𝐕𝐄𝐗𝐄𝐃 ❷

𝟓𝟓. ✭ 𝐁𝐑𝐀𝐗𝐓𝐎𝐍 ✭

After everyone left, Adriana and I are by ourselves, aside from the guard standing outside her door, for the first time since she had thrown around the 'L' word unthinkingly. She's assessing me. I'm assessing her. There's a whole lot of nothing being said but a whole lot of something being thought.

In these moments of quiet contemplation between us my mind is being anything but. No, it's being quite loud, especially after she'd said what she'd said to Torey with the intended target being Luke. Her sentiments about absence related to me leaving make a hell of a lot more sense now. Because she, like me, would seem to have issues surrounding people never coming back again. Well, I suppose, in her case it's people making the choice not to be around, which is also relatable.

"Are you going to tell me why you would tell nearly my entire family that you knocked me up or are you just going to keep staring at me?" Her hands are planted solidly on her hips.

Wishful thinking? No. No. I'm not going there. I can't be a father. I have got way too much on my plate and I would totally suck at it. But I did take the risk with her... And god did it feel good. So, so good.

I look over her body once again and am immediately filled with hunger. An image of her in my arms, on my cock, taking a whole load of my fucking cu—

"Hello, Earth to Braxton." She snaps her fingers in front of my face and it has me blinking away the images. "Jesus, that's a whole crazy story to make up just to get in my pants again."

"What?"

Her eyes flicker over me in a knowing manner with, "I know that look. I've seen it on your face only about a gajillion times. You want to bend me over something and fuck me silly. Obviously."

"Obviously."

"So, you admit it then?"

"To what am I admitting?"

"You caused all the fuss just to get in my pants."

"Would it work if I said yes?"

"No." She crosses her arms over her chest now. "No it would not. And you know, I can stick up for myself with Torey. My brother may be a dick but he's still my brother." After the words leave her mouth she stares off in the direction of the door absently. "At least I think he's still my brother. These days it's like he's a complete stranger."

As if on cue, loud shouting begins outside the bedroom window. It's Torey. He's angry. Exponentially angry. The kind of batshit-crazy-angry that I used to hear rumors about but have now been privy to.

"Fuck sake, what's that kumquat so mad about now? Even if I was pregnant I would think he wouldn't lose his inflated melon of a head over it. Sheesh."

When she goes to take a step in the direction of the window I grab ahold of her, not wanting her to see whatever kind of insanity Torey is on about now with, "listen, you probably don't want to—"

"No," she jerks her arm away from me, "you don't get to tell me anything." With a sigh, I let her go to the window without argument. "Holy shit. I think he's going to shoot Brooks."

That has my feet moving toward her. Because if he's going to shoot Brooks there's only one reason. And with one look out the window, I know that Torey knows about my brother and Daniela. A long winded sigh leaves my mouth in frustration.

"Fuck." I tear myself away from the window not wanting to see or hear any more of their argument. "Fuck fuck fuck fuuuuuck." I plop myself down on Adriana's bed.

My brother is fucked. He's fucking dead.

"What's wrong?" She surprises me by sitting down next to me. "You're not banging Brooks too, are you?"

I snort at that then say, "if I was then that gun would be aimed at me, not him." Well, probably both of us.

"Wait, Brooks said he walked in on a conversation you were having with your brother..." Her features turn panicked before jumping off the bed with, "did something happen to Wolfie?! Is he okay?!"

I stand and grab both of her hands with mine. "Yes, he's perfectly fine," I reassure.

"What about Daniela, his mom? Your brother?" The mention of the two of them has me blowing out another frustrated breath through my nostrils. "Oh that look, that look cannoooooot be good. And there is only one reason Brooks would lie to Torey about a phone conversation with your brother..." She takes her hands out of mine, bringing one to her face, "oooooo, your brother stuck his dick in my brother's baby mama, didn't he?"

"Only you would say it like that."

"I thought he knows my brother."

"He does."

"Maaaaan, he really was out there thinking with only his dick and throwing all caution to the wind then. Daaaaamn."

"No. He thinks he's in love with her." She visibly, whole body cringes at that. "Yeah, I know. So now there's no way in hell I'm not going."

"There's no way you were staying anyway. Which reminds me that I am pissed at you. And I am pissed that you used me to try and lie to my brother."

"I didn't know what else to do. I just blurted out the first thing that came to mind."

"And me being pregnant was the first thing that came to mind?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

I fling my hands out with, "I don't know, Adri. Probably because I've came in you multiple times without a second thought. It isn't too far-fetched a thought."

