Page 24 of Second Sets Omnibus

“Bleh. It’s hotter than my balls outside today,” Rad curses, rearranging his junk in his shorts, probably dreaming of the hour when he can drop them and be free. “Oh, fuck balls, we got a little guest coming.” Rad nods toward the figure marching his angry ass toward our vehicle.

“This should be interesting,” Asher says in a no-nonsense tone, rolling down his window. “Oh, Van, fancy seeing you here,” he drawls in a fake, respectful tone, lazily looking at the fuming man outside our window.

Van shakes his head, a deep scowl forming across his lips. “I don’t know what you assholes are up to, but you’re barking up the wrong fucking tree. Leave River alone. She’s not like these other Central girls,” he growls, leaning into Ash’s window.

“And have you sampled many Central Girls?” I ask, sitting back in my seat, enjoying the cool air-conditioning pouring from the vents.

He scowls at me, shaking his head. “You know my answer. Leave River alone,” he growls again, exposing his gritted teeth like an actual threat.

Pfft. The only threat Van Drake poses is a road bump. He could warn River all he wanted about us and whatever else he might say, but she’d never believe him. From the moment River was born, so was her stubbornness.

“Tell me exactly why you care so much?” Ash asks in an even voice, leaning back in the driver’s seat with a relaxed and open pose. Casually, he raises a brow as Van’s face comically gets redder and redder by the minute.

“What’s so great about her, Donnie boy?” Rad asks through a manic grin, rubbing his hands together. “Why should we stay away? Maybe we need a new toy to play with, and maybe she already said yes.”

It’s a lie, of course. River isn’t just a toy to me, anyway. But by the way Van’s face falls from our admission; we’ve got him on our hook. That’s right, back off and eat our lie, fuckhead. My fingers curl into fists when he opens his mouth to speak again. I’d rather shove my fist down his throat than continue this tired conversation. There’s nothing on this planet he can do to keep us away from River.

Van scoffs. “You assholes may have this entire city fooled into believing you all are some sort of good guys. But I’ve seen the shit you used to pull back in high school. You’re nothing but users. And as for River? She won’t be able to help you in your quest for fame,” he growls his words, clenching his teeth. “You know it, and she knows it. Her daddy doesn’t talk to her. I know exactly what you’re up to. You’ve had this plan since fucking high school to get the hell out of here. But I’m here to stop you from using another person on your bullshit quest.”

Ah, there it is. Not only did Donnie Boy want to continue his own quest into music, but he wants her all to himself. Fat chance that’ll ever happen, pal. Kieran Knight is back in town and isn’t giving up his River Blue for anything, especially a piss ant like him.

“Tell me, Donnie,” Ash admonishes, clenching and unclenching his fists. “Does it eat you up? You can’t be with her still? Do you dream of the nights you had to hide her in the back of your Mustang, stealing her away and fuck her while introducing your parents to Whitley? You know, the girlfriend you have so cleverly hidden in the shadows while you come here and try to convince River to be your fuck toy in the back room?”

Van’s paling face completely falls as he looks at Asher in surprise. I’d say my malevolent brother hit the mark.

“What the fuck, man?” he gasps, dropping his arms from the edge of the window. “How...” He peers back at River through the storefront windows, who watches our exchange, kicking back into her chair. I can’t make out her expression, but I feel her eyes burning through me. That’s right, River Blue—eyes on me, baby.

“I have my ways,” Ash says, slowly turning his evil-ass face to look into Van’s dark eyes. “At this moment, I have a letter typed up in an email on a timer. If you don’t back away now, I will release everything to Whitley promptly. Not that I shouldn’t, anyway. What a despicable way to treat the woman you’re going to marry.”

“What the hell are you, some evil psycho?” Van says, taking another step back.

“Maybe,” Ash says with a grin and a shoulder shrug. “You leave River to us. No harm, no foul. We’ll both get what we want in the end.”

“Yeah? And what the fuck is that?” Van scolds, crossing his arms over his chest.

“We’ll get ours, and she’ll get hers. Besides, Kieran didn’t even need to beg her to fuck him by how loud and responsive she was. It looks like she doesn’t need you anymore, Donnie boy. That’s all I’m saying…”

“That’s right, Donnie Boy,” I interrupt, leaning over Asher to get a better view of the laughable rage consuming Van’s twistedface. “You see, it isn’t your name she screams anymore. It’s mine. My fingers were just knuckle deep in her tight pussy as she came all over them. And my teeth mark her skin as fucking mine. You leave my River alone. You have no rights over her. Not anymore. You lost those privileges. She. Is. Mine,” I growl, curling my fingers into fists.

Vivid images of pounding his face in as blood pours from his mouth and nose as he begs me to stop hurting him run through my mind. Make no mistake; if Van touched her again without my permission, he’s a dead man.

Through his narrow, dark eyes, hate brews toward me, and he snarls, readying his rebuttal, but nothing comes out.

“Now, if you’ll excuse us, we’re late for a very important meeting.” Ash doesn’t let Van respond as he closes the window and takes off.

“Meeting, huh?” I ask, blowing at my anger. Now that the danger has passed, my fingers tremble with the leftover adrenaline running through my veins.

“God, you handed him his ass. We left him sputtering and spitting in the middle of the street,” Rad cackles more, falling into the backseat. “I bet he’ll tuck tail and run back to mommy and daddy with tears in his pathetic eyes.”

“He’ll keep his hands off what’s ours now,” Asher declares, narrowing his eyes in the rearview mirror. Shaking his head, he focuses on the long road ahead of us, navigating us back to Lakeview.

The record store disappears from behind us, replaced by the upscale side of Central City. Boutiques and restaurants become blurs of colors, and trees soon line the edges of the road. We may still be in Central City, but you wouldn’t know. The Lakeview District has wild hills with trees and tons of wildlife. A large lake sits to my right, expanding over the horizon. Boats putter along,pulling rafts, wake boarders, and skis, looking like a serene paradise. But it is anything but.

“How about a little music therapy?” Callum asks, eagerly leaning forward, tapping his fingers on the center console, aching to strum his bass.

So much better than taking out the boat. Sure, the sun, wind, and water would be a pleasant treat after such a sweltering day. But nothing compares to the music we’re about to create as one unit. I feel it in the depths of my gut. It’s the intense need to get my hands moving and create memorable tunes. We all feel it by the sharp nod Ash gives when we pull into our driveway. He throws the SUV into park, strumming his fingers along the steering wheel.

“It’s working, isn’t it?” he asks with a hint of uncertainty, which is so unlike himself. He twitches uncomfortably, eyeing my smirk.