Page 66 of The Monster in Me

Chapter 25

BASS

She’s locked herself away from me and it’s driving me out of my fucking mind.

It’s been nearly an hour and she is yet to come out. My patience level has dropped dangerously low and my mood is instantly worsening by the minute. I’ve had the fucking week from hell spending half of my time down in Pleasant Hills dealing with The Cobras. We offeredthem half a million dollars in product and they get to keep fifty percent of the profits they make. We gave Zeke six months to figure out where he’s going to set up production of the drugs, meanwhile they can continue dealing for my father and keep all the profits. It was the best he was going to get and he knew it.

I came here as soon as I could get away. At least Drake and Kai finally gave up on kicking me out realizing I’m not leaving here without her. They’ve even offered me a cold beer, although they sit across from me glaring at me like they wish I’ll spontaneously combust in flames. Well I might just be their lucky day if my girl doesn’t come out soon.

My girl.

She’s mine and I’ve decided I’m officially staking my claim, as if I hadn’t made it perfectly clear to her before. Now I will make sure it is known here, at the academy, everywhere. To her and everyone else who dares come between us, because I now have an added incentive. My instincts were correct. I know for a fact she’s pregnant. Hell I heard her loud hurls as she puked in the bathroom just moments ago, the whole neighborhood fucking heard. I suspected it before, I’d even go as far as saying I prayed for it to be true, but Jade’s managed to hide it pretty well.

However, there will be no more hiding from me. My girl is coming home with me today even if I have to carry her out of here kicking and screaming.

Though just as I’m about to stand and head back to the room for the fifteenth time to knock down the door with my bare hands, she appears. I’m frozen in place, absolutely stunned by how fucking gorgeous she looks. Her hair is down, wet, and freshly showered, her eyes big, round, and the clearest of greens, while her tight little body is wrapped up in a pair of black leggings and a white cropped shirt, and a strip of luscious skin peaks beneath her top.

She’s perfect and all fucking mine. I remain frozen in place as she approaches, slowly strutting toward me showing not a semblance of emotion. Her footsteps echo in the expanse of the room which remains frighteningly silent. My pulse drums in my ears, my veins pulse fiercely beneath my skin, the room becomes nothing but a shallow darkness, a black whole threatening to suck me in if I break eye contact with her. She is all I see. My vision becomes more focused as she moves closer, stopping before me with an empty expression. I’m almost afraid she’s going to slap me or yell at me to get the fuck out when her hand reaches up to cup my face, caressing the raw, bruised skin under my left eye.

The second half of the week I spent with Stephan Silver and his associates down in Greenwich Falls, a coastal town about a five-hour drive south of Hillcrest Hills. He and his investors, some ridiculously wealthy up and coming politician Richard Carter, Kinsley’s father Thomas Carlyle, and Kane Dalton are planning to open another one of his beloved underground casinos along with an upscale brothel, courtesy of Dalton, in the basement of an old historic landmark that serves as a museum of sorts. We spent our time there bribing city officials and coercing other wealthy and political authorities to turn a blind eye to the debauchery that is to consume their town in the near future. It didn’t require much effort, simple lifetime VIP memberships toThe Carter & The Carlyle, generously named after the egomaniac mayor of Greenwich Falls himself, Dick Carter, and phony bastard Thomas Carlyle.

This is all part of my dear father’s plan to unite his fortune with Carlyle, who owns a franchise of high end, luxury goods brands. In exchange Carlyle has offered my father his only daughter. Lucky for him my father has only eyes for his beloved Eliza. Unlucky for me, that means he’s planning on passing her down. The inheritance I never wanted. I swear they need to start handing out parent of the year trophies around here because we’ve got some winners.

Of course my father and Carlyle want Kinsley and I to run the casino after we graduate next month, since he’ll be busy runningThe MoxyandThe Nova. I laughed, blatantly laughed in his face when he told me his pathetic plan. That explains the shiner. The first one came after delivering the news to my father about giving The Cobras six months to sign the deal we offered. Apparently six months is being generous. Honestly, I couldn’t care less about his timeline, figured I’d buy myself some time. Though I received this darling black eye as a consolation present for not fucking this deal up completely. Wait till he finds out not only did I nearly fuck up his drug deal, but I also won’t berunninghis pitiful business, or going anywhere near Kinsley.

Combine that with the impending news that I’ve impregnated my high school girlfriend, who might I add, is from the opposite side of the tracks and the bottom of the social pyramid, he just might have a fucking aneurysm. Well here’s to wishful thinking. As for Dalton, I think he was only there as some pathetic scare tactic to ensure I accept to go along with their little plan. At least I hope that’s all it was for, but after hearing Jade mention he had the nerve to speak to her face to face, and what he told me about selling her on the black market like one of his girls, I’m afraid he’s going to stick around just to taunt us.

I’m snapped out of my thoughts as Jade’s hot thumb gently slides right over the open gash under my eyebrow, making me wince at the sudden contact. The greenest eyes suddenly pool with tears as she sees the pain in my eyes, now mirrored in hers. The pain I feel having been away from her for so long, I can tell she feels it too as her breathing begins to falter. God I fucking missed her.

