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Salena lifted her chin in defiance, but her lip was beginning to tremble.
Get ready to jump, bitch. Your ship is sinking faster than the Titanic, and there aren’t any lifeboats left.
“You even went so far as to try and get into Dillon’s office to delete the voicemail.” He couldn’t help but chuckle as her eyes widened and shock washed over her face. “Didn’t know someone saw you, did you?”
Tears pooled in her amber eyes, but Taylor didn’t feel one iota of sympathy for her distress. “You might as well just admit it, Salena.”
She squeezed her eyes closed and nodded. When she opened them again her crocodile tears began to fall.
Brendan looked upon her with disgust. “How could you do that?”
“Jealous bitch,” Taylor couldn’t stop himself from murmuring under his breath.
“Give me your keys, Sal.” She looked up at Brendan, tears trailing down her face. “You’re done.”
“No. Brendan, you can’t mean that.”
He ignored her protests and stood with his palm upturned.
“You’re really going to let me go over some silly little girl Kyan won’t remember fucking a week from now?”
Come on, Salena. Dignity. Class. Foreign concepts, eh?
“I just did. Keys. Now.”
She rifled through her bag and slapped a ring of keys into Brendan’s waiting palm. “You’re going to regret this.”
“I don’t think so.” And he gave her his back. “Axel, can you please accompany Salena while she gets her things and then escort her off the premises? Thanks, man.”
“You’re going to be so sorry, Brendan.” She wiped at her face. “And your asshole cousins too. I promise you that.”
Brendan took in a deep breath as if to calm himself and turned around. “Your promises don’t mean shit to me, but if you even think of hurting my family ever again? I’ll bury you.”
Then he walked off and when he came back Marcus and Jason had returned to Charley’s and Salena was gone. Axel leaned against the bar. The cleaning crew readied the club for another night of unabashed pleasure behind the red door.
He took his seat in the booth. “I called Jesse. They’re an hour away, maybe less. Told them to text us when they’re close—that we’d meet them at Linn’s place. He had me on speaker so I didn’t say anything else.”
“Wise, I suppose,” Taylor replied as he nodded. “Did you love her or something, Bren? Is that why you kept her around for so long?”
Brendan stared at nothing across the room and chewed on his lip. “Nah. Maybe once, a long time ago, for about five minutes.” He grinned. “I kept her around because she didn’t love me either—but she did like this dick. I was more than good with that, bro. You know me, man, I can’t do that love shit.”
“Right.” He laughed. “That’s what I thought once, and then Chloe happened.”
“Well, of course, but it’s Chloe.” And Brendan laughed too. “You and my cousins grabbed all the good girls before I could get to them and now there’s no one left for me.”
“Oh, there’s someone…”
Taylor never got to finish because Brendan’s phone pinged with a text. He looked at it and said, “They’re here.”
Showtime.
Shitshow wasn’t even close to how it all went down. After what felt like an eternity later, when they were finally home and collapsed into bed, emotionally drained and physically exhausted, Taylor couldn’t fall sleep. His mind kept replaying the events of this fucked-up day. He would never take loving someone for granted ever again. There were no mad kings or evil queens in their story—not that he knew of anyway, and for that he was thankful. Their love, simply because it was different from everyone else’s, because it existed between three of them, would be difficult enough. But he understood now. Love is what brings meaning and purpose to a life. Without it you’re just dead.
Jesse was sound asleep behind him with his arm curled around his waist. Chloe was tucked in snugly against him. Taylor could feel the soft puffs of her breath against his chest with every exhale. He combed his fingers through her hair and softly kissed her crown.
“I love you, little bird.”
He knew she couldn’t hear him, but he felt better having said it.
