Dash POV
Riding my bike through the streets of New York makes my anxiety spike. Wyatt’s plan has everything to go bust and us ending up with some people dead. I wish he would listen sometimes. I know he thinks this is the best thing. But it isn’t. I know he is scared for Blake. Fuck. I am scared of her. I am fucking terrified, but this is absolutely insane. No one in their right mind would do something like this.
Car horns sound while I speed past them, maneuvering my bike at ease. As soon as I get to the safe house, the faster I can try to make this work. I know my brother is gathering the troops, but seeing Grace made me slow down. I should be there by now. Fuck.
As soon as I arrive, I remove my helmet, leaving my balaclava on. There’s no time for any of that shit. As I step inside, I can hear everyone rushing around gathering their shit. I look around and find my brother already equipped. He
Grace POVClasses have been boring as hell today and the fact Dash didn’t show up before it started threw me off. He has been showing up every day since the ball and today… Nothing. “Hey,” Amber says as she throws an arm around my shoulders, pulling me closer to her.“Hey,” I reply without even looking at her as I scan my phone. I don’t really know what I am looking for, but when it dings with a message, my heart starts beating faster and I bite my lower lip in anticipation.When I see George’s name on the message, I grunt in frustration and that attracts Amber’s attention to me. I look up to find her peaking at my phone and I just show it to her. I had to tell them about Dash and George after Dash’s first visit. Obviously, I didn’t tell them about my sexual escapade with Dash, if you can even call that.“How dumb is he?&rdq
Grace POVAfter leaving the dog with the new owners, I am extremely aware of my surroundings. I can’t believe he thinks I am following him. Does he live here? I grab my phone and quickly type his name, followed by the address, and behold my shock when I see he only lives a couple of blocks away from me. I shake my head, trying to push away all the thoughts that start appearing in my head.How is it possible we were never introduced before? How come I have never seen him at the parties and now I can’t seem to stop seeing him? Remembering the way his eyes scanned my body sends a shiver down my spine and I try to gather my thoughts once more.I turn the TV on as soon as I get home, throwing my shoes to the corner and resting my head back with my eyes closed. “Gang rivalry is becoming a problem in New York,” I hear someone say on the TV and I take a deep breath as I hear the reporter say somet
Dash POVAs I stand in the middle of the room while everyone claps after my name was announced, I feel like a fucking fraud. I feel like I shouldn’t be here, because I might be a bachelor on paper, but I feel like I am taken, and until I have sex with Grace and manage to get her out of my system, I shouldn’t be accepting this award. I smile and give a small wave at some of the familiar faces surrounding me. I keep looking around, trying to find the woman wearing the most astonishing dress I have ever seen, but I can’t find her. People start coming to me shaking my hand and congratulating me for not falling in love and not getting married. What a bullshit. “Congratulations,” I hear a familiar voice behind me. I turn around to find Tara. I take a shaky breath as I look at her and she wraps her arms around my neck, pressing her new and improved breasts against my chest. I place both my hands on her hips and push her away softly. Her eyes scan mine and I smile politely. “It’s been a lo
Grace POVI don’t know how long I have been hiding. Seeing Dash with that Barbie doll made me sick to my stomach. The way she was all over him and he wasn’t backing off. I shake my head, trying to push away the memories as I clear the single tear that rolled down my cheek. Good thing I am not wearing makeup. That would’ve been a freaking disaster. I take a deep breath, trying to compose myself as I stand up. A part of me thought Dash would come after me and, after realizing he was not coming, it felt like my heart shattered into a thousand little pieces. Why would he come after me? If I thought he was playing a game before, now I know for a fact that he is. Walking out of the small room I find to sit by myself I find George outside the room waiting. His eyes meet mine and he offers me a huge smile. Great. This is all I need. “George…” I whisper and he takes one step towards me, holding my hand and taking it to his lips, placing a small kiss. I hate the feeling of his lips against my
Grace POV“Ladies and gentlemen, can I please have a moment of your time?” Dash says after clearing his throat. Everyone looks at him, and I dig my elbow into his ribs. “Don’t do this,” I whisper, but his eyes move from me to everyone else surrounding us now. Curious eyes look between the two of us, trying to figure out why he is holding me so close. I watch as Amber winks at me, showing the largest smirk I have ever seen. I take a deep breath, closing my eyes while Dash speaks again. “It’s my great honor to decline the award tonight, as I have found someone worthy of my time, and worthy of ripping the title from me.” I open my eyes and everyone is looking at me.The woman who introduced him earlier clears her throat, approaching us with a bright red face and pursed lips. She fakes a smile as she leans closer to him, whispering in his ear. Dash pulls away from her and darts his eyes to me and then back at her. “Since I met Grace, I realized nothing in my life made sense, this title
