Weeks later
“Oh my God, these cookies are amazing,” I mutter as I stuff another into my mouth.
I’m not often at my mom’s place now that I’m studying, but she always bakes these amazing cookies and cakes for me when I am.
“Don’t eat all of them!” mom yells from the kitchen. “Save some for our guests.”
I frown. “Guests? Who?”
“You’ll see,” she says, chuckling.
Now I’m even more confused as I grab my glass of Coke and take a sip.
RING!
The doorbell almost makes me choke on my drink.
I hear a bunch of clattering sounds coming from the kitchen. “Shit!”
“You okay in there?” I ask. “Need some help?”
“No, no, I can clean it up. Can you open the door for me, please?” she asks.
I get up from the couch and put down my Coke before I open the door. But I don’t know what to say when I see the same chiseled blond man I saw at Fi’s Cups and Cakes standing in front of me with a bunch of flowers in his hands.
“Hi. I’m here for Abigail—your mother. She must’ve told you we were coming, right?” He sticks out his hand. “Jonathan. I met her last week at Fi’s Cups and Cakes. She was getting paper towels for you.”
“Right …” I mutter. “I remember that.” My eyes narrow. “Wait … did you just say we?”
“Jonathan!” My mother’s squeal from the kitchen makes me step aside as she forces her way through to hug him tightly.
Wow.
That was quick.
“I’m so glad you’re here,” she says.
“You look beautiful today, Abigail,” he says, making her blush.
My mom hasn’t blushed since my dad last called her pretty.
“Are these for me?” my mother asks as he hands her the flowers, and she takes a whiff. “Thank you.” She pecks him on the cheek while she ushers him inside.
But my eyes don’t just widen at the sudden affection they’re showing to each other after having only known each other for a single week.
It’s the fact that Jonathan didn’t come alone.
And when the second guy’s eyes settle on mine, there is nothing but fire raging behind them.
“Crystal, this is Jonathan and his son, Caleb.”
Caleb
My face darkens, eyes growing wickedly sharp the second I lay eyes on the daughter of my father’s new fling.
It’s her.
Crystal Murphy.
Her mother is my dad’s fucking crush?
My fist tightens as I struggle to contain the anger flooding my veins.
“Aren’t you going to say hi?” her mother asks when the whole house has gone quiet.
A slow but dubious smile forms on her lips. “Hi.”
The softness in her voice makes it hard to breathe.
This is her doing. I just know it is. How else could this happen? Her mother came up to my father after she dropped her coffee. Their meeting wasn’t a coincidence. She shouldn’t have been there in the first place, yet …
My father pushes me forward. “Go on.”
My eyes narrow. “Hi.”
She tilts her head at me in such a mischievous way that it makes my hard-on twitch.
That look on her face … she’s pretending she doesn’t know me?
Fuck.
She’s definitely doing this on purpose.
And my dick is definitely hardening in my pants from the sheer audacity.
“Well, who’s hungry?” her mother asks to break the ice.
She scurries off into the kitchen while my dad places his coat on the rack and sits down at the table.
“Sit, sit!” her mother tells us as she comes back inside with a tray filled with freshly baked potatoes. “Dinner’s all ready.”
“That was quick,” my dad says.
“She’s been prepping all day,” Crystal muses.
I grasp the chair beside my dad and sit down reluctantly despite Crystal staring at me like she’s too afraid to even say a single word.
I pick up a piece of bread and shove it into my mouth while my dad grumbles.
“Caleb. Behave.”
“I am,” I retort. “And I didn’t ask to be dragged here.”
Crystal sits down opposite me and casually pours my dad some water before pouring herself a glass. So I grab the water when she’s finished and slowly pour my own glass while glaring at her, then pick up my glass and take a huge gulp, my eyes still locked on hers.
She did this, and I want her to know I’ll make her regret it.
My father clears his throat. “Caleb, I just wanted you to meet my girlfriend.”
I spit out my water. “Girlfriend?!”
Her mother steps in with a plate filled with pork loin and sauce, a blush creeping onto her cheeks when she sees my dad and me.
“Oh … you told him?” she mutters.
He nods. “Yes. I have no reason to hide.” My father stretches out his hand, and she puts down the plate before offering her hand. He presses a gentle kiss on top that makes me want to vomit. “You’re too lovely not to share.”
She chuckles and blushes some more, and the sight makes me want to roll my eyes.
