Chapter 6
Chapter Six
“Yep, Latham told me before I left,” he says, yet I don’t remember Latham mentioning my address.
Pulling up into the parking lot, I stare at the gray brick building.
“Hmm, interesting,” Xavier says, making me look at him.
“What's interesting?”
“They have empty apartments. We may just be your new neighbors,” he says, and I feel my face drop.
It is bad enough that I work with them. I don't want to also live near them.
“You can’t be serious,” I tell him, outraged.
Are they planning on invading every part of my life?
“What? We can carpool to work,” he says, and I roll my eyes.
“You can’t be my neighbor,” I tell him.
“Does that mean the one next to you is empty?” he says, and my smile drops.
“Yes,” I say through gritted teeth.
“How many bedrooms is it?” he asks, and I shrug, not knowing.
“The landlord doesn't like male tenants, says they cause trouble.”
“Money talks, and the three of us have plenty of it.”
“Wait, you all live together?” I ask, a little shocked.
“Not in Soya, we don’t. Well, Blaine and I do. Latham likes his privacy, but he also likes us, so he spends most of his time at our place, anyway.”
“What do you mean?” I ask, suddenly confused.
I thought they only worked together, yet from how he spoke, it sounded like he was implying something else.
“We all fuck,” Xavier says, like it’s so obvious and not that big of a deal.
“When you say fuck, you mean…”
“I mean, we all have sex with each other,” Xavier chuckles.
I can easily picture them together, and the thought arouses me more than I care to admit.
“So you are gay. Well, that makes me feel better,” I tell him.
He chuckles while shaking his head. “No, we are bisexual. We like both genders, Bella. We just happened to like each other, too,” he says, grabbing my hand and tugging me toward the stairs.
I walk toward my apartment before freezing when I notice my door is open slightly. It’s open just enough to see someone moving around inside.
“That's your apartment?” he asks, pointing to the open white door.
I nod, and he goes to walk ahead, but I grab his arm, making him stop and look at me. My brother can be violent and unpredictable, but more importantly, he thinks he owns me, and he would not take it well if he sees me bringing a man into the apartment.
“Thanks for dropping me home,” I tell him.
My eyes are glued to the door. I feel my heart rate increase. If he doesn't leave, my brother may attack him, and I don't want him to get hurt because of me. Brian is always carrying a weapon of some kind, and I wouldn't be surprised if he already has a gun on him.
“Bella?” Xavier says.
“The owner and landlord are usually in his office downstairs,” I tell him suddenly, wanting him to leave.
It isn’t worth seeing my brother's reaction to a man being with me, and it isn’t worth the risk of Xavier getting hurt.
“Why do I have a feeling you are trying to get rid of me?” Xavier says, and I look at him.
“Because I am,” I admit, looking back at the door.
“I will leave, but only if you tell me who is in your apartment that you don’t want me to see” he says, leaning closer.
“Just my brother,” I whisper to him, and he sighs before looking at my door again, both of us hearing someone swear in the apartment. My brother's voice makes me flinch.
“Is he a threat to you?”
I shake my head, but Xavier is already walking toward the front door. I grab his arm.
“Please, I will get rid of him. Go speak to the owner,” I tell him, changing the subject to his rental crisis.
I know my brother wild lose it if he steps into my apartment with me.
Xavier looks down at me, his eyes darkening, and I shake the image away, slightly unnerved, wondering if I’ve just imagined it.
“Please,” I plead with him, and Xavier presses his lips in a line, looking at my slightly opened door before looking at me again.
I am petrified, and this is humiliating.
The last thing I need is for someone I am working with to know about my sloppy, fucked-up family.
And the last thing I need is for them to become nosy and look into my past. I have done everything I can to put that behind me, except for the constant harassment of my brother popping in and out of my life constantly threatening to undo everything I have worked so hard for if I don’t meet his demands and do what he wants.
I can’t risk everything, which is exactly why I don’t date.
No one would understand the weird arrangement between my brother and me.
Well, it isn't really an arrangement, but I am not willing to say no to him. He could literally destroy my life or kill me without so much as blinking or battling an eye. My brother is right. I owe him, and I have a funny feeling that no matter how much I give, it will never be enough to make up for what he’s done for me.
“Ten minutes, and I will be back, Bella,” Xavier says, gripping my chin between his fingers.
“Ten minutes,” he repeats, and I nod before he lets go and walks down the steps, heading toward the office downstairs.
Walking to my apartment door, I push it open before stepping inside, trying to figure out how the hell to get rid of my brother before he returns. I worry not only about what he would do to Xavier but also about what my brother would do to me.