There was the time when I’d been in middle school, throwing up my entire day’s worth of food in the toilet because I was nervous about the talent show, and Sterling had held my hair out of my face while Stratton had made sure no one came into the bathroom.
Or when I had gotten my first period in 7th grade during the middle of the day and Lincoln had left school, not asking permission, and walked to the 7-Eleven nearby and picked me up pads and some chocolate. He’d even gotten detention for that one.
Or when I had been running to class during freshman year, trying my best to not be late, and tripped and fell on my butt only to have upperclassmen laugh at me… until King had threatened them. I should have found it odd that it had worked even back then, right? Clearly the man was scarier than I gave him credit for.
Or junior year when I hadn’t been able to fit into my planned Homecoming dress because my boobs had decided to appear over freakin’ night, sending me into a panic, and Yates had arranged for a personal shopper to come to my house within the hour just to find something I was comfortable with.
No, nothing could really be awkward with these men, not after everything we’d been through.
“Princess.” King pulled back my attention as I looked up at him curiously.
“We need to get this taken down,” I insisted quietly. “I know we have pull, but with this obvious of proof, if Greg decided to come forward—”
“He’ll be dead,” Dermot mused as King shot him a look that had me almost smiling. I was starting to realize that confident, never doubting himself King was very concerned about my reaction to his more violent side. What would he think if I told him it turned me on? That probably would be an interesting conversation.
“It could mean trouble,” I finished.
Stratton made a noise of agreement that made me feel like I wasn’t completely crazy for being worried about this. Although, now that the guys had seen my reaction, they seemed far less worked up, which meant that the only thing they were originally worried about was how I would feel about the video. That was sweet.
A bit twisted, considering they could be charged with assault and battery, but still sweet.
“Right.” King frowned and then ran a hand through his hair, pressing a kiss to my forehead. He seemed to snap out of it then, looking and sounding far more like himself. “I’m going to give my dad a call. Hopefully we can handle the news channels on our own. A majority of them should be willing to stop the story, but there will still be those that won’t.”
“Do we think Greg will come forward?” Sterling asked, his eyes filled with a calculating edge that I wasn’t used to seeing from him.
“That would be a mistake on his end.” Yates continued to scroll through his laptop while typing something out quickly, seeming rather relaxed.
When King’s phone rang, I jumped.
“Shit, it’s Callum,” he announced as he looked down at it.
I almost followed King into the office but decided to continue to watch the news, wondering if they really would be able to pull the story that quickly. I knew my parents donated to the charitable campaigns of one of the largest media conglomerates in the country, but I wasn’t sure about the others or any international media outlets.
“I’m going to give my mom a call,” Lincoln stated, standing up and stretching before walking towards me and pressing a kiss to my cheek that I leaned into… before he nipped my ear in a contrasting effort to turn me on.
I let out a small squeak as my body lit up under the action, his wink making my skin flush as he left me with Stratton, Dermot, Sterling, and Yates. My eyes followed their gazes back to the screen, where they seemed to be pulling even more footage. I groaned, realizing they weren’t just covering the Ian thing along with the Greg thing, but now pulling in what happened to me… and there was the helicopter shot of King and I walking from his house to mine.
The media was loving this, the Ross, Carter, and Aldridge names getting thrown around. I was just waiting for them to find a way to bring in the Gates and Lee connections as well, because there was no way they wouldn’t try to rope them into it. I honestly had very little experience with the media because my parents kept out of it, and any positive media we had was spun by the PR team that our family had on call. So this was different, and frankly a bit annoying.
“I’m guessing this is the type of media that’s also bad?” I asked Dermot, trying to gauge how much of a problem this was going to be in respect to what I learned today.
“You mean for the Ross name overall? No. But I expect you know why now. The connection between you and us was already made with the first story, although I suppose this extends the reach. Some of the people we work with may find it a bit frustrating that there has been such direct attention, but that’s where it will end.” Dermot looked at Yates. “Could be an issue for the Carters, though, considering what your family does.”
It probably didn’t look good that such an important and well known lawyer’s son was breaking so many laws in one weekend.
“I’m not concerned,” Yates leveled and then examined my expression. “This doesn’t bother you.”
It wasn’t a question; it was very much a statement.
“The video?”
“Yes, bunny,” His tone was slightly softer, as if he was waiting for me to confirm something. He didn’t seem concerned like King, just more curious.
King suddenly called Sterling, who got up and walked towards the office, Stratton’s arm wrapping around my waist as he rested his chin on top of my head. It was a comfortable hold and one I sank into.
I answered Yates honestly. “It was pretty clear what had happened that night with Greg, Yates. It’s not that much of a surprise.”
It was at the time—well, I’d also been a bit tipsy—but thinking back through the night, it was clear how upset King had been at Greg… And then to show up with blood on them in the kitchen? After not returning back home with Lincoln and me? Like I said, somewhat obvious.