I haven’t seen my father act like this in a long time.
She leans in, and he kisses her right in front of me, and Crystal’s jaw is nearly on the floor.
“Wow. That was quick.”
“Sorry, we can’t help ourselves,” her mother says, giggling like a schoolgirl. “Sparks have been flying since I first laid eyes on him.”
“I couldn’t help myself. She was that beautiful,” my father says.
“O-kay …” I mutter. “The food’s getting cold, though.”
“Oh, right, let’s eat, everyone!” her mother says and sits down beside Crystal.
But as her mother scoops up potatoes onto my plate, all I can do is stare at Crystal, who seems blissfully unaware of how much I want to punish her for letting all this happen.
But I won’t let her get away with this.
Crystal
I haven’t eaten. I nibbled at my food.
I guess that’s what happens when a muscular, tattooed, threatening guy stares at you with each bite you take.
He’s wearing a pair of expensive-looking black pantaloons and a white button-up shirt, complete with a jacket. His dad must’ve told him to dress nice for the occasion, which means his dad thinks my mom is a big deal. But he’s still got those piercings and that upside-down cross dangling from his earlobe to rebel.
Caleb’s eyes are on me like a hawk still, watching me swallow down my drink, and it still makes me choke up. His tongue darts out to wet his lips when I put down my glass, and I almost make it tip over.
“Abigail,” Caleb suddenly says slickly. “Would you mind telling me where the bathroom is?”
“Oh, unfortunately, the bathroom is being renovated right now. But we have another one upstairs. Crystal can show you,” Mom says.
Oh shit. I hadn’t thought about that at all.
Caleb scoots back his chair and towers over the table in a menacing way.
“Uh …”
My mom prods me, and I practically feel forced to stand.
“Sure.”
Sweat drops begin to form on the back of my neck as I slowly push back my chair and step away.
Caleb meets me halfway near the edge of the table, and says, “Lead the way.”
The only bathroom this house has left is out of sight of both his dad and my mom.
And definitely far enough to muffle any sounds.
Shit.
The walk upstairs is agonizing, my heart beating faster and faster as we get closer to the hallway and farther away from safety. I can hear his footsteps behind me, like a looming shadow creeping up on me.
I clear my throat and touch the handle of the door once we get there, but the second I try to open it, he pushes me up against the door and plants two firm hands against the wood, trapping me between his arms.
“You did this.” His voice is gruff. Unsteady.
“Did what?” I mutter.
He leans in closer, throwing me a menacing glare. “Don’t play innocent.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“They’re dating.”
I raise a brow. “So?”
“They barely even know each other.”
“Love works in mysterious ways,” I respond.
When I try to move away, he won’t let me.
“Don’t pretend you weren’t the cause of this.” He points at my chest. “You and your mother weren’t supposed to be there. And now my dad can’t stop talking about your mom.”
I shrug. “I don’t see the problem.”
His finger slides down my chest, and my breath catches in my throat when he lingers near my nipple, barely grazing it. “I don’t think you understand, so let me make this fucking crystal clear for you.” I hiss when he pinches my nipple with his index finger and thumb. “My dad is a catch, and if they get together for real, there’s a considerable chance they’ll get engaged and married.”
I try not to react as he twists harder and harder. But it’s really, really hard.
“And that means we become something neither of us wants.”
I gulp back the moan stuck in my throat when he finally releases my nipple.
“Do you get the picture now?”
I know what he’s trying to insinuate.
I narrow my eyes. “You seem awfully opposed to your dad falling in love with someone and actually being happy.”
He scoffs. “My dad is happy. He doesn’t need another woman. Especially not your mother.” He taps my chest like I’m some kind of bug he needs to squash.
“I can’t stop them,” I say.
He leans in, growling, “Make them.”
“How?”
His nostrils flare. “I don’t care how. Break. Them. Up.”
“No.”
“No what?” he retorts.
“No, I’m not going to tell them to split.”
His eyes look like they might start shooting darts at me.
“You will do it,” he grits.
“Or what?” I taunt. “You’re not going to hurt me.” I pause and raise a brow. “Your dad won’t let you.”
His face tightens. “Tell me no again,” he says through gritted teeth. “Swear to God, Crystal, I will make you regret it.”
I gather my courage, knowing full well what these vile boys are capable of. But if my mom and his dad being together hurts him so damn much, then I’m going to be their biggest cheerleader just out of spite.
