Chapter 2 : Unwanted Family Reunions

~Two Years Later~

When I was a little girl, I tried to imagine how my life would be when I grew up. Images of living on a beach in California with my best friend Sasha was always what came to mind. My mother peacefully took up space in her white beach chair as we spent time together like we used to do when I was little, back before my father died, fighting overseas for our country. Back when everything in life made sense.

Two years later, instead of the happy fantasy I had hoped for, I found myself swallowing my heartache over the death of my mother while trying to finish school far away from Sasha in an academy that I never knew existed. My hopes and dreams shattered, but a new future on the horizon filled with possibilities kept me going.

“Nessa!” an overly eager voice called out from the bar as I walked into JD’s with the sole intention of getting absolutely shit-faced. Which turned out to be a reoccurring thing since I had graduated and escaped my shit situation back home.

I knew the voice too well. The familiar faces of Noah and Becca came into view when I got through the crowd of noisy fraternity boys and their never-ending drinking games. Becca’s brilliant blue eyes highlighted by way too much eyeliner, accented by freckles and dark chocolate brown hair, was a sight for sore eyes. I’d worked so much over the past few weeks that I hadn’t taken the time to catch up with her, and with the new school year starting there was a lot to catch up on.

I got within hugging range, and she pounced on me with a squeal of laughter as she wrapped her arms around my neck, cutting off the oxygen I so desperately needed.

“Becca—” I gasped. “I can’t breathe.”

“Oh, sorry.” She laughed, letting me go as I turned to Noah, her blonde shaggy-haired boyfriend who screamed sports enthusiast.

“Hey, Nes, how was the summer? We haven’t seen you around.”

“I know.” I sighed, taking a high-top chair next to them. “Unlike you guys, I don’t go home for the summer. So I’ve been working to pay bills.”

Becca’s happy expression turned into one of sadness at my words. Noah didn’t understand what I meant but she knew the truth of everything just as Sasha did. She knew why I didn’t go home, and why I stayed at this damn place all year round.

“Well, now that you’re here. We can have some fun.”

Fun. I wasn’t really sure what that meant anymore but I wasn’t going to be someone who passed up the opportunity. God knows I fucking needed fun. Especially since shit went down with Trevor last year. “Sounds good. Get me whatever it is ya’ll are drinking.”

“Ya’ll?” Noah laughed. “Such the southern belle, Nes.”

“Yeah, well, I am a Georgia peach sweetheart. But it doesn’t mean I can’t kick your ass,” I replied, giving him a pointed look that said to bring it on.

Throwing his hands up in a defensive gesture, he shook his head as Becca laughed leaning over to kiss him. “Be careful, Noah. Our girl is working on her black belt right now. The last thing you want to do is have her put you on your ass in here.”

As their conversation carried on, I found my mind drifting as the bartender gestured to me to grab my drink. The blue concoction was obviously something that Becca was drinking, and though I didn’t typically drink fruity drinks, I wasn’t going to complain.

The music from the bar drifted around me as the conversations from dozens of people enjoying their night drifted into my ears. It was nice knowing that school was going to be starting soon because it meant that I was three years closer to graduating.

Three years closer to having a life I could afford on my own.

“Are you okay, Nessa?” Becca’s voice once again broke my train of thought. My eyes connected with hers as I smiled and gave a small nod.

“Yeah, just thinking.”

It took me a moment to realize that Noah had disappeared, and as Becca took my hand leading me toward the booths that sat at the back of the bar, I knew what kind of conversation she wanted to have.

Taking a seat on the black leather cushions, I waited for the spew of questions about to be thrown my way. Her eyes shifted from her drink to me and back as she took a deep breath. “I can tell things aren’t good, Nessa. I wish you would stop with the bullshit and just tell me what’s going on. Even Sasha said she is worried about you.”

Last year during Christmas, Sasha surprised me at the academy, and the three of us spent two weeks having nothing but fun. Since then it was as if the three of us had been friends our entire life, but every time Sasha left me, I felt like a part of me left with her.

“I know,” I admitted. “I just constantly feel like I’m walking on eggshells.”

She nodded in understanding as she took a sip of her drink. “He isn’t going to be here, Nessa. You know this school is not only selective but exclusive. Plus, he’s on the other side of the states and you haven’t heard from him in a year.”

“Correction,” I quickly said, shaking my head. “I have been hiding from him for the past year or so. He has tried very hard to get a hold of me, and he isn’t going to just let things go.”

She opened and closed her mouth just as Noah found us, carrying a tray of drinks and a smile on his face. “There you guys are. I disappeared for ten minutes and you wandered off.”

Both Becca and I laughed as he laid the tray down in front of us. “Why did you get so many drinks?” she asked him.

“Well, I didn’t, technically. I was getting us a drink and this guy at the bar I started talking to asked if he could buy us a round. I told him sure and invited him to join us.”

“What guy?” I murmured as he looked over his shoulder.

“Uh, I think he said his name was Trey or something.”

My heart all but dropped into my stomach as the air slowly left my chest. Trey was Trevor’s nickname and the sound of it brought back memories I didn’t want to relieve. It could have been a coincidence, but when it came to my stepbrother—there was no such thing.

