Page 16 of Ruthless Desires, Vol. Two (Ruthless Desires Series Extended Editions #2)

Rhett

Once everyone is back in the living room, we don’t waste any time. We don’t know how long Ludo will be gone for, and by the time he arrives, Andrew needs to be back in his room like nothing happened.

“Let’s talk about this agreement you have with Ludo,”

Elliot says.

“What all does it entail?”

“I want legal custody of Benny,”

Andrew says.

“He’s only twelve.”

I drop my head into my hands. Fucking hell.

“But you don’t have grounds for CPS to step in.”

Elliot doesn’t phrase it as a question. He knows. When I was close to turning eighteen, all I could think about was finding a way to get Sammy away from my dad so I could raise her myself. The problem was, we could never get enough evidence of anything to get the authorities to step in. By the time we were close, it was too late.

“The courts don’t care about emotional abuse,”

Andrew says.

“We know.”

Oliver sounds haunted as he says it. We all are.

“We’re getting off topic,”

Elliot says.

“What does this have to do with Ludo?”

“He’s gonna help me. He said he could make Benny disappear without a trace until we can legally detach him from my parents. Ludo is going to keep him hidden and hire a tutor so Benny can keep up with his schoolwork.”

Raising my head, I glare at Andrew.

“So you had him kidnapped? Seriously? Do you know how traumatized he’s going to be?”

“I’ll be back home soon,”

Andrew says.

“I’m staying with Ludo, and he said my room is right next to Benny’s. It was the only thing I could do to get him out of there.”

The room feels like it’s tilting, or like I’m spinning out of control. Oliver’s hand rubbing up and down my spine does little to ground me. If anything, it’s making everything worse.

“What does Ludo get out of this deal?”

Elliot asks.

At least one of us is able to keep this conversation on track.

“I work for him until I have custody,”

Andrew says.

“I don’t get paid much, but Benny stays safe, and we have a place to live.”

Oliver shoots me a skeptical look.

“That’s it?”

“What do you mean, that’s it? This shit’s hard.”

Andrew holds out his bare arms, showcasing his wounds.

“And painful.”

“Doesn’t sound like Ludo gets much out of this deal. He’s not one to have a heart of gold,”

Elliot says.

“And he’s not known for being generous, either.”

“Maybe not to you.”

Andrew crosses his arms and arches his brow, like he actually knows more than us in this situation. Like he knows anything at all.

He killed your sister. I almost say it out loud, but I catch myself at the last moment. Currently, Andrew’s loyalties don’t lie with us. It doesn’t matter that he’s my brother. We can’t trust him.

“Okay, fine.”

Elliot shrugs.

“He’s doing this out of the goodness of his heart, then. What are you going to be doing for him?”

“Whatever he asks. Why do you want specifics? What’s it to you?”

“Because you’re my brother,”

I say firmly, meeting his glare with a steady, hopefully convincing gaze.

“And you’re entering into a highly dangerous—and also illegal—field of work. We may not have known that the other existed, but that doesn’t change that I care about you.”

Andrew rolls his eyes.

“You just tried to kill me fifteen minutes ago.”

“It was a momentary lapse of judgment. I’d like to keep you alive, and you getting into this line of work is worrying.”

“We’re practically strangers. Blood doesn’t matter. You can’t have a bleeding heart in this world, Rhett. Everyone has a sob story, but that doesn’t mean you can help everyone. Suck it up, move on, and let me live my life.”

My muscles go rigid in an effort not to cringe. For someone who’s trying to get away from our dad, Andrew sure sounds a lot like him. “Andrew…”

“I think what Rhett is trying to say is that you might be in over your head,”

Oliver says.

“Do you even know the full scope of Ludo’s businesses?”

“Don’t underestimate me.”

Andrew’s tone is full of spite, like he’s had to prove his worth his entire life and he’s sick of it. Considering my own upbringing, that’s a likely possibility.

“No one’s underestimating you,”

Wren says.

“But working for Ludo is dangerous.”

Andrew shrugs.

“Working for Jordan was dangerous. I managed just fine.”

Shit, that’s right. I forgot that’s how Andrew even got tangled up with Ludo in the first place.

“How did you get involved with the Williams family?”

“I started out working at one of their restaurants. Ended up hearing some conversations I shouldn’t’ve, and when they found out, they were gonna kill me. I volunteered to work for them instead.”

Andrew spreads his hands.

“Everything with Jordan went to shit, Ludo took me in, and now here I am.”

