Total pages in book: 78
Estimated words: 80261 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 401(@200wpm)___ 321(@250wpm)___ 268(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 80261 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 401(@200wpm)___ 321(@250wpm)___ 268(@300wpm)
“You said you wouldn’t do this!”
“My girl isn’t around now, motherfucker.”
Another shot to the other side of his head.
“Please!”
“If any of you ever come near her again, it’ll be the last thing you do. We clear?”
“Yeah!” they shouted in unison.
I spun, leaving them there before I let my anger get the best of me. At the end of the day, she was only there for one reason and one reason alone.
Billy fucking Hayes.
I jumped in my truck, hauling ass to the bar. After what felt like forever, I rushed inside looking for him, but I found Mark instead.
“Where’s Billy?”
“Not sure, man. You all rig—”
I made my way around the bar, asking everyone if they’d seen him until finally, I found him in the back outside. He was on the phone. Using his distraction, I gripped onto his cut and slammed him face first into our brick building.
“What the fu—”
Aiming my gun to his temple, I unlocked the safety.
“All it would take is one fucking bullet to finally get rid of you,” I spewed, pushing the barrel harder into head. “I should have done it years ago. What you did to my mother… What you’ve done to me… You don’t deserve to live. Out of some fucking loyalty I shouldn’t have for you, I stayed in my lane and played your games.”
He didn’t say a word, his eyes stayed focused on my Glock instead.
“I’m done being your son. Do you understand me? After the stunt you just pulled with Haven, you’re not my father anymore.”
“Hayes—”
“No! You don’t get to talk. From this moment forward, we’re done.”
“Chase…”
“You think that has an effect on me?” Deeper into his skin my barrel went. “I’ve hated for as long as I can remember. The only thing today proves is how much of a bastard you really are.” Still aiming my gun at his temple, I quickly turned him around to glare deep into his eyes. “If you ever use Haven to get to me again, I swear to you on my mother I won’t think twice about putting your miserable life to ground.” My jaw tightened. “Are we fucking clear, Billy?”
“Yeah,” he breathed out.
Slowly, I backed away.
Meaning every last word.
Nineteen
Haven
I dropped Billy’s truck off at the bar, leaving his keys in the driver’s seat. The last thing I wanted to do was see him. Instead of walking in for my shift, I left.
I couldn’t believe how fast things changed between us. In the blink of an eye, I saw the side to him he’d warning me about. One minute we’re in complete bliss and happy together and the next he’s turned into this man I didn’t recognize. My mind was spinning with no end in sight.
The truth was, I was scared of Hayes and what he was truly capable of. The sound of the gunshot as I drove out of the lot echoed all around me.
What did he do?
The question played on repeat. He spent months telling me he wasn’t who I thought he was. I couldn’t take the image of him aiming a gun at their heads like it was the easiest thing in the world for him to do. I hated feeling this way. I knew I’d seen a different side of him. Without a shadow of a doubt, I knew he was two different people now.
One with me.
Another with them.
Where do we go from here?
Somewhere along the way, I called Cove to meet me at my house. Being the best friend that she was, she was already sitting in my driveaway waiting for me when I pulled up. Jumping out of her car first, she darted toward my door, opening it.
“Oh my God! What’s going on?”
“Oh, Cove…”
The shock was wearing off, throwing my arms around her neck, I broke down.
She rubbed my back. “Haven, you’re freaking me out. What happened?”
Once I calmed down and we were in my bedroom, I shared, “Billy sent me to go pick up some liquor from a distributor. I didn’t think anything of it until I showed up there. The warehouse was in the middle of nowhere. It should have been my first clue something wasn’t right, but I didn’t think he’d set me up like that.”
“Set you up for what?”
“There were three guys and they started getting handsy with me. One of them spanked my ass, and when I ran to leave. The other man forcefully shoved me up against the wall and started trailing his hand up my inner thigh.”
Her eyes widened. “Please tell me it’s not what I’m thinking?”
“It would have been had Hayes not shown up when he did with his gun.”
She put her hand over her heart. “Oh, thank God. Did he use it?”
“I asked him not to, but I guess that only meant in front of me. After we got in a fight in the parking lot, I heard a gunshot go off as I was leaving.”