Destined, A Lair Novel (Lair Series Book 4) Read online

  “Okay, get out,” she grumbled, snatching it from the floor in a tight fist. “I’ll meet you outside.” When I hadn’t moved, she shoved me away. “Go!”

  “Fine.” Like a petulant child, I stomped away to retrieve a bathing suit from my dresser, slipped it on, and left with my tail hanging between my legs.

  The house was quiet as I made my way to the deck. My parents had the pool opened early for us to enjoy this weekend. And with the weather cooperating perfectly, we could look forward to a relaxing day in the sun. But I could think of a hundred other ways I’d rather spend the rest of our time there. We had all day before Alec would be picking us up later this evening. Who knew when we’d get another opportunity like we had at the beach house?

  The only thing that would’ve made it better was if Edna hadn’t been with us… or Chase and Kim. Because then I could fuck Alivia in the pool, on a deck chair, on the beach. My gaze swung to the hot tub, and I couldn’t help but fixate on how amazing it would feel to fuck her there.

  I’d been so focused on the visual I didn’t realize Alivia had appeared until she came up beside me and wrapped her arms around my torso. One of my Devil’s Lair T-shirts now covered her perfect body, and that made me crankier.

  “What are ya thinking about?” Her gaze landed on the Jacuzzi before us. “Never mind. I think I know,” she said, shaking her head. “You’re predictable.”

  “What? You’re the one who suggested I burn brain cells to figure it out.”

  “Still… I’m not having sex in the hot tub with Edna, Chase, and Kim here.”

  “Agreed.” I shifted into her so she could feel exactly what my thoughts had created between my legs. “That’s why we need to find a way to get rid of them.”

  “No, we don’t. Besides…” She glanced toward the back wall of glass, where Edna busied herself preparing yet another meal. “Edna may be cool, but not that cool.”

  “Well, then we’ll just have to feign exhaustion and go back upstairs for a nap… like in twenty minutes or so.”

  “We’re a bit out of control. How are we going to integrate come tomorrow?”

  “I have no fucking idea, and I really don’t want to think about that right now.” Going back to sneaking around held no appeal. “Let’s just enjoy every minute of today.” I tugged her toward the edge of the main pool and sat before situating her between my spread thighs.

  The warm water lapped around our submerged legs as she leaned back into me. “This has been the best weekend of my life.” She turned her head enough to meet my eye. “I couldn’t have imagined a more perfect way to lose my virginity to you, Shane Lair.”

  “Neither could I.” I kissed the side of her head. “And I wasn’t kidding when I said I had no idea how we were going to go back to normal. I can’t stop wanting you.” With a simple shift of my hips, she was able to feel just how much.

  “It’ll be easier when we start school,” she offered.

  “That feels like an eternity from now.” We had all summer to get through, and this place would be buzzing with people until mid-September. My parents never toured or even recorded during the summer months. It was their time to spend with us kids. They loved entertaining their band. The more the merrier. It’d been great having that every year while growing up, but now it would only hamper my life. “I’ll have to find us a love den.”

  “Love den?” she asked, amused.

  “Fuck pad… whatever,” I amended before planting a hard kiss on her lips. “And once my parents start coming down every weekend, I’ll have to come up with reasons to stay in Manhattan.” I hated even saying that, because Alivia and I adored the beach. But if given the choice between more sneaking around or hanging back in the hot, muggy, stinky city to be alone with her, there was no contest.

  “My dad will never go for that, Shane.”

  “He will if I have gigs. No Rulz hopes to play at a lot of open mic nights to get seen.” And when I said No Rulz, I meant me.

  “Still, your band playing in bars won’t disguise the real reason I’ll be staying behind to my father. Even on the weekends that he and Mom are in the city, he’ll never let me go to your apartment, knowing no one is home.”

  She was right, but I still griped. “That’s so dumb. His worst nightmare already happened this weekend.” I nuzzled into her and murmured against the warm skin of her neck. “I already fucked his daughter; damage is done.”