He’s not thinking this through. Of course he doesn’t realize it—he’s nineteen with no knowledge of how the world works. The problem is, it’s going to get him and Benny killed.

“Do you have a picture of him?”

Andrew’s face twists in confusion. “Of Ludo?”

“Of Benny,”

I say, my voice gruffer than I’d like.

“Oh, yeah.”

Andrew pulls out his phone and goes through some pictures before handing it to me. “Here.”

The second I look down at the photo, my throat closes up. Benny looks so much like Sammy, right down to the sparkling eyes and goofy smile. It’s like being transported back in time. Fuck, I miss you so much, Sam.

There’s a woman in the picture with Benny. His and Andrew’s mother, maybe? My mom was still alive when Andrew was born, but he’s definitely not hers. Andrew is too close in age to how old Sammy would be if she were still alive. And again—I’d remember him.

I lose track of the conversation happening in the room as a time line clicks into place in my head. My father—that bastard of a man—was having an affair while my mother was struggling for her life. And now, yet again, his youngest child is in danger because of his neglect.

History is repeating itself.

Someone says something, but I barely hear, like they’re trying to speak through a thick wall. I can only process one thing, over and over again. He’s going to die. He’s going to die. He’s going to die.

Andrew is going to get Benny killed. It’s like Sammy all over again, except this time, it’s worse. Because this time, I’m equipped to do something about it, but I feel just as helpless.

“… it’s too much, Ell. We need to give him time to process.”

Andrew’s phone is pulled from my hand. I barely register Wren’s sweet, floral scent as she guides me to the kitchen table. At some point, a glass of water is placed in front of me, and I manage to swallow down a sip.

Wren stays close. She doesn’t touch me, but I can feel her presence.

“We’ll continue this another time,”

I hear Elliot say.

“If you breathe a word of this to Ludo, he’ll know you left your room. We’ve wiped the security tapes, but you need to keep your mouth shut.”

“I know,”

Andrew grits out.

“I’m not stupid.”

He mutters something under his breath, and then I hear the door close.

Oliver rushes to my side. He pulls me out of my seat, grasping my shoulders.

“O,”

Elliot protests, “he’s not going to want—”

“I don’t care.”

Oliver wraps his arms around me, and maybe I’m too numb or maybe I’m too worried, but my skin doesn’t crawl, and I don’t have to fight the urge to push him away.

“Ludo is going to kill him,”

I mumble into Oliver’s neck.

“He’s going to kill them both.”

“We’re not gonna let that happen,”

Oliver says firmly. His arms tighten around me, and I’m pretty sure they’re the only thing keeping me from falling apart.

“We’ll get them out of there and keep them safe.”

Doubts flood my mind. I can’t lose them too. It doesn’t matter that I didn’t know about their existence until an hour ago. I can’t let them suffer the same fate as Sammy.

“What could Ludo want with them?”

Fear bleeds into my voice, raw and breathless.

“What’s he going to do to them?”

No one speaks.

I spin to face Elliot.

“I know you have hunches. Don’t you dare hide them from me.”

“We can talk about that later,” he says.

“No. Tell me what you’re thinking.”

After another moment of painful silence, Elliot sighs.

“We’ve seen that Ludo has been cozying up to judges. Aubrey confirmed it as well. Combine those with the fact that he’s promising Andrew legal custody of Benny, I’d say Ludo is trying to get control of the courts. Bribery, deals, possibly even blackmail.”

“He can get his men off with reduced sentences or a slap on the wrist,”

I say as my hands curl into fists.

“As for his enemies… he could potentially get them locked up for longer.”

“You think he’ll go after juries?”

Oliver asks.

“He’s done worse,”

I say darkly.

“Based on the information we got from the bug,”

Elliot says, “it sounds like Ludo is planning on using a child as leverage against us. That has to be Benny.”

A chill sweeps over my skin. Leverage. Leverage? “But that would mean…”

“He wants something from us,”

Elliot says.

Wren tilts her head to the side.

“We already knew that.”

“Not like this. If Ludo thinks he needs Benny as a backup plan, then whatever he wants from us is something he doesn’t think we’ll be willing to do. He’s planning on forcing us, and…”

Elliot trails off with a grimace, too uncomfortable to finish.

I do it for him, even though the weight crushing my chest makes it hard to breathe.

“And he has no problem putting a twelve-year-old’s life on the line to do so.”

***

I throw myself into work. Both Oliver and Elliot volunteer to transcribe the audio from the bug, but I brush them off. This is something I have to do.

