Chapter 49
The sound of knocking woke us up, both of us sitting up dazed.
“Stay here!” I demanded, jumping up and grabbing my jeans.
Everleigh covered her chest with the wrinkled sheet. Her room was a mess. Scattered clothes and bedding draped all over the floor and headboard. The smell of sex hung heavily in the air.
It was impossible not to see that she’d just been thoroughly fucked. Her hair was tousled, her lips were swollen, her eyes blinking in lazy confusion.
She’d never been more beautiful.
Buttoning my Levi’s, I grabbed my T-shirt and headed down the hallway, unsure what I was walking into. We’d called Charlie on the way over, begging him to return, but he couldn’t guarantee how quickly he could be here. I had absolutely no sense of how much time had passed.
I grabbed my gun, and stood by the door, calling out before opening it. “Who is it?”
“It’s us!” West’s voice boomed through the heavy wooden door.
“Fuck,” I muttered. “Ev, it’s your brother!” I hissed down the hall.
“Damn it! Stall him!” she whispered back. The sound of rushed rustling echoed down the hallway.
I rolled my eyes and groaned. I pulled my T-shirt over my head and ran my hands through my hair before throwing the lock, doing my best to look nonchalant.
“Hey,” I said, standing in the doorway.
West stood there, flanked by Violet and Kaylee. By the look on his face, I’d failed at looking nonchalant
Violet pushed past me. “Ev! Where are you?” she called out as she ran down the hall.
“Hey, bro,” I repeated, going for ‘casual easy going guy’ this time.
West’s eyes landed on my bare feet for a second, then trailed back up to squint at my messy hair. Wordlessly, he and Kaylee both pushed past me. I followed, my heart sinking.
Everleigh and Violet came down the hall together. I cringed when I saw Everleigh’s jagged hair was a tousled mess atop her head. She looked so fucking beautiful I wanted to cry, but she’d clearly just hopped out of bed.
She’d thrown on a thin dress, obviously not having time to bother with a bra. Her perfect breasts were on full display through the thin fabric. My cock throbbed in my jeans, despite everything. I half-expected West’s fists to begin throttling me right then.
“I can’t believe what happened to you! Why didn’t you call me right away?” Violet admonished Everleigh. “Wow, honey, your hair! It’ll be cute, though, once we get it trimmed up.”
“I’m fine, I promise,” she said, gingerly running a hand through it as she walked into the living room. “Hey West, hey Kaylee.” She smiled at them. She avoided making eye contact with me. I could hardly blame her. I did the same, knowing if I looked directly at her, I’d crumble and profess everlasting love again right there in front of everyone. That might not be so bad, but I wasn’t sure she was ready for that.
“Hey,” West grunted. I ignored his pointed stare as he looked at her, then back at me. I knew we were busted, and I was devastated. This was not the way I wanted West to find out. I was going to need to do some explaining.
“I brought some new vetted guys for security for you, Everleigh. They’re outside getting the lay of the property.”
“Oh, I re-hired Charlie,” she said.
West shook his head. “Fine, Charlie can answer to my guys, if you insist on having him.”
“You’re impossible,” she joked.
“I’m just doing my job,” he said. He was in a mood today and clearly that was not a laughing mood. He was all business.
“Thank you, West,” she said, giving him a peck on the check. “You’re a good brother.”
He grunted in response. Awkwardness fell over the room like a heavy blanket. I swallowed hard, trying to think of something to say.
“Well?” West demanded, staring straight at me. Blood rushed to my face.
“Well, what?” Did he expect me to just admit in front of everyone that I’d just devoured his sister?
“For fuck’s sake, Theo! Did you get another text or what? I’ve been waiting to hear from you. I texted you an hour ago and you didn’t even reply.”
“Oh!” I said, shaking my head. “I didn’t — I didn’t see it. Sorry, man.”
“You didn’t fucking see it? What have you —?” He stopped mid-sentence, shaking his head as I hurried away to find my phone.
“Who wants a beer?” Everleigh’s voice rang out from the kitchen. She rummaged in her fridge and pulled out a six pack. I flashed her a grateful smile as I ran down the hallway.
Much to my chagrin, my phone had slid under her bed. Worse, the battery was completely dead. “Fuck,” I muttered, searching around her bedroom for a phone charger. I couldn’t find one anywhere.
I figured I had two options now — I could admit I let my phone die and show West just how much a fuck-up I was, thus obliterating any chance at getting his approval.
Or, I could keep my mouth shut, charge my phone when I was able, and pretend everything was fine.
I opted for keeping my mouth shut.
Walking back into the living room, I held up my phone and quickly shoved it in my pocket before anyone could see it was dead. “All’s good. No word yet.”
“Fine,” he sighed. “We should go to the office. Violet and Kaylee are going to stay here with Everleigh. They’ll be safe with the new security team outside.”
I knew he wasn’t giving me a choice. Not after catching me half-dressed with his disheveled sister. “Sure, dude, of course. I’ll uh, I’ll just go get my shoes.”
“Yeah, you do that,” he said, his voice laced with anger.