  “Is that what we did?” she asked, shoving into me with a shoulder. “Fucked?”

  “No. The first time I made love to you. The other eight or nine times, I fucked you. Which reminds me: I’m a bit chafed. The condom situation needs to change. How soon can you get on the pill?”

  “Such the romantic,” she deadpanned.

  “What? It’ll feel amazing for you too.” When she blinked at me a few times, my chuckle was met with another shove. “All kidding aside. After this weekend, won’t he loosen up a bit?” As quickly as the words left my mouth, I knew that was a pipe dream.

  Always the optimist, my girl stared at the ocean and shrugged. “We’ll figure it out.”

  “Hey, kiddos,” Chase said, sauntering across the deck with a blanket in one arm and Kim in the other. Our best friends were polar opposites to us in looks. Their blond hair and blue eyes had the pair looking more like siblings than a couple. Kim was much more petite than Alivia, and I had at least three or four inches on Chase.

  “It sure took you two long enough,” I pointed out.

  “Kim was horny.”

  His girlfriend shoved him hard. “Chase, you ass.”

  Undeterred, he tugged her closer. “I speak the truth.” The grin on his face meant he wasn’t the least bit sorry. “I’m about to make your day. Edna said she’s running to the grocery store.” Yes… that would take at least thirty minutes. “So, on that note, we’re going to take a walk.”

  As the girls exchanged some unspoken conversation, I wanted to kiss my friend. “Take your time… but please don’t get arrested,” I called out, and meant it on both counts. Chase had been itching to have sex on the beach since last summer.

  “Arrested?” Kim asked, panicked. “Chase—”

  “He’s kidding. The Lairs own like a million acres of beach,” Chase cut her off, glaring at me before tugging her away.

  Once they’d disappeared around the corner, I slid my hands down Alivia’s thighs and moaned. “Alone at last. Let’s play.”

  “Scrabble?” she asked, tapping her lip with one pink-painted fingernail. “Monopoly?”

  “No… I was thinking more like ring toss.” My suggestion had her teeth scoring that full bottom lip… and that prompted me to stand, bend to lift her body, and throw her over my shoulder as if my ass were on fire. She giggled uncontrollably the entire time. Meanwhile, I couldn’t believe my fantasy to fuck her in the hot tub was about to come true.

  Chapter Four

  Alivia

  I knew this day would be torture. Shane was on a class trip with his music class, which meant there would be no distractions all day long. Even on my worst days, seeing Shane between classes overshadowed the crap I had to deal with.

  Specifically, the bitches who lowered their voices as Kim and I walked by them. But we could still hear the words “What does he see in her?” clear as a bell. Those three rail-thin Barbie dolls always knew just what to say to get to me. In a sea of the bland Windsor-Horne–approved academic apparel, I still stuck out with curly wild hair and a curvaceous body.

  Kim glanced at them with disgust written all over her face. “Ignore them.”

  “I always do.” Lie. I always tried to. It didn’t work out that way, though.

  And the way Kim wrapped her arm around mine while tugging me away meant she didn’t believe me anyhow. That bullshit was nothing new. Shane’s high school experience had been much different than mine. Where he was revered and worshipped, I was the c-word who had dug her claws into him.

  It wasn’t just being Shane Lair’s girlfriend that
subjected me to ridicule. Having Trey Taylor as a father added a whole other layer of mockery. All sorts of shit could be found about my dad on the internet. And with his history, that crap followed me around like a dark rain cloud.

  Dad had quite a past. From his fanatical preacher of a father who hated him so much, to kidnapping and murder, to the motorcycle crash that sent him spiraling out of control… all that supplied enough evidence to make my life difficult. It had forced Mom and me to grow a thicker skin. My mom seemed to have perfected it, while I struggled to ignore it all.

  For my nemesis Molly Adler, it supplied fuel to an agenda she’d had since the first grade, when Shane had sat with me at lunch. I’d been new to their school, and he was the only person I knew. Even back then, she simply couldn’t understand our connection and never accepted it.