My anxiety over my brothers’ safety is only quelled by distraction. It’s like I’m seventeen again, desperately searching the streets and calling out Sammy’s name. Except now, I’m looking for some way—any way—to save Benny and Andrew. Forget that I threatened Andrew’s life. He’s on thin ice—anyone who tries to hurt one of us is—but he was scared. Trapped. He doesn’t understand we’re the ones on his side, not Ludo.

And as for Ludo…

Hurting him means hurting my brothers—shit, I have brothers. It means everything is different. Our entire plan is as stable as a house of cards, and Ludo just came through with a fucking leaf blower. He’s corrupted everything like the vile, wretched snake he is. Now we’re left to pick up the pieces in the wreckage he’s left behind.

As I listen and type, I’m peripherally aware of Elliot making Wren eat her leftovers from the restaurant. I don’t think she’s able to finish them. Somewhere in the back of my mind, my concern for her grows. When she’s about to leave the table, I tear my attention away from my laptop.

“Sweetheart.”

My gaze catches the bandage on her arm. Fuck, how did I already forget Andrew did that to her? “Wren, come here.”

Hesitantly, she moves closer to me, but she stays out of reach. She’s hugging herself, almost like she’s afraid. Afraid of me.

Immediately, all thoughts of my brothers vanish. Is she still worried about everything that happened last night? Why do I have to be such an ass? I turn away from my laptop to face her completely.

“Do you think I’m still angry with you?”

Her eyes widen at my forwardness.

“I’m sorry, I—”

“No. I said it was okay. I said I understood. I meant that.”

I’m vaguely aware that my tone is probably too harsh, but I need this to hit home for her.

She wrings her hands while she stumbles over her words. It takes a minute for her to get a full sentence out, even though it’s short.

“Are you sure?”

“Wren. Of course I am. I will never make you beg for my forgiveness. Never, sweetheart.”

I’m standing and moving toward her all without proper thought. My hands cup her cheeks, and I lean down to rest my forehead against hers.

“I’m the one who was in the wrong, not you. What I said… it wasn’t true. You mean more to me than avenging Sammy. I’d drop everything for you if I had to. For any of you.”

“Please—”

“No.”

Again, my tone is too strong, and I feel her wince.

“Fuck, I’m sorry. I just need you to know. I need you to understand. I’m not angry with you, sweetheart, I swear. Even last night, I was angry with myself. I never should’ve taken it out on you.”

“I know.”

She clutches my arms and looks up at me with so much sadness in her eyes that it makes my chest ache.

“I just… I know feelings can linger sometimes, and it can take a while to process things. Or…”

She looks away.

“I don’t know.”

I wait for her to continue, but she doesn’t. “Wren,”

I say, managing to keep my voice gentle this time.

She meets my gaze.

“It’s in the past.”

My thumb strokes over her cheek.

“We never have to bring it up again.”

That seems to make her fully relax. “Really?”

she whispers.

“Really.”

Slowly, giving her time to pull away, I move to close the distance between us. When my lips brush against hers, her arms come around my waist, and she kisses me back.

Thank fuck.

“I told you once that I always mean what I say.”

My voice is quiet as I murmur the words against her lips.

“I’m sorry I went back on that. It won’t happen again.”

Her arms tighten around me.

“I know. And… Rhett?”

“Hmm?”

“You don’t have to beg for my forgiveness, either.”

She pulls away so she can look at me.

“I’m not going to hold this against you. I hate it when people do that. And I don’t want to be like that.”

“Thank you.”

Despite the sadness in her eyes moments ago, her face lights up with a smile, and she pokes me in the side.

“What’s that thing you said to me a couple days ago? Don’t thank you for the bare minimum? That should go both ways.”

“Mmm.”

I dip my head down to kiss her again.

“I suppose so.”

We hold each other for another minute before I eventually remember what I was doing before I got distracted. I need to get back to transcribing the audio from the bug.

“You’re okay?”

My fingers feather over her bandage.

“I know today has been hard.”

“I’ll be fine,”

she says as she nuzzles her face into my chest.

“Already doing a lot better.”

I kiss the top of her head.

“Okay. I have to get back to work.”

With a sigh, she pulls away.

“Can we help you?”

“No.”

Today has been hell. I’m not going to make it worse for the others by asking them to work when they need to unwind.

“Go find the others and relax.”

She looks like she wants to protest, but all she does is kiss me again. Her hands linger on my body for a moment before she steps away.

