Society Girls: Neveah (13 page)

“I’m just a phone call away. For anything,
Nev. If you need to vent, or cry, or anything. You can call me. If
you want to see me, I’ll come to you as fast as I can, but if you
don’t, we can just talk on the phone.”

“Thanks, Dylan. I mean it,” I tell him
reaching out to caress his cheek. I shouldn’t be touching him, but
I can’t stop myself. “We should get back before the guys and Darcy
come looking for us.”

“Speaking of that, I know how Matt, Aiden,
and Nate are close, but where does Darcy fit in?”

I shrug. “They all bonded over video games
and beer. She’s super close with all of them, especially Nate.”

“Cool. You’re right about us getting back.
I’m surprised they haven’t come for us yet. I’m happy they haven’t,
but still surprised.”

He takes my hand and helps me to my feet,
which isn’t exactly easy in my short dress and heels. I hold onto
his shoulders while I steady myself, but let go when it feels too
comfortable. I need to take some time away from him, not just
because he lied; although that’s a big part of it.

I also need to figure out who I am and who I
want to be. So much of what I’ve done and chosen for myself over
the years was because of my father’s “death.” To know that he
wasn’t dead changes so much for me. I don’t know how I’m supposed
to feel, because even though I’m relieved that he’s alive, he’s
been dead to me for so long as a martyr that it’s hard to know he
staged everything. He hurt us all, and I can’t just forget that and
move on. I don’t know what’s going to happen, but I know his
re-appearance in our lives isn’t going to bring rainbows and
sunshine. In fact, I’m pretty sure there’s going to be destruction,
if not death—for real this time.

Dylan

To say things are tense when we walk back
into the room is so far from an understatement that I don’t even
have a word for it. It’s just bad. I know it, and I own my part in
it. I can justify it in every way possible, but what I did was
wrong. Never mind that I did it out of loyalty and a vow. Those
things may explain it to everyone, but they don’t excuse
anything.

“Are you okay, Nev?” Matt asks her, getting
up and walking to us.

“I don’t know. How about you?”

“I don’t know, either.”

“We’ve got to see my mom.”

“I know. I already called and told her I
need to see her and Sully. I would’ve sent a jet for them, but it’s
faster for them to fly commercially.”

“It’s not safe,” Sadiq tells him.

Matt ignores him, so Nev answers. “We’ve all
flown commercially to Vegas from time to time. Nothing has changed
to the outside world, so if they’re not safe now, they never
were.”

“No one is ever truly safe.”

“I’ve taken care of their safety for all of
these years while you played scary hermit neighbor.”

“That isn’t fair, Matthew.”

“And what you did to him is?” Reina says,
rising to face him.

“I didn’t realize how deeply it would affect
him,” Sadiq says, looking away from her. “I am so very sorry. For
both of you.”

“Would you have changed your plan if you’d
known?” Nev asks, I already know the answer, and I’m pretty sure
she does too.

“No. It wasn’t
my
plan—I had to keep us
all safe.”

“You made me question who I was…what kind of
man I was.”

“It was war. You were taught to kill.”

“Bad men and women. I was
taught to kill
them
, not an innocent man.”

“There are always innocent casualties when
war is upon us.”

“Now we all know that casualty was me.”

“I have nothing to offer you except my
apology.”

Matt nods. “To me, maybe. To Aqeelah and
your children, you better be prepared to offer a hell of a lot
more.”

“Bringing them here is a mistake. It could
get us all killed.”

“We won’t let that happen,” Reina tells him.
“Your rise from the dead doesn’t change who they are to us. They
are Matt’s family, and Nev is part of the Society family as well.
We don’t take that lightly.”

“My daughter does not belong with you.”

“Really? You know me so well after being
gone for more than half my life?”

“You are not a killer.”

“No, but I am someone who wants to make a
difference in the world. You have no say in what I do, or the job I
take. You lost that right the day you faked your death.”

“Matt groomed you for this. He tricked
you.”