“Who hurt you?” she whispers, and it’s like the tension in the room has tripled as all eyes are watching us closely, waiting for the ultimate blow out that is sure to follow suit.

“No one of importance,” I mutter, reaching out to wrap my arms around her waist pulling her into me. I inhale a deep breath taking in her indulgent scent, coconut, cherry blossoms, and vanilla. She smells like a pastry shop, so deliciously mouthwatering, I need a taste. “I missed you.”

I kiss her softly on her lips and feel her body tense up when I do. I know it’s because of her reluctance to believe me. Jade has trust issues, loads of them, and they begin and end with the shit that went down with her brother and father growing up. They both treated her as if she meant nothing to them, leaving her alone and without anyone one to rely on. She and Scar were all on their own, until they met the guys from their foster house who became the only male figures they trusted in the slightest. Then they came here and Ace managed to get under her sister's skin, by showing Scarlett that no matter what those who wanted to harm them threw at them, they would get through it together. Ace showed Scar he was there for her, he put her above everything and everyone, even his brothers, his own family.

That’s exactly what I need to prove will happen if Jade puts her trust in me, if she takes a chance, risking it all on what we could be together. Because fuck me if it won’t be fucking epic. I’ve never felt the way I feel about Jade before, not with anyone, surely not with Kinsley in the short time we were together. Even if she hadn’t cheated on me, there’s no way thatrelationshipwould have lasted longer than it did. I tolerated Kins, kept her around because she was easy, not to mention a decent fuck. But Jade, she’s a fucking siren. Every inch of her is pure ecstasy in its most natural form. I spend every goddamn moment of the day worrying about her, wondering when I’ll see her again, imagining the things I’ll do to her once we’re together. These last six days without her have been a fucking eternity, and I know for a fact I don’t want to spend another moment without her by my side.

“Can we talk?” I whisper against her temple, making sure she’s the only one who can hear my query. “Come to the house with me, we have a lot we need to figure out.” She nods, accepting that we can’t move forward until we lay everything out on the table. She’s ready, willing to talk to me, to confess what it is she’s been keeping from me. I feel like a kid who’s just been told he’s going to fucking Disney World, my heart beating so fast I’m afraid it’s going to pop out of my chest cavity.

I release my hold on her giving her the space to turn and face the audience that have been eagerly watching our exchange. The three of them stand speechless with solemn expressions across their faces unsure of how to react to what they’ve just witnessed. For once my fierce Little Wolf and I kept things calm and non-explosive. It’s a rarity but a true gem.

Jade steps toward Drake, reaching out to hug him, wrapping her arms around his neck. My fists tighten at my side at their exchange. “Thank you guys for letting me stay here,” she mumbles, her voice quivering as she tries to maintain her composure, “It means everything to me to know that you guys have my back, that you respect me enough to let me be here, no questions asked, no explanations. You’re my true friends, my brothers.”

Drake grabs her by the shoulders gazing into her eyes with one of the sincerest expressions I’ve ever seen on him, “Jade, we have a history. We understand the shit you’re going through better than anyone. We know what it’s like to feel alone, helpless, with no one and nowhere to turn to.”

“And we know how easily it is to push everyone away,” Kai adds, stepping toward the two of them and wrapping his arms around them. “It’s how we’re programmed. Made to believe that our problems are our own to struggle with,” he subtly turns, stealing a glance at Stella, “In doing so we push away the only ones who are capable of helping us the most. To those capable of aiding us in the fight against our demons.”

My cousin steps forward but manages to keep her distance, still reluctant to join in on the private moment between these old friends. It’s astounding to me how Stella’s managed to become part of this tight knit little group, who clearly isn’t very fond of outsiders, only having met them just over six months ago. The kids from the Grayson’s Foster House in Pleasant Hills, are much like my brothers and I, The Horsemen, united in that sense.

I guess that’s her superpower.

Stella is only a Silver in name. She is nothing like my father and I, nothing like her own father, my late uncle Seth. Even her poor mother Kiera was too weak to deal with the corruption my father and his twin brother were involved in. However, Stella is so much stronger than any of us, she’s kind, loyal, trustworthy. Everything anyone would aspire to be, to find in a friend, and I’m glad Jade has her.

“Stella, fuck I’m sorry for leaving. We can drop you off back at the dorms if you’d like,” Jade says, looking to me for approval and I nod in agreement. One pit stop along the way won’t be a problem.

A blush creeps along Stella’s face as she shakes her head in reluctance. “No it’s okay Jade, really I’ll just…”

“She can stay here if she likes or I can drop her off at the academy,” Kai blurts out, taking a step in her direction. I look between the two of them and notice a nervous expression creep over Stella’s face as Kai’s eyes roam over her from top to bottom. I recognize the look of lust that glazes over his eyes, I see it every day when I look at Jade, and I don’t fucking like it. I need to ask Jade what the fuck is up with these two because it’s not the first time I noticed it. I don’t like it one bit, and I definitely don’t like his closeness to my cousin.