THEONI didn’t need to be in her head to know that she was mulling; she had the look on her face – eyes staring blankly into the distance, bottom lip caught between her teeth, all the telltale of a woman who was drowning in her own thoughts.The water was cold against my skin, the blast of cold air making my stomach tighten as I stood at the door to the bathroom, watching her.Her beautiful long lashes flickered with a blink, her hazel eyes twinkling in contemplation. The soft swell of her cheeks rising and falling into a slightly oval jawline that ended in a pointy chin, and the pink shade of small lips that were puckered in attention.“What are you thinking about?” I asked, shocking her into a turn.“I… uh… nothing.”“Liar.” I took a single step in her direction, intentionally bringing my body into her line of focus, armed with the knowledge that she loved it.“What? I’m not lying. I…”I raised a brow in her direction, waiting for the complete sentence even though I was beyond certa
ALINAI didn't give myself any time to process the shock of what was happening. I was all reaction, zero pause. My body flattened against the backrest of my seat, feet swinging out and knocking the gun out of Casey's grasp.She gasped, lunging for the fallen weapon, but I was faster, much faster. I grabbed onto the hair at the nape of her neck, snapping forward and using my momentum to bring her head in contact with the seat.A groan parted her lips and Theon retrieved the gun from where it had fallen between the seats. One hard hit to the side of the head and she was slouching over the seat in an unconscious heap.“Are you okay?” Theon asked me, his eyes boring holes through to my soul as he studied me, harsh breathing and all.I nodded, struggling to get down from the high of my emotions and the adrenaline that had made me feel invisible just a moment ago.“We’re going to have to talk about where you learned to do that.”Once again, I nodded. The flow of oxygen into my lungs was sti
THEONI had no idea if it was surprise at Bryon turning up or something else entirely, but at the sound of his voice, my memory was jarred free, releasing the only thing that could make fear swamp the thoughts of my mind.My throat bobbed in a hard swallow and I forced the fear back down as I tried to collect my thoughts. I was pretty sure she was okay. There was no way she was going to be in his custody as well, right?“What? No more words to educate me, Brother?” he mocked, emphasizing the term that suddenly had even less of a meaning than it did last night.“Just wondering if this was the plan you originally came up with alongside my mother.”That gave him pause, and his approaching footsteps died. “Do you really think she has no idea you’re in my clutches right now? You overestimate your importance in her life.”“How do I say this?” I asked, my voice sounding thoughtful in the way I was certain would piss him off. “Bullshit.”“Bring her out,” Bryon ordered, and for a second my hea
ALINA"You know, I really don't get what he sees in her," someone said from somewhere around me, drawing me out of the unconscious state I had been in for God knows how long.I dragged in a much-needed deep breath, filling my lungs with the oxygen it needed to keep my body moving - not that it was moving anywhere in this moment.There isn't anything to see if we're being honest. She's just... bland." Some other female voice called.A male voice answered this time, a low hum of approval. "She is hot, though. All soft curves in the right amount, and if you're sure that he's never going to get a taste of her anymore, then maybe I can keep her as my personal pet.""Oh, shut up, Rodrigo," a female voice, that was now familiar enough to my muddled brain, snapped. Casey. Casey was here.Casey was response for running me over with a car and then bringing me over here- wherever this was.I swallowed down the lump of fear that threatened to clog my airways. Whatever was happening here was fuel
THEONTo say that the party had gone to hell was putting it far too mildly. I had just lost my mind several times in a matter of minutes, and what family I had left seemed to be enjoying it.My heart seemed to pause as Mom dangled the one thing I know had always killed Alina, the presence of a family she didn't have to choose by herself.There was silence as we waited for the response Alina was bound to give, but it never came. Instead she turned on her heels and dashed out of the room like it was on fire, like she couldn't fathom spending one more second in this oxygen-draining space."Alina," I called after her, my feet already bounding after her retreating form. "Theon," my mother decided to get in the way. "I know you'd like to think I'm bluffing, but take one more step and I'd do all it takes to make sure she never finds them."I stopped in my tracks, turning to face her as rage ate at my insides, swirling like licks of fire over every organ and leaving behind a scorched path of
ALINA Was I the only one suffocating to within an inch of my life? I couldn't be, right? The tension that sat like an adolescent dragon, massive and unrelenting, had to be drawing the air out of everyone else's lungs too.My eyes flickered around the space, and instead of the fear that threatened to suck me into an abyss of only darkness, what stared back at me from the eyes of onlookers was pure interest, pure curiosity. It was almost like this wasn't a life-alterong conversation being had, like relationships weren't being sawed down from their very roots.I looked between Theon and Bryon, noting the stubborn tilt of both their jaws and the way Bryon seemed to be on the brink of what I can only describe as madness."We can have this conversation privately, Bryon. This is a corporate event no the place to spill family secrets." I attempted to draw some sense into the room. Bryon cocked his head at me, his mouth curved on a smile that was very, very insane. "And suddenly you think yo