  I’d lost count of how many times that bitch had claimed she’d hooked up with him. She was careful who she told that to. Really, her motive was just to plant seeds of doubt in my head. From untrue tales of spin the bottle when we were all in middle school to secret rendezvous or text messages that he had sent her during junior year, every one of them was a lie. When they began to circulate, one of her friends would be sure I overheard the bullshit story that Molly wanted me to hear.

  “Skank” filtered over as the next insult.

  “Takes one to know one,” Kim shot back.

  “Says the other skank,” Molly countered.

  “Eat a bag of dicks… oh wait… you did this weekend.”

  The flash of fury in Molly’s glare was enough to prompt me to say, “Okay, that’s enough.” I tugged Kim along until we were at my locker and far enough away. “I can handle them, Kim. I know you love me, but that’s just what she wants.”

  “I don’t care what she wants. She’s a miserable piece-of-shit liar that I want to throat punch.”

  Molly being a piece-of-shit liar meant nothing to anyone else in that building. Head cheerleader, class president, and best in everything made her a rock star in her own right. Teachers loved her, while I always felt they tolerated me because my parents paid their exorbitant tuition costs and threw them some money here and there as a charitable contribution.

  I wasn’t at Windsor-Horne because of our social status or because my great-great-great-grandfather had attended. Shane and I were there because of privacy, nothing more and nothing less. It was the stick-up-their-ass staff that lumped us in the “celebrity” class that they put up with because they had to.

  None of that mattered, and I wasn’t looking for pity. Being bullied because of who I was, who my family was, and who my boyfriend was made for a great tabloid exposé but nothing more. So many were pushed around and taunted for far more important reasons than mine. If my parents hadn’t raised me to be the confident, assured person that I was, it would’ve messed with me a lot worse. That didn’t mean it didn’t hurt all the same.

  Little by little, the crowd thinned around us as students made their way to the next class. Kim leaned on the metal cabinets with her glare focused on the circle of witches. She grumbled, “I don’t get her motive. Shane can’t stand her… she’s had the hots for Jett since her tits popped into an A cup. What’s the point?”

  What was the point of any bullying? Because she could. I lifted my chin defiantly and opened my locker, going for indifference. “Actually, I feel sorry for her. She’s so fixated on my life—hers must be a sad existence.”

  “That’s right. She’s just jealous. They all are.” That was an understatement. Kim was right. Molly Adler didn’t have a shot with Shane, but how could I blame her for pretending that she did? He was quite a catch and worth the ridicule I received.

  The entire thing infuriated him, and he made no excuses for his rudeness toward Molly and her puppets. But it seemed the nastier he was, the more it fed Molly and the posse who followed her around like sheep.

  A few months ago, he’d confronted her in the parking lot. With no witnesses around, Molly had twisted the truth to say Shane had heatedly gotten into her face, only for the moment to become passionate. It was her word against his. We were dealing with an unpredictable asshole, and I made him promise me he’d stay away from her.

  Kim reached past me to grab a pack of gum off the small metal shelf. “I look forward to the day we’ll never have to see any of them again.”

  “Same.” The only thing that made Windsor-Horne Academy bearable was Kim and Shane. Kim wasn’t as lucky as I was, having my boyfriend around every day. After middle school, Chase’s parents had moved him into the public high school. Back then, those two practically hated each other. Things had changed about a year ago when Kim and Chase got cozy at a party, and they’d been dating since. It wasn’t the kind of love Shane and I had, but for them it worked.

  “Whoever told her that dress she wore to prom looked good should be shot,” Kim went on to say before popping the stick of gum into her mouth. “It was like putting a flat cutout into a slinky dress.” I didn’t bother arguing that Molly had been stunning in her black designer gown. The insecurities that ran deep because of that girl had been something I kept to myself.

  A memory of hearing Taryn and a few other girls talking about me in the bathroom at prom had created the same sick feeling I always got whenever I overheard them. Basically, they’d made fun of the way I wore my hair naturally and not in some fancy style like every other girl in our class. Trying to have a good time despite hearing that, or despite Molly’s presence at all, hadn’t been easy. Knowing what would happen after prom was what had gotten me through. If it hadn’t been for my mother and Leila pushing us to attend, I would’ve been content never having experienced it.

