No one else says shit after that. I look at my watch. "We've got thirty minutes," I say. "We have to get this finished and we have to get out of here."
"On it," Abel says, disappearing back into the house.
I turn to Brax. "Can you—"
He laughs. "Nope," he says, shaking his head. "You deal with the bitches. I'm just back up."
"Fucker," I mutter, but there's no point and no time to argue. Kate's eyes lift and she looks at me over Avalon’s head.
"Dean," she says, her bottom lip trembling—I can't tell, though, if it's anger or something else. To be honest, I don't really care. "Your psycho bitch just tried to blow up my car!"
The chick turns around, looking beyond me and Brax, as she scans the yard. She pauses and grins. I force myself not to turn the fuck around and see who she's smiling at. "Too bad she failed," Brax comments. "That would've been one hell of a show."
Kate flicks him a look of pure hatred—what do you know—it was anger after all. "Do something," she hisses at me as I stride down into the yard.
"I thought I told you to leave," I say, thinking over the events. A plan forms in my mind. This could actually work for me. Kate will keep sniffing around until Kincaid puts his own lock on her—and I don't see that happening any time soon. He'll want her to fucking annoy me as much as possible. What better way to make her move on faster than to make her think I've got someone new. I've already planted the seeds. I flick a glance Avalon's way to take in her reaction. Her eyes are on her shirt though, and I realize she's soaked straight down her front, the hard little points of her nipples standing at attention under the thin fabric of her t-shirt. I rip my eyes away and level them on Kate. "S'far as I see it, I told you to do something and you didn't do it.”
"I was trying!" Kate says, gesturing to her car. "I'm blocked in."
"That sounds like your problem, Coleman," I say, hearing the telltale sound of a Mustang's engine revving as the twin headlight beams come careening around the opposite side of the house—down the path we don't let anyone take or park in. “Not mine.”
I grab Avalon’s arm and without looking down, I herd her towards the Mustang. Shockingly, she doesn't put up a fight. "Call a tow," I suggest, "but make sure you're not here when we get back." I pop open the passenger side door and push the chick towards the backseat.
Without a word, she climbs in. I hold it open and let Brax fold his big ass body in behind her.
Kate takes a step towards me. "Dean," she says, her tone placating, "please, don't do this. We were good together. I can break things off with Luc—I didn't even want the stupid engagement—"
"Don't care, Coleman," I say, reaching down and grabbing a cap from the car's floorboards. I slide it on and spin it so that the bill faces backwards. "You weren't ever anything special. It wasn't like I was going to propose. Have fun with Kincaid." I smile and I know it's mean. "Seriously, though, you might think about getting pregnant and rushing that wedding along before it's too late and he kicks you and your entire family to the side.”
Her face slackens in shock. Yeah, baby, I think. I know everything. Not just about the engagement, but I know the reason for it too. Because without Kincaid, the Colemans are about to go from one of America’s wealthiest families to insignificant and dead broke overnight. And even if we had fucked once or twice, I can't seem to find the sympathy in me to care. As far as I’m concerned, a disloyal bitch is just a dog who needs to be put down.
16
Avalon
I bite my twitching lips, not even bothering to resist the urge to look back and watch Kate's face as Abel puts the pedal to the metal and skids down the empty driveway, towards the road. She stands there, in the center of the lawn of the great big mansion—her eyes wide and mouth open as smoke still smolders on the ground next to her car. I don't know what Dean said to her before getting in the car, but whatever it was has obviously left an impression because she looks two seconds from breaking down right then and there.
I flip back around and settle into the back seat of the Mustang. Kind of a weird car for one of these guys to own. Although it’s well maintained, it's an older vehicle, at least twenty years old. I debate on commenting but decide against it. Instead, I lean forward, poking my head between the twin front seats.
"Alright, we're far enough away," I say. "You can let me out now."
Abel doesn't look at me. "Sit down," he says.
"No can do, frontman," I say. "I want out. I'm getting out."
"No, you're not," Dean says, his voice a deep growl.
"Wanna bet?" I pivot and look at him. Dean turns and fixes me with what can only be described as a look of deep warning. I ignore it. "Either you let me out now or I'll make you. Your choice, D-man."
His glare only intensifies, and yeah, okay, maybe if I was the type of girl to drop her panties for any guy who looked like a murderer in a thousand dollar hoodie, it'd make me sit my happy ass back down. But I'm not. I'm tougher than that.
"Do you really want to try me?" I ask.
He leans back, eyeing me, and I'm sure I've won—that is, until the right side of his mouth twitches and what comes out from between his lips is a very smug, "Brax."
Before I even realize what's happening, big, massive paws are gripping my sides and pulling me backwards. My spine slams into the seat and a hard, muscled arm as thick as one of my thighs comes across my front, gripping the seatbelt and strapping me into place. Rage boils up.
"Big. Fucking. Mistake," I say, just before I rear back and punch Brax right in the face as he hovers in front of me, still clipping the end of my seatbelt into place. And holy shit, his face is made of rock. I clench my teeth as pain radiates from my knuckles, but I don't show it. He stops, blinking as if he can't believe I just did that—but fuck yeah, I did. "Let me go," I snap, struggling in his grip.
Brax shakes his head and finally looks up at me. He doesn't even look mad about the punch. "Settle down, li’l psycho," he says, patting the top of my head. "We're just dropping you off."
"You're what?" I stop struggling and stare at the back of his head. "Oh. Well, then. Why didn't you say so?" I catch Abel's glance in the rearview mirror.
"I can't believe you Molotov-cocktailed her car," he says with a snicker.
I shrug and relax more fully into the seat. Now that I know they're taking me exactly where I wanna go, I'm good. "It was dangerous," Brax agrees. "Had you hit closer to the gas tank and had she not been smart enough to grab the hose, the car would've gone up in flames."
"She had it coming," I say, unconcerned.
"Oh?" Brax leans forward and turns towards me. "How so?"
"She disrespected me."
There's a beat of silence in the car and then both Abel and Brax burst out laughing. I smile as I listen to the two of them. The only one who remains silent is Dean. And soon, as their chuckles taper off, he turns in his seat to look back at me.