Just for the Summer (Chasing Carolina #0.5) (20 page)

I talk to Reagan for a few more minutes before saying goodbye and heading inside to get dressed and order a pizza. Then find a comfy spot on the couch in our family room so I can call Savannah and get the full scoop with how she’s holding up. I know Kayden was supposed to be back from a business trip to Miami. Thankfully he wasn’t there yet, because I don’t doubt she’d be bailing his ass out of jail for beating Logan to a pulp.

I cannot wait to hear her play by play of what went down today. Pulling up my contacts, I push on Savannah’s number and impatiently wait for her to answer. I’m just about to hang up when she finally answers.

“Hello?” She whispers into the phone.

“Hey, Biotch!! Or should I say Rocky-freaking-Balboa!” I shout into the phone at her with laughter in my voice. Forget whispering! I’m bursting with too much energy to whisper. I’m too excited to hear about her finally putting Logan in his place.

I hear Savannah sigh into the phone and what sounds like a door shut. “Let me guess, you talked to Reagan? Let’s not forget you are the cause for my extremely hurt hand!”

What the hell! I know I had that coming…but still!

“Wow! Hey, now girlfriend…don’t go blaming that shit on me. That was all Logan. I didn’t make his ass jump on a plane. Anyways! He was bound to find out.”

“Yes, he would’ve found out soon enough. But seriously, Brooklyn! He shows up the day Kayden is flying back into town!” Savannah shouts at me in a loud whisper. It’s very evident that she’s a tad pissed off at the moment. But she’ll get over it. She always does. Plus this is a hilarious story we can reflect back on for years to come. “I came all the way to Galveston to escape the drama back in L.A., but just my luck, the freakin’ drama follows me here!”

I can’t help but find it all a little funny. I don’t bother trying to hide the amusement in my voice with all of this, “I still can’t get over the fact that you punched him! It’s about freaking time; if it had been me, I would’ve nailed him in the balls.”

“Believe me, the thought crossed my mind. I’m not usually a violent person, but Logan brings out the worst in me.”

Oh my gosh…I am literally going to die from laughing so hard tonight!

“Damn it, I wish someone would’ve recorded it. That is something I definitely wanted to see!” I would so watch it with a big ass bowl of popcorn!

Savannah is quiet for a moment when I hear her let out another sigh of frustration before continuing, “I wish the whole thing never happened. I know this is going to come back to bite me in the ass. You know how Logan has been lately. This is just one more thing to sell to the press.”

I understand she’s pissed about it all now. But I know once she has a few days to think on it she’ll be like me. Amused by the whole thing. Because, seriously…it’s Logan! He’s a douchebag who’s had it coming.

It’s infuriating to me that she’s beating herself up over him and what happened today. I let out a loud groan because I’m frustrated that she is upset and we’re so far apart that I can’t be there for her.

“Oh, I bet he will, but I think a lot of people will get a kick out of seeing photos of Logan with a busted nose.” I let out a small giggle to try and relax her. I feel helpless but have to do what I can for my bestie.

I hear her voice perk up, “Yeah, I would enjoy seeing his not so perfect face everywhere for a change, sporting two black eyes. He’s going to have a heart attack; I would bet my car he will try to cover it up with makeup.” Her laughter is like music to my ears. I knew I’d wear her down.

Now we’re both giggling fools together. “Oh. My. God! I know; he is such a pretty boy! Speaking of gracing covers of magazines, Miss. Thing, how was the shoot and interview for Envy?”

Savannah goes quiet and leaves me sitting here hanging. Seriously? What the hell is she doing? Other than Kayden. I can’t help but laugh at that one.

Man I am hilarious!

“Savannah! Hello, earth to Savannah!” I shout into the phone as I try to remind her I’m sitting here on the other end of the damn phone.

She is like a damn squirrel sometimes.

Finally, she answers me, “Oh sorry, I heard the TV turn on, Kayden must’ve woken up. Anyway the shoot went great; we lucked out weather wise. So we did a lot of photos down by the water. They wanted to get pictures of Kayden and me for the article, to you know, officially announce us as a couple. He was still in Miami though, so Eloise said she would use pictures from the Envy party.”

Bouncing with excitement, I squeal into the phone. “Oooh yes, the infamous dip and kiss picture! That was so freakin’ hot Savannah. Kayden Knox kissing you in front of the world and breaking a million hearts while doing it! I swear I could hear the broken hearts echoing from city to city.” We can’t stop laughing now.

“Oh, don’t I know it. I’m awaiting the endless death threats now that I have stolen the heart of the world’s most Eligible Bachelor. I have to pinch myself; I still cannot believe Kayden Knox is sitting in my living room. Just a few months ago I was meeting him for the first time at Envy, a nervous stuttering mess, and now he’s fucking my brains out every chance he gets!”

“Damn girl, I would do anything to be you right now! Is it as big as everyone says?” I can just imagine Savannah rolling her eyes at my boldness. I don’t hold back! I need to know if everything is truly bigger in Texas.

I hear Savannah let out a small gasp. God, she is so dramatic. She should know me well enough by now to just expect this shit to fly out of my mouth.

“Brooklyn! I cannot believe you just asked me that!”

“What?! You should know me by now; I need the dirty details Savannah! Plus I had the worst lay of my life last night…I swear that man couldn’t find my G-spot if I drew the idiot a freakin’ map!” I seriously need a good lay. I’m still bumming over that last hook-up.

“All right, if you must know, he is as big as they say and then some.” She whispers into the phone.

What is with all the damn whispering!?

Oh yay! I knew it! “I knew it! You lucky bitch. Does he have any brothers? I need to go cowboy hunting when I get there tomorrow, I’m in need of a good fuck.”

