Chapter 13 #2
“Unfortunately, little flower, there isn’t anything written in newspapers or magazines.
There are no glossy brochures or other information stored away in the guidance counselor’s office of a single high school.
You’re lying to us about more than just your identity.
What are you trying to prove by keeping the information from us? ”
He made me nervous, my heartrate skyrocketing. I had to throw them a bone or things could get ugly quickly. “I know people.”
“What people?”
“Someone who told me all about the school.” As soon as I said the words, I could tell everything had changed inside of him. There was a darkness that I hadn’t noticed, one fueled with an entirely different kind of savagery.
“Even if that is the case, our records remain sealed. That’s a perk of the university.”
“Not from everyone. Don’t you think that there are secret files kept of everyone who ever stepped foot on the campus?” I had no way of knowing if that was the case, but it sounded plausible enough to me.
Brogan exhaled before sliding a finger under my chin and lifting. “You are a terrible liar. I can see the hurt in your eyes when you do so, a sorrow so huge that even the darkness can’t hide how much you’ve suffered. What the hell did the three of us do to you to make you hate us so much?”
I realized my lower lip was quivering, the moment almost as intimate as when we’d kissed on the balcony in Vegas.
I couldn’t be around him. I couldn’t tolerate the extreme electricity or the way he made my stomach do flip-flops.
And I certainly couldn’t trust him enough to confide in him even though that’s exactly what I wanted to do.
“It’s personal.”
“But painful enough to kill us over. Yes, little flower?”
Goddamn it, tears formed in my eyes again, the intense pull to the man insane and so very wrong, but as he lowered his head, all I could think about was the way he’d kissed me before with all the passion I’d hungered for over the years.
It had felt so good in his arms, the feel of his barrel chest exactly as I’d imagined.
When our lips were barely an inch apart, I pressed my palm against him, trying to wiggle out of his hold, but it was no use. He’d captured me not only in body but had already ripped additional pieces of my heart away, taking them as his own.
“Is this about Garrison?”
His question and timing shocked me. A series of shivers shifted down the back of my legs. “I’m sorry. Who?” I was a terrible liar. I prayed the darkness would keep my pinched face from being seen.
Brogan remained quiet for a full thirty seconds.
“It’s obvious you know how close the three of us used to be since you checked on our backgrounds.
There was a fourth in our bizarre group, a boy by the name of Garrison Fields.
My guess is that you know far too much, but there’s always a story beneath the surface. Isn’t there?”
“I guess.”
Exhaling, he shook his head. “Trust me, little flower. Everything isn’t always as it seems to be on the surface.
How you know things is the great mystery.
Whatever reason you have for harboring anger toward us, I’m certain you believe it’s for the right reason, but keep in mind that we were taught to be a certain way.
I will tell you this. Garrison was a friend of mine, of all three of us.
He was the kind of guy that could light up a room with his laughter alone.
And boy, he loved life, eager to try anything.
He had the ability to keep things light when everything around us felt dark. ”
“The school you attended?”
“Yeah. It was a different kind of place. Anyway, we did some things we aren’t proud of now, which led to Garrison spending time in prison. It killed all three of us. Still, I miss those days sometimes. We were bad seeds, but the loyalty we shared kept us alive and feeling like we weren’t alone.”
I swallowed hard, wanting to reach out to him, to end the charade. God. What was I supposed to do? “How could you stand it, Brogan? How could any of you tolerate whatever these special classes were? Why didn’t you just go somewhere else?”
“Because we had no choice in the matter. We were forced into the program by our parents. My father called it a privilege that I was allowed to enter a university where members of an elite society went. He beat me when I said I didn’t want to go.
So I went. You see, I was told where I’d go and what I’d become.
So were the others. That’s the kind of world we grew up in.
Oh, sure. Garrison’s father was a senator, but it didn’t matter.
The man is just as corrupt as my father or Alexander’s.
Only Daniel’s father stayed on the other side of the law. ”
“So you did what was expected of you.” My God. I hadn’t thought about what it was like to be the son or daughter of some of the most powerful and dangerous people on Earth.
He laughed bitterly. “I certainly didn’t expect to go to prison, but that’s what happened.”
“I’m sorry for what I said on the beach. You’re right. I don’t know the circumstances.”
“Well, the real truth is that I killed a man, although I didn’t mean for that to happen. Still, I’d do it again if it meant saving someone who didn’t deserve to be treated the way that poor girl was inside that bar.”
The pain in his voice drove anguish into my heart. I’d been wrong. So very wrong.
With his fingers flexed open, he brushed the rough pads of his fingertips down my face, taking his time and following the trail with his heated gaze.
His nostrils flared as he rolled his fingers down my chest, swirling a single tip around first one nipple then the other before easing them down the dress I’d been provided.
“Absolutely stunning.” When he grabbed a handful of material, yanking the dress above my thigh, I snapped my hand onto his.
“I don’t know if I can do this, Brogan. I’m not your toy.”
“Of course you’re not a toy. You’re a mysterious, naughty, but beautiful woman. However, what you haven’t embraced and accepted yet is that you now belong to us.”
Us. The single, small word held such a powerful meaning. When he touched my skin, another moment of utter hatred for myself thrashed through my system. I loathed the fact I was tingling all over. “I don’t belong to anyone any longer, not that I ever really did.”
“I find that hard to believe. You’re very special. Delicate and kind.” He hovered over me, the brutal man more in control than the night in Vegas. He’d tasted something he had no intention of letting go.
“Brogan, I… I’m not special. You don’t understand. I almost… killed you.” The remorse was tightening around my throat. Telling him the truth was on the tip of my tongue.
