Offside playing for keep.., p.13
Offside (Playing For Keeps Duet Book 1), page 13
“Fine, but any board meetings the four of you have to sit in on them because I’m not making decisions on my own.” I look to each of them letting know how serious I am about this point. Honestly, I’m nervous as fuck to be doing this on my own. I’ve always had them with me, so the thought of us all parting ways when school is over has me feeling scared. Crue, Saint and Corv have their football shit lined up, but Beck will head off to Alaska to learn the ropes and then I’ll be here on my own.
“Deal, if we can’t be there in person we’ll be on video,” Saint suggests and I agree.
“Man, if someone asked me what I would be doing at twenty I would never think this would be it.” I grunt my agreement, Corv is right.
“We built this whole company from the ground up at sixteen and now look at us. We are about to be Forbes richest.” We all laugh at Crue. we won’t be the richest but we will live without worry for the rest of our lives.
“I don’t think I have ever said it before, but thank you guys.” The serious tone of Saint’s voice has me sitting straighter. “You all knew that I hated the thought of ever running my dad’s company and I fucking hate him, but I didn’t have a way out until now. So, thank you all for helping me.” Crue wraps an arm around his shoulders and gives him a side hug. Saint’s dad is a piece of shit. He may have bought us this house but it wasn’t from the kindness of his heart. If Saint doesn’t take over for his father, he has to pay him back every cent for his tuition, living costs and this house. He thinks Saint doesn’t have his own money, but thanks to this merger, Saint can buy his freedom and in turn take his fucking father down.
“We all helped each other,” I say. “Without all of you I would have been under a bridge somewhere so the feeling is mutual, brother.” Corvin slaps me on the shoulder and pins me with a look that says over his dead body that would have happened.
“Okay, we officially settle on SG next Tuesday and once that is final and underway, we focus on taking down Lexington Corp.” The four of us nod our agreement. “Once we finally finish this, what next?” Beck’s question has stumped me. I have no idea how to answer that. For years all we have focused on is this end goal and nothing else. What do I want to do with my life? A picture flashes through my mind of a house on the beach and a gorgeous blonde on a surfboard, but I shake that away.
“I plan to play in the NFL for as long as I can then retire, buy a yacht and drown in pussy for the rest of my days.” We all groan and mutter about Saint being a dick.
“Once I hang my boots up for the last time, I’m gonna travel and see the fucking world.” I could really see Crue being a tourist.
“Mine starts now.” I furrow my brow at Corv. “When this is done, I’m coming out to my parents and buying them a house in the mountains like they have always wanted and never let them work again. I’ll get Leah set up somewhere before I leave and hire guards so no fucker can get near my baby sister. Best part is, with us being the majority shareholders in the school, Leah will never have to pay for her schooling.” I turn away from him, not able to look at him knowing I’m the one who took his sister’s innocence. We spend the rest of the night talking shit and allowing ourselves to finally breathe a bit easier knowing that this is all going to work out. We fucking did it. Excitement thrums through me at the thought of seeing the looks on their faces when they find out it was me that ruined their lives and they had no fucking idea. He thought he fucked me over. That dumb fuck was playing a quick game while I was playing the long game from the start. Touchdown, motherfucker, I’m coming for you.
CHAPTER 22
Leah
The week goes by in a blur, I’ve managed to avoid my brother and only speak to him on the phone, but I know it won’t last. I’ve managed to avoid all five of them. I hate hearing how they are worshiped and looked up to as kings. It fucking grates on my nerves more when I have practice every day and have to hear Chelsea talk about how her and Darius are meant to be. Nikki thinks Beck is going to whisk her away and treat her like the queen she thinks she is. Both these bitches are bat shit crazy. We’ve run the same counts six times because Donald can’t get the steps and it is grating on my nerves. I just want to get the hell out of here!
