Page 71 of Dirty Monsters

I opened my door to enter, and Ro pushed me through before shutting it behind him. I turned to say something, but his lips were on me before I could speak. The kiss is heated; it's passionate. It’s one of those kisses you need before your world shatters. He exhales, I inhale, and we fight to keep breathing.

I don’t know if there’s a promise in his kiss. A promise of a future, of love. But that’s what that was for me. I was in love with Rohlen Castle.

His tongue caressed my lips until I finally gave him entrance. It was smooth and warm against my own tongue. He was making love to me with his mouth. I pushed against him, and he pulled me in, his hand running through my hair to pull me closer. I couldn’t get close enough. I wanted him, and I wanted more.

But before we could speak any more words for the night, he pulled away and slipped out the door, leaving me to wait for his promised return.

Dread felt like lead as it pulled in my gut when I left Wren’s room. This wasn’t good, and I’d be damn lucky if I got to even keep my job after this little stunt. It’d have been worth it. I would burn down the world for Wren. Who knew my whole entire view of Wren Carrington would shift in a few short weeks, leaving me off-kilter in the best possible way.

I reminded myself about all we’d been through up to that point. Wren would try to save me. I knew she would. She harbored resentment over the fact she couldn’t save me when we were younger. I knew now. I was the good monster in her fairy tale.

My legs felt like concrete the closer I was to Mrs. Tessier’s office. The only thing I could do now was pray. I wasn’t the praying sort, but maybe God was in my corner for once. I’d turned my life around, and I was helping people. Surely, that gave me some extra credit.

My hand was sweaty as I reached for the doorknob. I took a deep breath in, my heart pounding like a bass drum in a marching band.

Mrs. Tessier was sitting at her desk, her head leaned back on her chair, and her eyes closed. For a minute, I wondered if she had fallen asleep; it was well after two o’clock in the morning at this point, so I wouldn't have blamed her.

“Come on in, Rohlen,” she said in her monotone voice without opening her eyes.

I paused and tilted my head, a flood of deja vu coming back to me as I prepared myself for what my boss would say. It was like walking into the social services office all over again. In an instant, I was sixteen years old and walking toward the person who would ultimately tell me I no longer had parents.

Again.

It had been the worst day of my life. The feeling of not being loved or not being enough for another set of parents was debilitating. That day, I had stood strong and tall, never letting the social worker see how torn apart I was by his words. “Mr. and Mrs. Carrington are placing you in foster care. They are no longer your family.”

He never elaborated, and I wondered if he even knew what Kane had been up to. For some reason, I doubt the Carringtons told them because they wouldn't risk the scandal.

It was the same reason they never put Wren in therapy.

There were differences this time, though. For one, I was no longer a sixteen-year-old boy. I was a grown man with a degree and a moral compass exceeding what my recent actions would suggest.

Another difference was, I had new priorities. Now, instead of being worried about myself and my brother, I was worried about Wren. So it didn't matter what Mrs. Tessier said. I would move on from this as long as she was okay.

“I kind of can't believe you were called to pick me up,” I said to her softly and without any malice. “You’re my boss, not my mom.”

“I wasn't called for you, Ro. I was called because I had a patient who was supposed to be under my care at the police station. You being there was somewhat of a surprise. But I couldn’t very well leave you there.”

She was scowling at me now, her hands folded over one another and her tired eyes squinting in anger.

“Well, yeah, you could have. I would have found my way home.”

She took a deep sigh and started rubbing her temples. “Tell me what happened.”

I smiled, making myself seem a little crazed.

“I know Wren was accosted on the beach. She was taken, hurt, and you found her. Now I need the actual details.”

“Wren is my sister.”

Her eyes bugged out, and her jaw dropped, a total cartoon character in real life. I want to say she stopped breathing for a minute, but she recovered and stood, walking around to get closer to me.

“Okay, well, not really. I mean, shit.” How did I explain this without sounding bad, wrong? “Wrenwasmy sister, but when I was sixteen…”

I told her the truth. Each detail she needed to know about Wren and me and how it related to Kane. I told her when I figured it out, how I didn’t tell anyone, how I wanted her to get better and help her, and then I told her Kane used me to lure her from the facility. The only truth I didn't tell her was how deep it ran. How I fucked her in the shack, the water, on the trails, and my room. I didn't fucking tell her I thought I was in love with Wren. She wasn’t going to be the first to know—Wren was—so she’d have to accept my story for what it was.

“Oh my God,” she breathed. “So that’s why you ran from my office earlier?”

“Yeah, a friend of mine told me he saw Wren with someone, and I panicked. I knew she wasn’t supposed to be anywhere but here. I didn’t realize I would find my brother.”