“Shut up,” Nev says, grabbing Matt’s hand to
keep him from going for her father. No one but me would try to stop
him, and it wouldn’t end well. “Matt may have given me access to
training, but I always had a choice. He never tricked me, or chose
for me. He believes in me enough to trust that I’ll do what’s right
for me.”

“I do,” Matt tells her.

“I know.”

“I blame you as well, Dylan,” Sadiq says,
turning to glare at me. “If you’d just stuck with the plan, none of
this would be happening.”

“Yeah, not sorry about that. Your plan was a
mess. You have to know that, even if you won’t admit it. And I
don’t know how anyone could hang with Nev and not fall in love with
her, or want to help her for real.”

“Stupid boy.”

“He’s stupid for falling in love with me?
Wow.”

“Don’t twist my words, Neveah.”

“Don’t try and adopt the ‘stern father’ tone
of voice with me.”

“I am your father whether you like it or
not. You will respect me when I speak to you.”

“No. I will respect you when you earn my
respect.”

He starts to open his mouth, but I step in
front of her and put my hand up. “Enough, Sadiq. What’s happened
today is more than enough for her and everyone else. My sister has
a birthday cake to eat, and you can go…well, wherever the hell you
want.”

“You’re kicking me out?”

“Not yet. Keep at Nev and we’ll see where
you end up.”

“Now you stand up for her?”

“Yeah. I’m standing up for her now. You want
to punch me again?”

“You punched him, too? Enough! All of you.
If Dylan deserves to be punched on my behalf, I’ll do it
myself.”

“That’s what I tried to tell them,” Ellie
says, speaking for the first time. “I understand what it’s like to
be treated with kid gloves by the people who love you. It
sucks.”

“Yes, it does. Even if I was a princess in a
tower instead of a spy trainee, I’d want to fight my own battles.
Sometimes I might need help, but I want to be involved.”

“And you will be,” Reina assures her. “I
don’t know what’s going to happen, but the Society has your back,
no matter what you have to do. Always.”

I know she means it, and that makes me feel
a little better. What’s coming with Sadiq’s return to the world is
going to be bad.

“How about that cake?” Ellie asks, obviously
trying to steer us all away from what’s to come.

“Yes. Cake. I’m so sorry we ruined your
party, Ellie,” Nev tells her.

“It’s not ruined. There’s still cake, booze,
and good friends out there waiting for us. A little excitement just
adds to the fun.”

“Thanks,” I mouth to her, and she nods. My
sister really does rock!

* * *

Neveah

“That’s really your dad?” Kalila asks when I
join my friends in the backyard.

“Yep.”

“Bloody hell, Nev. I thought us royals had
some screwed up secret shit going on. You might just have my family
beat!” Jenysis tells me.

“Are you okay? I mean, as okay as you can
be?” Harlow asks.

“I’m still trying to process everything. My
mom and brother are already on a plane. I don’t know how we’re
going to tell them. I also worry about Matt,” I say, looking over
to where he’s sitting with Reina.

“I can’t even imagine what it’s like to know
the man you thought you accidentally killed years ago is alive.
Didn’t I hear something about his guilt keeping him away from Reina
for a few years?” Rhieve asks.

“It was more than a few years. It was over a
decade,” Camari tells her.

“I know he’s angry, because he’d finally
come to terms with his guilt, and now he knows there was no reason
for it in the first place. There was no reason for him to push her
away. But they’re strong now. She’ll help him through this. We all
will,” I tell her.

“Speaking of pushing someone away, I’m just
going to come out and say it,” Rose says. “You’ve been hooking up
with Dylan Gallagher? The manwhore of the NBA is the guy who’s been
sending you flowers and stuffed animals? And helped you get
comfortable with guns?”

“Yes to all of it.”

“Damn girl,” Matisse tells me. “He’s
hot.”

“He is. He’s also sweet. I mean, except for
lying to me since the day we met.”

“Sometimes lies are necessary,” Sierra says
quietly, and I reach over and give her a hug.

“I know. We’ll have to lie, and it’s not
really fair for me to judge him for doing the same thing. He’s not
part of an organization, but he made a vow he felt he had to keep.
Until he fell in love with me, and broke it.”

