Chapter 3
Chapter Three
Evelise
It’s been four days, and the bruises still haven’t dissipated.
They are black against my tawny complexion.
His finger marks and even the spots where his nails dug into my skin still stand out.
The next day, I woke up to scattered areas of tiny broken capillaries that also marred my eyelids.
I’ve had to wear makeup every day to cover it up.
Gigi and Mom have been calling daily to check on me.
I’ve tried to avoid them because it’s still unclear what I can and can’t do.
Justin contacts me relentlessly, saying it’s to check on me, but I know he’s checking up on me.
There’s been no mention of whether he saw Ruby and Lucian at the apartment.
Swallowing hard to calm my emotions, I recall what Hammer said to me.
He gave me a card with his number on it and told me to use it if I was ready to get out.
He assured me he understood what I was going through and that he could protect whoever Justin was using as collateral.
He knew. I never said a word, but he knew that Justin threatened my family instead of me.
Sitting in the locker room, I consider what I’ll do after the match when my parents corner me.
My instinct is to tell them to take Gigi and visit the family estate in Greece, but I can’t.
Justin will know. He’s already confessed to having someone keep an eye on each of us.
He basically threatened me by telling me he’d kill me after the wedding is done because it’s only my family’s money that he’s after.
He wants Gigi’s money. My parents have some, but not like my grandmother. He knew I was her sole beneficiary.
I’m scared and frustrated because Justin will be here today, too. My family won’t be the only ones I’ll have to deal with.
Already dressed in my uniform, I’ve also layered on body makeup so no one notices the bruises. My lip is healing, but it’s still sore and split a bit. Thankfully, the swelling has gone down.
Ruby walks in and halts when she sees me. The hurt in her eyes is nearly my undoing. I want to confess everything, but I can’t. I won’t pull her into my trouble. She doesn’t need Justin’s focus on her.
After the team all gathers around, and the coach gives her speech, we stride out to the pitch as one. My family screams my name, and I try to smile, but it’s forced.
Glancing toward their voices, I see them sitting in the stands with Paris and Justin.
Even my gigi came to take in the match. A flush of emotion speeds through my chest, and everything tightens.
In the past, my mother only came to a few matches before declaring it was too violent to watch, and she was afraid I’d get hurt.
My gigi doesn’t show up often anymore because of her health, but surprisingly, I notice Lucian sitting with his guys.
Hammer is right beside him, and Lucian tips his head to me.
Blushing is unavoidable. I turn back around to follow my team.
As the game proceeds, we are up in points.
I’m all homed in on the pitch, and for a short time, my aggressions get worked out on the opposing team.
Ruby and I are on a roll; we each score a couple of times.
The other girls must feel my drive and push themselves hard as well.
As a team, we win, and while we’re jumping around in victory, Ruby stops to point at my neck.
My hand flies up, realizing the makeup must have smudged off, revealing my bruises. Other girls stop to look, too.
“It’s nothing. We did this.” I point to the cheering crowd, but when I turn to find my family in the stands, Justin just stares me down.
He realizes what Ruby saw. He made me swear no one would know.
I turn back to my team and give them the me I should be all the time.
The strong, independent woman. “Don’t worry about me; let's celebrate this.” We all huddle up and hug each other.
Returning to the bench, I snatch a towel and wrap it around my neck so my family doesn’t notice the damage.
They come down to see me with Justin, while Paris stays back with Gigi.
I need to keep an eye on her. You never know what Paris might do.
Justin hasn’t broken it off with her, and she’s likely infuriated that he’s telling everyone we are getting engaged.
I can’t stop him from talking. Shit, I can barely stop him from forcing me into a relationship with him.
My parents rush over and hug me close, both congratulating me. Justin pushes his way in, and when he wraps his arms around me, I try not to cringe away.
I can’t help but let my eyes peruse across the space and find Lucian looking toward me, but he’s scrutinizing Justin as if he’s a bug under a microscope.
Even beneath his beard, it’s easy to see that his jaw is clenched tight.
One of those veins in his forehead throbs, and his pretty sky-blue eyes stare Justin down.
I’m worried about what’ll happen when Lucian ambles over to us. He holds out his hand to Justin and says, “Your beautiful girlfriend is an amazing player.” Justin studies the hand as if it’s a snake, leaving Lucian hanging there for a moment, but then decides to give in.
