Page 34 of Stealing Forever (Bridge Point Bears Baseball #1)

SIX YEARS AGO

“I’m not sure what you’re not comprehending, Rosie.

You either get a fucking job and throw down on a portion of the rent, or you find somewhere else to stay.

It’s not like you’re doing anything else to help us with this fucking house.

” Brent slammed the dresser drawer shut, smashing the arm of a t-shirt as he did.

My boyfriend was such an asshole—so hot and cold about literally everything.

“You can stay here as long as you need, babe.”

“Don’t worry about rent, babe. Focus on finding a job.”

My plan was never to stay here permanently, but I needed more time to get on my feet. I just moved here because of him. We weren’t serious enough to move in together, but a fresh start sounded like exactly what I needed, so I figured, why not? I’d get a studio, find a job, screw my boyfriend.

Life would be easy.

Except it wasn’t. Finding a job was proving to be a little more difficult than I had initially thought, but it was fine. I just needed to lower my standards of where I was applying.

Once I did, I had three interviews lined up. One of them was bound to hire me. Hopefully .

The grocery store would, no doubt. Who got turned away by a grocery store?

It’d been two months, and I didn’t want to be in Brent’s bed every night any more than he wanted me in it.

We had a very… relaxed relationship. And by relaxed I mean, we played the part of boyfriend/girlfriend when we felt like it but weren’t so serious that we were discussing solid plans about our future.

And before you go chastising me and thinking, ‘but Rosie, you moved for him’, just remember, I moved for me . He just happened to present me with a place to stay and a crutch to lean against as I got settled.

Brent and I were not headed toward Mr. and Mrs., that was for damn sure.

Sounds awful, right? I did love Brent. I just didn’t see us growing old together. He was my right now, not my forever. There was a difference.

“Why would I help with the house when I'm not the one who makes the mess? I keep my shit clean. It’s really not that hard, Brent. You and your brother should figure out how to do the same.”

“You’re such a fucking bitch sometimes, you know that, right? I think I’ve been more than fair to you, Rosie, and I’m done with you and your games.”

I rolled my eyes and glanced down at my black-painted nails in boredom. “Yeah, yeah, Brent. Done with me until tonight, when you beg me to spread my legs.”

“I don’t beg for shit.”

“Keep telling yourself that. I’ll keep them closed for a while and we’ll see how long you can hold out for.”

“You think I won’t go elsewhere?”

“Don’t care.”

“We’ll see how much you don’t care later when I make your ass sleep on the couch and you have to listen to me pound into someone else through these paper-thin walls.”

“Go for it. I’ll just crawl into your brother’s bed,” I spat, my heart skipping a beat at the very thought of it.

See, while I may have met Brent first, it was hard to deny the attraction I had for his brother.

Brent was your classic all-star, preppy, clean-cut, boy-next-door. The type who was the perfect person to bring home to your parents and start making lifelong plans with.

On the outside.

On the inside , he could be a real-fucking jerk. Like, want to scratch his eyes out and punch him in the nuts, kind of jerk.

It was baffling how he’d somehow wormed his way inside of my heart.

We’d been together for over a year now, if you don’t count the month we were broken up. I did care about him. Honestly, what we had worked for us. And when he wasn’t being a raging dickwad, Brent was actually very sweet and attentive. We had fun together. High highs. Low lows.

Toxic, I know. What I just described was practically the definition of a walking red flag.

But again, it worked for us. It worked for now .

Brent was a few years older than me, and the type of relationship he wanted was one of convenience and fun.

It was a relationship I knew I could easily give him, because in return he could give me the sense of stability I craved.

I was a little wild, I knew it and owned it, and I needed a person in my life to ground me—balance me out. Most of the time, he gave me that.

It also didn’t help that Brent was pretty damn hot. But while he had the boy-next-door vibe, his brother was his polar opposite…the bad boy. Two years younger, rough around the edges, and devastatingly, ruggedly, gorgeous. Even his name was as sinful as he was— Cain .

He was covered in tattoos—which really matched my energy—and he didn’t give a fuck about anything or anyone.

Actually, the only thing he did give a fuck about was Brent.

And me .

Which was a real bitch since I was technically with his brother.

