“Okay, back to me for a second,” Charlotte said. “Do I bring it up to Flynn?”

  “No,” Kailey said. “Let him say it again.”

  “Or go flirt with someone else,” Emma said.

  “What? Why?” I asked.

  “Put him on the spot,” Emma said. “Make him want it. See what he does.”

  “It’s Flynn,” Kailey said.

  “He’ll beat the hell out of someone,” Charlotte said. “That’s how they all are.”

  “I guess that’s true,” Emma said. “But still, watching your guy beat someone up is kind of sexy. That’ll make you love him.”

  “That sounds like a lot of work,” I said. “Just talk to him.”

  “Ew, who talks?” Emma asked as she laughed.

  “In case you haven’t picked up on it, Emma prides herself on being a cold bitch,” Kailey said.

  “It’s good to be that in a warm town,” Emma said.

  “Well said,” Charlotte said.

  I flipped through the Spanish notes, not able to understand much of anything on the pages.

  I rolled my eyes, hating this stuff.

  There was so much more to deal with than dumb class notes.

  “Oh, look at this,” Emma said. “Aira, you might be falling in love even more.”

  I looked up from the notes and saw Wes with Leo and Flynn.

  They were walking along the gravel path outside the field.

  Wes was smoking, somehow making it look so sexy and cool.

  “Is that Luke?” Charlotte asked.

  “Yup,” Emma said. “With Carson and Brody.”

  “This could get nasty,” Kailey said.

  I swallowed hard and stood up.

  Luke was a part of the whole mess with Aira because she cut herself thing. But, ever since Wes smacked Ryder around, that had died down.

  “This is kind of turning me on,” Emma said.

  “I think Emma’s got a point,” Kailey said.

  “I hope Flynn hits one of them,” Charlotte said. “I’ll take him right under the bleachers.”

  Sometimes I felt like I was the only one with a brain.

  I didn’t want everyone throwing punches all the time. Starting these wars. Or finishing them. Wes had so much going on at once in life. Not to mention the way he swore he’d take care of me.

  Wes took the lead and walked right into Luke.

  Luke had headphones over his ears with a bag thrown over his back. He was shorter than Wes but built huge. Captain of the wrestling team, so his size fit his position.

  When Luke stepped back, he hurried and flipped his headphones off to hang around his neck.

  There was a standoff.

  I started to walk down the bleachers.

  “Aira, what are you doing?” Kailey called out.

  I waved and got Wes’s attention.

  He walked and threw his shoulder into Luke’s, sending him back again.

  But Luke didn’t do a thing about it.

  Leo and Flynn walked by too.

  It was pretty obvious that nothing needed to be said to Luke.

  Wes had the power.

  And that was so hot… and so dangerous.

  * * *

  We were on the deck outside Julia’s house.

  “I don’t understand the deal with your father,” I confessed.

  “You wouldn’t, darling,” Wes said. “This is what he does. He comes and goes. You’ve met him before though. When we were young.”

  I really didn’t remember him.

  But the subject was a tough one for Wes.

  “This is all about money,” Ryker said. “You know that.”

  “Of course it is,” Wes said. “And Pop’s too old to deal with it.”

  “What’s he even owed?” Walker asked.

  “They all have their ties to the shop and the land. And he knows the offers that have come Pop’s way.”

  Wes looked at me.

  He put his hand out and I took it. He pulled me close and squeezed me tight.

  I felt like I was in danger.

  Even though I was around everyone who should have made me feel safe.

  Especially Wes.

  But he was distracted now. Really distracted.

  “That’s who Pop was yelling at on the phone,” Wes said.

  “When was that?”

  “One of the days at the shop,” I said. “I heard him getting pissed. He threw his phone too. And when I offered to get it for him he snapped at me. This isn’t good.”

  “Why isn’t it good?” I asked.

  “Just isn’t, darling,” Wes said.

  He hugged me even tighter.

  Ryker and Walker sat on the railing, sharing a flask.

  Flynn and Charlotte were sitting together, their legs crossed over each other, watching something on Charlotte’s phone.

  Leo leaned against the corner with a cigarette in his mouth, standing next to Kailey, who was slightly turned, facing Emma.

  “I just need everyone to keep their eyes open,” Wes said. “Everyone. I don’t know what he’s going to do.”

  “We can handle ourselves,” Leo said. “West is a piece of shit.”

  “Like someone else we know,” Flynn said, looking up from Charlotte’s phone.

  “Hey, watch this part,” Charlotte said. “This is the good part.”

  I saw Wes’s lip curl.

  I tried to grab him but he slipped away.

  Before I knew it, he swiped Charlotte’s phone out of Flynn’s hand.

  “Hey!” Charlotte yelled.

  Wes wound up and threw the phone through the air.

  Flynn scrambled to his feet and went chest to chest with Wes.

  “Don’t,” Charlotte said.

  “No, do it,” Emma said. “I like this.”

  “Emma, shut up,” I said. “This isn’t a fucking game.”

  “Let’s go find my phone,” Charlotte said. She looked at Wes. “Asshole.”

