Compelled ( 2nd book in the Forced Series)

Chapter 17

Picture of Van goth up above!

Dedicated to Arika_Riasat for her continued support! ^_^

~unedited (probably has more grammatical errors than normal.)~

Warning: has slightly stronger language normal; in their bleeped out form (eg; f***)

Chapter 17

Van pulled back.

What? She thought he resented her?

"I don't res–."

Hazel tipped, pressing her lips to his. Van swallowed his words, deciding to end the conversation. He pulled away, eyeing her up. The night breeze was chilly and Hazel seemed to be shivering.

"You shouldn't have come out. You're still sick." He wrapped his hands around her shoulders, forcefully leading her back inside.

They remained silent as he led the way up stairs. Hazel's eyes were glued to the floor. When they got off the stairs, she shrugged of his hand, muttering a quiet 'Go to bed' before she shuffled down the hall and into her studio. Van stood there staring at the closed door, feeling himself becoming more and more tense. He hated it when she withdrew to her paintings. It felt too much like before, when they were strangers. Cursing under his breath, Van turned, heading back downstairs. He looked to his left, then his right. To the left was the kitchen, to the right, the living room.

Van was restless. Watching a movie had no appeal, eating was even worse. He sighed, deciding to go to the study. He turned right, heading pass the living room. Van opened the door, staring blankly at the room. A moment later, he stepped in and went around the desk, where his barely used laptop was sitting in the middle. When he booted it up, he saw that Hazel had changed the lock screen wallpaper to one of their wedding pictures. Now, staring at it, he realized that they didn't have many pictures of them together.

Van made a note to change that.

When he'd signed into Google, he was unpleasantly shocked by the second news notification.

Double trouble! Dan Steel back in New Jersey!

Van goth Steel has surprised everyone with his wild, wild ways over the last two years, but his fall off the straight and narrow left no questions. After losing his unborn child and the separation from his wife, New Jersey's very own Hazel George-Steel, when she was kidnapped from their uptown apartment two years ago, we can excuse him for his unsavory nightlife. However, the story has always been the same for Van's younger brother, the notorious Dan'te Steel.

This bachelor and playboy extraordinaire has been seen time and time again, living it up with the ladies, and checking in and out of rehab centers for various addictions. For the last few years he has not graced our streets but this uncontrollable party animal is back in New Jersey.

With these two in town, we don't expect to anything but trouble. All we can say is keep your fingers crossed because it's about to get wild!

Van reread the article and scrutinized the attached photo. Dan was in town? The blurry image showed a man about Van's height, with his arm flung over a blonde's shoulder. In his other hand he held a bottle of God only knew what and a baseball cap was pulled low over his face. How they recognized him, Van didn't know, but he prayed that the photo was taken somewhere else and not in New Jersey.

Dan was a problem in and of itself. Growing up, he'd always deemed it fitting to do and say everything anyone told him not to. Dan had been difficult, but never the less, both their father and mother had adored him. It had always been a constant struggle for Van, at first; never knowing whether or not his stepmom allowed Dan to get away with things Van never could because she loved Dan more than him. A hint of jealousy sparked at the thought, but Van stomped it down.