“Okay, listen up.” Thankful for the reprieve I place my hands on my knees and take some deep breaths as we wait for coach to speak. “I have some bad news, we won’t be dancing at the championship.” Shouts and boos erupt from around me. “Quiet!” Coach yells, then blows her whistle. “I know you are all pissed off but there isn’t a thing we can do. The school board tried but the other schools vetoed the idea and said no.” I deflate, this is like a kick in the gut. This was our one chance to showcase our skills and show everyone we are more than some dance team that teaches girls how to shake their assess.
“Why the hell are we training so hard then?” Donald calls out, a devilish smirk graces coach’s face.
“I said the school said no, I never said I agreed.” Gasps ring out. “I mean I could never condone you all going against the school as a faculty member but I mean, if I taught you a kick ass routine and you all happen to rush onto the field at halftime and do said dance, who am I to stop you?” Everyone screams in excitement. Cody, Katie and I all scream and do an awkward three way hug. This is exactly the type of news I needed. After everything with Darius, I really needed a pick me up!
“Seriously, pineapple on a pizza?” I glare across the table at Garrett, who raises his hands in surrender. The girls and I ran into him after practice. We didn’t tell him why we were happy, just that we got good news, so he insisted on taking us for pizza to celebrate. After the workout we just did, who are we to turn down free carbs?
“What’s wrong with it?” I say around a mouthful of food, causing him to laugh and a blush to raise to my cheeks.
“What’s right with it? It doesn’t belong on a pizza, it shouldn’t even be classed as a topping!” Cody and Katie both chime in with their agreement, which just earns them an eye roll from me.
“It’s great, try it,” I say as I pick up another slice and hold it out to him. His face scrunches in disgust, making me laugh. The girls join in when he recoils back into his seat as I lean over the table and hold it practically in front of his face.
“Well, what do we have here?” The smile vanishes from my face. At the sound of his voice, all the muscles in my body go rigid. Garrett sits up straighter as I slowly lower back into my seat and drop the pizza on my plate, keeping my gaze focused on it. I can feel Katie and Cody staring at me but I can’t move, what the hell is he doing here? “Don’t get all shy on me, little mouse, I drove all the way here just to see you.” When his meaty hand lands on my shoulder I flinch away. At the sound of Garrett’s chair scraping back, I snap my gaze to him and watch him stand up.
Shit!
“What the fuck are you doing here, Hayes?” I frown confused as to how he knows Gary but then it hits me, he’s on the same team as the guys, so of course he would know him.
“Just came to visit an old friend,” he says as he grips my shoulder again. This time he squeezes it so hard a whimper escapes me.
“Get your fucking hands off her now!” Garrett snarls. I peek over my shoulder to see Gary didn’t come alone. There are at least six guys with him and they look like they are ready to throw down.
“Or what? You think you can take us, on your own?” he mocks. Garrett darts his gaze to me and I plead with my eyes not to do anything stupid.
“He won’t, but I fucking will.” It’s been five days since I have heard his voice and it’s a welcome balm to my tattered nerves. Gary’s grip on my shoulder tightens the moment he feels me relax, a whimper escapes again. I hear him move toward us and tense in preparation for what is to come. He comes to a stop in front of us. I look up and find his brown eyes laser focused on Gary’s hand that is gripping my shoulder in a punishing hold. He snaps his hand out, grips Gary’s wrist and shoves him back a step. Gary rights himself quickly and gets in Darius’s face. D has a few inches on Gary and you can tell from his posture that he hates it.
“You think you stand a chance alone? There are seven of us, you piece of shit!” Gary spits right in Darius’s face. Instead of backing down or rethinking his move, Darius smiles cockily.
“Who said anything about him being alone?” I look past the two guys to see Saint, Corvin, Crue and Beckett marching toward us like gods with fury written over each of their faces. They come to a stop behind Darius, the bond each of these guys shares is awe inspiring. I can kind of see why everyone worships them. “Now, unless you want us to leave tread marks all over you and your band of cheerleaders’ faces, I suggest you get the fuck out of our town.” I’ve never heard Crue sound… so serious or aggressive before.