  “Don’t topple over when you’re walking,” Wes said.

  I walked up behind Wes and pushed at his back. “What is wrong with you?”

  He didn’t respond to me.

  There was so much tension in the air.

  Ryker jumped off the railing and walked toward Emma. “So, are you ready for me yet? You bring the bat and I’ll bring the cuffs.”

  Emma slapped Ryker right across the face.

  The slap was hard and rung in my ears.

  “Oh… fuck…,” Walker said.

  Ryker turned and touched his face.

  “It’ll never happen, dude,” Emma said.

  Ryker looked at me and his eyes were watery.

  “You okay?” I asked.

  “I want her to have my kids,” Ryker said. “And I hate kids.”

  Wes walked to the railing and made a quick move, jumping over it.

  I ran to the edge and leaned over.

  He lit up a cigarette and walked to the water.

  “Don’t mind him,” Leo said. “His cousins are idiots. They only fuel the fire.”

  “How does this all work?” I asked Leo. “With his father and this town?”

  “Pop lived a crazy life, okay? He had Ryker and Walker’s father before he settled down with his wife and had West. That’s where the problems only begin. Wes’s father thinks he’s entitled to a lot. I don’t know if he is or not. But when he’s around, things get nasty. Everyone gets nasty. And Wes usually gets hurt.”

  I blinked fast.

  Of course Wes was capable of getting hurt. He could show off as much toughness as he wanted. He could beat anyone up. He could take on the police. He could vandalize Ryland’s motorcycle. He could dig through my burned down house to prove a point. He could even take Charlotte’s phone and throw it across the beach to just look even tougher.

  That was Wes. That was his heart trying to protect itself.

  But under it all, he was able to feel.

  “It’ll get worse, Aira,” Leo said. “And eventually West will go away. He always does. But before that, he just messes everything up. And with Ryland and his shit…”

  Leo just shook his head.

  That’s not what I wanted to hear.

  Wes took a drag of his cigarette and the smoke danced around him.

  Charlotte and Flynn found her phone. They were inspecting it to make sure it worked.

  Ryker was back at the railing, still staring at Emma.

  Poor Emma stood with her arms crossed, cheeks flushed, still livid at Ryker.

  Walker sipped from the flask.

  Kailey looked at me and offered a weak smile.

  This was my life and my home.

  And for everything I thought I knew, I truly knew nothing.

  I walked across the deck and down to the beach.

  The sand was warm and it made me sigh.

  Wes finally looked over his shoulder and looked right at me.

  We were apart, but our eyes were together.

  Somehow, that made me think that’s just how things were going to end up being.

  Chapter 13

  Wes

  “Hope you know that’s being done wrong.”

  I looked carefully at the engine of the motorcycle, knowing what the hell I was doing. West was just trying to be in the way. That’s what my father always did. He took pride in it too. Without a care or a worry.

  I ignored him and finished up putting the spark plugs back into the engine then I slowly stood up. I used the back of my towel to wipe down the leather seat. It was a hell of a ride. Not mine. Not anyone’s in the shop. Just another tuned up motorcycle that was meant for the road and to taste freedom.

  “I’ll show you how to do that the right way someday,” West said.

  I laughed and walked away from the motorcycle to the workbench.

  “Hey, look at me, son.”

  I felt his hand grab my arm and I turned to shake him away.

  There was a time when he was a towering monster over me but those days were gone. Hell, even then, without the help of vodka, he was always the same person. The vodka gave him strength. Or so it seemed.

  “You haven’t even said much to me since I got here,” West said. “I’m your father.”

  “That’s right,” I said. “You’re my father.”

  “You can give me a damn hug and tell me how your day was.”

  “I’m busy,” I said. “In case you can’t see that.”

  “Doing a job you don’t have to do. That’s weak, son.”

  I laughed. “Weak? What are you even doing here, Dad?”

  “Visiting my family. Haven’t seen you in a while. How long has it been?”

  I shrugged my shoulders. “Not sure. And I don’t really care.”

  I walked away from him again.

  I pointed to Flynn. “That one back there is done. Get it written up and call them.”

  “Sure thing, Wes,” Flynn said.

  Leo hung over the side of another motorcycle, smoke rising into the air from his cigarette. He turned his head and nodded at me.

  I nodded back.

  I didn’t want anyone talking to my father if they could help it.

  Outside, I lit up a smoke and stared across the lot to the road. My mind only calmed when I thought about Aira. My job was to keep her safe in this town and things just kept twisting deeper.

  That was okay though.

  That was Hidden.

  It was always that way.

  “You know, I remember the first time I caught you smoking.”

  West had worked his way outside, still wanting to bother me.

  “Yeah? Was that before or after you left?”

  “The truth hurts, son,” West said.

  “Try me,” I said.

  I heard the office door squeak open and saw Jett step out and stand there. He and West had a stare down that was cold enough to make it snow. Which would have been something to see considering where we were.

  After a good ten seconds, Jett went back into the office and slammed the door.

  “Poor guy,” West said. “Has nothing.”

  “What?” I asked.

  “Jett.”