"Well, as you've been made aware, having kids with me would be a feat."

"Yeah, that's kind of par for the course with you."

"Excuse me," she's immediately defensive. "But what the fuck is that supposed to mean?"

"It means that nothing about you or this is easy. And that's alright with me. I like a challenge. I like turning the odds. Because I like you. I more than like you, little koala, and you know it." I reach for her hand and am surprised she allows me to take it. "Now, can you please stop being mad at me and realize I'm not leaving you forever."

"But you literally could be." She deadpans.

"And you don't want that to happen?" She puckers her lips and looks away from me, declining to answer. When she goes to pull her hand out of mine I don't let her. Instead, I thread our fingers together and pull her into me, placing a kiss atop her beautiful blonde head. "You smell amazing," I blurt out.

"Now who's being random?"

"Looks like a bit of your quirkiness has rubbed off on me. What can I say?"

"Not the only thing I've rubbed off on you. I seem to remember rubbing off something not quite as large or amazing as my personality."

"Watch it." I point a finger at her to which she automatically wraps her mouth around. The groan I let out when her tongue works the digit is cut off by the bedroom door bursting open.

"Timeline's been moved up, asshole, so get my sister's mouth off your fucking finger and pack up." Adri's mouth is gone automatically and Torey looks like a live nuclear bomb as he strides toward me with, "and if you ever fucking lie to me again, especially about anything regarding Dani, I will personally make your death as painful as fucking possible. It will not matter that you've been dicking down my sister, or that she's in love with you—"

"Torey, that's enough!" Denver makes his way into the room and grabs Torey by the back of his suit jacket. "You leave your fucking sister out of it and you," he points at me with his free hand, "if you ever put her in the middle of something because you're too chicken-shit to tell the truth, he won't have to do anything to you— I will."

"Too chicken-shit? Did you just call me too chicken-shit? Who's the one having to drag their son out of a room because he doesn't know how to control himself?" Torey lurches toward me but Denver just manages to hold him back. "You want it, asshole," I emphasize what he'd called me when he came in the room, "come and fucking get it. I am just about tired of you thinking you're the biggest, baddest motherfucker around. Please do me the favor of trying to come at me because then I will be more than happy to oblige, regardless of whatever feelings I have for your sister or her for me."

That does nothing but make him reach for the gun I'd just seen him with outside but Denver stops him with, "I don't fucking think so, Tor. Your sister is right fucking there. Get your head right!"

"Get my head right?" He rages. "The only way I'm going to do that is if I am littered with coke and vodka." He pulls out of Denver's grip but Luke is there in the breath of a second as is the guard from outside, each holding Torey back, then pulling him out of the room.

"Did... did he just say with coke and vodka?" I turn my attention back to Adri who is staring at the doorway, brow furrowed in concern. "As in he does drugs? Since when does Tor do drugs?" The question was aimed at Denver.

"Torey does a lot of things he never would've used to," his voice laced with remorse and sadness. "Braxton, I think it's best if you steer clear of Torey for the next few days, but he's right. The timeline has moved up. Because if it doesn't, I can only see him getting worse." I give him a nod of the head and he adds, "and tell your brother the shitstorm that is heading his way and to be prepared for it."

"I already told him not to sleep with her."

Denver arches a brow with,"listen, I don't give a shit who that woman sleeps with. If she wants to be with Tristan then she can be with Tristan. I don't give a flying fuck. What I care about, what Luke cares about, is that Wolf and Malyssa get out of this situation unscathed. Whatever drama happens outside of that I do not give a shit about, unless it's like the crap my son just tried to pull now, when he nearly aimed a gun in the direction of his sister. All I want is my family safe— that's it."

Which is entirely the reason I cannot stay with Adriana even though there's a piece of me that really wants to. I need my little brother to be safe. Because Denver is right, there's a shitstorm headed his way.

I lock eyes with Denver and say, "understood."

✩✩✩

The days came and went in the blink of an eye, all four of them. I kept my distance from Torey and Brooks, just like they were keeping distance from each other. Most of my time was spent between Adri's legs, giving each other a proper goodbye, as she'd say.

Right now, she's sleeping soundly, considering it's three in the morning. I brush her hair out of her face and place a kiss on her forehead with a whisper, "I know you're going to be pissed but I don't say goodbyes. Hopefully this makes up for it." I place the bracelet, the one with a small koala charm on it, on the pillow beside her; my pillow. Next to it I place a note, one with only three words on it.

A/N:
Two updates in a week?!? Whaaaat? I've found some writing mojo.