Page 31

I thought I knew what rage was, I thought I’d felt it. I thought I knew exactly what it meant to be pissed off and hate someone, but nothing has ever come close to the fury that currently burns inside of me. He ruined her car. That pathetic waste of life ruined her fucking car and marked it with the word whore. Hell, the pastor better fucking pray to that god of his that I don’t get to him before the police do, because if I do, they won’t even fucking recognize him when I’m finished. Not this time .

I fucking knew, I knew he was going to be a problem, knew he wouldn’t disappear quietly, it’s why I’ve had Duchess keeping tabs on him, but like the slimy little prick I knew he was, he managed to slip under our radar. Was he watching her apartment last night? Was he waiting for her? Did he see me go inside and never come back out? Fuck . Last night was supposed to be about her, about us, about taking that next fucking step, but still that little dicked tool is in my way.

Aubree trusted me, she fucking trusted me, she gave me the hottest fucking experience of my life, and for the second time ever, I felt content falling asleep at her side. We didn’t even get a chance to talk about what happened last night, not before the incessant knocking got us out of bed, and not since. Aubree and I spent the whole day cooped up in the house alongside everyone else, catching up on the work we should have been doing in class. Between Nova and I, we emailed all our professors and got what we needed, only explaining enough of the situation to excuse us from class.

Now I’m stuck on the fucking ice, willing the coldness to seep into my bones and calm me down, but it’s no use, it doesn’t work. I’ve already let two goals slip past the net, unable to focus on anything but the girl sitting rink side. Aubree is just by our team's box, Maddie and Hallie on one side, and Evie on the other. There has been no sign of Ben, but that hasn’t stopped me from trailing my eyes over to her almost every minute of the game. A fact not missed by her father, who is eyeing me like I am the damn antichrist, but I don’t care, not right now, not when it comes to her and her safety.

What’s crazy is that I’m not the only one. The rest of my housemates are watching her too. Every time Nova skates past them he eyes all four of them, Archer keeps doing tricks in front of them, and every time Josh and Daemon aren’t on the ice, their eyes are on them. I’d be thankful if I weren’t so fucking angry, but still it feels good to know they have my girl’s back.

With all of our focus on them, the game is a fucking shit show. So much so that I can’t even enjoy the view of her in my jersey, and we barely scrape by with a win. Although a victory is still a victory, it doesn’t feel like it, especially when Coach curses my name across the ice.

“Reign, my office, now!” he booms over the cheering crowd, and I offer Aubree a grim smile, as I skate off the ice to meet my fate.

The guys are at my back, Nova front and center, but I wave them off, as I enter Coach’s office and await his wrath.

“What the fuck was that?” he yells as soon as I am across the threshold, his voice no doubt heard by everyone on the other side of it.

“We won,” I reply firmly, and he scoffs, actually scoffs, as he storms toward me in anger.

“Not the fucking game, you, Reign! I want to know why the fuck every time I looked at you, your eyes were on my fucking daughter.” The anger is rolling off him in waves, and before I can even open my mouth to respond he is pushing on. “I warned you, all of you, to stay the fuck away from her. She’s had a hard year, and the last thing she needs is some fucking playboy coming along and giving her hope.”

I cringe a little under his assessment, already knowing she’s had a hard year, and knowing that someone like me isn’t fucking worthy of her, but fuck I’m trying. “With all due respect, sir, I haven’t even looked at another girl since the moment I met her,” I tell him truthfully, and I haven’t, because from the second I laid eyes on her, I knew she was different.

“Do you expect me to be fucking impressed by that?” he laughs, shaking his head, as he begins to pace back and forth. “Like I haven’t fucking caught you fucking your way through the female population here, like it was some goddamn competition,” he sneers, and again I open my mouth to respond, but before I can, the door behind me swings open.

“Dad!” Aubree exhales, as if she ran here, and I turn to find not just her, but Evie, Maddie, and Hallie too, along with my friends all crowding the door behind them.

“We can explain,” Evie chokes out, clutching her side. “Fuck, I’m unfit,” she adds, holding up her hand to signal for us to give her a minute.

“Aubree, what are you doing here?” Coach asks, anger still prominent in his tone, but he softens it as he talks to her.

“Ben vandalized my car,” she breathes, and Coach pauses his pacing, turning to give her his full attention. “He’s mad that I broke up with him after I found out he cheated on me, and he’s acting out I guess,” she adds with a shrug, downplaying the entire thing, but it’s no use, the fury already inside of me, is now burning in her father.

“He vandalized your car,” he repeats slowly, nothing but wrath in his voice, and finally he understands me. “We need to call the police,” he starts, but Aubree cuts him off.

“Alexander has already been in touch with them, the police came by his house earlier today to take our statements, and he had his lawyer draw up a restraining order against him,” she explains, probably hoping it will placate him somehow, but I know him better than she does clearly.

His anger-filled eyes once again meet mine, and I clear my throat, as I add, “Her car has already been replaced, and I’ve made sure she hasn’t been anywhere alone since it happened.” I note his eyes taking in the girls behind her, and a quarter of his team still not hitting the showers behind that.

“You need to come and stay at the house,” he tries again, but she interrupts him, already shaking her head.

“No, I’m staying with Alexander,” she tells him firmly, and I see him taking in my name on the jersey she is wearing.

“Aubree.” Just her name, one word, a warning.

“No, Dad, I’m not a kid anymore, you can’t dictate what I do and besides, I feel safe with him, with all of them.” She gestures to all of my friends, and I try not to let the pride of her words burst out of my chest.