  “I’m pretty sure Jett is doing just fine, West.”

  “You think that. But look at the reality. He doesn’t own what he wants. He’s still the same as he’s always been. He lost out on the girl. It’s beyond me how he fucked that one up. He could still get the girl, but won’t. Because he’s a wimp. And I think more than anything else he wishes you were his son. But that’s not possible, huh?”

  West grabbed my shoulder and shook.

  I stepped away and flicked my smoke out on the lot. Only my father would be able to ruin a perfectly good cigarette.

  “This is supposed to be ours, son. That’s why I came back.”

  I looked over my shoulder at my father.

  The scruff on his weathered face was turning gray. He had the same eyes as Pop though. Complete darkness and total evil. His black hair slicked back, making me wonder if he had to dye it to keep up the color. He was tall, wide, had the look of someone who could sell anything. But if you turned, he would stab you in the back and not think twice.

  “You came back for what?” I asked.

  “This place,” he said. “What’s ours. The old man is holding on for dear life now. This is worth more than he can handle. He won’t step out of the past. He’s going to hurt himself because of that. Either way, he can’t hold on much longer. Right?”

  The way my father grinned made me wonder what he would do to his own father to get the shop and more importantly, the land. That’s what it all came down to. That’s what everyone wanted from us. The land.

  “Where have you been?” I asked.

  “Around.”

  “Yeah? That’s it? Just around?”

  “I was working from Reno to Vegas, son. Had a few of my own businesses too.”

  “And you lost money, right? So now you’re back here to mess around and demand what you think is yours. So you can take off again.”

  “No, son,” West said. “That’s where you’re all wrong. You’re a man now, right? You can understand more about life now. I left for your own good.”

  “My own good?” I asked as I turned.

  My mind reminded me not to fall for West’s bullshit trap.

  “Your mother was starting to fall for me again,” West said.

  I laughed. “That’s your best excuse?”

  “Hey, Wes, I want to show you something in here,” Leo said as he walked from the garage, acting like my father didn’t exist.

  A second later, Flynn did the same thing.

  “You don’t want to hear it from me then,” West said. “What really happened. This entire thing is supposed to be mine. I can do this the right way or the hard way.”

  “Is there a difference?” I asked.

  Leo eyed me. He nodded to the garage. “Come on, bro. Let’s keep working. Have to catch up with Ryker and Walker later.”

  “My two stupid nephews,” West said. “Please tell me they aren’t involved with this place. Oh, no wonder it’s all falling apart.”

  I stepped forward and Leo blocked my way.

  All I had to do was look at him and he backed off.

  “Falling apart?” I asked.

  “You know what, son? You’re going to miss out on it. On everything this can be.”

  “What can this be, West?” I asked.

  “It can be great. The offers still coming in are amazing. Funny how that works. When you get a phone call that the price has gone up…”

  “Who called you?” I asked.

  “Now you’re asking the right questions,” West said.

  His eyes lit up.

  I felt like I was a kid again. Ten years old, looking up at my father, having him tell me he was going to take me for a ride. We were going to explore the desert and camp out under the stars and catch rattlesnakes and go from coast to coast.

  Only he would leave and not come back for months or even years.

  “Let’s grab something to eat, son. Talk about what we’re going to do here. We can finally fix everything that’s wrong.”

  West offered his hand to me.

  Father to son.

  Only I didn’t see a father.

  I wasn’t exactly sure what I saw.

  Well, that was a lie.

  From the corner of my eye, I saw something.

  A car had pulled into the lot of the shop.

  It was Aira.

  That’s when the anger started to rise.

  * * *

  She put her arms around me from the side and hugged me. I could tell she was nervous. Of course she was. She hadn’t seen West in years. And even if she didn’t really remember him, his mark was left on anyone who met him.

  “So this is the girl next door,” West said.

  He let out a long breath as he shook his head.

  “If I could go back…,” West said with a sly grin.

  Aira hugged me tighter.

  “We’re leaving,” I said.

  “Wait a second,” West said. “Can’t Aira say hello to me? And I only made that comment as a joke. The girl I lived next to turned out very different. At least I think so. She hit thirteen and all the wrong places grew. You know?”

  “Gross,” I heard Charlotte whisper from behind me.

  Flynn had a death grip on her waist, keeping her safe from West.

  Emma looked jumpy and I almost wished she had her bat with her.

  “Why don’t you go get in the car, darling?” I whispered to Aira. “I’ll meet you in a little bit.”

  “So, she can’t speak for herself?” West said. “Well trained, I guess.”

  “I can speak for myself,” Aira said. “I have nothing to say to you.”

  “Seems to be the trend around here,” West said.

  “I’ll walk you to your car,” I said to Aira.

  The six of us got away from West.

  The bottom of my gut kept burning. That his words could still get to me. That someone would call him to talk about the shop and the land.

  “I don’t want you here right now, darling,” I said to Aira.

  She crossed her arms. “So, I can never see you again because of him?”

  “I didn’t say that. I was finishing up and then I was going to come find you.”

  “I found you first.”

  “This isn’t a game, Aira.”

 

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