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“I fucking told you an hour ago,” shouts Kellan from behind me.
His voice startles me, and I slam the emergency stop on the treadmill, stopping the run. I look around to find Kel sitting on the rowing machine, sweat dripping down his forehead like he’s been here for a while.
I try to cast my mind back, wondering when he came in, and if he did, in fact, tell me about the meeting, but it’s all blank. I hadn’t even realised he was in the room with me, so I definitely didn’t hear him talk.
I wince as he glares at me. “I didn’t hear you—obviously.” My words come out as a lazy, irritated drawl, and Kel just shakes his head, muttering something I can’t hear under his breath.
“Maybe you just weren’t fucking listening,” Kel snaps, without missing a beat as he continues on the rowing machine. “Go get a fucking shower. If you stink, Bree will ban you from the meeting again.”
The last meeting we had, Bree threatened to kick me out. I went straight from the gym, and she gave me a long-ass lecture about how I wasn’t taking good enough care of myself. That I should shower before meetings…blah, blah, blah.
In all honesty, I’m not used to having so many people take an interest in my life. Back home, though I still live with Mum and Father, I have my own wing of the house, and I rarely see them. I only still live there because that’s what is expected of me.
As heir to the Doughty clan, I would inherit everything, and then take over running the estate. The timeline just got moved up a lot quicker when Father faked his death. Now everyone thinks I live there just with Mum, since it wouldn’t look good if I kicked my own grieving mother out of her home.
Despite being surrounded by staff, none of them give a shit about me and my wellbeing. Nobody checks if I’ve eaten or showered. Nobody asks me how I am. Mum might check on me occasionally, but generally, she keeps out of my way.
Now that I’m surrounded by family, they all think they get to have a say in my life, and I feel like I’m drowning in a sea of people. I know they only have my best interests in mind, but it takes all my efforts not to scream at them to leave me alone. I’m not used to having people around me, and I’m not sure I like it either.
“Fuck you,” I snap at Kel as I grab my towel and water from beside the machine. I take a large gulp as I wipe the sweat from my brow. I have a moment where I feel bad for being rudeto Kellan, but that soon disappears when that annoying cocky smirk appears on his face.
“You love me really, big brother.” He actually fucking winks at me, and Kian chuckles as he barges past me to get to the treadmill.
My hands ball into fists, and I try to count my breaths as I glare at them. They argue with each other more than anyone else, but as I look at them both, it’s clear the reason they argue so much is because they’re so similar. Cocky, sarcastic assholes.
I don’t even bother responding. I just storm out of the home gym, slamming the door as I leave. Their laughter fades the further down the corridor I get. When I reach the stairs, I turn to go up to the next level, but I freeze when I see McKenna coming down towards me.
She’s been walking around in a daze for weeks since we rescued her, but I’ve noticed that recently she’s been coming out of her shell a lot more. She’s no longer as depressed, and she doesn’t go out of her way to avoid everyone any more.
I’ve been itching to talk to her, to find out everything she knows about Teigan, but Finn made it very clear that I wasn’t allowed to speak to her until she’s ready. Apparently, I’m a fucking monster that will only scare her more.
McKenna gives me a small smile, and I hate the pity I can see etched across her face. I note that she’s making eye contact with me, which is more than she’s done before. “Morning, Evan. How are you?” Her voice is barely above a whisper, and I see her wince as soon as the question leaves her lips. “Sorry, that’s a stupid question.”
“I’m fine,” I snap, hating the way her gaze falls at my abruptness. “Sorry, I shouldn’t have snapped at you. It’s not a stupid question.”
I mean, we both know it is, but if I ever want to be allowed to talk to this girl without my brother threatening to kick me in the balls, I have to be nicer.
“Of course it is. There’s no way you will be fine until you bring Teigan home. I imagine you feel the way Finn did when I was missing. I was only gone for a day, whereas it’s been much longer for you. I shouldn’t have asked,” she replies, and I can’t help but shake my head.
“It’s not like that. Me and Teigan aren’t together.” The words taste like ash on my tongue, but it’s the truth.
I have no claim over her, which means I have no right to fume about her loss. For all I know, there’s a guy out there who has a legitimate claim to her, and he’s the one who should mope over her absence—not me.
Though the more that thought circles around my brain, the more the rage slides through my veins like molten lava. The idea of someone else having a claim over my angel makes me furious, but ten years is a long time. I should be over her by now, though I’m clearly not.
“Oh,” Mac says, as she turns her head, her eyes appraising me like she’s trying to work out a complex maths problem. “I just thought…” Her words trail off as she struggles to find the right way to end her sentence.
“We used to be, a long time ago, but not anymore. She worked for my father, but after he faked his death, she was sold to Whitlock. I had no idea she’d ended up in that fucked up sex club, but now that I do, I want to set it right. That’s all.”
I try to make the words sound final. Like that really is my only motivation for trying to find her—to do the right thing—but we both know it’s bullshit. McKenna might not know me well, but even she can see I’m lying through my teeth.
“I remember when you were together. You were so in love,” she says with a big smile on her face, and I can’t help but roll my eyes at her.
“We were kids. It was a long fucking time ago.”
“Still, even if you move on, I think a love like that sticks with you in some way,” she replies, sounding like something out of a shit Disney movie.
Don’t be an asshole, Ev. You need this girl to help you,I remind myself.
