???My phone beeped with a text from my boy Tyler Cunning. I read it and my body went cold."Fuck.""What?" Kevin ran to keep up with me as I'd read the message and started moving."That fuck's going to our place.""What, how?" ??"Those bitches told him I'm sure. I can't think about that shit right now." I was too busy calling Skylar's cell. She answered on the second ring. "Baby, don't answer the door." My heart was knocking the shit out of my chest as I raced to get to her. Why had I been so sure that he wouldn't find where we lived? It was true that not many knew where my condo was, it's not like I broadcasted the shit. But in hindsight I should've known that somewhere along the line one or more of the females I'd tangled with would become curious. I'll have to think about my slip in judgment later, right now all I could think of was getting to her before he did. "Talon what's going on?" She sounded freaked, no doubt from the panic in my voice.
??Nothing registered until I felt tears on my temple, and small hands clutching at me. ?"I'm sorry, I'm so, so sorry, please come back, please Talon, please come back now." She kept saying the same thing over and over again until my head finally cleared. I was on the lawn standing over a motionless Robert Stark. My team surrounded me, my girl was practically climbing me and I had a death hold on her. ??My body literally dropped, like all the energy had just suddenly left me. I had to sit down next to the asshole with my girl in my lap. "It's okay baby, it's okay, I'm okay, stop crying now." I rocked her back and forth with what little energy I had left in me. ??Her smell seemed to be calming me down more than anything else as I buried my face in her neck. I have to ask dad about that shit, this one mate thing seemed to have some serious side effects. I never lost time like that before. I have no idea what the fuck just happened. I only know that the dar
I've been sitting in this damn campus station for hours now. Though I can't really complain, they've been nothing but nice to us. As soon as they understood that Skye and I were not gonna be separated or there would be a problem, things were smooth. Right now we're in some sort of office waiting for my family and scary Damien to show up. I've spent the time stealing kisses and trying to tease her out of her mad, she's too adorably cute when she gets pissed at me. A little firecracker, she so wishes she could go upside my head right now, but every time she opens her mouth to blast me I just kiss it shut. ??I wasn't wasting anymore of our time on that douche. I warned the asshole didn't I? What the fuck did he expect? Right now I can see her working up another head of steam. She'd tried moving away from me a time or two but I nixed that shit by dragging her onto my lap. Now she wasn't speaking to me. ??"What is wrong with you?" I opened my mouth to answer but I g
????Dad came through the door followed by mom, Damien the family lawyer, Ryder, Bianca, and..."Nonna?" Aww shit. "Don't nonna me young man, what the hell have you been getting up to you little scamp?" ??She waltzed over to where I was now standing holding Skylar close to my side. ??Nonna is a wildcard. You never knew what the hell was gonna come out of her mouth from one moment to the next. She stopped in front of us, squinting at Skylar. What a con, I happen to know she has excellent eyesight. She studied my baby like a lab experiment making my hackles rise. I didn't expect her to say anything untoward but like I said, the old lady's a wildcard who knows which way the wind will blow? ??"Where's grandpa?" He was the only one that maybe could control the old termagant if she got out of hand. "Walking the halls, reliving his glory days, the old coot. Unhand the girl Talon, good Lord she looks like an appendage stuck to your side like that." "That'll be
??I forgot that she would have to discard the coat once we got there, and by the looks of it she thought it was cute that she got one over on me. It was evident in the smirk she gave me, and the way the three women got to whispering and giggling behind their hands while looking at my sorry ass. My own mother, damn. Grandpa had finally shown up and given my girl the once over and his stamp of approval. Nonna was being her tyrannical self as usual. ??"Talon dear I didn't get a chance to see Kevin. I have to see him and his Stephanie before we go, how is he by the way?" ??"Kevin's good, he was with me at the station, in fact he was with me all day.""Of course he was, he's a good boy, he would never leave you in a situation like that. Speaking of which, what ever happened to all those etiquette classes your poor mother sent you t? Didn't they teach you about brawling in the street?" "I never took any etiquette classes nonna." What am I a pansy ass? Why was she tr
Now I'm walking to practice with my girl who's doing a lot better thanks to yours truly riding rough shod over her ass. She's proven to be more stubborn now since she'd met my family, which leads me to wonder just what the hell the women in my family had told her. If they'd given her any pointers on how to run my ass they were a bit late. She didn't need any help in that department. It seemed to come naturally to whichever woman the Avery men ended up latched onto. She's all bundled up because it's cold and she has a flask full of hot chocolate to keep her warm. "Fix your hat Skye." "My hats fine Talon if I pull it down any farther I wouldn't be able to see where I'm going." She batted at the hand I tried fixing it with. "I told you to wear the one with the ear flaps, it's cold out here. You don't need to catch a cold on top of everything else." I fixed her scarf tighter around her neck and ignored the eye roll, whatever. I wanted her in
She argued the whole way back to the condo; honestly, I think she was more upset by this shit than I was. "Babe, seriously, stop stressing this shit, I'm good." And I really was, she came first no question. He'd basically asked me to choose between her and the game, I chose; fuck him. I liked having her there with me, where I could see her, it kept me settled and made for a better game all around. Then we could walk back together when I was finished with practice and she could talk my ear off asking me a million questions about the game, which she never grasped anyway. She got to do her studying or reading or whatever and I got peace of mind knowing she was right there and no one was fucking with her. It was more of a protective measure than anything else; the fact that it made my life easier was just a bonus. I knew about the whispers around campus that I was whipped but so what, I did shit my way, always have, always will. She started crying halfway h
There was one thing I could tackle now that we had the time. I could revisit a topic we'd been haggling over for the last week. This time I meant to get it sorted once and for all, and of course I mean to get my way. My baby doesn't listen worth shit I believe I've mentioned this before. Funny, it had always looked like my dad ruled the roost, but if mom and Bianca were putting him and Rye through the same hoops as this one did me, then they weren't ruling shit. I'm gonna change that shit though, it was the only way I'm gonna survive this love mess. "Now we can talk about thanksgiving, it's next week, you're coming home with me right?" We've been having this...discussion, for a week now; she'd called her parents and they'd put pressure on her to come home. There was no way I was going to let that happen but I didn't want it to look like I was forcing her. I wanted her to know she had choices even though she's always accusing me of being a dictator wher