Kaden Read online

  “What concern is it of yours? That bitch is club property, therefore none of your business.” As soon as he stopped talking, another Reaper appeared from around the corner, dragging a girl behind him. She struggled against him, but as soon as she saw all of us, she stopped and flipped her attention to the ground. She was a pretty little thing, standing no taller than five three with shoulder-length dark hair. She looked underweight, her fitted clothing appearing loose on her small frame. I had no misconceptions as to whether she’d been mistreated while in the company of the Reapers. The evidence was written all over her body and in the terrified expression she tried to hide.

  “The fuck’s goin’ on here?” The guy who manhandled the girl was Griller, the president of their club. He was thinner than the rest of his buddies, tattoos covering his neck and even running up the side of his face, skulls and daggers covering his cheek and temple. He was clean-shaven, and I couldn’t help but think that with all that shit on his face, he should grow a beard to hide it.

  “He wanted to know where your piece was.”

  Holding the now frozen female, Griller stepped into Linc’s space, a little too close for comfort, but Linc never flinched. “I told you to back off. Get your own pussy.” The guy tried to intimidate Linc, but he failed, and when he saw that he had no effect on him, he took a step back, feigning boredom. “Let’s get outta here. I got a treat I wanna share with my brothers tonight.” He squeezed the girl’s arm tight enough to make her wince, her eyes darting from the guy clutching her to Linc before a lone tear streaked down her cheek.

  Linc stepped toward them, but I stopped him with a firm grip on his shoulder. “Not tonight.” I wasn’t sure he heard me, but he didn’t get any closer. There was no way anything good was gonna come of a brawl between us and them. Besides, the only weapon I had on me was a knife tucked into the back of my waistband. And I had no doubt one of the Reapers, if not all of them, were carrying.

  While we weren’t going to start a fight, we weren’t going to walk away first either. Some of the longest moments of my life passed before Griller sneered at us, smacking his buddy’s shoulder. They left soon afterward.

  One thing was for sure, for a moment, my mind was occupied with something other than thoughts of Riley. But I couldn’t decide if that was a good or bad thing.

  Once outside, we found Ace and Chelsea waiting for us nearby, no Reapers to be found. Before we reached them, however, I stepped in front of Linc, keeping my voice low enough so only he could hear me.

  “Mind tellin’ me what all that was about?” I studied his face, looking for any signs he was either gonna blow me off or lie, but I didn’t see anything other than the irritated pull of his brows.

  “I’ve seen her twice before with them.”

  I waited for him to continue, but he didn’t say anything else. “Sooo?” I stretched out my one-word question to clarify my confusion.

  “I think they’re holdin’ her against her will.”

  “That sucks, but how is that your concern?” I asked, still not understanding why he felt he should get mixed up in Reaper business. Both of our fathers had warned us on several occasions not to go out of our way to start shit with those bastards, that the last thing we needed was to go back to war with the likes of them. Even though we came out the victors many years back, there was no telling what would happen now. Again, we were only provided small details about the original conflict between us and them. The only people who knew the full story weren’t talking, no matter how much prodding I’d done over the years.

  “I dunno. I just know that I have to help her.” Linc shifted from one foot to the other, raking his hand through his dark hair in frustration. “I think she wants me to help her,” he mumbled, but I heard him loud and clear.

  “Well, you better be careful because you’ll get your ass handed to you if you stir up anything between the clubs.” I placed my hand on his shoulder. “Your dad will kill you. He’s been adamant, along with my ol’ man, about all of us keeping our distance from the Reapers. Don’t fuck that up.”

  My dad was the president of the club and Stone, Linc’s dad, was his second-in-command. They’d been best friends since they were kids and had done and seen some awful things, some they’d told us about and some they’d take to their graves. And while my ol’ man was tough as nails when he needed to be, I was more afraid of Stone. The man had a temper on him, and the last thing I wanted to do was be on the receiving end of one of his blowups.

