Maybe This Time(29)

“I texted Xander and told him I was fine,” I say, lifting my shoulder in a slight shrug.

“How easy would it have been for someone else to send that message from your phone?” he growls, threading his fingers together behind his neck.

“Why would someone do that?” I ask, surprised at his paranoia.

“I have enemies, Summer,” he says, his tone laced with anger.

He's angry at me? Oh, this is rich. I shake my head at him, not quite believing this turn of events.

“Why are you here?” I ask, proud of myself for keeping my voice steady.

“About last night, it wasn’t what it looked like.” He reaches with his hand to touch me. I take a step back, hating the defeated look that comes over him.

“That’s a new line,” I say, the sarcasm in my tone evident.

“She kissed me. I pushed her away...” he says, looking tortured.

“Okay?” I gesture for him to continue talking.

“And you were on a fucking date, so I didn’t even do anything wrong,” he bites out.

“So you lied to me, a million times over, then you get caught kissing another girl, but you didn’t do anything wrong. I’m so happy we aren’t actually together!” I spit out. My lip trembles, giving away just how hurt I am.

“You don’t mean that,” he says softly, his face drawn.

“You don’t know me.”

“I know you,” he replies softly, studying me.

“So, you’re an underground fighter,” I say, changing the subject.

He curses, watching my face intently.

“How does that work exactly?” I ask, wanting to hear it from him.

“We meet up at different locations. Spectators pay entry, two hundred dollars each, and then that money is used as the prize money. It’s just something I’ve been doing for a while,” he says with a slight shrug, trying to play it off as no big deal.

I blink twice, pondering his words. “Why all the secrecy?”

“There's more to it, beauty, but that’s all you need to know, alright? Now come here,” he says as he hops onto my bed, pulling the sheet up for me to climb in.

“Why are you always with her?” I ask him in a small voice.

“I don’t like her like that, trust me,” is all he says.

“Fine, but she obviously likes you like that,” I snap.

“I set her straight, she won’t be trying that shit again, okay?” he says in a soothing tone.

I sit down on the bed next to him. “You hurt me. You kissed her. Her fucking lips were on yours.”

“I fucked up. I’m gonna fuck up. But I wanna try,” he whispers, pulling me down so my head is on his chest.

“You wanna try what?” I ask, my voice soft and unsure.

“I wanna try with you, I don’t want you on dates with anyone else. You’re mine, beauty.” He tightens his hold on me.

“I can’t,” I say in a timid voice.

“We'll talk after a few hours’ sleep, I was up all night,” he says. I lie back on the bed, staring at the ceiling. When he pulls me into his arms I hold my breath, wanting to relax into him but knowing that I shouldn’t. I can’t let my guard down around this man. He has the power to break me, if I give it to him. I’m already in over my head.

That’s my last thought before I fall asleep.





**


I wake up two hours later, slowly extracting myself from Reid’s arms. Xander is standing in the kitchen with our dad, both of them draining a cup of coffee.

“Mornin’,” I say, heading to the fridge and pulling out an apple juice box.

“What happened last night will not happen again, Summer,” my dad grinds, staring at me with an intense expression.

“What, you mean every single person I know in this town lying to me?”

“Sum…” Xander says, his forehead crinkling.

“Why was it some big secret? So you run some illegal underground fight club, who cares? I thought you guys were up to much worse from the stories mum told me,” I say dryly. I open my juice box and take a sip. Both Kane men stay silent for a few moments, and the only sound that can be heard in the kitchen is me drinking from my straw.

“What did she say about me?” my dad finally rumbles.

“That you were a biker, a drug dealer, a criminal, a cheater, a womanizer… I could go on,” I tell him. And I could. Those were probably the nicer things she said about him, and we all know the cheating part is true.

My dad slams down his coffee mug and walks to the front door, looking pissed off. He pulls out a cigarette on the way.

“Reid didn’t want me saying anything, sis, and neither did Jack,” Xander says, coming towards me. He wraps me in his arms and kisses me on the head. “In the beginning Reid was all for telling you everything, but when you two got involved, he decided he didn’t want you to see him like that. Sometimes the other fighters play dirty, I wouldn’t be surprised if they tried something if they saw you hanging about, so it was for your safety, as well.”