“Take the warning and fuck off,” Darius says in a tone so low and deadly it sends a shudder through me. Gary pulls back, smiles and brushes the nonexistent wrinkles from Darius’s shoulders then turns to me. The look in his soulless blue eyes has my breath hitching. He tilts his head forward causing his brown hair to flop onto his forehead. The guy thinks he can pull off the Jax Teller hairstyle but he really can’t. His teeth are crooked and the fact he has a tongue ring with a dice on it makes me ill.
“Don’t worry, mouse, I’ll be seeing you again real, real soon.” I say nothing as he and his band of misfits push their way through Corvin and the others. The moment the restaurant door closes, I sag into my seat, ecstatic that my nightmare is gone.
My reprieve is short lived.
“What the fuck was that, Goldie?” I slowly lift my gaze to Darius’s and a whirl of emotions war in his eyes—anger, confusion, hatred but the worst of all it’s when I see betrayal that it burns me.
“I don’t know,” I say as I stand, grab my jacket and bag. The girls follow my lead and quickly gather their things, while Garrett drops some bills on the tables. I try to move past Darius and the others but they form a wall, a hulking fucking wall full of glares and accusations. “Excuse me,” I grit out.
“Answer him, Leah. What the fuck was Gary doing here?” Corvin sounds pissed and I can’t blame him, I decide to go with the truth.
“I have no idea, we came here to celebrate after practice and then he just showed up.” I hold my brother’s gaze so he can see the truth in my eyes. “I swear, Corv, we were just hanging out and then he… ruined it.” I whisper the last part. Corvin reaches out and places his hands on the top of my shoulders. I hiss and flinch away. Before I can take a full step back, Darius is in front of me ripping the sleeve of my shirt down to expose my shoulder, which I know will already be bruising. His eyes darken at the sight of it, he grips the back of my neck and pulls me into him until his forehead rests against mine.
“You are going to tell me everything, but right now, I have a quarterback’s arm to break.” He releases me and races from the restaurant with the other four following him. I take a second to gather myself before I’m following after them. I break through the door in time to see Gary and his friends peeling out of the car park in their cars, hollering out the window. “Fucking pussy ass bitches!” Darius roars as he watches their cars driveaway. When he turns back to face us, his gaze finds mine immediately. “Say goodbye to your friends, your ass is coming with us!” My mouth unhinges. I look to Corvin expecting him to stop him but the bastard just crosses his arms over his chest and quirks a brow at me, daring me to defy king broody beside him.
“I can take you back.” I turn my head to the side to see Garrett, standing there with his hands in his jeans pockets. I smile kindly, ready to accept his offer but the king asshole cuts me off.
“Accept his offer, Goldie, and see what happens.” I cut a glare to Darius, narrowing my eyes in warning as I grit out,
“You gonna tell my brother...” his eyes shoot wide, “on me?” I smirk when his face becomes a picture of annoyance. “Just so we are clear, I don’t live with you lot anymore and newsflash, assholes, I’m eighteen!” I shout. The smirk that crosses Darius’s face has the triumphant feeling inside me dwindling rapidly.
“Either Corvin throws you over his shoulder and puts your ass in the car or I do. Those are your only choices!” I look to the girls and shoot them a look that has them grinning like fools before turning to Garrett who just looks pissed off.
“Thanks for tonight,” I say.
“Don’t even think about–”
I cut Darius off before he can finish his threat. “Run!”
CHAPTER 23
Darius
She screams she’s eighteen and then runs off like a fucking child!
“Beck, Corv, get the cars, You two with me,” I bark out as I race after the pain in my ass. Crue and Saint are right with me as we chase down the girls. I see them dart across the road heading for the park. It’s fucking dark out and these idiots are running into a park surrounded by woodlands? Fucking morons. We race across the road. Gaining on them, the moment we hit the grass of the park, Leah looks over her shoulder and shouts.
“Split up!” I growl. She is going to pay for this. Her friends do as she ordered and break away in separate directions.