  For a long time, I hadn’t been able to look Stone in the eye, and it had everything to do with the fact that I was sleeping with his daughter, for years. Even after we stopped seeing each other, it was hard for me to look him in his face, fearing he’d somehow figure out I’d had a relationship with his little girl.

  I supposed that was all water under the bridge, or whatever the fuck that sayin’ was. Although, I had no doubt if Stone found out twenty years from now about me and Riley, he’d still attempt to kill me, something he threatened any guy who even looked at her too long. He never warned me away from her because he entrusted me to watch out for her, which ended up being a huge mistake on his part.

  “The last thing I wanna do is cause us any problems, but I have to help her.” Linc shook his head before briefly closing his eyes. When he looked at me again, he said, “I’ll figure something out.” His words didn’t hold much conviction and I prayed he didn’t do anything stupid because otherwise, I was gonna have to get involved, and I had enough on my plate these days trying to devise a way to get Riley back into my life.

  4

  “Do I even have to guess who the winner was?” Dad asked my brother, sitting next to him at the kitchen table while eating breakfast. There were many things that changed as we grew up, and because of our differing schedules, a lot of the time we couldn’t get together for dinner. But eating the first meal of the day together was still a hard and fast rule in this house, one I loved immensely.

  Our father seemed a little irritated this morning, and I’d like to say that was odd for him, but the truth was, he’d been on edge for the past few months, ever since our mom decided to switch jobs and work part-time with a doctor she used to work with at the hospital before I was born. In fact, I believed her new boss, Dr. Weber, had been her doctor when she was pregnant with me. She’d gone back to work when Zander was ten, even though my dad tried to convince her otherwise, reminding her she didn’t need to work.

  But we were getting older and she wanted to do something more with her time. She only worked three days a week, and today happened to be one of them. Even if I didn’t know her schedule, I could tell by my dad’s surly mood, and I was sure it had everything to do with who his wife would be around for five hours out of the day.

  I’d met Dr. Weber, and while older guys didn’t do it for me, the man was handsome, but Mom didn’t have eyes for anyone other than her moody and overprotective, loving husband.

  Lincoln’s mouth was full when he muffled, “No,” a smirky grin on his face, one that indicated our father was ridiculous for even doubting whether he won or not.

  “How long did the fight last?” I asked, curious as to how quickly he was able to overpower his opponent. While I didn’t have the stomach to watch two guys pummel each other, I did enjoy the occasional tidbit of information about the event.

  “Four minutes, eighteen seconds.” Linc finished eating his eggs and took a drink of his orange juice.

  “How do you know the exact time?”

  “Because Kaden won a hundred bucks from Ace betting on how long it’d take me to win.” He leaned back in his chair, scratching the back of his head. My brother was the only one of us kids who had dark hair and brown eyes and I often joked he was adopted because both of our parents had some variation of blond hair, and our younger brother, Zander, and I took after them. “I should’ve taken half from him, that fucker.”

  “Mouth,” Mom warned, tapping Linc on the back of the head before sitting down. Our parents sat beside e
ach other, and while we’d seen them hug and kiss more times than I could count, we’d all witnessed the tension between them as well. Usually, those instances were rare, but they were happening more and more these days, right now to be more specific. Taking a sip of her coffee, she looked between me and Linc. “Speaking of Kaden, where has he been recently?” My heart skidded to a stop, her question putting me on edge more than she’d ever know. I’d been successful in avoiding him, but when he’d shown up at the salon, he threatened to undo any progress I’d made from moving on without him in my life. Thankfully, he hadn’t pushed our conversation any further, otherwise I had no idea what would’ve happened. “Since you were little, I swore he was attached to your hip.” She was looking right at me. When I didn’t answer right away, she asked, “Well?”

  “I dunno.” I was flustered but tried not to show it. “I’m not his keeper.”

  “He’s probably just busy with the club,” Linc added, saving me.