Dash POVHaving Grace in my arms feels right, the way her body molds to mine, and how her hands grip me tightly, pulling me to her. I feel her need. She needs me as much as I need her. I want her and I am going to have her. “Let’s go,” I whisper against her lips as the rain kisses our skin. The water falling between us making her look even sexier than before. I never thought that would be possible. Her pink lips parted as she breathes and her red hair clinging to her skin. Fuck. I pull her hair behind her back and she moans as I attack her neck while she rubs herself against me. Pulling away from her is the hardest thing I have ever done in my life. Not kissing her is more difficult than I ever thought. It’s like she is a drug and I am addicted to the way she makes me feel. What the hell is wrong with me? Why am I allowing myself to feel like this?Guiding Grace to the limo waiting for me makes my cock twitch. I don’t think I will be able to wait any longer. Once inside, I pull her t
Grace POVMy entire body aches. Everything in me is heightened. I groan as I move on the bed and blink several times before I sit up straight. Last night was a rollercoaster and after sex, Dash became distant, as if he was closed off into his own little world. The way his jaw was clenching and his hands closed into fists resting on his legs made me not want to say anything. I think he knows I am a virgin. Correction. I was a virgin. I bet he could tell, but why was he so upset after? Was it that? Og God, I was terrible. That had to be the reason. There’s no other reason. Every time I would hear men say about a girl’s virginity they were proud to be their first one, it’s like a prize, so that can’t be the reason he was upset, I probably sucked big time and he didn’t enjoy himself, well he enjoyed himself because he came all over my ass and back, but… I don’t know. I move my hands through my hair, putting my glasses on before I get out of bed. I never imagined my first time would be
Grace POV“Great,” I let out as the doorbell rings. My mother’s eyes locked on me while I took a deep breath walking to the door. I open it fast and Dash is standing there. His hair is messy, his eyes darken, and the circles under his eyes make me realize he hasn’t slept. I look at him as I open my mouth and he shakes his head before stepping inside. His hands are inside his pants pockets, his jacket is open and his black shirt is not tucked into his pants like last night. He looks messy as hell and when his eyes meet mine as soon as I close the door; I see the anger in them. “Who’s that?” My mother’s voice booms from the kitchen while Dash looks at me and then at the door and my eyes move between the door and him. Anxiety piling up, making me feel extremely uncomfortable staring at the man that took my virginity. The man I made me feel like a woman for the first time. I don’t know if I blame everything that happened yesterday or his persistence. The way he made me feel. “You’re no
Jagger POVEntering the elevator, I press my key card to the reader and the doors close immediately. I hate sharing the elevator with people, so I like to come early, before everyone is supposed to start. Today is a bad day for me. It’s been ten years today since my life changed and made me the man I am today. The elevator doors open and Janet looks at me with a wide smile. I look at her, shaking my head slightly as I walk to her desk and she offers me a cup of black coffee. “Good morning boss,” she says and I raise an eyebrow, looking at her and her shoulders slump as she looks at me. “What? Can’t I try to make your day a little better? Today is your dark day after all,” she says and I nod slightly, offering her a small smile. I don’t smile a lot lately, I don’t have a lot of reasons to smile, anyway. “Every day is a dark day,” I correct Janet, and she crosses her arms in front of her chest giving me her sassy attitude and I nod “Thank you for the coffee,” I tell her and her entire
Dash POVStanding at the altar waiting for Grace to walk up to me is making me more nervous than I have ever been in my life. Waiting for her to walk to me in her wedding dress, ready to make me her husband, is the weirdest feeling ever. The past year I have spent showing Grace how much I love her and how important she is to me. The Bridal March starts playing and I look at my brother, who is standing next to me while I adjust my jacket. Fiddling with my hands seems to be helping with the anxiety of seeing Grace.Everyone stands up and then I see Grace walking towards me next to her mother. The veil is covering her face, but I can see her smile underneath. Once they stand in front of me, Marie kisses me on the cheek before offering me her daughter’s hand. I hold Grace’s hand, bringing it to my lips before I remove the veil from her face and her eyes shine with happiness, but it soon disappears when her eyes move from me to my brother standing behind me. “What happened to Jagger?” Gr
Dash POVOne year laterOpening my eyes as I feel the sweat dripping down my face and my heart beating fast makes me sit up straight immediately. I look around the room, remembering I am in Jagger’s house. Today is my wedding day and Grace came up with the whole shit. I am not allowed to see her before the wedding kind of crap.I tried to explain to her that superstition made no sense, not when we lived together and shared a life already, but she made me promise I would respect what she wanted. What can I say? The girl says jump and I ask how high. I am entirely in her hands and she can do whatever the fuck she wants with me that I will allow her to. Pulling up a pair of shorts that I left on the chair, I walk out of the room towards the living room to find my brother with an ice pack against his lip. I raise a single eyebrow as I step closer to him and chuckle as his bruised face appears behind the ice. “Holly shit, Grace is going to fucking kill you, and those bruises won’t be any