Cain and I just connected better than Brent and I did, though we never crossed that line.

But man, if you could actually fuck someone with your eyes, there wouldn’t be a time or a place he hadn’t taken me.

Many late nights were spent in each other's company, talking about anything you could imagine. Our guards had come fully down, and I honestly wasn’t sure anyone knew me better than he did.

So many times I’d thought about telling Brent we were finished.

I was hopeful I could leave him and one day move forward and be with Cain.

But Cain was never willing to let it happen.

Because I was his brother's girlfriend, I was off-limits completely. He’d never disrespect his older brother like that—which was wildly disappointing for me. I wasn’t a cheater, and I never would be, but if Cain asked me to leave Brent for him, I wouldn’t think twice.

Hell, if Cain asked me to leave Brent in general, I probably would.

I cared about Brent, I truly did. I loved him. I just wasn’t sure if I was in love with him. How could I be when my heart beats for another man? His brother.

“You think crawling into my brother’s bed is a threat?

Cain is loyal to me, Rosie. He’d kick you out on your ass faster than you could blink,” Brent spat, dropping onto his bed and crossing his legs at his ankles.

He locked his hands beneath his head, his elbows sprawled, looking as relaxed as could be.

“I’m not sure why I bother with you, Brent.

But I’m over this bullshit. You asked me to move to this freaking city with you, knowing I wouldn’t have a job or a place to live.

I’m done. Find yourself some other girl to fuck with.

” Lucky for me, my suitcase had never been unpacked because the jackass didn’t have extra space for my shit in his dresser.

All I had to grab was my phone charger and bathroom stuff.

Walking across the hall, I grabbed my makeup and hair care products, cradling them in my arms as I made sure I didn’t leave anything behind.

I wasn’t positive where I’d go tonight, but I’d figure it out. I always did.

Tossing everything into my suitcase, I zipped it up and expanded the handle to roll it out. “Last chance to be a gentleman, Brent.”

“Nah,” he said without looking at me, pulling out his phone.

My eyes narrowed into slits and my head bobbed as I watched him scroll mindlessly as though I wasn’t even in the room anymore. Tilting the suitcase, I rolled it behind me as I walked out of his bedroom.

The hallway was dark, the house quiet, as I moved through the small space toward the front door. When I reached for the knob, a deep voice sounded from the shadowed living room beside me.

“Rosie,” Cain called. He sat on the couch in the dark, his face illuminated by the soft moonlight flowing in through the window.

“What, Cain?” What was there to even say?

His brother was in the next room, probably listening for the sound of the door closing.

This wasn’t the first time we’d broken up, or the first time Cain had wanted to say something as I walked out the door after a fight with his brother.

But like every other time, Cain said nothing and stared at me from his spot on the couch, his eyes blazing with unspoken words.

The rigidness of his features told me he had heard mine and Brent’s exchange and he hadn’t liked what he heard.

Turning my head back to the door, I twisted the knob and walked out.

When it closed behind me, I didn’t bother looking back. Instead, I held my head high and walked down the path, using my key fob to pop open the trunk of my car. The sound of small rocks crunching beneath the wheels of my suitcase battled against my heartbeat that echoed in my ears.

I was so frustrated with Brent and how I let him toss me to the side again , and how Cain let his brother treat me like shit and didn’t speak up, again .

I guess it wasn’t fair of me to act like Cain really had any authority to say anything, but what woman didn’t want a knight in shining armor on occasion?

I guess I wouldn’t be getting that from either of the Michaels brothers.

“Rosie!”

Maybe I spoke too soon.

Cain’s voice cut through my inner battle with myself as I tossed my suitcase into the trunk of my blacked-out Honda Accord.

“What do you want, Cain?”

“Come back inside. Please.”

“For what? So Brent can give me more details about how he’s going to screw someone else and have me listen?

Or so you can sit silently while he talks shit?

As much as I love being the source of your entertainment, I think I’ll pass.

” I slammed the trunk harder than necessary and rounded the car, pulling open the driver's side door—but I didn’t get in.

Like a true glutton for punishment, I watched him from over the roof of the car, waiting for him to say something.

