“Which brings me to my next thing,” Hunter announced, standing from the bed and reaching for my hand. “There’s something you probably want to see right now. But, I’m going to say that you won’t like it, but, I’m sorry. Bishop does want you there and as much as I’ve loved our little bonding chat, he’s my loyalty.” These damn boys and their loyalty.
I FOLLOWED HIM OUT OF the room and down the long hallway. The crowds of people had died down a little to what they were earlier, so it was a lot easier to surf through. Hunter took a hard left turn, pushing open another set of doors, these ones tarnished wood, and when they opened, the smell of rubber mixed with sweat shot up my nostrils. My eyes went straight to the crowd of people who were bunched in the middle, cheering, yelling, and screaming with their hands flying over their head with cups grasped in their hands.
“What’s going on?” I asked skeptically, my eyes staying on the crowd.
“This is Bishop’s basketball court room, but tonight, it’s also a fighting ring.”
“Oh no,” I muttered, barely above a whisper.
“Oh, yes,” Hunter announced, taking my hand.
“Who?” I asked as we made our way to the crowd, who were now spreading out. It was making it a lot easier for us to step through the bodies.
“Brantley and Nate against Bishop.”
“What!” I screeched, my feet picking up speed.
“Chill, baby sis, they had to be held accountable for their actions.”
“But Nate fights as a sport! And there’s two of them.” Just as I was babbling off, the crowd parted more, and the scene played out in front of me. Bishop reared his fist back and slammed it right into Nate’s, a loud crush vibrating through the air, and then he roundhouse kicked Brantley in the stomach. I swore I heard the crunching of his ribs from here. I wanted to interrupt, I wanted to scream and stop it, but another part of me knew that this wasn’t my place. These boys had rules and rituals. Even if I may not understand them, it didn’t mean that they didn’t exist. And besides, I had a feeling this had everything to do with me.
“They’ll kill each other,” I whispered to Hunter, but I couldn’t take my eyes off the fight, even when Nate’s blood sprayed through the air. Right before he tried to attack Bishop with a left hook, it got blocked by a massive hand, and then Bishop laid into him one more time. A loud, yet silent, “oh…” sounded out through the crowd, and I froze, the blood pulsing through my veins turning to frost.
“Nawww,” Hunter grinned. “They’ll just play around for a bit.” Then his eyes came to mine. “Hope you weren’t hoping for your stepbrother to be all jiffy with you again.” Then he returned his attention back to the died down brawl. “Because he just got a huge wakeup call.”
I couldn’t watch anymore, so I sunk into the crowd and backed toward the way I came, spinning around and pressing through the doors. The silence that broke through from being in that loud room made my ears bleed. There was no one out here now, I guessed everyone was in that room watching Bishop as if he was a lion in a circus. This was his circus and those were his monkeys, and Bishop Vincent Hayes was most definitely the ringleader. This place was far more extravagant than I would have ever thought. I knew Bishop had money, and his family had money, but this was extreme—even for him. Making a beeline for the elevator, I press the button anxiously and then press it a few more times. If it could not decide to come slow today, that would be great. Where the hell was Tate, too? She just disappeared.
“Leaving so soon?” My finger stopped an inch away from hammering at that little circle button again.
Without turning to face him, I shrugged. “You have enough company here to keep you occupied, Bishop.” I realized how sober I was at this point, which was very unfortunate considering the drinks I consumed were for the sole purpose of once again, coming face to face with my high school nemesis-slash-first love. Bishop was my kryptonite, but I was no Lois Lane, and he was no Superman. What he was? Was an addiction I couldn’t break. No amount of time spent at a rehab clinic could help me, because I didn’t want to help myself. I was addicted to the burn that crusted over my vulnerable heart every time he broke it, because sometimes, the very few times that I have seen another side to Bishop, made all those pieces worth breaking for. Made him worth it. I was a junkie chasing my next high, and just hoping, that this wasn’t the time I overdosed on a love so toxic, and so far out of my reach, that I would damn near kill myself just to know how it feels one last time. I wasn’t afraid to die, I was afraid I’d never feel the heat from his hand wrapped around my heart, right before he’d shatter it into millions of pieces. I was, in short, a lost cause.
So, even though I heard the doors to the elevator ping open, I turned to finally face him, pinching my lips together when I saw the cut below his right eyebrow and the blood slightly seeping out from his bottom lip. He still had no shirt on, and his tank, I could see, was tucked into his back pockets. He only wore his military boots on his feet, and sweat glistened off each and every tight muscle he had. I didn’t think I’d ever get used to seeing Bishop in all his glory. He was just too magnificent for the average eye. Finally,