He knows I’m right.
If my mom and his dad are together, he can’t hurt me.
“No.”
Suddenly, he pushes down the door handle and shoves me inside the bathroom, locking us both inside within mere seconds.
My heart is racing in my throat as I back away while he keeps stalking toward me. But when my legs hit the tub unexpectedly, I fall…
His strong hand grips around my forearm, keeping me from crashing headfirst into the wall. But the air feels too thick with tension as I stare into his hazel eyes, thick lashes lowering over them as his gaze intensifies. I struggle to even breathe properly.
My eyes flick across the sink, looking for something to grab and use as a weapon. A toothbrush, a comb, a toothpick, the … scissors.
“Don’t even think about it,” he growls.
His nostrils flare, the piercing glinting in the dark as the only light that comes into the bathroom is from the little window at the top of the door. “Whatever game you’re playing, you won’t win.”
My eyes slowly dip down his face to look at the intricate tattoos on his neck, a spiderweb filled with roses. “What game?”
A wicked, upturned grin spreads on his face. “The one where you pretend you didn’t purposely come to that café with your mother because you knew I’d be there.” He licks his bottom lip, and my eyes briefly dart up to the glimmering piercing on his lip. “The game where you pretend you’re an innocent girl who tries her best to stay away from the bad boys her mom no doubt warned her about. You think hurting you is the only way I can make you do what I want?”
Suddenly, he reaches for my pocket and steals my phone with ease.
“Hey!” I shout as he swiftly turns around and dials some number.
A phone starts ringing.
He chucks my phone into the sink, and I jump on it to see if the screen isn’t cracked. “You asshole! Why’d you steal my ph—”
He holds up his phone. “I have your number now.”
An icy cold shiver runs up my spine as he tucks it back into his pocket. I drop my phone right back into the sink while he keeps getting closer and closer to me. Before I know it, his hand has snaked around my neck.
“This girl has been very, very bad, hasn’t she? She can’t stay away from danger.”
“I have no idea what you’re—”
He squeezes, and I can’t breathe.
His other hand cracks open my jaw, and he pushes in two fingers until I gag, tears forming in my eyes from the sheer fullness in my throat.
When he takes them out again and releases me from his grip, I cough and heave.
“Another lie and it’ll be my cock in your throat next.”
“Jesus!” I say.
“Don’t call out his name. He’s not here, and he definitely won’t be watching what I do to you.”
I have to put a stop to this.
I lunge at the small scissors lying on the sink, but his hand wraps around my wrist the second my fingers touch the handle. And he shoves me into the tub, grabbing my neck so it doesn’t snap.
RIP!
With his free hand, he tears the shower curtain away and twists it around my wrist, tying it to the pole.
My eyes widen. “What the f—”
He snatches my free wrist and grabs the flexible shower hose from the left, twisting it around my wrist, then seals it back in place.
In two fell swoops, I’ve been tied up in my mother’s tub.
And a villainous boy towers over me with such a wretched smile on his face that it makes my body feel numb.
Oh God.
His blond hair falls over his forehead as he leans in to whisper, “I warned you that you’d regret it.”
I thrash around in the tub, kicking him in the belly. “Let me go!”
He pulls a knife out of his pocket and holds it across my neck. “Not so loud, little slut. Don’t want your mother to hear you scream and see you like this, do you?”
As much as I want either of them to free me, I worry what it would cost me.
“Do you think I wouldn’t use it?” he asks, pushing the blade into my skin.
“You’re insane,” I say through gritted teeth.
He tips up my chin with the knife. “Because of you.”
And even though I want to say he’s lying, something about the way he looks at me stops me from saying the words out loud. I’m strapped to the freaking tub, completely at his mercy.
I can’t let him do this.
He’s the guy who tried to threaten me …
Who came all over my window and watched me play with myself.
He tilts his head, and I begin to thrash again out of spite.
But the knife reminds me of my place as it pushes into my neck.
“Do you have a death wish?” he taunts.
“No, just a wish to kick you in the balls,” I retort.
He snorts. “Still ready to fight, even after I’ve tied you up.”
He grips my ankles tightly and spreads them on the edge of the tub, dragging me toward him. My head hits the bottom of the tub while my thighs fall over. Towering over me, he perches between them. “But your resistance is only a turn-on for me.”
