Arranged love

GRAVE

WE EXIT THE front of the hotel, and my car is already waiting for us. “Here you go, Grave.”

I help her into the passenger seat and then jump behind the wheel. Putting the car in gear, we take off.

She looks out the window, her head resting on it. “I don’t wanna go home,” she states softly.

“Roses?” I ask.

She just nods.

“Okay.” I yank on the e-brake and turn the wheel, making a U-turn.

My phone begins to ring through the silent car, and I press ignore when I see Lucy light up.

Twenty minutes later, we pull up to the shop, and she doesn’t wait for me to open her door. She enters, and I follow her. There’s glass all over the place. The three glass doors to the left are all busted. Flowers and petals cover the floor along with water. The shelves to the right that held her vases are torn off and pieces of them are on the floor as well.

“I have someone coming,” I tell her.

Her eyes meet mine. “What?”

“I made a call. A friend of mine is coming to stand guard at the door for the night. Then tomorrow morning, I have another friend coming to clean it up for you.”

She looks away from me, tears building in her eyes. “You don’t have to do that.”

“I know.”

She sniffs, and I walk over to her. Placing my fingers on her chin, I lift it so she looks up at me. The first tear runs down her face. “I’m … I’m sorry for what I said before …”

“Don’t worry about it.” The truth is, she wasn’t far off. This is what I do. What the Kings do. I can’t blame the Mason brothers for what they did. Or how they did it. But I can take care of this issue. I’ll pay Ethan’s debt, and it’ll all go away. And I’ll make sure her shop is better than it ever was.

I hear the bell go off, signaling someone entering, and I let go of her to turn and face my friend Lance. “Hey, man.” I pull him in for a half man hug.

He whistles looking around. “Guessing you didn’t do this?” he asks.

“No.” Comes my clipped answer.This is from NôvelDrama.Org.

He nods, getting the point. “I’ll stay as long as you need me to.”

I turn around but don’t see her. “April?” I call out, walking toward the back. I enter the office and see a door on the left open. I hear water running. Walking into it, I see it’s a small bathroom, and she has her hands under the running faucet, washing them off.

I come up to her and see them shake. “Let me help you.”

She sniffs as I pump some soap onto my hands and cover hers with mine. They begin to shake uncontrollably. “Hey.” I grab them tightly. “You’re okay,” I assure her. “I’m going to take care of it.”

She holds her head down, and I pull her hands from the water. “Look at me,” I order.

She lifts her head, and my chest tightens at the look of defeat in her eyes. Everything this woman has gone through-her mother dying, having to quit college to take over her mom’s shop, dealing with Ethan-is a lot. “I promise you. I’m going to take care of it.”

She yanks her wet and soapy hands from mine and wraps them around my neck, burying her head into my chest. “Thank you,” she sobs.

I let out a long breath, just thankful she’s able to stand here in front of me. It could have been a lot worse. “Come on. Let’s get you cleaned up and I’ll take you home.”

“I don’t want to go home.”

APRIL

We walk into Alexa’s bar, and I sit at a booth in the corner. It’s darker back here, and the music isn’t as loud since there aren’t speakers in this area. I’m not here to party or make friends. Just want a drink in quiet.

Grave sits down next to me. He remains silent. I hate that he’s helping me after I accused him of sending them to the shop. I’ll owe him big for this. But what am I supposed to do? The debt is too big for me to pay. I don’t have that kind of money or resources, and I’m maxed out. The house Ethan and I live in isn’t paid for. Business has been slow, and I didn’t want to close, so selfishly, I took out a loan to keep it open. I thought I was doing the right thing. Now I realize that I was wrong. Is that why Ethan didn’t come to me? Because he knew I couldn’t afford to help him? He has to know I would have done anything to save him, even if that meant selling the shop. He is the most important person in my life. He’s all I have left.

“April?” Derek comes up to our table with a big smile on his face, but it drops the moment he sees me. “What the hell happened to you?”

“I’m fine.” I wave him off, not in the mood to talk about it. I washed off the dried blood and what little makeup I had left, but I have a bruised face and cuts on my hands.

“April-”

“Bourbon,” I interrupt him, knowing a Corona isn’t going to cut it tonight.

“I’ll have what she’s having,” Grave speaks, and Derek looks over at him. His dark eyes narrow on him as if he just noticed I’m not alone.

Derek’s eyes run over Grave’s tatted up arm and neck. Then the piercings in his face. He is not impressed. “I thought I knew all of April’s friends.” He arches a dark brow.

“You do,” I announce. My words don’t offend Grave in the least. He leans back in the booth, places his arms out wide on the leather, and grins up at Derek.

“April, this is Grave,” he growls, his eyes growing as he realizes who the guy is next to me. “He owns a quarter of Kingdom-”

“I know,” I snap. Derek opens his mouth, but I speak first. “I came for a drink. Not a lecture.”

He turns without saying another word.

“Ex?” Grave muses.

“Something like that.” I place my elbows on the table and bow my head, trying hard not to think about what happened tonight but failing. Tears of anger threaten my eyes. I sniff.

“Hey.” I feel his hand on my back, and I pull away from him.

“Don’t,” I warn. “Don’t act like you care.”

He sighs. “Of course I do, or I wouldn’t have taken care of it.”

“I didn’t need you to do that,” I snap, looking over at him.

His blue eyes roam my face before landing on mine. I plan on getting fucked up, and I know it won’t take any convincing to get him there. “How were you going to pay them off?”

“I would have thought of something,” I hiss, irritated with him. But not sure why. It’s not his fault. I hate asking for help. And I hate it even more that he’s the one who offered. He knows I can’t afford to turn it down.

He leans forward, placing his forearms on the table, bringing his face in closer to mine. I refrain from pulling away. “What would you have done if they would have demanded payment from you?” He arches a pierced brow.

My stomach knots at his words. “What exactly are you implying?”

He reaches out, taking a few pieces of my purple hair between his fingers. His eyes watch the motion before running up my neck and over my face. “You’re very beautiful, April.” His eyes meet mine, and my breath picks up, remembering the weekend we just spent together and how it feels like it was a lifetime ago. “Men like the Mason brothers take whatever they want. So my question is, what would you have done if they wanted you?”