Page 7 of Daring to Love You (Priestly Family #3)

Chapter Five

“ H ello, Lynix. It’s good to see you.”

“Too bad I can’t say the same,” he ground out, clenching and unclenching his fists at his side.

Ignoring the way her dark eyes gave him the once over, Lynix moved around the woman and headed to the main foyer. He feared that, if he opened his mouth to say more, he’d say something extremely disrespectful because that’s how much he hated her.

So instead of risking making a scene, he was leaving. Seeing her again brought back a host of memories he didn’t want to relive. Memories that had messed with his head years ago and were currently pissing him the hell off. He thought he had moved on. Forgive and forget, but…

“I see you still haven’t forgiven me,” Marisela said as if reading his mind.

Lynix stopped at the end of the hallway and slowly turned to her. She was still standing just outside the bathroom door, but now she was leaning with a shoulder propped against the wall and her legs crossed at the ankle. She looked as if she didn’t have a care in the world.

“I think this is my cue to get lost. Holler if you need rescuing,” his brother said with humor in his tone.

If only Wes knew what happened in college with Marisela, he wouldn’t leave him alone with her.

Nor would there be humor in his tone. Only two people, besides Marisela, knew about the worst night of his life during his freshmen year of college.

That was his brother Omari and Lynix’s college roommate, Jake.

Omari was the closest in age to Lynix. They shared a bedroom growing up, and he was one of Lynix’s best friends. His brother had come through for him big-time that night, and they hadn’t spoken of the situation since.

That had been fifteen years ago, and Lynix had no intentions of ever discussing that night again. It had been the scariest and most humiliating day of his life.

He stiffened when he realized Marisela was walking toward him, but she stopped suddenly. He wasn’t sure what she saw on his face, but whatever it was had her rooted in place. Good. He didn’t want her nowhere near him.

“Lynix, what happened back then was a long time ago,” she said quietly as she started walking toward him again.

“I don’t know how many times I have to apologize, but I really am sorry about all that went down.

What do I have to do to get you to move past my horrible mistake?

We were stupid freshmen in college. I’m sure there were things you did back then that you aren’t proud of. ”

Not back then, Lynix thought. Thanks to her, he had changed schools, anything to put some distance between them. Then he spent the rest of his college life keeping his head down and doing everything he could to get through the next three years.

As for his early adult life? Yeah, there were things he wished he could take back.

Namely his hoeing ways. He loved women and they loved him, and these days, that wasn’t something he was proud of.

But he had changed. Changed for the better so he could win the heart of the most incredible woman he knew—Dorian.

“Well, you can keep pushing me away, but now that we’re adults and have moved on from that night, I want you back.”

Heart pounding loud enough to wake up the dead, Lynix looked at her as if she had lost her damn mind. He moved closer so he wouldn’t have to raise his voice, and he didn’t want anyone else to hear what he was about to say.

“Let me make this clear once and for all,” he said, hearing the lethalness in his own voice. “I don’t know what type of game you’re playing, but I don’t want you. You are the lowest form of human life, and as far as I’m concerned, you can go straight to hell where you belong.”

She held his gaze and lifted her chin in defiance. In that superior way she used to do, as if she was beyond reproach. “Baby, I know you don’t mean that.” Her voice was low and sultry as if she truly wasn’t getting what he was saying.

“Oh, I sure as hell do mean it, and if you don’t believe me, fuck around and find out what happens.” Rage clawed through his body, and he was struggling to keep it in check because this woman had a way of stirring the beast within him like no other.

He shortened the distance between them. Close enough to get a whiff of her floral scent, and it almost made him gag, but he needed to make sure she understood him. Standing several inches taller than her, even in her high heels, he used his size to intimidate her and leaned in.

“We share a secret, and if you want to keep it that way, I suggest you stay as far away from me as possible. I heard about your new fashion line, and I’m sure you wouldn’t want your potential investors or buyers to find out what type of person you really are.

I guarantee if they knew what I knew, you wouldn’t be able to sell shit. ”

Concern flashed in her eyes, but it was gone as fast as it appeared as they stood staring at each other, but then that spark of mischief had returned to her dark gaze.

“Oh, Lynix. I guess that means you really haven’t forgiven me yet.” She ran the back of her bejeweled fingers over his chest, and his body jerked as if burned, and he grabbed hold of her wrist in the process.

“No, that means if you ever come near me or touch me again, you’re going to wish you were dead.”

Approaching footsteps sounded in his ear, and he released her, then cursed under his breath. He might’ve missed his opportunity to flee the house without an audience.

“Oh good. I see you two kids have kissed and made up,” Mr. Baldwin said.

The smiling multimillionaire was a big guy with a receding hairline, light-brown eyes, and a broad nose that took up the majority of his face.

He had raised Marisela after his wife died from a rare disease when their daughter was only four.