  “Well, that’s a shame. Next time you see him, tell him I was asking about him, and that I’d love to see him soon.” She took a bite of her toast, wiping a small glob of jelly from the corner of her mouth. The image of Kaden anywhere near me triggered heat to bloom throughout my entire body, the reaction due to anger and nothing else. At least, that was what I tried to convince myself of because I struggled admitting to myself I still loved him in any way.

  “Yup,” my brother mumbled between bites of his food.

  Silence ensued, which was fine with me, but instead of shoveling the yummy breakfast in my mouth, I played with the omelet my mom made, my appetite gone at the mention of Kaden. I didn’t want to say the quiet was stifled, but it wasn’t comfortable. Then my dad spoke, and the air quickly intensified.

  “What time you gonna be home?” he asked, pushing his half-empty plate toward the center of the table. He turned to look at his wife, but she kept her eyes straight ahead, glancing at me first and smiling before focusing on her breakfast.

  After swallowing a forkful of eggs, she replied, “Around two or three.”

  “I’ll drop you off, then pick you back up later.” By this time, he’d risen from his seat and walked over toward the sink.

  “I can drive myself, but thank you,” she responded, her shoulders tensing. Her blonde hair was styled in loose waves, a small section becoming tangled from twisting the strands between her fingers.

  “I have to take your car in for new brakes.” His tone was borderline hostile, and when I peered over at him, he was standing in the same place, over the sink with his back to everyone. He scratched the side of his head, his dark blond hair shorter all around than what he used to typically wear.

  When I was younger, he kept the style a bit longer on top and shorter on the sides, almost like a mohawk but not exactly. His long beard completed his signature look. It was only last year when he decided to try something new and completely shaved off his facial hair. But the guys at the club gave him so much shit over the change, he grew it back.

  “Well, then Riley can take me. Can’t you, honey?” Her blue eyes pleaded with me to agree, and while I couldn’t determine why she seemed so antsy all of a sudden, I gave her the answer she wanted.

  “Of course. I don’t have to be at work until eleven.”

  “I said I’ll take you.” My dad emphasized every word, his irritation ripping apart every syllable.

  “Stone… don’t.” One simple warning was enough to push my dad from restrained aggravation to full-on anger.

  He threw the plate in the sink, the loud clanking noise enough of a warning to tell me to get the hell outta here. I made eye contact with Linc and we both jumped up from our seats and hurried toward the other room. Zander, late as usual, rounded the corner on his way into the kitchen, wiping the sleep from his eyes, when we turned him back around and pushed him further away from the impending argument of our parents.

  As I disappeared up the stairs, I heard bits and pieces of what they were saying. She was telling him that he was acting like a jealous ass and he said something about hating her working with him. I could only assume him was Dr. Weber.

  Their shouts became muffled when I closed my bedroom door. It was only eight fifteen and already the day had started off shitty, more for my parents than for me. Then again, the last topic I wished to discuss was Kaden, and since the moment my brother mentioned him, then my mom, my mood had continued to sour.

  After a quick shower I got ready for work, throwing on black yoga pants and a plain tee. I threw my hair up into a messy bun and applied some moisturizer, mascara, and a hint of blush. I inherited my good skin from my mom, so I hardly ever wore foundation. Deciding I didn’t have anything else to do until I had to take Mom to work in an hour, I lay on my bed and closed my eyes, hoping the rest of today wouldn’t bring about any more drama.

  “Stop,” I squealed, every breath I tried to catch escaping each time Kaden’s fingers dug into my sides. “I ca… can’t breathe.” No amount of wriggling or pleading made a difference and it wasn’t until my knee accidentally made contact with his balls that he stopped tickling me. A groan assaulted my ears, and I instantly felt bad watching Kaden twist his body into the fetal position. I held my breath while I waited for him to move, to say something… anything. “Oh my God. I’m so sorry.” Several seconds passed before I decided to touch him, and when I placed my hand on his shoulder, he popped his head up and winked.

  He pushed me onto my back and pinned my arms above my head, wiggling his brows and licking his lips. “Thought you got the boys, didn’t you?”