Cain rubbed his tattooed hand across the back of his neck, looking down at the ground. After several tense seconds, he brought his attention back to me. “Where are you going?” he asked, taking a few more steps toward my car.

“I don’t know,” I admitted, my eyes narrowing as I tried thinking about where my first stop would be.

Probably the motel on the outskirts of Ridgewood.

It’d be the most inexpensive. My heart hammered in my chest as I made a snap decision to pull down one more layer of vulnerability I couldn’t really afford to gamble with. “Come with me.”

Cain’s eyes darkened with my request, and instantly I could see the turmoil behind his light brown eyes. “It’s not that easy. Brent’s my brother…”

“He’ll get over it,” I argued, doing my best to keep the desperation out of my voice. I knew I was walking a fine line between being vulnerable and being desperate. I wasn’t desperate, but Cain held a piece of my heart in his hand and I’d be lying if I denied that I wanted him to run away with me.

“We both know he wouldn’t, he’d?—”

“Cain? The fuck are you doing?” The screen flew open and hit against the side of the house as Brent’s voice boomed from across the front yard. Cain’s spine went ramrod straight.

Brent’s eyes bounced between me and his brother, narrowing as he assessed us, drawing his own conclusions. Being unapologetically myself, I tossed him a snarky smile, knowing he was about to either explode on both of us, or turn around and slam the door in our faces.

Cain turned to face his brother, shrugging nonchalantly. “She ran from the house like a bat outta hell. I came to find out why.”

“Not so sure it looks that way from where I’m standing, brother .”

Resting my hands on my hips, I watched the two men face off, one looking skeptical while the other looked like he was trying to come up with an iron-clad excuse to save his own ass.

“Not sure what you think it looks like, but I was just making sure your bitch knew to respect our property next time she walked out of the house. She slammed the door so hard it rattled the front windows,” Cain spouted, the lies tumbling from his mouth effortlessly as he turned back to me and his features hardened.

“She isn’t my bitch anymore,” Brent scoffed, stomping down the two steps of the weathered front porch. “Kind of seems like you want her to be your bitch, though.”

A satisfied smile curled at my lips—my earlier suggestion of crawling into Cain’s bed had clearly resonated with Brent. It got him thinking. Doubting himself and his brother’s loyalty.

My intention was never to cause a rift between them, but rather remind Brent that being in his presence was my choice. Despite my current lack of income, I knew my damn worth, and with the snap of my fingers, I could have another man lined up if I wanted.

My smile was short-lived though, because nothing could have prepared me for Cain’s response, and the wound it would ultimately leave on my heart.

Cain tossed his head back and laughed. What was normally a rare, yet beautiful sound with the power to inflate my heart, came out villainous and cruel.

“Why the fuck would I want your sloppy seconds, Brent?” His eyes connected with mine as he delivered the final blow that would ricochet through my darkest moments for years to come.

“She’s nothing but damaged goods. Trailer trash.

You couldn’t pay me to give her my cock. ”

I knew words could hurt, but I hadn’t realized just how badly until then.

Without hesitating, I flung myself into the driver's seat and cranked the ignition, not bothering to let it warm up before I tossed the car into drive and sped away, my tires squealing against the asphalt.

I blew through the stop sign at the corner of their street, needing to get as far away from the Michaels brothers as quickly as I could.

It took everything I had not to glance in the rearview mirror as I hightailed it out of their neighborhood and in the direction of the most expensive hotel in Ridgewood.

Forget staying at a cheap motel. I had some money tucked away, stashed because my subconscious knew something like this could happen, and I couldn’t think of a more perfect reason to pull a little cash out.

A high thread count and some room service would be exactly what I needed while I licked my wounds for the night.

Why would I sit around in a crappy room and dwell on the words of two certified jerks? Tomorrow was a new day with back-to-back job interviews and a whole lot of promise for my future.

Glass half full, right?

Fuck Brent, and fuck his brother even more.

I was Rosie Adler, and if there was one thing I’d learned over the years, it was that the only person on this planet I needed was myself.

Certainly not a six foot four, tattooed, sexy as sin man who looked like he could murder your enemies with his bare hands, but around you was a complete marshmallow.

Definitely not Cain Michaels.