“Aubree was already accompanying me to my mother’s birthday celebration in New York on Sunday, but maybe we could leave tomorrow instead,” I suggest, looking between him and Aubree, and he frowns.

“Your mother?” he repeats in question, and Aubree takes a step closer to him.

“His mom is Sinclair Striker,” she tells him softly, and his eyes snap to mine in surprise. Most people know who my mother is, or at least know of her, but Coach doesn’t seem the type to keep up on his celebrities. Still, I can tell he knows who she is to his daughter. “And we can’t leave tomorrow, you have practice,” Aubree adds, flicking her attention to me.

“I don’t give a fuck about practice, Aubree,” I snap too quickly, “No offense, Coach,” I add, before focusing completely on his daughter and closing the distance between us. “I’m not fucking leaving your side, not until we find him, and I don’t care what it takes until we do. I’m not letting him near you,” I promise, not caring about our current audience, and when a tear escapes down her cheek, I don’t stop myself from reaching up and swiping it away.

“You can’t put your life on hold for me, Alexander,” she scolds, but I’m already smiling. She really doesn’t understand how deep I am in this.

“I thought we already established I’d do anything for you, Trouble,” I tell her truthfully, hoping she sees the sincerity in my stare.

“Skip practice,” Coach cuts in, and both our heads snap in his direction.

“What?” I ask, sure I misheard him, and he eyes everyone behind us.

“Fuck off and hit the showers,” he curses to my teammates, before looking to the girls. “And there are no girls allowed in here, go and wait outside,” he instructs them, and they all file out with knowing smiles, telling Aubree they will meet her outside. He waits until they are gone with the door closed behind them, before focusing back on his daughter. “Is this what you want?” he asks her, searching her stare, and she doesn’t even hesitate before she nods, emotion hitting me square in the chest. “Then skip practice tomorrow,” he tells me.

Aubree throws her arms around him, and for the first time since I have known him, I see it, the dad in him. The way he softens completely as he brings his arms around her and hugs her back. “Thank you, Dad, I love you,” she whispers into his chest.

“I love you too, Sweetheart. Now, go and wait outside with your friends, I need to talk to Reign,” he tells her firmly, and she looks at me in a panic.

“Dad,” she gasps, rushing to my defense, but I offer her my most reassuring smile, gently cupping her elbow and guiding her to the door.

“It’s okay, love, go, I’ll catch up,” I tell her, dropping a kiss to her hair, and she takes one last look between us as she leaves the room, Archer and Daemon already there to escort her away.

When I bring my attention back to Coach, he is already watching me. “You promise to keep my daughter safe?” he asks, moving around his desk and dropping into his chair, tapping away on his computer instantly.

“I’d protect her with my life if I had to.”

My response has him eying me again, as if trying to detect how serious I am, but he won’t find anything but the truth. “Good, now get out of my sight before I decide to exercise my right to the Second Amendment.”

“On me and not Pastor Prick?” I ask with a smirk, walking backwards toward the door, and he eyes me with a cunning glare.

“That piece of shit better hope the police get a hold of him before I do,” he grits, and fuck me, I never thought I’d have something in common with my girl’s father.

“You and me both, Sir.”

After that I make quick work of showering and getting changed, and once I’m done I find all my guys outside watching my girl’s back. She smiles when she sees me, and I don’t look at anyone else as I close the distance between us, pulling her against me.

“Ready to go home?” I ask, and she nods shyly. “Then let’s go, baby.”

We all pile back into the house and I order enough food to feed a small army, so we eat, drink, and basically just unwind after a stressful day. Jake already went with Evie earlier today to get her stuff, so she can stay here until we find Ben. The police updated us that there isn’t really anything they can do unless he shows up and does something else or becomes a threat, so now it’s down to the security guards I hired. Two of them are sitting outside, no doubt rubbing shoulders with Maddie’s guard, who has also been briefed on the situation, and despite everything that is going on, it’s a good night.

Although there is a nervous energy surrounding Aubree, one she is trying her best to hide, but I’ve been watching her long enough now to know something’s up. As soon as everyone starts drifting off to bed and back across the street, it intensifies tenfold, and I head into the kitchen to make us both a cup of tea.

“You good?” Daemon asks, eyeing me carefully, and I know this must be bringing up some bad memories for him, it wasn’t too long ago he had his own restraining order in place.

“Yes, no, I don’t know,” I huff with a laugh, and he nods in understanding, both our eyes dancing to the living room to where Archer is trying to make Aubree laugh.

“You’re good for her, you know,” he tells me, and I snap my gaze back to him in wonder. “She’s different from when she first arrived, happier. You may not see it, but I do, you’re good for her. I didn’t want to let Archer in at first, but he was unstoppable, I had no choice,” he explains, and I know what he means, I had a front row seat for how things changed between them.

I guess I am only just realizing, they have one now too.

“I don’t want to take away her choice,” I snap, setting up my tray. “I just want her to be safe, happy.”

Daemon smiles at my response, reaching for one of the cups, and holding it out in expectation so I can pour him some tea. “You aren’t taking away her choice, she’s taking away yours. You’re falling for her and there is nothing you can do to change that, trust me, I’ve tried. So basically, you’re fucked.”

He doesn’t wait for me to respond, just takes his tea and joins his boyfriend back on the sofa, who in turn smiles at him like he’s his whole world. Then Aubree lets her gaze travel over to me and her smile, even tense, almost knocks me off my fucking feet.

Daemon’s right. I am fucked.