Savannah says with amusement in her voice, “You are awful Brooklyn Bennett! And no, no brothers…but we can definitely go cowboy hunting and find you a cowboy to ride.”

Oh hell yeah, baby! Mama needs her a fine ass cowboy!

“Hot damn girly, I am going to hop on a red eye right now! Oh, speaking of Knox and his Texas size dick, did you ride him until his junk fell off? I know if I had to go four days without that man candy, I would be jumping his bones the moment he walked through the door.”

I can already picture my best friend blushing about a hundred shades of red right now. She’s adorable.

I hear her exhale slowly into the phone before answering me, “Yes…we pretty much christened the entire beach house today.”

Go Savannah! But also
ewww!
I have to live there too. Who am I kidding, I’ve had sex on every inch of our Hollywood Hills home. Nothing like a hot ass kitchen fuck to start your morning off right.

“Oh, my God! You dirty little hoe! You better be sanitizing that fucking house before I get there! One more thing, don’t get sidetracked having wild animal sex with Knox and forget about me tomorrow, I expect you to be at the airport to pick me up when my flight lands.”

“For your information, Kayden has to work tomorrow, so don’t worry…I won’t be getting sidetracked by wild sex with Kayden. Once you land, we can go grab lunch somewhere and maybe do a little retail therapy, help me forget about this whole Logan drama.”

“Oooh shopping sounds fan-freaking-tastic! I need some country chic clothes; I want to get myself some hot ass cowgirl boots!”

I hate saying goodbye, but know it won’t be long and I’ll be with her in Texas for some much needed bestie time to talk about the whole Logan thing in person. I hear the pizza delivery guy buzzing at the front gate. I toss my phone onto the coffee table and jump to my feet running to the front door to buzz him in.

I am really missing Savannah’s cooking. Thank the Lord for takeout or my ass would starve. But thanks to this pizza, I’ll have to hit the gym extra hard this week.

That’s another thing, now we need to find a new gym for kickboxing. It’s my new obsession and the reason I’m kicking ass as a stunt double right now. I can feel it. This job is going to help me get the break I’ve been praying for!

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20647056-wasted-love

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20765474-savaged

Prologue

Niko

Sulfurous odors assault my nose, pressed against the frigid concrete. The smell lingers and a warning flashes in my brain, cautioning me not to turn over. Refusing to listen, I regret the movement immediately as pain slices through my limp body. The hairs on my arms are smoldering then matting to my skin before my eyes. My mind blank, I try to make sense of the sight, barely registering my surroundings. A gust of wind blows by, and the chattering of my teeth echoes off the brick wall in front of me.

Sweat drips off my forehead as rage seeps from my pores. Vague images of black-masked forms start playing on repeat in my head as I try not to think about the unbearable agony slithering up my side. Dragging my limp arm across my chest, I attempt to hold my throbbing ribcage, to lessen the pain.

Viscid warmth covers my fingers as I find the wound there. Wincing, I gather all the strength I have left and apply pressure in an effort to keep from bleeding out. The pain dulls when I don’t breathe so I hold my breath, grunting with each gasp that escapes my lips. I’m lightheaded, and my weak neck can barely hold my head up.

I close my eyes and silently pray that I’m not dying. I can feel the flesh of my face redden with color as the pain of my wounds blazes more fiercely than anything I’ve ever endured. I wonder if this is even real. As much as I hate admitting I’ve hallucinated before, nothing has ever seemed quite this vivid.

This isn’t a dream; it is indeed a nightmare, though I’m not sleeping.

Was I shot? Doused in acid?

The realization of my fucking reality cuts me deep. Stabbed, beaten, burned into unconsciousness, and left to rot in a puddle of mud and my own despair.

An ache races like a fever across my skin as sudden stinging attacks me, jarring my senses. Moving my bloodied hand, I inch it up toward my cheek. As if my face were made of breakable porcelain, I graze lightly over my skin, afraid that with even the faintest touch, I will crumble. I moan, licking my lips to ease their dryness, tasting a foul, metallic-tinged substance. I’ve been cut there, too.

Sliced.

From the corner of my mouth, I trace the wide path carved in my skin upward to my eye, ending right beside the brow. The open flesh burns under my touch, and in this moment, as I lie helpless, my mind freezes. My body weakens, drained of life, of hope, and I wish that they had killed me.

Death has to be better than this.

Death has to be better than fighting to live.

Chapter One

Niko

“Jarod!” I bark into the receiver of my phone, paging my assistant and then hit end abruptly. Clenching my jaw, I lean back in my black leather chair and inhale deeply then exhale very slowly. It’s something I learned from watching self-improvement videos online. Sometimes it helps, but most of the time it doesn’t do anything but make me feel like a fucking idiot.

My eyes burn from staring at the computer screen in the room’s dim lighting. It’s been two minutes and Jarod still hasn’t returned my page. I seethe as my rage and agitation grow. Running my hand through my hair, I exhale and allow the anger trapped inside to leave my body before I loosen the knot of the blue tie that’s like a noose around my neck and I tug the silk away. I’m thankful that my day is coming to an end. Running an empire is no joke, and the day’s tension builds in my temples.

I reach into the bottom drawer of my cherry-stained desk and pull out a bottle of aged bourbon. Pouring an ample amount into a short glass, I raise the rim to my nose. As I inhale the aroma, the stout yet refined smell pleases my senses. Taking a swig, I swish the liquid around, and allow my taste buds to savor the liquor before I swallow. The alcohol is not meant to cure my anger. It is merely meant to dilute the real desire that lurks within me. My longing to get laid is like a nagging alarm clock in my body. I can tell when it’s going to go off and rings loudly in my ears.