“You still believe he loves you? He didn’t
just lie, he let his asshole friend insult you,” Rose reminds
me.

“I do believe it, but I’m not being a
pushover. He says he can’t tell me why he didn’t defend me, and I
told him I need all his truths before we can even think about being
together.”

“You’d really get back with him?” Matisse
asks me.

“Yes.”

“You can’t just stop loving someone because
they disappoint you,” Kalila adds, looking over at Theo with a sad
smile.

“When are
you
going to tell us
about Theo?” Jen asks her.

“When you tell us about Wayne,” she shoots
back.

“Nothing to tell.”

“Save it, princess,” I tell her. “You two
are completely into each other.”

“Well, maybe,” she says, ducking her head as
she tries to hide her smile.

“We’re quite the group,” Rhieve remarks.

“Yes, we are. We’re still missing one,
though. When do you think Isa will get a new girl?”

“Don’t look at me. Matt’s family, but Reina
isn’t spilling secrets over the dinner table,” I tell her with a
laugh. “Usually she’s just testing out different languages on me to
see if passing that portion of training immediately was a fluke. Or
trying to give me clothes.”

“Reina offers you clothes? Please tell me
you take some! I would die to get inside her closet,” Matisse says
dramatically.

“I’ve taken a thing or two, and yes, her
closet is pretty cool. I’d imagine Stella’s is even more
spectacular, though.”

“I’m sure it is, but getting into the mind
of the queen would be awesome,” Matisse grumbles in response.

“Her closet isn’t her mind,” Kalila
insists.

“It kind of is,” I answer, earning me some
raised eyebrows. “I know, I know. I’ve pretty much sucked at my
Stella lessons, but we had a really good one recently that opened
my eyes to exactly what she does.”

“Finally one of you understands. Thank
God.”

“You’re so dramatic, Teesy,” Camari tells
her, using the nickname that came up after one night of too much
drinking, and just stuck.

Matisse flips her off in response as we all
laugh. The rest of the afternoon passes with cake, beer, and fun.
Just what I need right now.

“Nev,” Dylan calls out as we’re starting to
leave. He jogs up next me, and it takes everything I have inside of
me not to jump into his arms. “I was wondering if I could hug you
goodbye.”

God, yes. “Oh. Yeah,” I tell him, dropping
my purse on the ground as I lean into his arms.

His arms close around me,
and it feels just like it always has—it feels
right
. I belong in his arms, and I
just hope he finds the strength, or whatever it is he needs to
find, in order to tell me the truth.

“Don’t forget what I said. Call me
anytime.”

I lean back to look at him. “Don’t forget
what I said, either. Find a way to tell me everything, Dylan.
Please find a way. I love you.”

“I love you, too. I promise you that I’m
going to figure things out. Be careful, and stay safe.”

“You too. I’m pretty sure Reina’s going to
arrange for security for you and my dad, but I still worry.”

“I’ll be fine as long as I know you
are.”

I impulsively reach out and give him a peck
on the lips. Just a light kiss, but it’s enough to bring a smile to
his face. I like knowing I’m the only who makes him smile like
that, which makes me think of something else. He sees my face fall
and reaches out to cup it with his hands.

“What’s wrong?”

“You’re not…I mean, are you…going to see
other women?”

“What? No! I don’t want anyone else.”

“Are you sure? I made you wait for so long,
and now I’m walking away from you. I wouldn’t blame you.”

“I didn’t mind waiting, because you’re worth
it. You’re always worth it. Maybe I’ll even end up ambidextrous,
because my right hand’s going to need some help.”

“I think you need to get started,” I tell
him, feeling his erection right now.

“I’m pretty sure it’s going to be 24/7 until
I have you back in my bed.”

“Don’t forget the kitchen island, the couch,
or the basketball court,” I remind him, chuckling when he growls in
my ear.

“It’s probably a good thing your parents
decided to switch those letters around in your name,” he says
referencing what I told him about my name starting out as ‘heaven’
spelled backwards, but that my parents decided to switch things
up.

“Am I not heavenly?” I ask, walking back to
my friends.

“At the moment, no. In general, yes,” he
tells me as he watches me go.