“You deserve to relax too, you know.”

I nod, not giving her a verbal response. I don’t know how to tell her that what I deserve isn’t important right now. What matters is keeping my brothers safe.

Once she’s gone, I sit at the table and dive back into the audio. Considering the condo was empty for most of today, a lot of the feed is just silence. When Aubrey and Ludo get back in the evening, there’s bickering over wedding details before she storms off.

And then… nothing.

No phone calls. No conversations with his bodyguards. Just the sounds of papers rustling and a keyboard clacking.

Come on. Give me something.

I’m mostly caught up to the present, given how much dead space there was over the course of the day. As I wait, hoping Ludo will say something of use, my thoughts catch up to me.

They’re going to die, just like she did.

What is Ludo going to make us do?

How can I keep everyone safe?

Elliot’s voice barely breaks through my consciousness.

“You need to give yourself a break.”

I don’t respond.

“Rhett. You can’t help them if you’re so sleep deprived you can’t think straight.”

“I’m thinking fine.”

“No, you’re not.”

“Well, I’m not going to stop, so—”

Elliot shuts my laptop.

“Yeah, you are.”

For the first time in what feels like hours, I look up. It’s dark outside, and the penthouse is oddly quiet.

“Where are Oliver and Wren?”

“Outside. Which is where you’re about to be. Put your swim trunks on. We’re helping Wren.”

That’s when I realize that Elliot is shirtless and wearing his own swim trunks. I jump to my feet.

“No. She’s not going anywhere near that goddamned pool.”

“We’re gonna be in the hot tub.”

“No. No, she needs to—”

Fuck.

“Needs to what, Rhett?”

The way Elliot says it makes me think he knew this is exactly how this conversation would go before it even happened. His tone holds a challenge, but it’s also a loophole out of my stress.

“She needs to take a break,” I mumble.

“And?”

Blowing out a sigh, I say, “And so do I. I’ll be out in a minute.”

After changing, I join the others by the hot tub. The night has cooled off, but it’s still comfortable out.

Oliver is already in the hot tub, and his face lights up when he sees me. His smile quickly fades, though.

“This is a bad idea.”

I pull Wren away from the stairs that lead down into the water.

“You’re pushing yourself too hard.”

“I’m not,”

she insists, and just as I’m about to argue, she presses a finger to my lips.

“Last night was a mistake. I shouldn’t’ve gone down to the pool by myself. But this is different. I have all three of you here with me. And you saw me in the pool. I think I did pretty good.”

I look to Elliot for help, but he gives none.

“You literally agreed with me two minutes ago that she needs a break.”

“We all do,”

Elliot says, gesturing to the hot tub.

“This sounds like a great one.”

“But—”

“If it’s too much, we’ll get out of the water and do something else,”

Wren says.

“And we’ll be right here with her if she needs us,”

Oliver adds.

Wren tugs me closer.

“Please? I want you all to relax before bed.”

Relaxing sounds like such a far-off concept that I almost laugh. There’s no possible way I’ll be able to shut my brain off. But Wren is already pulling me toward the hot tub.

Elliot gets in first, hovering on the steps and holding out his hand for her. When Wren gets to the edge, she hesitates for a second before grabbing onto Elliot and dipping her toes in.

I keep a firm grip on her other arm as we slowly take the first step, and then the next.

“This isn’t too bad,”

she says. To her credit, her voice is only a little high pitched.

“Almost there, princess,”

Oliver says. He’s watching her proudly from the middle of the hot tub.

“You’re doing great.”

Wren stays steady as we make it all the way in. Oliver wraps his arms around her waist and kisses her lightly. I still haven’t let go of her, and neither has Elliot, so she’s nestled between the three of us.

“How are you feeling?”

I can’t take my eyes off her. Not only because she looks stunning in her light purple bikini, but also because I’m terrified for her. Just because I’m willing to push myself to my limits doesn’t mean I want her to do the same.

Turning, she beams up at me.

“I feel good. Safe.”

“Good enough to sit?”

Oliver asks.

“Um…”

She eyes the bench warily. Sitting will bring the water level up to her chest. Her hair is up so it won’t get wet, but it’s still closer to water than she normally lets her face get.

“You can sit on my lap,”

I suggest.

“And Oliver and I will stay close,”

Elliot says.

“Then yes.”

