Dakota
Onthelonglistof things I never thought I’d have to consider in my lifetime, joining a secret society wasn’t one of them.
Because…Ho-ly fuckin’ shit.
Not onlydid I agree to marry Rhylan without a second thought, but I also went so far as to sign my sister up right alongside me so I wouldn’t have to keep the rest of my life a secret from her.Ohh, is she about to be pissed with what I’ve done…
“Excuse me, you did what?!I’m what?!”
“Shh… keep it down. Rhylan’s still sleeping...”
“Rhylan’s—Girl, have you lost your fucking mind?”A little…“You’ve gone from hating the man’s guts, threatening to burn his studio down, to spending an entire weekend fucking around and falling in love, to believing he’d abandoned you overnight, to now calling himhusband…Are y'all getting dicked or whipped because this sexual tension is fucking ridiculous.” Okay, it sounds crazywhen she phrases it like that…
“I will explain everything if you just—”
“Bitch, you better. I did not just come home from crashing on Tae’s air mattress out of fear for my life to find out that I was now being hooked up with one of Rhylan’s friends, and not just fucking set up likefirst-date-instant-boyfriend-girlfriend-haha-shit, butmarriage? Are you okay? Because I sure as fuck ain’t after hearing all ofthat.”
My sister’s reaction was appropriate for what I’d just asked of her, and I could agree that it was far more than a simple blind date request.
“I know last night was a lot, but if you just go into this with an open mind and—”
“What happened… After I ran?” Tiffany’s eyes narrowed, and I rolled my lips between my teeth, trying to find the words without giving up classified information that could have her killed. "Dakota Mary-Anne Wilde, answer me now, I swear to fucking god—”
“Rhylan showed up and stepped in.” Tiffany’s eyebrows lifted with suspicion, not buying a single word.
“That’s it? He justshowed upout of nowhere like fucking Batman to save the day?”Not exactly, or my choice of wording, maybe Dark Knight?… Her gaze then drifted down my neck as she scrutinized me, stopping when her eyes reached the marks and bruises Jaiden had left behind. With a forceful sigh, she sagged back in her chair, head rolling toward the ceiling before closing her eyes to process the bombshell I’d detonated. “I saw the police… on my way to Tae’s...”
“Yeah… I’m guessing the neighbors called them because of all the noise. I wasn’t exactly subtle when I smashed through the back door.”Or the fucking gunshot…I nodded to where Rhylan had covered the damage with duct tape and cardboard. Just another thing on my to-do list for the day, aside from making things official—signing our marriage certificate as promised.
I didn’t bother to question how Rhylan had managed to achieve something in a few hours that would usually take weeks. Just another perk of being a member of the MUR, I suppose.
“Well, I guess it’s a good thing they showed up when they did… Fuck Jaiden, I hope someone castrates that asshole while he rots in prison…”Oh, he’s rotting somewhere…
Of all the things I’d disclose to Tiffany, his murder, at the hands of Rhylan, wouldn’t be one of them. All she needed to know was that Jaiden was finally out of our lives for good, and there would be no fear of his return this time around; that was good enough for me.
“Will you at least consider going through with this? I know we always promised to be open and honest with each other, and I can’t—”
“Mornin’ darlin’. Tiffany.” A sleep-mussed Rhylan entered the kitchen, stopping just behind me while giving a gentle nod to my sister as he wrapped his arms around my waist.
Tiffany’s face twisted into one of teenage disgust, and I understood how she was feeling; what she was going through.
No hard feelings; I would’ve reacted the exact same way if the roles were reversed.
“Y’all can have your secrets. I’m going back to bed,my bed, and will pray to god that when I wake up,thiswill be nothing more than some fucked up fever dream that my hysterical little mind cooked up, and my sister isn’t seriously considering forcing me into an arranged marriage with a cowboy stripper…” Aggressively pushing her chair out from under the table, Tiffany left the kitchen, practically running up the stairs with a slam of her bedroom door.
“By that statement and reaction, I’m going to assume that you haven’t told her the whole truth.” Rhylan’s hands grazed up my sides before caressing my shoulders, giving them a soft massage to loosen the tension that had built from our conversation.
I sighed as his thumbs worked out the knots near the nape of my neck, relaxing in his soothing presence.
“No… not yet, at least. I won’t risk her life if she’s happy to turn a blind eye. But, if there comes a time when she needs the real answers, if they have to come out—”
“Then you need a plan B to protect her… And you?”
“What about me?” I turned to face him, dropping my forehead to his chest and finding comfort in the embrace as his arms wrapped around me again, holding me close.
“You were tossin’ and turnin’ all night, darlin’. Don’t think I didn’t notice.”
Last night was one for the record books, that’s for sure.
