Chapter Eight
brAY
I’M SITTING in the visiting room of Silverwater Correctional Facility visiting my mate Dan.
He’s been here for five months now for some petty assault; he beat the shit out of someone who fucking deserved it.
The government should be thanking him, not putting him behind bars.
I visit as much as I can, which some months is not very often, considering we’ve been mates since grade school.
Although my visit now is more business than pleasure.
I’m here to put an end to the fucker who thought they could mess with Alyssa.
Even if it was two years ago and she wasn’t part of my family then, she is now.
Which means the fucktard that stalked and attacked her has to go.
I finish telling Dan about what I need done.
I talk in code using my fights as a key, because that’s something we have in common—Dan has never missed a fight of mine.
“Remember that fight between me and the guy who called himself stalk attack?” I ask him, folding the sleeves of my shirt up.
“Yeah, fucker never saw you coming,” he replies.
I nod my head while scratching at my arm, where I just happen to have the inmate number scrawled into the design of a tattoo. “Yeah, good times, can’t wait for a replay,” I tell him.
I watch as he stares at the numbers that he knows are not permanently there. Dan nods his head and leans back in his chair.
“How’s the family?” he asks.
“Good, Zac’s practically married up to this chick Alyssa he met a hot minute ago. Ella’s getting ready to go off to uni next year.”
“Fuck, man, Zac bit the bullet, hey? Never thought I’d see the day.”
“Yeah, me either. But he’s totally gone. Good girl too, way too good for the likes of that grouchy bastard, but what can you do.” I shrug my shoulders.
It’s good to talk shit with Dan again. I’ve missed this, the easiness that has always been between us. I look around and notice a shit ton more guards in the room than normal.
“What’s with the extra meat?” I ask.
Dan looks around, spots an older guy sitting at a table and turns back to me. “The guy’s daughter comes in once a month. Always the first Sunday of the month. Sometimes there’s two of them but mostly just the one. They always put extra guards in the room whenever she visits,” he says.
“Are they famous or something? That seems extreme for one chick.”
“Not famous, but his daughters are smoking hot, both of them obviously—they look the fucking same.”
Just then, the hairs on my arms stand up. Something is not right. I look towards the door where someone has just walked in. “Fuck, what the actual fuck?” I say loud enough for only Dan to hear me. He turns and spots her.
“Yep, that’s her. Told you she’s fucking smoking hot.” He smirks at me.
I give him a death glare. “Watch your fucking mouth, never speak about her like that again.”
“Woah, mate, what the hell? Hang on, do you know her?”
I don’t answer. I can’t take my eyes off her.
The fact that the guard who walked her in seems way too familiar with her is pissing me the fuck off.
Something is wrong—why is she looking around the room like she’s searching for something?
The moment her eyes connect with mine, she stops, shock showing on her face.
The douche next to her reaches out and touches her arm before asking her something. I’m about to get up out of my chair and drag her back out the door she came through. I stop though, when she subtly shakes her head no at me and continues walking over to what I now know is her dad’s table.
Fuck me, this is no place for a girl like her to be visiting.
I understand the extra guards in the room now.
As I look around, every fucking male has their eyes glued to her.
I want to ring the necks of each and every single one of them.
I’m making a point to them as best I can when I catch their attention; once they notice I’m giving them the look of the reaper, they avert their eyes.
“Who bit that bullet?” Dan asks me.
“I have fucking bit no bullet, idiot,” I deny.
“Are you sure about that? Because you haven’t heard a word that I’ve said for the last ten minutes, and you haven’t taken your eyes off that girl for longer than one.”
“She’s one of Alyssa’s best friends. She also works at the club, so I’m just looking out for her, that’s all.”
“Deny it all you like. I know you better than you know yourself. You, my friend, are head over heels in love with that girl.” Dan smirks.
“Fuck. Okay, I like her, junior likes her even more, but she won’t give me the time of day. Stop laughing, fucker. We’ve never had this issue before. You know as well as I do—the ladies have never refused a playdate with junior before.” I shrug like it’s not a big deal.
“First, stop talking to me about your dick—never talk to me about your fucking dick. Second, stop crying like a little bitch. I never thought I’d see the day Bray Johnson forfeits a fight,” Dan laughs. “You’re a fighter, Bray. Fight for the girl you’re in love with.”
He’s right. I do need to fight harder to get Reilly to realise that she’s mine. “You’re right. I’m not giving up, just formulating my fight plan.”
“Do me a favour and wait to have the wedding until I’m out of this joint, because that’s bound to be one hell of a bachelor party and I want in on that shit,” Dan laughs. I ignore him and continue to watch Reilly with her dad, who is occasionally glaring back at me.
“What’s he in here for?” I ask Dan.
“Who?” he asks looking around. “Oh, your girl’s dad?”
“Yeah.”
“Heard his son was killed by a drunk driver. The justice system let the driver off, so the dude went and shot him close range.”
What the actual fuck? Reilly had a brother who was killed and her dad landed himself in jail.
Well, her resistance to getting too close to men is making sense now.
The way she closed herself off that morning the cops showed up on my door, it all makes sense.
Fuck, I’m an idiot. Why didn’t I just tell her why I got arrested?
She probably thinks the worst possible scenarios. How could she not?
I watch as her dad lifts his hand to her; it looks like he’s swiping a tear from her face. Why the hell is she crying? It takes everything in me not to get up and go to her. It should be me offering her comfort right now; it should be me wiping the tears away from her face.
