Page 20 of His Secret Betrayal (Cedarwood Valley Duology #2)

Luke

“ T his is, like, homemade? It’s not from a can?

” Shoveling another spoonful of chicken noodle soup past my lips, I’m well-aware that my eyes are probably lit up like a kid’s in a candy store.

I’ve always had a weak spot for comfort foods, and my stomach was growling by the time Alek set the bowls on the kitchen table between us with a slice of toasted crostini bread.

He shrugs. “It wasn’t hard to make, but thank you.”

I finish off the entire meal, scarfing the food down with vigor and eagerly accepting a second bowl when he offers.

Once he finishes his own, he leans back and studies me with that appraising look of his, as if he’s trying to figure out who I am.

It makes me wonder if he’s thinking about my meltdown today.

I clear my throat, averting my gaze as shame heats my cheeks.

In his eyes, I’m probably a weak kid who can’t take care of himself.

Not a twenty-four-year-old man who wants his best friend’s dad to rail him.

He'll never touch me now.

To distract myself, I peer around Alek’s home.

It’s a modern, craftsman-style house with an open floor plan.

On the left side, where we sit, is the kitchen area.

It’s a small space with granite countertops and updated appliances, and an area big enough for a square dining table.

Next to us is a hallway, which Alek already explained is where the three bedrooms and one bathroom is.

To our right is the living room. It’s a clean, tidy space with a pristine look, black leather couch, and a massive TV sitting over a fireplace. It looks cozy, and it feels…peaceful.

Maybe I would enjoy it more if I didn’t still feel raw, like an exposed wire. My throat is scratchy, my eyes are puffy, and my skin has this too-tight, itchy feeling as I fidget in my chair.

“You’re probably tired. Do you want to take a shower before bed?” Alek’s voice cuts through my musings.

For a moment, I freeze, because I think he means together. Does he mean together? He can’t possibly find me attractive right now. Surely, I look like a hot mess. But my blood heats and travels south, and I bite my bottom lip.

Alek doesn’t seem to notice the subtle shift in my mood.

“I can show you where the towels are, and I’ll leave you a pair of sweatpants outside the door if that’s okay.

They’re probably too big on you, but I don’t have any of Caleb’s old clothes here anymore.

” His smile is apologetic, pulling at the faint traces of laugh lines that are beginning to form next to his eyes.

My mood sours again, and I try not to appear too disappointed. Of course, he doesn’t want to touch me anymore. Why would he after the way I embarrassed myself? Besides, I’m too exhausted to do much right now. The mere thought of a hot shower and a bed has my eyelids drooping.

I nod. “Yeah, sounds like a good idea. Thanks.” When I try to take my empty bowl to the sink, Alek shakes his head and takes it from me. As I begin shuffling toward the hallway, the sound of clinking dishes pauses, and I hear Alek’s voice from where he now stands at the sink.

“Hey, Luke?”

I glance at him, frowning at the pensive expression on his face.

I get the feeling he has something important to say, but like the squirrel brain I am, I still take a moment to admire him.

The sight of him standing in his own home, white sleeves rolled up to his forearms as he rinses our bowls out, the gray sprinkling of hair along his temple standing out under the kitchen lights, makes me want to drool.

Will I get to see him in a pair of sweatpants while I’m here? Please, God of Gray Sweatpants, let me see that magnificent body in a pair just once.

Alek, oblivious to my wayward thoughts once more, rubs the back of his neck. “I just wanted you to know…your secrets are safe with me. You are safe with me.”

Rubbing a palm over my chest does nothing to settle the rapid firing of my heart.

I inhale a shaky breath, a colony of butterflies fluttering about my stomach as warmth spreads through my belly.

Somehow, I manage to nod before squeaking out a thank you and disappearing down the hallway, silently commanding my pulse to settle down .

I don’t know why he’s helping me, but I like being here in his home with him.

Being surrounded by his scent – mahogany and black teakwood – is soothing in a way I wasn’t expecting.

Having him cook for me, eating dinner across from him, makes me feel cared for in a way I haven’t felt since I moved out of Jax’s home for college.

Only, this feels like it goes a little deeper.

When I came into work this morning, I certainly hadn’t expected to find myself here at the end of the day.

I just wanted to make it through my shift without having an emotional breakdown, and I failed spectacularly.

While we were still in the closet at work, Alek said it would be a good idea if I came home with him tonight, but I’m assuming that’s a one-night invitation only.

