43. Begging for Mercy
BEGGING FOR MERCY
Axel
Panic gripped my heart as it hammered against my ribs, and sweat beaded my forehead. Did I just admit to Lorelei that I had feelings for her?
Her mouth parted, and those soft brown eyes widened as she sat beside me, her dress riding up her creamy thighs. When the seconds ticked by and shock remained her only reaction, my dread doubled.
“Say something. Please.”
Her gaze dropped to my clenched fist resting between us, my veins popping out. “I-I don’t know what to say.”
A heavy sense of déjà vu slammed into me.
Oh, damn.
Lorelei didn’t feel the same.
This was my relationship with Cordelia all over again. The chemistry between Lorelei and me was off the charts—any idiot could see that—but just like Cordi, she didn’t want anything from me other than sexual pleasure.
“So, you just had a good time with me?” I choked back the acid oozing up my throat.
What the fuck was wrong with me? This couldn’t happen again.
“Well, yes.”
My humorless laugh echoed harshly in her room. “Of course. I’m just a fun time for everyone.”
Cordi and I hadn’t spoken since she passed out after asking me to take her back. She’d been hammered, though, so I had no idea if she even meant it.
Lorelei’s eyebrows knit, and she reached over, unfurling my fists. “That’s not all you are.”
To her?
Lorelei snagged her bottom lip between her teeth. “My life is complicated right now, and I just…”
Backpedal! Backpedal! Abort!
As those words repeated through my mind, the crushing weight of regret and shame settled on my shoulders. Did I expect anything else? I shouldn’t have told her a damn thing. Now I screwed it all up.
“Don’t freak out on me, blondie. I’m not professing my undying love for you.” My smile felt too tight, straining across my face. “I’ve been carrying a torch for Cordelia for a long time, and something like that doesn’t just go away.”
“So, I’m your second choice?” She yanked her hand away and crossed her arms, the softness in her eyes evaporating. “I’m nobody’s second choice, Vanderhart.”
Her nostrils flared as she stood and marched across her room, her swaying hips practically hypnotizing me.
The harsh clinks of bottles echoed as Lorelei tossed items in her vanity drawers and slammed them shut. Her angry reaction made my head spin.
What did she want? When Lorelei stormed out of Davenport Dormitory last night, I thought she’d also developed feelings, but her obvious shock after I told her the truth had me reconsidering everything.
As I stood, she caught my approach in the mirror and darted to the other side of the room to fiddle with picture frames on her dresser. I changed directions, settled behind her, and pressed my hands on the cool wood to trap her. I inhaled her scent a few times before speaking.
“You’re right. You should never be anyone’s second choice.” Her gaze, full of fury and pain, lifted to meet mine in the mirror above her dresser. “But am I even on your radar at all—as more than a fun hookup?”
She turned to face me, still caged in my arms.
“You’re the only person that’s gotten this close, seen the real me behind all the fake bullshit I throw out there to protect myself.” A single tear brimmed over and ran down her cheek. “If you think I only see you as a good time, you’re a bigger idiot than I thought.”
It felt like an invisible hand reached into my chest and squeezed the fuck out of my heart.
“I have been known to be an idiot.” I used my thumb to brush away the tear staining her cheek. “It’s good to have someone call me out on my asinine behavior. Who better to have that job than a smart-mouthed, sharp-tongued beauty who is secretly the sweetest girl at Stonewall U?”
“I don’t know about the sweetest.” Lorelei gave a watery smile. “But the other things are definitely true.”
My laugh stirred the little tendrils of golden hair framing her face. “They’re all true, blondie.”
A shaky sigh spilled out, and she slumped between the dresser and me. “What are we doing?”
I skimmed my fingers over her chin and tilted her head up. “Honestly, I’m confused as hell. Are these feelings real, or are they simply manufactured from all this pretending?”
Pretending my ass.
Lorelei toyed with the hem of my shirt, opened her mouth to speak, and then snapped it shut.
“What?” I asked.
“You are important to me, Ax, whether we’re friends or something more.” She shrugged one shoulder. “I just need you to know that.”
My brow furrowed as I got the feeling that she’d wanted to say something else, but I didn’t press her.
“And I need you not to fucking ghost me again.” The worst scenarios had played through my mind, and they all involved Brock Haversham harming her. “Promise me you won’t do that.”
“I promise, Axel.”
As an ache throbbed deep in my chest, I couldn’t stop from pressing my lips to hers.
Lorelei instantly opened to me, allowing my tongue to dip into her mouth, savoring her addictive flavor.
Chills skated down my spine, and a moan tumbled out as I devoured her.
She felt so small and soft against me, a perfect fit.
Lorelei’s hands roamed over my chest, burning through the material of my t-shirt, and her sweet little whimpers sent electric jolts right to my cock. She no doubt could feel it hardening against her stomach.