“You had your reasons.” As had occurred before, being in his arms felt right, as if I was always meant to be close to him.
But as he held me, the sense of urgency we both felt was hampered by the lies, dirty dark secrets that had turned me into something I wasn’t.
I slid my arm around his neck, digging my fingers into the muscles.
He lifted my leg, holding it against his hip, using a single finger to stroke my skin. The fire burning within was already combustible. There was no way this would turn out well, nothing that could make it right, but even the thought of shoving aside my needs was impossible to bear.
When he buried his face in my hair, fisting the back of it at the scalp, it seemed he would squeeze the life out of me.
Just the sensations he created as the hard ridge of his cock pressed against my stomach were breathtaking.
I wanted him to rip off my clothes, filling me with his cock, driving me into the same incredible moment of bliss he’d done before.
“Do you want this, my little flower?” His hoarse whisper was dripping with damaged need.
There was no sense in denying the way I felt any longer. “Yes.”
Exhaling, he cupped my ass, grinding me back and forth across his groin until the friction became blinding.
He pinned me against the wall, sliding his hand under my dress and cupping the lace panties between my legs.
I was so wet, my panties already damp. Yet when he used a single finger, sliding it up and down the soft fabric, I could feel my juices trickling against his hand.
Brogan lifted his head, brushing his lips across mine, his expression even more possessive.
“It’s going to be a pleasure to fuck you into the wee hours of the morning, only this time, I’m going to enjoy savoring every minute of getting to know your luscious body.
And that will be just the beginning.” He crushed his mouth over mine, thrusting his tongue inside, sweeping it back and forth as if his thirst could never be quenched.
Every tingling sensation was multiplied, pushed to the limits, driving me to the point of insanity. When he broke the kiss, he nipped my lower lip, biting down until the tiny hint of pain brought me back to the awareness of what was really happening.
All three of them were intent on breaking me down, stripping away my resolve. They wanted me to hunger for them.
The thought of being with all three was insane, but I’d never wanted anything so much.
Suddenly, Brogan reared back, the words he’d issued bothering him. He backed away, as if the single touch had left him with savage burns. After curling his fingers, he took two long strides away.
“There is a very bad man determined to bring the three of us down using any method possible.”
His admittance surprised me. “Because of the Wild Boys?”
He laughed. “Your knowledge is fascinating, Dahlia, but you are correct. What you don’t know is that after your performance with Daniel on that darkened street, he was almost killed while attempting to bring you to the airport.”
“I wouldn’t know. I was drugged.” As soon as I said the words, I laughed, looking away.
Gripping my chin, he forced me to look at him. “This isn’t a game any longer. You’re not a killer, but you stumbled into a world that you don’t belong in.”
“I…” Tell him. Talk to him. Trust him.
The little voice pinged my brain, creating an instant fog. Where did I begin? When I closed my eyes, he growled, releasing his hold.
“This is futile. We’re going to enjoy dinner, Dahlia. The four of us. And you will talk. Do you understand me?”
“Fine. Let’s get this over with.” I walked inside, then out of the room first, knowing he would follow closely behind.
When I heard nothing, I stopped on the first landing, swallowing hard before looking up.
He stood in all his unforgiving glory, peering over the top of the stairs with a hard stare.
But his chest continued to heave, and I could feel the heat from his unbridled lust beaming down on me.
He’d wanted to say something, adding to the story, but felt compelled to hold back. I’d been able to tell what he’d been thinking and feeling. Everything about the way his stare pierced through me was disturbing.
His expression never changed as he moved down the stairs slowly, his eyes locked on mine.
I couldn’t tolerate looking at him any longer.
If I did, I’d fall into the mesmerizing effects of his brawn and hard muscles.
I scurried along the hallway, darting my head into each room as I searched for the others.
I wanted to take a mental picture of everything possible.
At some point, I’d get free from their clutches, and I wanted to be accurate about every description and…
My God. I still believed I could go to the authorities for help. How stupid was I?
“Keep going,” he insisted.
I did as he commanded, feeling so small inside.
As I heard their voices, I stopped short, almost having a panic attack. I’d been able to face each one of them with no second guesses and only minimal terror. But being around the three of them had left me questioning everything about myself.
Especially because I craved being with them.
Just like I had before.
Their first touch, gentle and light as they brushed their fingers across my skin until it danced like shimmers in the moonlight.
The heat of their bodies cradling me moments before the rush of passion dragged us into the roar of intimacy.
The lusciousness of their lips pressed against mine, one after the other, igniting the fire caged in a cold, damp place.
And the release of our pent-up hunger, our combined beasts rushing to the surface and gasping for air as if for the first time.
Every muscle twitched as I stopped just outside the door. A single touch of Brogan’s hand against my back was almost too much to take. I was already lost to them, the inexplicable draw damning yet no longer something I could ignore.
And the four of us would burn in hell for our sins.
There was some sickness inside of me, so twisted I couldn’t breathe without thinking about them.
“Go inside,” Brogan growled, his breath skipping against the side of my face, tickling my lashes.
I tipped my head, and I could swear there was a strange comprehension in his eyes, as if he knew something I didn’t.
And the moment I found the courage to walk inside the room, for the second time in less than a year, I knew my world was about to be shattered.
“I’m glad you could join us, Dahlia,” Alexander stated, the huskiness in his tone more unnerving than before. As he walked closer, I shrank back, hitting Brogan’s hard body.
“I think I’d prefer to call you by your real name. Cassie Lark, or to be even more accurate, Cassandra Lark Fields, the illegitimate daughter of Senator Walter Fields of Illinois, where you continue to reside, also father to Garrison Fields, your half-brother and a member of the Wild Boys.”