AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Bile crawls up my throat, and I force myself up, making it to the kitchen sink where a wave of sickness floods from me, retching into the metal basin. My clammy hands stick to the counter, my hair dampening as a cold sweat beads on my forehead.
I rush to the bathroom on shaky legs, brushing my teeth and shoving my hair up into a messy bun. My bones grow cold, and my body trembles as panic threatens to overwhelm me, the familiar black spots dancing in my vision.
When I’m back in the kitchen, I peel open the drawer where all the envelopes have been stuffed. Out of sight, out of mind was my motto. But now I need to know.
One by one, I tear apart their seals, white sheets flooding the kitchen floor. Almost every one has the same message scrawled over the paper when I read them.
I told you what would happen, beautiful, and you didn’t listen.
A chill runs over my body, and I clench my eyes shut as tears roll down my cheeks.
The one lie I kept to myself that day Maverick asked me why. I was scared, that was true, but it wasn’t me I was scared for. Sebastian has a vile temper, but his family also has a lot of power. He promised to ruin Maverick if I didn’t pull my statement. Threatened he’d make sure he would never play football again or make anything of his life.
I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t let him do it then, and I can’t let him do it now.
Stark clarity hits me, and another wave of emotions overwhelms my senses, pulling me to the floor. I love Maverick Brady. Maybe I always have.
And just as he said to me, I don’t know that there will ever be a day where I don’t.
Letting go of him will be the hardest thing I’ll ever do, but after seeing the way Willow looked at me today, and finally opening these letters, I know the truth. If he stays with me, I really will ruin his life this time, and that isn’t something I’m willing to do.
Maverick
Beatrice rushes out of the apartment before I can even think, her eyes betraying her emotions as her shoulders slump in defeat. The door slams behind her, leaving awkward silence in her wake.
Nash passes me, grabbing her phone from where it’s still plugged in my nightstand. Her bag gets thrown over his shoulder next, and the look he gives me as he stalks out of the door following her footsteps is nothing short of disappointment.
Shit.I just really fucked up here if his expression is anything to go off, but I don’t know why.
“Fuck.” I rake a hand through my hair, peeling my eyes away from the door to face my sister. Having her show up is always a pleasant surprise, but something tells me her appearance here today changed the course of my relationship with Beatrice . . . and not for the better.
“Maverick,” Willow snaps, waving her hand in front of my face. “What the hell were you thinking? You really went and fucked Bea? After everything she’s done to us?”
My skin bristles under her question. “To us? She didn’t do shit to you, Willow, so don’t start with that shit.”
“You really believe that?” She gapes, her eyes wide in disbelief. “You don’t think it wrecked our family to watch you suffer because of her? To know that my best friend was the reason my brother wound up behind bars, almost losing everything he worked so hard for. Shit, Maverick. I welcomed her into our home. You might have gotten the brunt of her betrayal, but it didn’t stop there. She ruined pieces of us all that day. So again, I ask, how could you? How could you be with her after all that?”
Closing my eyes, I scrub my hand over my face, blowing out a slow breath. Willow’s words hit me hard, my chest splintering under the weight of them. While I knew my family hated watching me go through all that shit, I’d never thought of the impact it had on them.
“There’s so much you don’t know, Will. Things that aren’t mine to tell you, but she’s not the villain you think she is.”
“You’re defending her?” Her eyes drop, horror spreading over my face. “Does she have a magic fucking pussy that made you forget that she got you sent to prison? Jesus. Are you so dick whipped by her cunt that you can’t see the truth?”
“Say that again and you can walk back out the way you came. She might not be your favorite person in the world, but I won’t have you talk shit about her in my home, got it?”
“What the hell, Mav,” she whispers, dropping onto the couch beside me. Her eyes fill with tears, her mouth wide open as she stares at me. Other than Nash, Willow is my best friend. We’ve been attached at the hip for as long as she’s been alive, and never once have I spoken to her like I just did.
But Beatrice is Beatrice. And hearing anyone talk shit about my girl sends lead to my stomach . . . so I won’t take it back. I can’t take it back. If we have any chance when it comes to us, she needs me in her corner the way she’s always been in mine.
“I need you to talk me through this,” Willow starts, wriggling around until her legs are crossed under her and she’s facing me. “You’re going to need to help me understand, Mav. Cause when we last spoke, you never once hinted that you and Beatrice were together, and from how comfortable she was in here, I’m going to guess this has been going on for a while.”
“I told you, Willow, it’s not my story to tell.”
“Then tell me what you can,” she pleads, grabbing my hand and squeezing lightly. “I promise I’ll listen and say nothing. But, Maverick, I doubt there’s anything you can tell me that will ever make me forgive her. And I doubt Mom and Dad will either. So you gotta decide if she’s worth it. You nearly lost everything over her once before, are you willing to risk it all again?”
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Beatrice