Dash POVI open my eyes and immediately regret doing so. My mouth is dry and my vision is blurred. I move my hands up and down my face, trying to wake up, but the headache makes me flinch. I groan in frustration and when I move; I feel something next to me in bed. No, no… Fear strikes and I stand still, not wanting to look at how much I fucked up last night. Getting drunk is one thing, but hooking up and ending up fucking a random girl is an entirely different kind of fuck up. A fuck up, I will not forgive myself. Gathering the courage to look after taking several breaths, I move slightly to see Grace sleeping next to me. I look up and then look at my side again, sitting up on the bed in one movement. Not believing my eyes, I smile, but at the same time freak out a little. How the fuck did I end up in bed with Grace?I look around the room, not recognizing it, and then look down at my body to find a pair of green boxer shorts I have never seen in my life. What the fuck? Looking arou
Grace POV“Grace, dinner is ready, sweetheart,” Mom says as she opens my bedroom door. I nod my head slightly without lifting my head from the pillow. “I’m not hungry,” I whisper back as I feel a single tear roll down my face. I have been crying on and off since I left Dash’s house. Everything he has told me, plus everything else that happened, has taken a toll on me. It’s like my brain has gone into overdrive and shut down. Refusing to cope with what is happening.Mom takes a deep breath as she sits on the edge of the bed, resting her hand on my legs. I look at her and I can see the concern plastered all over her face. “I am worried about you,” Mom says, and that is the last thing I want. She doesn’t deserve to be feeling this. She has gone through so much, I hate putting another thing on her back. Mom looks like she has aged years in the last few days. The betrayal, the divorce, my dad’s death, and my kidnapping have taken a huge chunk of her life away. “Sorry Mom,” I say, sitting
Dash POV“What do you mean, you do things that would make my skin curl? What do you mean by that?” Grace asks and I close my eyes for a few seconds and when I open them, her eyes widen as if she is finally understanding everything. “I am innocent Grace, and I will make sure no one comes back to hurt you,” I say, and she stands up so fast it makes my head spin. “Careful, you can’t do that,” I say, but she ignores me as she paces around the living room. “Are you telling me you are like Parisi?” Grace asks and I stand walking to her. I place my hands on her neck and her eyes meet mine as I caress her skin lightly with my thumb as I shake my head. “I am nothing like that fucker, I don’t traffic women, I don’t rape women, I don’t force them to do things they don’t want, and I sure as hell don’t hurt innocent women,” I add and Grace’s eyes widen again as her hands fly to touch mine. Her hands gripping mine but she doesn’t push away. “I am not like him, but I am not innocent,” I say and s
Grace POV“I can walk by myself,” I let out with a giggle as Dash lifts me from the car. His arms holding me bridal style as he carries me to the elevator. His eyes meet mine and he plants a small kiss on my lips as we wait inside the elevator. The doors open, taking us into our apartment and when we are inside, I look around trying to find my furry friend, but disappointment takes over as I can’t see him anywhere. “Where’s Crow?” I ask Dash and he smiles as he puts me on the couch. His eyes follow my every move as I adjust to my position. “So? Where is he?” I ask and Dash sits next to me, smiling. “Jagger has him, because I was spending so much time in the hospital with you he offered to stay with him, shocking I know,” Dash says and I widen my eyes, nodding. “I never thought I would see the day the big bad wolf would become a teddy bear and decide to offer his help with a dog,” I say as I laugh, and Dash smiles. “Are you hungry? I can make you something to eat,” he says and I sh
Dash POVI walk straight into the room where all the instruments are kept. Things here are different from the safe house. The cells are like rooms and we can’t keep the stuff inside because otherwise they could use it against us or against themselves. Gathering my favorites, I smile as I grab the baseball bat, the knife, and the nail remover. I shove them into my pocket as I rest the baseball bat against my shoulder and I walk into Amber’s room. Her eyes meet mine and she immediately moves against the wall. “Please, don’t do this Dash, I can give you more information,” Amber says and I can’t help but laugh at her poor attempt at getting out of this. “I’ll tell you whatever you want to know,” Amber says, and I shake my head as I grab my phone from my pocket. I log into the security camera feed and show the bitch she is not alone anymore. Amber gasps, covering her mouth with her hand as she sees her pile of shit boyfriend or whatever Parisi is in the other room. He is tied to the wal
Jagger POVWatching my brother almost go through everything I went through has become my worst nightmare. The way he was barely breathing while we tried to find Grace was killing me. I don’t wish that pain on anyone, especially not on my twin brother. He is everything to me. He is the only person I can rely on. “Are you sure you want to do this?” Ghost asks and I nod as he wraps my wrists and hands. Ghost has become a good friend in the last few months. “You can still leave,” he adds, and I shake my head. “Are you trying to get into my head?” I ask, looking directly into his dark eyes. and he shakes his head, cocking his head to the side slightly. When I am done, I walk out of the changing rooms straight into the cage where I am about to have my first underground fight. Ghost introduced me to this world and I come here every time I want to distract myself. There’s something therapeutic for me watching people bleed. “Remember what I told you,” Ghost says and I nod. This is an under