Lynix couldn’t even imagine how hard that had to be, especially after losing his wife.

It all probably played a major role into why Marisela was a spoiled brat who had mean-girl tendencies.

Still, the older man adored his daughter.

And right now, the huge grin on the guy’s face was grating on Lynix’s nerves.

“We haven’t kissed and made up yet, but I was suggesting to Lynix that we should do just that,” Marisela said sweetly, and Lynix gritted his teeth so tightly it made his jaw ache.

Yeah, she was up to something, and for all he knew, her father was in on it. So Lynix needed to shut whatever this was down immediately.

“That’s never going to happen for so many reasons, but it mainly won’t happen because I’m involved with someone.” The words flew from his mouth before he could think them through, but most of them were true.

He turned away from Marisela and strolled past Mr. Baldwin with every intention of walking out the front door without looking back. But before he could reach it, his mother and father stepped into the foyer.

“Well, if it isn’t the prodigal son,” his father, Weston Mathews III, said.

He and Lynix had similar builds with his dad being an inch or two taller with salt and pepper hair neatly cut and a full, perfectly trimmed beard covering his face.

Dressed in a black shirt and pants with a lightweight tweed jacket, he looked more relaxed than Lynix had ever seen him.

Maybe it was true. Maybe he really was trying to retire.

“I’m glad you’re here, Son,” his dad continued, surprising Lynix by referring to him as Son .

Usually his father preferred terms like, idiot, pain in the ass, bane of my existence , when it came to Lynix.

“Did Karsten tell you that he and I want to talk to you and Marisela after dinner?” he asked of Mr. Baldwin.

“ Weston ,” Lynix’s mom said in a warning tone. “Not tonight. We’re going to have a nice meal together, and there will be no talk about business… or marriages.”

Lynix’s hackles went up. So he was right, Marisela and her father were up to something, but he wasn’t about to stick around and find out what that something was.

“Sorry, Mom. I can’t stay,” Lynix said, and he didn’t miss the disappointment in her eyes.

His father threw up his hands and scowled. “There he goes running like the punk ass he is,” he said, disgust dripping from his words.

And that was the father Lynix remembered. From what he could tell, the only thing that had changed was his style of dress. Other than that, he was still the self-serving, controlling, bastard he’d always been.

“I raised you to be a strong, respectable man,” his father continued. “Yet, you continue to embarrass me and disappoint your mother. We have guests here, and Marisela came to see you. You’re not going anywhere.”

Lynix snorted, then started laughing. He couldn’t help it.

The old man actually thought he could tell him what to do, and he’d listen.

Those days were long gone, and it was time he reminded him.

But not wanting to embarrass or disappoint his mother any more than his leaving would do, Lynix didn’t speak the words that were dangling on the edge of his tongue.

No, he’d save them for his father’s ears only. Because whatever he and Mr. Baldwin were up to, Lynix was sure he’d hear about it sooner or later. When that happened, he’d be ready to shoot it down without remorse.

He approached his mother who was moving toward him. Reaching for her hand, he squeezed it and kissed her cheek. “I’m sorry, Mom. I can’t stay.”

She released a long breath and nodded. “I know, and I’ll walk you out.”

Lynix knew his brothers probably heard everything from wherever they were, and he’d talk to them later. Once he and his mother were outside, she pulled the door closed behind her.

“I’m sorry, honey. I’ll be having a long talk with your father. I don’t know what he and Karsten have planned, but I’ll make sure they keep you out of it.”

She might try, but knowing his father, he’d still find a way to rope Lynix into something.

He would try it more with his brothers if he could get away with it.

He definitely couldn’t insist on them being a part of some stupid marriage scheme since Wes was married, Thane was engaged, and Omari had a longtime girlfriend. That only left Lynix.

Instead of telling his mother that she probably couldn’t stop whatever his father had in motion, he said, “Thanks, Mom, and sorry I can’t stay.”

“It’s okay, but did I hear you say you were dating someone?”

Dammit. She wasn’t supposed to hear that. Hell, he wasn’t sure why he’d said it in the first place. Yet here he was now, having to explain himself. He could lie, but his conscience wouldn’t let him. Instead, he gave her a half-truth that he hoped to be true sometime in the very near future.

“Yes, I’m seeing someone, but we’re taking it slow.”

The smile on his mother’s face could’ve lit up Times Square during a blackout. She never tried to push him and his brothers into relationships, nor did she demand they give her grandchildren, but he knew that’s what she wanted.

“That’s wonderful. I hope you’re planning to bring her to the fundraiser gala next month. Or better yet, you can bring her by here so I can meet her,” she said, and he didn’t miss the hopefulness in her voice.

Instead of saying yes or no, he kissed her on her cheek and said, “We’ll see.”

Now all he had to do was get Dorian to come around to his way of thinking.