached for the keys in my hand and handed them to Beckett.
“But what if Parker does?” I grabbed the front of her shirt, trying to push her away and pull her closer to me at the same time.
Beckett released his hold on us, and it was just me and her.
My best friend, whom, even in this moment, I couldn’t protect from my past. “What if he hurts him? Us. Everything we’ve built, alone. Together.”
I was shaking as tears poured out. The sobs racked my body.
Jemma brought me into her arms again, and I broke, all semblance of strength gone from my body as I collapsed.
I vaguely registered Beckett on the phone as Jemma rocked me, and I continued to ask the same questions over and over again until the tears and mental exhaustion had me passing out in her arms.
Until all was gone from the world, and there was finally silence.
Peace.