  A rush of air left my mouth. “Now I wish I had. You’re an ass for making me feel bad.” I tried to sound upset, but staring into his soulful blue eyes did nothing but fill my heart with love for him. He was the most amazing, thoughtful guy I’d ever known, and most days the realization he loved me baffled me. He could have any girl he wanted, yet he professed his love for me, time and time again.

  “You don’t wanna take me out of commission, babe, because then I won’t be able to ravage you.” He wasn’t serious about the ravaging part because we hadn’t even had sex yet. We kissed… a lot, and had fooled around upstairs and downtown, but I was too nervous to go all the way and he never pushed me. But I made a promise to myself that we would finally do it on my seventeenth birthday, which just so happened to be in three weeks.

  Kaden kissed the area just below my ear, another ticklish spot of mine. Laughing, I pleaded with him to stop, again, but he wouldn’t. The teasing only lasted a moment before he pulled back to look me in the eye.

  “Do you know how much I love you, Ry? That I’d do anything for you?”

  “I do.” I smiled, his words making my soul glimmer. “But I think I love you more.”

  “Not possible,” he replied, covering my lips with his so I couldn’t argue. As usual, our kiss turned heated and I let myself be consumed by him. I loved the feel of his tongue against mine and the way his lips promised me everything. I could stay locked away in my room forever with him if it meant I’d always feel like this.

  Kaden reached under my shirt and caressed my skin with his fingertips, but before he went any further, I heard someone coming down the hall.

  Shit! My dad was home earlier than expected, and although he trusted Kaden and me to be alone together, never suspecting there was anything going on between us, he would lose his freaking mind if he caught Kaden on top of me, for obvious reasons.

  “Fuck!” Kaden grumbled, jumping off the bed and into the chair in the corner of the room, facing the television. I threw myself on my belly and tucked one of my pillows under my chin, facing the TV as well. “Love you,” he said again, right before my dad turned the handle to my room and walked right in. If I’d locked the door with Kaden inside, I would’ve given everything away, but in not doing so, we had to be careful, like right now.

  “Do you know where Linc is?” he asked, glancing over at Kaden before looking at me. My dad’s face was extremely expressive and if he thought so
mething shady was going on in my room, he’d react first, then ask questions later. But thankfully, all he did was jerk his head in Kaden’s direction in way of a greeting. Kaden was like a son to him, which was kind of gross when thinking about our situation in that respect, but it helped because my dad would never let Kaden near me, otherwise.

  “Nope. Haven’t seen him since we got home from school.”

  “All right.” He looked to the television, then back at Kaden before making eye contact with me once more. My phone dinged from an incoming message, and when I swiped the screen, I saw a text from Chelsea. It was a picture of one of the guys we liked in this vampire show we were obsessed with. I smiled, and for some reason, my dad got all weird. “You know you’re forbidden to date until you’re thirty, right?”

  His comment threw me, yet only reiterated how irrational he was whenever it came to me and boys. Little did he know that the guy sitting ten feet from me was the only person he had to worry about.

  “First off, where did that even come from? And secondly, Mom said I can date when I turn seventeen.”

  His eyes bugged out of his head. “Bullshit! She didn’t say that. And besides, what I say overrides what your mom says.”

  “Does she know that?”

  He ignored my question and instead narrowed his eyes at me. “Thirty, Riley. And keep it up, I’ll make it forty.” He turned on his heel and stormed out of my bedroom, shouting, “Addy!”

  Once the coast was clear, Kaden hopped on the bed next to me. “I don’t think I can wait until you’re thirty,” he teased, twirling a piece of my blonde hair and flashing me his biggest smile.

  “You won’t have to.” I turned on my side to face him. “You only have to wait a few more weeks.” I stared at him until my comment hit home.

  He rolled onto his back and took me with him, positioning me on top of him. We were face-to-face; our mouths so close if he licked his lips, he’d catch my lower one with the tip of his tongue.