  The shrill whistle of the change bell caused a groan. Kim and I had the pleasure of being with Molly and her bestie, Taryn, in our next class. Bitches and beakers… fun times.

  I slammed my locker shut. “Let’s get this class over with.”

  “Let’s get this year over with,” Kim countered.

  “Two weeks. With finals, Senior Cut Day, and graduation, it’s sure to go fast, right?” I asked.

  “One could hope.” Kim grimaced with utter disgust. “But since the last two hours felt more like two months, I’m not so convinced.”

  From the moment Shane met me in the parking lot after school, my thoughts had been a mile away. It wasn’t like today had been so different from every other school day. Maybe my period coming made me extra sensitive toward the insults about my hair or the nasty words Molly had used synonymous with my name.

  But during chemistry, Molly had crossed a new line with her hatred for me. The minute Kim had excused herself to go to the bathroom, Molly had stalked right toward her vacated seat and sat.

  “What do you want?” I’d hissed.

  “Did you have a nice weekend? Rumor has it your boyfriend popped your cherry.” I’d felt every ounce of my blood fill my cheeks as her smug face leaned closer. “Are you going to trap Shane like your mom trapped your dad?” She’d picked up my pencil and twirled it between her bony fingers. “I bet… you’ll be knocked up by August,” she’d then said, before slithering back to her side of the classroom like a snake in a garden.

  There were three people who knew that information. No way would Shane give anyone details of our weekend, and neither would Kim. Chase wasn’t even in our school. I kept telling myself she’d guessed, and it wouldn’t be hard to do. But still, I felt exposed that Molly had been able to pinpoint something so personal and intimate. The comment about my mother, which could be discovered by a simple online search, only added to my humiliation.

  “Hey,” Shane said, squeezing my hand as we rode the elevator up to my apartment. “You’re quiet. Did your dad give you a hard time last night after I left?”

  “Believe it or not, no.” I hadn’t had a chance to speak to Shane all day to fill him in on what had happened after he’d dropped me off. While Shane was there, Dad had been surprisingly laid-back. Afterward, as I’d told my parents about our weekend, Dad
had smiled through my recap, sipping on a beer and asking questions about the weather or what Edna had cooked for us.

  “Your mom must have had something to do with it,” Shane said, laughing.

  “No doubt.”

  “Or he’s saving the true interrogation for when he gets me alone.” I couldn’t negate that point, and the only reason Shane seemed relaxed now was because he knew Devil’s Lair had a rehearsal, which meant Dad wasn’t home.

  When the elevator opened on my floor, he prodded further by saying, “So tell me what’s bothering you then. Everything okay?” Miraculously, I had gotten through the day, but his absence only gave Molly an open road to practice her vindictiveness.

  “Yeah. Just tired.” It wasn’t far from the truth. He didn’t need to know I was tired of school, of nasty people, of suppressing the urge to set Molly Adler’s hair on fire during chemistry.

  Assuming it had to do with our weekend, he smirked and said, “We’ll have to figure out a way to barricade ourselves somewhere… like we have to study for finals or something.”

  I pulled away and raised a brow. “We do have to study for finals.”

  “Right,” he said with an exaggerated wink. When I stared at him during a few long blinks, he shrugged. “What?”

  Not bothering to respond, I unlocked the door, and he followed me in, dropping our backpacks near the foyer table. We found my mom at the kitchen island on her laptop, and she smiled when Shane and I came closer.

  “Hi, Shane.” My brother lifted his head, ignoring me in his typical manner. Trestan loved my boyfriend in the same way Shane had obsessed over my father years before. The only difference: Shane was all about the music and Trestan wanted nothing to do with it. I think my father had popped a blood vessel the first time his son said, “Rock music is lame. I like rap.”

  “Hey, kid,” Shane said, diverting his path to mess Trestan’s hair. “How was school?”