We weren’t faking or kidding ourselves with this kiss, and it wasn’t about sexual pleasure either. I craved her company and her body. She had me so twisted and turned around that I couldn’t tell which way was up or down anymore.
I reluctantly pulled back before I got carried away and threw her on the bed. The desire swimming in her half-lidded gaze really tested my control. So did that damn dress. It deserved to be torn from her tight little body.
“I may be confused about a lot of things right now.” My fingers, still tangled in the silky hair at her nape, gently massaged her scalp. “But one thing I’m certain about is Haversham will never get the chance to touch you again.”
Worry flickered over her expression, and some of the rosy coloring in her cheeks faded. “Ax, you can’t put yourself in harm’s way—”
I pressed my finger to her swollen lips. “You can’t talk me out of this.” My forehead lowered to hers. “I will protect you.”
For the next few hours, Lorelei and I hung out in her room, watching trash reality shows. I should win a medal for keeping my hands to myself when all I’d wanted to do was pin her to the bed and bury my dick inside her. But we were both confused, and having sex tonight could fuck us up even more.
Of course, as soon as I left the Zeta house, I wanted to run back in, shove her down, and make her scream my name while I turned her body into my personal playground.
It would happen sooner or later.
My steps faltered, and I was on the verge of returning to Lorelei’s room to do just that when something stuck beneath my Jeep’s windshield wiper caught my attention. I snatched the large yellow envelope, tore it open, and pulled out a glossy sheet of paper.
Ice crystallized over my flesh as a smiling picture of Peter Dupont greeted me. Two little words written in red marker beneath his face had the air stalling in my lungs.
I know.
My head whipped around as I searched the darkening street for any movement, tingles crackling over my scalp.
Who the fuck left this? Was Vaughn screwing with me? Or could it have been—
“I see you got my note.”
Brock stepped from the shadows of an oak tree and strolled over as if he didn’t have a care in the world, the streetlights glinting on his perfectly styled golden locks.
Fury crashed over me, giving the picturesque street a crimson haze. Instead of waiting for him to close the gap between us, I bolted forward, snatched his designer dress shirt, and slammed him against my car. His head thudded on the glass.
“You really have a death wish, don’t you, Haversham?”
His chilling laugh spread goosebumps along my nape.
“Do you think it’s a good idea to allow nosy neighbors to witness your violent tendencies?
” He gave a twisted smile, perfect rows of unnaturally white teeth gleaming like a predator poised to attack.
“You should see someone about your issues. Pushing that poor kid to his death should have been a wake-up call.”
The blood drained from my limbs, and my grip fell away. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. Peter’s death was ruled an accident.”
As panic descended over me, my mind raced. How did Brock find out? Did Vaughn tell him, or did Haversham do his own digging to arrive at this conclusion?
He scoffed. “We all know how things can change to benefit the wealthy and well-connected.”
“You have no proof.” I folded my arms and widened my stance to take up more space, an intimidation tactic I learned from football. “Go back to Texas and play your games there. You don’t belong in Copper Cove.”
His lips curled in disdain. “I’ll gladly leave this pathetic seaside town once I’ve secured a certain asset.”
My jaw clenched, and it took all my control not to knock his ass out. “Lorelei is not an asset, and she sure as fuck doesn’t belong to you.”
“Oh, she does.” He pushed off my car and stood dangerously close, just begging to get punched. “You’re going to break things off, so she has no choice but to comply with our contract.”
“Not happening.”
He smoothed back a loose blond strand that had fallen free when I slammed him into my car.
“It will happen unless you want this little secret to get out.” He bit his bottom lip as a sadistic glint flickered in his cruel green eyes. “I can’t wait to punish that whore for disobeying me. I’ll have her crying and begging for mercy while I fuck her so hard she breaks.”
No amount of willpower could keep my control from snapping. My fist crashed into his face, and blood sprayed us both.
Brock howled in pain as he grabbed his nose, crimson pouring out. “You fucking son of a bitch!”
I grabbed his shirt again and jerked him toward me so hard the seam on the left shoulder ripped apart. “Do you know who you’re dealing with, Brock? I could have you stomped into the ground as if you never existed.”
He studied the tattoo on my forearm, the snake coiled around a knife, and blood coated his teeth when he smiled. “Oh, Axel, you’re not the only one with powerful allies.”
The Serpents & Daggers were as powerful as you could get, but he clearly had some insight into the brotherhood.
“Stay away from Lorelei.” I shoved him away, and he stumbled off the sidewalk, almost eating asphalt.
I really wished he had.
“I can see you’re attached to my property, so I’ll give you a little time to say goodbye.” Brock withdrew a handkerchief from his pocket and dabbed at the blood on his face. “I’ll be in touch soon.”