He said I needed to put some space between Evelyn and me while the fallout from the chaotic weekend settles down.

And Stoney. He laughed when I explained why I call him Stoney.

But now that I’m here, I have this insane urge to crawl into bed with him, burrow himself into his arms, and never leave.

My secrets are safe with him, and so am I. But what about my heart?

“You ruin everything,” Evelyn hisses through gritted teeth. I jump back, yelping when her blonde strands transform into snakes. The rows of beady-eyed, black, writhing creatures rear their heads back to hiss at me. Their forked tongues flick back and forth, as if tasting the scent of my fear .

“What the fuck?” I whisper, my voice hoarse. I try to turn away, but we’re surrounded by black . It presses in on us like thick pockets of impenetrable fog, and my brain begins to bleat in panic.

“I’m trying to help you,” I tell her. But my words come too late. She disappears, and Stoney takes her place. His malicious gapped-tooth smile unnerves me, and I find myself backing up a step. He cocks his head to the side, a gleeful smile spreading across his lips as he cracks his knuckles.

“Stay away from me,” I warn him.

“You’re a punk, and you’re going to learn what happens to people who get in my way,” he says, a dark laugh rumbling from his chest. That’s when the glint of light bouncing off steel catches my eyes, and I look down. There’s a set of brass knuckles wrapped around his skinny fingers.

I stumble backwards. “Don’t come any closer!”

The sound of shuffling feet has me jerking around, my shoulders slumping with relief at the sight of Jax.

He looks just the way I remember seeing him last: black hair, green eyes, and a fireman’s uniform.

He must be coming from one of his volunteer shifts, and although it’s definitely my brother, something is different.

He’s frowning at me like he doesn’t even know me, a look of disappointment marring his face.

Even when I had a fit of anger over him sleeping with my ex-girlfriend behind my back and it temporarily broke up their relationship, he didn’t look at me like this.

Like I’m nothing more than a bug under his shoe.

It makes my skin go clammy, and my fingers shake.

Behind me, I can hear the sick amusement in Stoney’s laughter.

“You betrayed me,” Jax murmurs.

I shake my head vigorously. “No, no, I— ”

“Didn’t you think I would want a chance to have a relationship with our mother, too?” he asks, shaking his head. “I don’t want to talk to you ever again.”

“Wait! Please, let me explain!” I cry out the words, and they echo back to me as he walks away from me without another glance back.

“What’s the matter, Luke?” Stoney suddenly appears in front of me again, his face close enough that I get a whiff of his putrid breath. “Doesn’t anybody care enough to come save you?” he taunts.

He cocks his fist back, the steel gleaming. Panic infuses my body, and I’m frozen to the spot. I can’t breathe, I can’t breathe, I can’t—

“Your secrets are safe with me. You are safe with me.”

The words echo in my head so faintly I can barely hear them, but I latch onto them like a lifeline.

“Alek!” I scream his name so loudly my voice cracks. Stoney’s fist is coming at me in slow motion, and I don’t know how to stop it. So, I scream the name of the one person who might help me. Over and over again, I call for him.

“Alek!”

And then, just as Stoney’s fist is about to make contact with my jaw, Alek’s answering call punctures the air.

“Luke! It’s a dream. Wake up for me, please .”

Alek’s voice, infused with concern, yanks me from my nightmare and deposits me back into the land of wakefulness in one jarring movement.

I gasp like a fish out of water as my eyes spring open, peering down to find his arms wrapped around me in a vise-like grip from behind.

My own fingers dig into his hands hard enough that I know I’m probably leaving marks.

But in the darkness of his guest bedroom, I can’t see much.

My heartbeat is rapid, the back of my neck slick with sweat as my chest heaves.

Despite the shame and embarrassment mixing with my residing panic, I don’t want to let go of Alek.

His tight grip feels safe . And I haven’t felt that way in a long time, have I?

Not in that apartment I share with the woman who birthed and abandoned me.

Not when she’s constantly screaming and belittling me, and certainly not when she has people like Stoney in and out all the time.

He shouldn’t have to see me like this. Why is he even still here, still offering me support even though I’ve continuously shown him how pathetic I am?

“This was a mistake. I shouldn’t have come here,” I manage to croak out, albeit weakly. I have to get out of here. I lurch forward, attempting to throw my leg over the side of the bed.