I wait until the bell rings and I see her start to stand. “Good chat, mate. Gotta go. See you next time,” I say to Dan as I stand and walk towards Reilly.
I let Reilly tug me out of the jail, as much as I wanted to pummel the guard who told me not to touch her. Not to touch? He had the nerve to tell me I couldn’t touch what’s mine. Fuck him. My girl put him straight anyway. Just don’t tell her she’s my girl, because she’d run a mile.
As soon as we make it to her car, I spin her around, pinning her back to the door. I don’t waste time or give her any time for thought as I slam my lips against hers. The moment my lips make contact, I feel like I’ve just come home, her touch sending bolts of lightning through my whole body.
I’ve kissed a lot of women, too many to count. But no one has ever made me feel the way kissing Reilly makes me feel. It’s at this moment that I consider that Dan might be right. I could actually love this girl. Fuck, now I sound like I’ve lost my balls.
Pressing into Reilly harder, I make sure she can feel just how happy junior is with this kiss.
He’s as hard as a fucking rock. Reilly groans into my mouth and pulls on my neck, tugging me even closer if that’s possible.
We duel for control of the kiss but there’s no way I’m giving up control right now.
I could fight with our tongues like this forever and not get bored.
She growls and I can’t help but laugh a little.
Pulling back, I smirk at her as she pushes against my chest. I see the moment that she recognises what she just did. “What the hell, Bray? You can’t just kiss me like that whenever you damn well feel like it!” she yells.
“Why not? You didn’t seem to be complaining a minute ago, babe.” Raising my eyebrows at her, I give her the best panty-melting smirk I can muster.
“Shut up, and stop looking at me like that. It’s not fair.” She stomps and pouts. Literally pouts, and it’s cute as hell.
“Sugar, you told that douche back there that I was your boyfriend. I’ve never really had a girlfriend before, but I’m pretty sure the title gives me permission to kiss my girlfriend whenever and wherever I want. What kind of boyfriend would I be if I left you hanging?”
I watch the redness creep up her pale skin, starting at the top of her breasts and running all the way up her neck and face. She’s blushing—I actually managed to get her to blush. Point one for team Bray, zero for team Reilly.
“Well, first, he’s not a douche; he happens to be one of my good friends. Second, you and I both know you are most certainly not my damn boyfriend, Bray.”
“We’ll agree to disagree on that fact until you catch up, because you are mine, Reilly.
I’m not about to give up on you. You want to run?
That’s fine. I’ll chase. You want to hide?
No worries. I’ll hunt. You want to live in denial and tell everyone that you’re not mine?
I’ll buy a fucking skywriter, announcing the fusion of Brielly to the whole of Sydney. ”
“Has anyone ever told you that you’re bloody looney, Bray? And what the hell is the fusion of Brielly?” she asks.
I reach out and pull her body tight against mine, hugging her in a tight hug.
At first, she’s stiff, but then she softens and leans in, wrapping her arms around my waist. I wait like this for a moment, enjoying the feel of her in my arms. This is what we should be doing, not arguing about me being her boyfriend.
I kiss her forehead and pull back a little to look down at her face, tucking her hair behind her ear so I get an uninterrupted view of the beauty that is Reilly.
“I’m glad you asked. The fusion of Brielly is you and me, babe, Bray and Reilly fused together.
Now, there will be hearts broken all over Sydney once all the ladies read that announcement, and all of their broken and shattered dreams will land on my shoulders.
But for you, I’m willing to take that burden. ”
Reilly laughs a little before she catches herself. “If there are so many ladies out there with their sights set on you, what on earth do you want with me?”
“Well, there may be a bunch of other women out there I could have—and you and I both know that’s true—let’s not try to deny my hotness factor, babe,” I say, waving my hand down my body.
I don’t mind making a fool of myself if it brings a smile to her face, which it does.
“There is, however, only one of you. You are the one who I want and I always get what I want. No matter how hard the fight is, I will win.”
“Actually, there are two of me!” she exclaims.
“Uhh, no, you and Holly may look alike, but you are different people. You are one of a kind, Reilly. I see it—everyone around you sees it. I will make it my mission to make you see it too.”
“It doesn’t matter. I have things to do, people to see. Thanks for yet again a memorable kiss.” She turns and unlocks her car.
“I’ll follow you out. I’m just parked across there,” I say pointing to my car. I open her door and wait for her to get in before shutting it and walking to my own car.
Why do I have the feeling that she just shut me down? Whatever she tries to tell me and herself, I know she feels something. You don’t kiss like that if you don’t feel it.
I start my car, pull out, drive around, and pull up behind her car; she hasn’t left her spot yet. I wait a moment and then jump out and head to her window. I hear her car try to start over but it’s not going. I tap her window and step back and wait for her to get out.
“Need help?” I ask.
“I don’t know what happened. This has never happened to her before. I think she’s sick or something, Bray.” She looks at the car with concern. I laugh a little because it’s fucking funny how she talks about her car.
Pulling out my phone, I fire off a text to a guy I know at a garage not too far from here. I get a response immediately, saying he will come and get her car. “I know a guy. He’s coming to get your car and tow it back to his shop. I’m sure he’ll have it up and running by tomorrow,” I reassure her.
“Lock your car, and we’ll drop the keys off to the garage for him on the way back.”
“Okay, thank you,” she agrees as she locks her car and walks to the passenger side of mine. I run to catch up with her, her easy agreement catching me off guard a little. I open her door and wait for her to get in before shutting it and making my way to the driver’s side.