Becca must have sensed the panic in me as I frantically searched the crowd for my stepbrother. My eyes roamed the crowd for a familiar face I had hoped I would never see again. “I need to go—”

“Nessa, you don’t know if it’s—” Becca said earning her a stern glare.

“It doesn’t matter. I have a lot of unpacking to do in my dorm room. I’ll just catch up with you guys later,” I replied, shrugging off the curious stare from Noah as I forced the excuse to be believable.

“Well, alright,” Noah replied. “Let me at least walk you to your car.”

“No, no,” I said as I stood to my feet. My eyes shifted between Noah and Becca. “You guys stay and enjoy yourself. I’ll be fine.”

“Are you sure?” Becca asked, concern on her face.

“Yep, I’m sure.”

The longer I stood at the table, the better chance I had of running into Trevor, or anyone else for that matter who I didn’t want to see. My heart all but beat out of my chest as I tried to make my way back through the door only to be stopped dead in my tracks by a familiar figure blocking my way.

Trevor.

He had aged quite a bit since the last time I had seen him. His hair was no longer clean cut but shaggy. His dark green eyes stuck out against his tan complexion, and his clothing was not as pristine as it usually was. Instead, his shirt seemed wrinkled like he had just rolled out of bed.

It didn’t matter how many self-defense classes I had taken or how hard I mentally tried to prepare myself. The moment I was forced to come face to face with him, I forgot everything.

Instead, the room seemed to grow smaller, and as he stepped towards me, I panicked.

“Fuck…” I whispered, turning and pushing through the crowd to try and find someone, anyone who could help me.

Head spinning and my mind feeling like it was going to explode, I didn't take notice of where I was going until I ran straight into a body that was as hard as a brick wall. My body tumbled back but was stopped short by a firm arm wrapped around my waist. My eyes slowly gazed up into dark brown belonging to a man who stood like a giant towering over me.

“I’m sorry,” I muttered just in time for Trevor to finally catch up to where I was. His firm grip on my wrist, as he spun me towards him, caused fear to flood through my body.

“There you are. I’ve been looking everywhere for you, babe.”

Babe. He couldn’t be fucking serious.

Ripping my wrist from his grasp, I narrowed my eyes in his direction. “First of all, I’m not your babe. Second of all, don’t touch me.”

“Vanessa—”

“Is there a problem here?” a deep dark sultry voice said from behind me. My mind quickly realized that it was coming from the dark-eyed stranger I had run into.

“Mind your own business, asshole,” Trevor scoffed as he reached for me again.

Only this time, a firm grasp around my waist had me lifted off the floor and moved to the side. A small yelp escaped me, and I didn’t have a chance to say anything as the man’s hulking figure stepped in between Trevor and me. His large broad shoulders and rigid muscles were strained inside the black t-shirt he wore. My eyes were unable to do anything but admire how delicious he looked from back here, and I hadn’t even really seen his face.

“I am minding my business. That’s my girl you're following.”

I opened and closed my mouth in shock at his response. I hadn’t meant to run into this guy, but I was glad that I did. Because his response made Trevor turn ten shades of red as he clenched his fists at his side, his dark eyes stared at me with anger I had only seen a few times before. “She’s not your girl. Now get the fuck out of my way.”

My savior’s muscles tensed, his shoulder rolling back slightly, causing my eyes to gaze on his long hair pulled back into a bun and the tattoos that went up the side of his neck. Why hadn’t I noticed those before?

“Boys, take the trash out and make sure it gets out of town,” my savior stated loudly. A few different men, who had been sitting nearby, all stopped their conversations as they stood to their feet, eyes locked onto Trevor, who quickly took a step back. They reminded me of burly bikers, some with long hair, others buzzed-cut. They all wore a mixture of black leather jackets and vests, all with tattoos that marked their visible skin in different ways.

I had never noticed these men here in JD’s before, and I came often during the summer, which made me wonder if they were either visiting or something else. The majority of them were definitely too old to attend the school.

It was clear Trevor was about to get his ass handed to him, and the fact he realized that brought joy to my heart. Especially as I watched him turn and quickly run out of the bar as if running for his life. My eyes wandered over the many faces of those who had stopped to watch the chaos consuming around me.

“Jesus, thanks for helping.”

My muttered response seemed to catch the attention of my savior as he turned to face me. My eyes slowly gazed up to meet his as the corner of his lips turned up into a smirk. Damn was he fucking hot. The five o’clock shadow that covered his firm jawline had my fingers itching to touch it. And those eyes—those were fuck me eyes and made my stomach drop just from him watching me.

“It’s no problem,” he replied, “now, you owe me.”

Owe him? Talk about dragging a girl out of her lust-filled imagination.

Was he fucking serious right now?

Shaking my head with irritation and amusement I nodded. “Yeah, sure, buddy. Thanks again.”

He could say I owed him all he wanted, but it wasn’t going to happen. Was I grateful, for sure, but there was no way I was going to be held to some owed perspective when I never asked him to step in, in the first place. Not that I minded a bit. He was incredibly hot, but I refused to let my mind go there any further.