“It’s as easy as saying it’s over now,” I insist, but even as I utter the words, I don’t believe them. I push away from him, standing at the window, leaning against the cool glass, but nothing can calm my erratic, shattering heart.
Elian stares at me. With seemingly controlled steps, he eats up the distance between us and stops a hair’s breadth away from me. He’s so close I can feel his heat. I can smell the masculine scent I’ve come to love, and he leans in so his mouth is feathering along mine.
“Nothing between us can ever be over. You might think it is, but I don’t lose.”
“This time, you did,” I bite out, trying to fight off the need to fall into his arms. The thought of my father sending out an order to have Elian’s dad murdered breaks my heart. But Elian could’ve told me the truth.
“I’m not giving up, Arabella. Ever.” He presses his lips against mine for just a second before he pulls away and stalks off, leaving me shivering from the cold of his absence.
35
Ahren
He’s going to be fucking angry when he walks in here. I settle into the wingback chair and wait. My ankle resting on the opposite knee, I sip the bourbon from one of his finest tumblers and think about everything he told me.
Killing Arabella’s mother won’t go down well, but I have a feeling she’s going to hate him because he didn’t tell her the truth. She wasn’t close to her mother, that was apparent. But the fact that my brother didn’t consult me on his little plan doesn’t sit well with me.
I should wait to give him shit about it, but I can’t. I’ve kept my own secrets he won’t like, so I can’t blame him. The buzzer sounds, which has me on my feet. Confusion settles when I make my way to the door to find her at the entrance. The girl I had bouncing on my dick for months before Elian and I took her to my room one night. I’d filmed her while my brother watched from the corner like a voyeur.
“What are you doing here?”
Big hazel eyes lock on mine. Regan’s grin turns sinister when she pushes by me, stalking into Elian’s house. When he arrives, he’s going to lose his shit. I follow her into the living room where she perches her ass on the sofa.
“You have to leave,” I bite out.
“I’m not going anywhere until he gives me the video.” She looks like she’s about to set out demands when she pulls a phone from her pocket and slides it across the table toward me. “I have something to barter with.”
Picking it up, I take in the photo, still unsure where she’s going with this. I recognize the man immediately, but I’m not sure why she’s got a photo of Adam Davenport on her phone.
“Elian’s not going to give a shit about your lies.” I toss the phone at Regan, and it bounces on the cushions beside her.
She sits back, her smile only broader as she regards me. “You were always more fun than your brother,” she informs me. “What happened to you, Ahren?”
Folding my arms across my chest, I narrow my eyes, wondering what she’s playing at, but I respond anyway. “I grew up. Now leave.”
“Like I said, I’m not going anywhere without that video.”
“What’s going on?” Elian’s voice comes from behind me, and I find him standing at the threshold of the room. The moment I step aside, his gaze turns to rage. “What the fuck are you doing in my house?”
“I want the video.”
“That video is to ensure you didn’t come back. Seems like I need to post it all over the fucking internet since you broke the agreement.” His words are cold, drenched in anger as he stops beside me.
“I’ve brought something for you though. In exchange for the video, I can give you something you’ve wanted for a long while,” Regan says, pushing to her feet as she stalks toward Elian.
“What could you have that I would possibly want?” He sounds as doubtful as I felt, but after seeing the photo, I have a feeling Regan knew what she was doing. I also have an inclination that she’s about to throw Elian off his usual control streak.
“You know, I’ve watched you with women,” she says as she watches him with amusement. “In the darkness, I hid away, watching how you fucked them, and even though I had Ahren,” she tells him, her gaze flicking to mine before she looks back at Elian. “You were always my goal.”
“That’s not going to happen. Ever. So, get your fairytale dreams out of that psychotic head of yours.”
“Oh, that’s okay, because I’ve seen you with her. Even with Tommy following her around, she still ran to you.”
This time, Elian’s rage shudders through the room. It’s as if it is its own entity because he’s in front of her in seconds, his hand wrapped around her neck, practically lifting her onto her tiptoes, but Regan laughs.
“What the fuck did you just say?”
“Oh, I met Tommy when I went to Miami to find out what it is you needed this girl for,” Regan tells him, and I have a feeling if she continues, he will end her life. “He and I had fun toying with your little schoolgirl.”
“You’re a sick bitch,” Elian growls, the feral sound reverberating through his throat. I’m beside him within two steps, my hand on his arm, which he attempts to shake off, but I’m not allowing my brother to do this.
“Listen to me, if you do this, you’re only going to lose Arabella for good.”
“There’s no fucking point. She hates me,” he grits out, sending shock flowing through me. “She told me she doesn’t