We all stay close as we move to the edge. Once I’m seated on the bench, I pull Wren onto my lap, and Oliver and Elliot settle on either side of us. My arms encircle her, keeping her tightly and safely against me. With a happy sigh, Wren leans her head against my shoulder.

I drop a kiss to the top of her head, her hair tickling my nose.

“Still okay?”

“Still okay. More than okay. This is nice.”

However much I don’t want to admit it, she’s right. The combination of the night air, the hot water, and being with these three is actually helping me to relax. I forget sometimes—too often—how much their presence can calm me.

For the next half hour, our conversation stays light. I keep waiting for my body to rebel against having Wren so close to me for so long, but it never happens. Instead, her skin against mine and my arms wrapped around her only serves to help me feel more grounded. More supported.

Oliver is in the middle of telling a childhood story Wren hasn’t heard yet when Elliot and I lock gazes. We’ve heard it multiple times from his mom, which is how we know he’s telling a slightly altered version.

“… and then, after fifteen minutes of looking for Maria, I finally gave up. After that, she won every time I was it, and I still don’t know where the hiding spot is.”

“You’re leaving out a detail,”

Elliot says.

“A very important detail.”

Oliver can’t hide his smile.

“No, I’m not.”

“If I recall,”

I say, “there was a bet attached to that game.”

Wren gasps excitedly.

“Ooohhh! High stakes?”

Elliot chuckles. “Very.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,”

Oliver says on a laugh.

Batting her eyelashes at him, Wren clasps her hands together.

“Please tell me?”

He leans in and kisses her.

“Fuck, how can I say no to those pretty eyes? But you have to promise not to laugh.”

“Promise,”

she whispers, grinning.

“If I won the game of hide and seek, Maria had to do my chores for two days. If I lost…”

Oliver lets out an embarrassed groan.

“If I lost, I had to take a shot of the hottest hot sauce Maria could find.”

Wren is biting her lip so hard I’m afraid she’s going to make herself bleed. Her eyes are full of light as she does her best to contain her amusement.

“You said you wouldn’t laugh.”

Oliver pokes her shoulder.

“I’m not laughing,”

she squeaks out, but there are tears in her eyes from holding back.

“Why did you bet something so painful?”

“I was confident I’d win! And after that, I was confident I’d never stop shitting my guts out.”

Wren cringes. “Oh god.”

“Never touched hot sauce since,”

Oliver says.

“And Maria has never let him live it down,”

I add in. Keeping a firm hold on Wren with one arm, I reach over and grab Oliver’s jaw. I pull him in for a quick kiss, noting that he doesn’t resist at all.

After that, we don’t stay in the hot tub for much longer. Once I’m dried off and fully clothed, I head to the kitchen to find a snack. I was so focused on work that I didn’t think to eat at all.

Oliver and Wren are still on the balcony. I find Elliot by the fridge, pulling a couple things out.

“You hungry too?” I ask.

“Not really. This is for you.”

“Oh. You didn’t have to—”

“Drink your water. You didn’t touch it all evening.”

I grab my glass from the table and take a few sips. As Elliot works, I watch him, trying to gauge his mood. He doesn’t look upset, but something is definitely wrong.

After a few minutes, Elliot sets a plate on the table, and we both sit. Only once I’ve started eating does he quietly say, “We need you.”

“I know.”

Tiredly, he shakes his head.

“I don’t want to lose you because of this.”

“You’re not going to.”

“No, Rhett, listen to me. When we were younger, we threw ourselves into getting revenge for Sammy. It consumed us. The guilt, the pain, the frustration, the anger—it ate away at all of us. Don’t you remember?”

“I’d never forget.”

All of those things still linger inside of me, festering, simmering.

Elliot reaches out and places a hand on my arm.

“We’re going to find a way to get Benny out of there. Andrew too. Or, I don’t know, take out Ludo faster. Whatever you want. But in the meantime, don’t let this consume you. Not again, Rhett.”

I shove around the food on my plate.

“I have to protect them.”

“We will,”

Elliot assures me.

“All of us, not just you. You’re of no use to your brothers if you’re exhausted all the time.”

Everything in me wants to fight against what he’s saying, but I don’t.

“Just promise me.”

Scooching closer, Elliot takes my face in both of his hands and leans in close.

“Rhett, I promise you, we’re not going to let your brothers die. All four of us are in this together. We’ve got them.”

My throat aches, but I swallow down the pain. I try to speak, but no words come out.

“Trust us with this?”

Elliot asks, still holding my face.

I rest my forehead against his.

“Always, Ell. Always.”