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When I leave the library, I’m a mess, confused by my own emotions. What if my father was trying to protect me from her? What if she didn’t want me? I shove all the lingering questions to the back of my mind. Until I have a logical answer to them, there is no point in dwelling on them.
I meet Ren for breakfast as usual and ignore the festering in my gut. Something bad is about to happen. I can feel it.
Two days pass, and they’re as anxiety-riddled as ever. I do my best to keep a safe distance from Aspen, even if it’s hell to do. I can feel my need for control rising up. It won’t be long till I have to make a trip to her room and find something to barter her with.
I drag myself out of bed and walk to the library to meet Brittney. As soon as our gazes connect, the tiny hairs on the back of my neck stand on end. She pushes her glasses up the bridge of her nose, staring at me almost nervously.
“I get the feeling whatever you’re going to tell me isn’t something I’ll like.
“It didn’t take me long to find a name, but her name doesn’t matter, not now.”
“What do you mean?”
“Tia was her name, and she’s dead.”
Dead? Why did I never think that was a possibility? “What happened, and when?” The wheels in my head start turning again; maybe she died in childbirth, or maybe one of my father’s enemies killed her.
“I don’t know what happened. I just know she is dead.”
My jaw aches, and my teeth crack with the pressure of my grinding teeth. “Dig deeper, find out who killed her and why.”
Brittney gives me an apprehensive look. “Sometimes, when you start digging for things, you move dirt and uncover secrets you were never meant to discover.”
“What the fuck is that supposed to mean?” I growl, angry that my birth mother is dead. Any chance of finding out what happened between my father and her is gone.
“It means you might be better off not knowing what happened.”
I shake my head at her stupidity. “I don’t care what you have to do. Find out what happened, or else I’ll end your career here and make you wish there was a place you could hide from us.”
Brittney doesn’t reply, and I’m thankful for that. I can feel my rage boiling up to the surface. It’s only six o’clock, and I’ve shot my entire day in the ass with this little piece of information. Working out isn’t going to make this energy go away. Nothing but control will help me. When I can’t control the pieces of my forever moving chessboard, I move to control someone else’s.
Each step I take toward Aspen’s room sends a spike of adrenaline through my veins. She is a drug I can’t shake, forbidden fruit dangling at the top of the street, and I’m starving. When I reach the door to her room, I’ve already got the key card out. I let myself in, opening the door slowly, and with one deep inhale of her sweet scent, it’s like I can think a little clearer.
I close the door behind me, and my cock hardens to steel when I turn around and drink her in. She’s sleeping on her stomach, one arm under the pillow, and her blond hair frames her head like a halo.
She’s not wearing panties, and the blanket is kicked away, leaving her completely exposed. My mouth waters, like a fucking steak has been set before me. Every day, I learn she is a temptation I cannot afford to want, yet I’m not strong enough to deny either of us what we crave. Crossing the room, I lick my lips and reach for the button on my jeans.
I’m just about to strip out of my clothes and sink nine inches deep into her tight pussy, fucking her until we’re both spent, when my eyes catch on something glittery.
My lungs deflate like a balloon, and I stare at the bracelet Aspen is wearing, willing myself to unsee it clinging to her delicate wrist.
I’d know that bracelet anywhere as it was a piece of jewelry my sister Adela was very fond of. A thin rose gold bracelet with a heart-shaped diamond pendant. It looked beautiful on her, but on Aspen, it looks…
The room spins, and my hands become fists.
Something inside me snaps. The control I often seek out in Aspen is out of reach. I’m spiraling. As if God knew what would happen next, Aspen woke, her head lifting off the pillow and the bracelet moving as she sits up. I can’t look away from that bracelet. How had she gotten it, and when?
“Quinton, what are you—”
I cut her off before she has the chance to speak. My hand wrapping tightly around her throat as I slam her naked body against the wall. My body is pressed against hers, trapping her.
