Scarlett looked at me. “What exactly did this Damien person do to you, Hayley?” she asked me as she set her little boy on the floor to play.
I clenched my jaw. “I don’t want to talk about it,” I snapped at her.
And I didn’t. Talking about everything between Damien and I would rip open the wounds that were already beginning to bleed.
She frowned. “I think I agree with Drake on this as well, then,” she said. “If she can’t openly talk about what happened between them, then I don’t think she can handle him being around again.”
“Thank you!” Drake said, throwing his arms up in the air.
I clenched my jaw. Drake had allowed my best friend to be killed, and I wasn’t running that chance with my own life. I knew Damien could protect me, and if it came down to it, I would turn back into the shell of that person I used to be if it meant my life was safe and protected.
I quickly pressed Damien’s number on my phone, listening for it to stop ringing, letting me know he answered. I quickly put the phone to my ear, jumping at the sound of Drake’s shout as he sent his fist through the wall.
“What in the hell is going on?” Damien angrily demanded, his tone low and dangerous.
I swallowed hard. “Damien, I need your help,” I whispered.
Drake walked over to me and snatched the phone from my hand, putting it to his ear. I swallowed hard at the anger swirling in his eyes. “She’s not talking to you,” Drake snapped into the phone. I heard Damien yell something, and Drake’s expression only turned murderous. “I’m not explaining shit to you over the goddamn phone. You can meet me here at my place, and I’ll tell you what’s going on, but not over the fucking phone.”
Drake rattled off his address and hung up my phone, slamming it onto the counter so hard it cracked the screen. I barely resisted the urge to flinch. “Woman, you drive me up the fucking wall,” he sneered, wrapping his hand around the back of my neck and kissing me hard and angrily. I didn’t respond, my mind running rampant as my stomach rolled with disgust.
When he pulled back, my head was spinning slightly, and I could barely hold myself upright from my lack of breathing. “What was that for?” I finally managed to stutter out after I swallowed down my vomit.
Drake blew out a harsh breath and rubbed the pad of his thumb over my bottom lip. I barely resisted the urge to yank away from him. “It was either I kiss you senseless or destroy everything in this house,” he muttered.
I sighed and unscrewed the cap on my bottle of water, downing half of the bottle in one go, hoping to wash away the feeling of his lips on mine.
But I would deal with this, only to prove to Damien that I didn’t miss him, that I didn’t want to be with him.
Though I knew in my heart, all of that was a lie.
Damien would obviously forever be the only man I would truly want.
I pulledmy head from the back of the couch when I heard the doorbell ring. I was half asleep by that point. Everyone was still there at the house, just chilling and watching TV as we waited on Damien to show up.
Kalin got up and walked to the door. “In here,” I heard Kalin say.
Drake dropped his arm from the back of the couch and wrapped it tightly around my waist as Damien stepped into the room with his right-hand man, cousin, and best friend, Miles. I swallowed hard at the sight of Damien. Prison had definitely changed him. He’d filled out more, and his features had hardened more than they used to be, letting me know his time in prison hadn’t been kind to him.
But my heart still fluttered wildly in my chest at the sight of him.
God, I missed him. How the fuck did I miss someone who hurt me so badly?
His eyes landed on me, and I closed my eyes, not wanting to look at him. “Cat got your tongue, darlin’?” Damien asked.
“She doesn’t have shit to say to you,” Drake snapped. I opened my eyes to see Damien turning his attention to Drake, his eyes narrowing at his arm that was around my waist. I swallowed thickly and shuffled away from Drake a bit, hoping to keep the beast lurking inside of Damien at bay.
“I let you come here because we have someone who’s determined to get her hooked on drugs through whatever means necessary. They got my ex addicted, and when she ran, she got murdered,” he stated bluntly, making me flinch.
Drake ran his fingertips up and down my arm gently. I think he was trying to calm my nerves, but his touch only made my skin crawl. “How in the fuck did my girl get caught up in this shit?” Damien demanded.
Drake leaned forward, his arm leaving me. Damien’s lips twitched the slightest bit when he noticed me relax a bit, but I was pretty sure I was the only one that noticed it. Damien and I had always been in tune with each other like that.
“Let’s get one thing straight, Parrish,” Drake said, looking up at him. “Hayley is not your girl, and you need to get that through your head. She’s my girl.” Damien’s features darkened at his words, and I swallowed hard. Drake was playing with the devil, and he didn’t even know it. “I allowed you to come here because we think you’ll be a good addition to help us, but if you’re going to cause problems, I can show you to the fucking door.”
Damien was silent for a moment, and I could feel his eyes trained on me. I stared at anything but him, afraid that if I looked at him, I would go crawling back to him, begging him to take me with him.
Damien finally just asked, “who are these men?”