“Come on, shithead. We have to get this over with,” Talon barks at Tommy, who is still standing at the top of the staircase, too busy tapping on his phone to even notice that we were walking downstairs. He quickly sticks his phone in the pocket of his black cargo pants and jogs down. Jumping over the last three steps.
Tommy has more of a babyface than the other three. With ash blonde hair that is shorter on the sides. His eyes mimic the blue sky, dappled with specks of green, and I can see how it would be easy to get lost in them. He offers more of a surfer vibe. Minus the array of black ink sleeving his arm, the small tattoo on his neck and the silver chain linked from his back pocket to his front.
I lean closer and notice that the tattoo on his neck is the same symbol as the box and the door, then it hits me that it’s the same one on Talon’s forearm too. I never even noticed it that first night here when I overhead the guys talking. I guess it didn’t dawn on me until now. I give Zed and Lars a onceover, curious if they have the tattoo as well.
Lars lifts up his shirt, turning his side to me. As if he knew exactly what I was thinking. Staring back at me is a distorted face—half-skeleton, half-girl covering his entire side. On her neck is the snake infinity. “We all have them.” Even more than the tattoos, I notice how well-defined his body is. A six-pack, maybe even eight. A v-line that leaves nothing to the imagination. I already know what it leads to, I felt it digging into me only moments ago. Needless to say, it doesn’t disappoint.
Shaking my head, I try to dismiss the image that is now engraved in my mind. Yes, these guys are all sexy as hell, but they are obviously psychopaths.
“Let’s go.” Talon walks back in the room. I didn’t even know he had left. “Get the car and meet us at the spot in one hour.” He points to Zed. “Do not fuck this up.”
Zed smirks, tossing his hands out in front of him as he walks backward. “Wouldn’t dream of it.”
Talon’s eyes burn into him, and it makes me wonder if there is some sort of animosity between them. “I know how you are. Reckless and careless. One wrong move and we all go down. Got it.”
Zed salutes him then proceeds to flip him off. Talon shoots daggers at him one more time, before grabbing me by the hand and pulling me toward the kitchen.
“And don’t you forget our deal,” Zed hollers when we round the corner.
Entering the mud room, Talon pulls open the door that leads to the four-stall garage. Three black vehicles are inside. A car, a pickup truck, and an SUV. Opening the passenger side of the SUV, he nods for me to get in. That reminds me, I still don’t know where the hell my car is. Talon stands outside the driver’s side door for a minute, tapping on his cell before he gets in. His eyes catch mine for a moment and there is a calmness I haven’t seen before. It feels so weird to be alone with him like this. Granted, we were alone on the ride last night, and again this morning. But this feels different.
All those feelings wash away as soon as he speaks. “When we get to your house, I’ll walk you in. You tell your dad that you’re staying with a friend for a while. The fucker probably won’t even give a shit, he’s never home anyway.” He turns the key and the engine purrs.
“How do you even know that?” I question. Talon barely even knows me.
“Are you forgetting that we live in the same small town. And that I fucking hate your brother. I know a lot more than you think.”
His words send chills down my spine. I wonder how much these guys really do know about me. I’m sure they’ve done their research. The idea that they have been digging into my past so that they can control my future is painfully surreal.
“Where’s my car?” I ask, as the garage door slowly opens in front of us. My question is immediately answered when I see it parked on the side of the driveway. As we pass by it, I inspect the white paint quickly for any dings or dents, but it looks just like it did when I left it yesterday evening.
The garage door closes behind us as we make our way down the long-paved driveway, hidden by trees on either side of it. Talon’s house isn’t visible from the road, and it’s apparent that a guy like him would prefer privacy. After all, he seems to have a lot to hide. Once we turn onto the main road, I shield my eyes from the sun as Talon flips down the visor in front of me and slides on his black Ray Ban sunglasses.
Engulfed in silence, I internally beg him to turn the radio on to drown out the sounds of my galloping heart. Taking deep breaths, I try to calm myself, but it’s impossible. I have no idea how I will ever convince my father to let me go stay with anyone for a couple weeks. He all but had a stroke when I went and stayed in LA with Axel at the end of the summer. He’s always kept me on a much shorter leash then my brother. He tightened that leash when my mom passed away last year. There are times that I feel like he is choking the life out of me by trying so hard to keep me safe.
We pull into my driveway, and Talon kills the engine. When he reaches for the handle, anxiety kicks into high gear. “You’re coming in?”
“Of course, I’m coming in. You think I’m gonna risk you walking in there and running your mouth?”
“My dad will never let me pack my things and leave with you. It won’t work. You can come, but I’m telling you, you’re gonna ruin your own plan.” I open the door and hop out, shutting it behind me.
Dry heat fills my lungs as I take a deep breath, suddenly parched. As soon as we walk in the house, I go straight to the kitchen and grab a bottled water. Talon stands by idly, watching me as I slam it.
Ruby, our housekeeper, walks into the kitchen. “Good morning, Ms. Thorn.”
I set the empty bottle on the counter. “Ruby, have you seen my father?”
She begins rubbing the rosary that hangs in front of her heart, mumbling something in Spanish as she looks Talon up and down in distaste.
“Ruby.” I snap my fingers until she shifts her attention to me. “My father?”
Rosary still in hand, she scoffs while eyeballing Talon. “Mr. Thorn is in his study.”
When she continues to glance back and forth from me to Talon, out of sheer concern for my safety, I excuse her. “You may leave.”
Ruby is extremely religious, and I get the feeling she thinks that Talon is part of some sort of cult and he’s here to take me prisoner. Actually, that’s exactly what is happening. Let’s hope her little prayer just now has spared my soul from the reapers.
“I’ll be right back,” I tell Talon, but he grabs my arm before I can even attempt to step past him.
With his face mere inches from mine, he narrows his eyes and shakes his head. His way of telling me that I will not be going anywhere alone. I huff, “Seriously?”
“You have no idea how serious I am.”
Jerking my arm away, I lead the way. “Fine. But remember what I said. He’s not going to be happy.”
“I’ll take my chances.” He smirks then slaps a hand to my ass.
I spin around quickly, giving him a shove. He’s lucky that I don’t slap him across the face. “Do not do that again.” I grit through my teeth. But he doesn’t even shutter, he just smiles. A sinister smile that trails goosebumps down my entire body.
His breath prickles my neck as he walks behind me. “My apologies. I was just remembering how much you liked it when I touched you last night.” Bringing my elbow back forcefully, I nail him right in the gut. When he lets out a grunt, I know I made my point.