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"Come on, we'll find somewhere less insulting to eat, Princess."

"How dare–" My father started.

"I think that will be quite enough, Mr. Bristol." Az interrupted. "Not only have you insulted me and my men, but you've insulted your own daughter. Insinuating that she is incapable of making her ownsmartdecisions. From what I've seen, she is quite the opposite, albeit frustratingly so, and doesn't deserve being spoken about, or for, as if she doesn't have her own mind."

I barely noticed the other guys moving from their seats as Az strolled toward me, an apparent dismissal of my father. My mouth felt permanently unhinged from shock. The man had been nothing but a jerk to me from the moment I arrived atthe manor, but he spoke with such conviction that I was hard-pressed to believe his words were just for show.

"Close your mouth, Princess." Az chuckled, pushing my jaw shut with one finger before gently slipping my arm into his and leading me toward the foyer.

I was vaguely aware of Theo and my father speaking. I was too busy reeling from Az's defense of me to catch anything they said as the rest of the guys flanked us.

"Is this the twilight zone? I swear this is the twilight zone." I mumbled to myself. "What the hell was that?"

Az chuckled softly, leading me outside and stopping beside the car to lean down toward my ear.

"Not the twilight zone, Princess. Just a lesson learned from my mother." He whispered just loud enough for me to hear. "You might be the most frustrating woman I've ever known, but I'll be damned if I'll stand there and let someone diminish you like that."

CHAPTER NINETEEN

Victoria

The shrill ring of my cell phone pulled me from sleep. I patted around on my nightstand blindly until I found it, pressing the button on the side to stop the incessant noise. The guys took me to Temptat!on after leaving my father's. They'd originally only intended to grab dinner there. Az, of all people, had insisted we all needed to cut loose. I'd been too stunned by his sudden personality change to do anything other than throwback every shot he passed my way. I was nursing one hell of a hangover because of it.

My phone rang again, and I threw my arm over my eyes with a groan, my other hand flipping it open. "What?!" I demanded.

"Victoria, you need to get to the center immediately and bring one of the boys." Mrs. McMillan's voice came through the receiver.

"What's wrong?" I asked, bolting upright and tossing my blankets aside.

She let out a heavy sigh. "It's… Well, it's better if you just come down and see for yourself. But promise me you'll bring one of the boys."

Panic coiled in my gut. "Why didn't you call one of them?"

"Because this is to do with you, girlie. If I'd called them boys, they wouldn't have let you within twenty miles of this place."

"I'm on my way." I replied, swinging my legs over the side of my bed and stumbling to my closet.

"I'll be here when you arrive." She said, ending the call before I could say another word.

The seconds seemed to drag into years as I tore through my clothes, grabbing a comfortable pair of jeans and a T-shirt. Mrs. McMillan had never summoned me to the center before, and something in her tone of voice on the phone told me she only had now because something was seriously wrong. I dressed with urgency, rushing through brushing my teeth and hair before I slid my feet into a pair of black flats and raced from my room.

Rich's room was the only one on the same floor as mine. Knowing he would likely refuse to let me leave if I woke him in my current state, I hooked a left in the foyer and ran up the stairs, taking them two at a time. Out of breath, I turned right at the top of the stairs and pushed myself to close the distance to Craig's room.

"Craig!" I panted, banging my fists against his door. "Craig, wake up!"

"He's already downstairs in the kitchen." Joey spoke from behind me, startling me.

"I need to get to the center. Now." I said, whirling to face him.

His eyes scanned over me, brows furrowing in concern, and he closed the distance between us. "What's going on, Sweetheart?"

"Mrs. McMillan didn't say, but she sounded concerned. I need to be there five minutes ago if she's calling me." I wrung my hands, moving back toward the stairs. "Craig set up the security. Maybe there's something on it? I don't know…"

Joey fell into stride with me as we descended back to the first floor, rubbing my back gently as we walked.

"First, take a deep breath. Whatever it is, it will be easier to deal with if you're not already psyched out before you get there. Second, you know we'll help with whatever is going on." His voice was soothing, and he grabbed my hand and gently squeezed it. I managed a worried smile.

We turned the corner, and I hurried down the gallery toward the kitchen. I could smell the food on the stove, and if I wasn't so worried, my stomach would have started screaming at me.