Page 54 of Never Let Go (Forbidden #1)

Chapter Fifty-Four

LAUREN

“ L auren, come in.” Brad steps aside for me to enter but I furrow my brow at him, staying where I am.

“Why don’t you come in and I’ll explain, hmm?” he says.

I steady my nerves and shuffle past him, leaning my body as far away from him as possible as I concentrate on putting one foot in front of the other. Trying to figure out why Brad’s opening the door and not the dean.

I walk in as far as I dare, not wanting to be too far from an exit at any given moment.

Much like the rest of the hotel, the rooms are done in an elegant way, the walls are cream but with blue accents.

The living room is an open plan setting, two small couches facing a TV with a small table and chairs next to balcony doors .

Brad closes the door and comes up behind me, bringing me out of my perusal. “We’re going to have so much fun together, my love,” he whispers darkly in my ear. He goes to move my hair to the side but I step away.

“You need to start talking, Brad, right. The. Fuck. Now,” I exclaim. “I’m so confused. You were the one that sent the message asking me to meet you here?”

Brad runs a hand through his blonde hair, a sinister grin playing on his lips before he replies, “Looks like the cat’s out of the bag now. You met my father, his tastes?—”

“I’m sorry. Your father?” I cut in, pacing around the room, one hand in my hair as I try and understand what the hell’s going on. “Are you trying to tell me that Dean Williams is your father?” I laugh, because that’s absurd, right?

“Yes, he’s my father. We’ve been planning this for a while.

We wanted it to look like he was after you the whole time.

I guess it worked if you didn’t know it was actually me who’s been obsessed with you.

Call it a… father/son bonding experience,” he chuckles, but I stand there mouth agape, failing to see what’s so funny as he continues, “The minute I saw you walking around in a black one piece at Strokes, I knew then that you were meant to be mine. Father just helped the process along until I was ready to show my hand.” Brad shrugs like it’s no big deal.

“Father/son bonding experience?” I scoff. “That’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard. Why make it look like it was your dad, though? Why do any of this?” I pinch the bridge of my nose, none of this adding up and making sense.

“My father and I… This isn’t the first time that we’ve become obsessed with the same woman, I’m just lucky that this time, another woman took his interest, leaving you all for me.

” Brad stalks closer to me and I move back, bumping into the sideboard behind me.

“Every time you felt like you were being watched? That was me.” Brad grins, almost like he’s pleased with himself.

My mind and heart are racing at the thought that I’ve had this wrong the whole time.

That I thought it was the dean who was pulling the strings, but he wasn’t.

It was Brad! I look at him, really look at him for the first time and I’m shocked to find the similarities in his features. How did I not see this before?

“But the party,” I suddenly say, remembering. “You and the dean acted like you didn’t know each other? His wife… your mom acted like she hated you.”

He smirks, running a hand down his face.

“Ah yes, acting at its finest. My mother hates me, always has. But that’s more to do with the fact that I’m a result of my father having an affair, so technically…

I’m not her son. I took my mother’s name.

Father and I don’t go spreading our relationship for…

certain reasons, as I’m sure you can understand.

” Brad brings his hand up, pushing a strand of hair out of my face and I flinch.

“All this time…?” I question.

He moves his hand down to his side and walks to the bar, pouring himself a drink, before downing it in one.

“All this time,” he mumbles before turning back to me.

“All this time, I’ve wanted you. That lost look you had in your eyes called to my own.

It called to the darkest parts of me. But then you had to get involved with him and I knew I had to do something sooner rather than later. ”

“We went on one date, Brad. I thought you were my friend?” I whisper.

“Friend? No, Lauren. I’ve never been your friend ,” he mocks. “Now, are you going to be a good little girl and do as I say? We wouldn’t want anything bad to happen to Professor Anderson now, would we.” His smile is all teeth, without actually smiling, and a shiver makes its way down my spine.

The deranged look in his eyes—so familiar to his father’s, that the very little I’d had to eat before coming here was threatening its way back up.

“You and your father are sick, you know that?” I shout, my body shaking as I deal with, not one but two, deranged men that are insistent on ruining my life, and threatening to harm Caleb.

Brad starts chuckling darkly, stalking toward me, and shaking his head. He snaps his hand out and grabs me by the throat, cutting off my air supply. I instinctively start clawing at his hands, trying to pry him off, as pure terror runs through me.

His pupils are blown wide and a dark, calculating look enters his eyes. “Do not test me, Lauren. I won’t be held accountable for my actions should you deny me of what is mine.”

He lets go, turning his back on me and I grab at my throat, rubbing where he squeezed as I take in much needed gulps of air.

“I’m not yours,” I choke out, my throat sore from his grip.

He pauses mid step at my words, his body stiffening. Brad slowly turns to me, a murderous look on his face. “Tread carefully, my love. You. Are. Mine.” He shouts the last part as if saying it louder it will make it true.

Well, if I’m going to die today, I might as well make it count.

I straighten my spine and channel my inner Sydney. “I will never be yours. You can delude yourself all you want, Brad, but I belong to no one. You disgust me,” I sneer.

He advances on me, gripping my arm painfully, his nails digging in, the pain causing me to gasp. I want to call out, to shout for help but this is a turn in the plan that I didn’t see coming.

“Why are you doing this to me?” I cry out, as he all but drags me towards the bedroom, my feet slipping along the floor in his haste .

Brad doesn’t say anything as he brings me round and shoves me onto the bed.

His cold eyes taking me in before saying, “I’m doing this because I can.

I’ll take what I want, and what I want is you , Lauren.

To do exactly as I say, when I say. You have been a continued thorn in my side since I saw you a year ago.

I have watched you, yearned for you, but I’m done waiting. I will have you. Mind, body, and soul.”

“You may have my body, but you will never have my mind or my soul,” I yell trying to get up off the bed, but he pushes me back down and climbs on top of me.

Okay, this has gone on long enough now. I can’t do this anymore.

I take in as big a breath as I’m able to with a large, crazed, six foot something man on top of me, and scream at the top of my lungs, “SYDNEY.”

Brad’s head snaps up from where it was resting in the crook of my neck, anger pooling in his gaze. “Oh, Lauren. You shouldn’t have done that.”

I start fighting against him when suddenly pain explodes through my eye, and everything goes black.