“Saint get Cody. Crue get Katie. I got the little shit,” I snarl as I sprint after her. I’m only a couple steps behind her when I break through the brush. She chances another look over her shoulder and squeals out a laugh, then darts around a tree and I lose sight of her for a couple seconds. I round the same tree and come to a halt when I don’t see her anywhere.
“Boo.” I snap my gaze to the side where she leans against the tree, huffing. I crowd her space and place my arms on either side of her head, caging her in. Our breaths are coming in rapid pants thanks to her impromptu race. The smile that is plastered on her face pisses me off.
“You think this is funny?” I snap.
“Yeah, I do actually.” Her sarcastic reply grates on my already frayed nerves. “You act all big and tough, and pretend to hate me but look where you are, Darius. You had a choice to chase three girls and from what I heard back there you didn’t even have to think about which one you were gunning for!” She steps into me so our chests brush against each other, then grips the sides of my shirt keeping me anchored in place as she slowly cranes her neck back to meet my gaze. “You either want me or you let me fucking go because I can’t keep playing this game with you.”
“Game?” I snarl as I yank free of her hold, putting a couple feet of space between us. “You think this is a fucking game?” I roar. She shrinks back into the tree but my temper is too far gone to be controlled. “None of this was ever a fucking game to me. This is my life you are destroying just by being near me! I fucking hate you, Leah.” She flinches and drops her gaze to her shoes as her shoulders hunch forward. “I’ll never fucking forgive you for what you did to me, I can’t,” I grit out before storming away from her. I break the tree line to find Beck standing there with a pitying look on his face. Before I can say anything, he holds out the keys to his car and flicks his head toward where it is parked at the curb.
“Saint and Crue have the girls in there, drop them at their dorm and grab her a bag. I’ll get her and bring her back with me and Corvin.” I nod my thanks and begin to move away but his words have me halting. “She’s right, though. You either want her or you don’t, you need to decide.” The only response he gets is a grunt before I’m storming off toward his car.
I made Cody pack her bag and smacked Saint across the back of the head when he offered to pick out her panties. After leaving the girls, we headed straight home and have been sitting in the car for five minutes. I know we have to go in but I don’t want to. Beckett’s words keep replaying over and over in my mind. They may be true but it’s fucking hard to let go of your first love. What makes the whole situation more fucked up is I can’t even escape my first and only girlfriend because she is my best friend’s little fucking sister!
“You know if we don’t go in we’ll never find out why Gary was here.” Crue’s attempt to get me out of the car works, my curiosity is peaked and I need answers. We storm through the door only to find Beck and Corv sitting in the living room, alone. At the sound of our entry Corvin slowly turns his head toward us and pins me with an angry fucking look that promises pain.
“Gary fucking Hayes doesn’t walk off the field. That motherfucker goes out in a box!” I dart my gaze between Beck and Corvin utterly fucking confused.
“What happened?” I hedge. Corv jumps to his feet and flips the coffee table before storming up the stairs. When I hear his bedroom door slam shut, I look to Beck for answers. He shakes his head and stands.
“All I know is, he hurt her and Corvin won’t tell me any more than that. Him showing up tonight wasn’t because she wanted him there. You need to talk to her, Darius, because Corvin is out for blood.” Beck turns and heads up the stairs to check on Corv I presume.
“Dude, what the fuck did we miss?” Saint mumbles as he brushes past me and heads for the kitchen. Crue pats me on the shoulder as he heads for the basement. I stand here stunned and fucking confused as hell as to what happened in the twenty minutes it took us to get here. I’m too angry to go to her, so instead, I drop her bag at the base of the stairs, grab two beers from the fridge and head out the back to kick it by the pool. I kick my shoes off and drop down onto the ledge of the pool not giving a fuck that my jeans are getting wet as I kick my legs back and forward into the water. I grab one of the beers and twist the cap off before downing half the bottle. I don’t normally drink but the cluster fuck of events from the past few days has me needing it.