“She’s a pretty good player,” he replies, laughing it off, but then his next words stop me cold. “This will have to be her last game, though. She needs the time to plan our wedding.”
I tug away from Justin and shake my head. “No, you…” Words seem to fail me, but my father steps in.
“You haven’t even proposed yet or asked me for her hand. I think she can complete the season at least.”
Justin’s the one with the tensed jaw now, and his fingers bore into my side. Lucian notices.
“By the way, I’m Judge Knight, Ruby’s brother.”
I reach out my hand, acting as if we’re just meeting, to give him a firm shake.
As soon as Lucian’s palm slides against mine, my heart rate accelerates, just like the other night when he touched me.
It feels like I’ve encountered a live electrical wire.
The hitch in my breath can’t be quelled, and Justin notices.
“Hello, Judge. I’m Justin Branchard, of the Providence Branchards. As you heard, Evelise will soon be my fiancée. We got back together recently after taking a short break.”
“You’re a lucky man. Any man with Evie on his arm should keep her and treat her right.”
“Exactly,” Gigi says as she slowly hobbles over to us. Her slow, limping movements from sitting in the bleachers remind me of Justin’s threats. She looks at Lucian. “Knight, as in the Knights of Jupiter?”
It’s so difficult to suppress a chuckle from Gigi using Justin’s line against him with Lucian’s name.
“Yes, ma’am. And you are a lovely lady?” Lucian flirts with Gigi, who titters, and I drag my top lip between my teeth. My parents take in the mild flirtation, and Mom mimics me, trying not to laugh.
“Young man, keep your flirting for my granddaughter. I’m Georgiana Rezos.”
“Mrs. Rezos, you’re as beautiful as your stunning granddaughter,” Lucian continues, and Paris scoffs.
“What? Do you think he’s lying or something?” Gigi looks at her, calling her out.
She starts to stutter. “Uhm…well… I mean. It’s just a lie, isn’t it?” Paris looks at Lucian.
He shakes his head. “No, all three of the Rezos ladies are very beautiful.” He includes my mother, who smiles at him.
“Thank you,” Mom blushes.
“I’m Cameron Rezos, and these three ladies are mine. This is my wife, Beverly.” My father holds out his hand to Lucian, too. “I agree, they are all incredibly beautiful. I knew your father, young man.” I’m shocked by the comment and glance between them.
Justin says, “I think Evelise should go change so we can go to lunch. I have reservations in town for us.”
“Oh, we wanted to take Evie to the new roadhouse,” my mother interjects.
I’m delighted she’s attempting to keep me from going with Justin alone; however, being cornered by them would be dreadful. I can’t lie. What would I say if they asked why I’ve agreed to be with him again?
“The Austin Roadhouse has some of the best smoked meats I’ve had since I took a trip down to Texas,” Lucian adds. “I took my sister there earlier this week. We were thinking of going again today before I head back up north.”
“Then it’s planned,” Gigi says. “We’ll meet you at the Roadhouse. I’m sure Beverly can call and reserve us a large room. Besides, we should celebrate both of these ladies.” She wraps her arm around Ruby, who leans into her.
“I need to shower and quickly change.” I look at Ruby. “Sound good?” Hopefully, Justin and Paris will decide not to tag along.
“I’ll be waiting for you to get done. We can drive over there together,” Justin chimes in as he wrenches me back into his side.
I nod and turn to give him my cheek when he leans down for a kiss. As I walk away, I catch the sinister look in Paris’ eyes, with her dropped brows and plumped, pinched lips.
Judge
We’re seated in a private section of the Roadhouse, and when a server approaches, Georgiana is sure to inform them that we are expecting a couple more guests.
Meeting Justin was not at the top of my list of favorite things to go through, and images of wrenching his arms from his body and beating him with them every time he touched Evie looped through my mind.
What made it worse was knowing that he was hurting her—pinching her side to prove his control.
The little pissant needs to be put in his place and taught how to treat ladies.
“Do you have a card, Judge?” Georgiana asks in a lowered tone.
I stand to retrieve my wallet and glance out over the restaurant, noticing Evie limping toward our table. Her face contorts as she favors her left leg. Without a thought, I shuffle around the family-sized table and out the door to take her hand.
“Are you okay?”