At least I wouldn’t have to worry about them coming to blows before I ever opened my first gift.TwoDevlin2 years agoLittle Violet Cabot was all grown up.
Granted, it had been a few years since I’d seen her, but even I couldn’t have anticipated her blossoming quite so beautifully. She’d gone from a duckling to a perfect swan, and I couldn’t take my eyes off her.
“What are you staring at?” she asked playfully, sticking her tongue out at me.
“Nothing at all,” I replied with a prim smile. “Are you almost done, princess? I don’t have all day.”
“Almost,” she promised, disappearing back into the changing room. “Just three more dresses to go.”
I groaned, but secretly, I was pleased. Any extra time I got to spend in the pretty brunette’s company was a welcome distraction from the fuck-ups I had to deal with at work.
Violet was only sixteen. And goddamn, did I need that reminder.
At twenty-four, I was too old for her and should know better than eyeing my father’s business associate with hungry eyes. She was jail-fucking-bait, plain and simple.
And I couldn’t fuck up the task my father had given me – to accompany poor little rich girl Violet and help her pick a prom dress since Daddy dearest was too busy to do it himself.
I could see the disappointment in her eyes when she realized her father wasn’t coming, but like a selfish prick, I was pleased when she jumped into my arms, holding on tight. It was as if no time had passed at all.
“I haven’t seen you in so long,” she whispered in my ear. “I thought you forgot all about me.”
When she pulled back, I was once again mesmerized by her. Those clear green eyes, the mane of dark brown hair and her pretty, porcelain-skinned face…
She wasn’t just a looker, she was a beauty you remembered after catching a single glance of her. And she was only sixteen. The thought of what she’d look like in a couple of years made my cock jump to attention.
“I could never forget you,” I told her honestly, and when her pout broke out into a smile, I knew I’d been forgiven.
I’d been busy with school and business. If I was honest with myself, I was busy being my father’s bitch, and I fucking hated every second of it.
Normally, I would have objected to the errand he’d given me, but who could resist a pretty girl in a gorgeous little dress? I wasn’t about to deny myself the pleasure.
The curtains opened and out she came again, this time in a white two-piece number that made her look angelic.
The lace clung to her body, with the top part of the outfit revealing inches of her smooth navel, and the tight skirt hugging her hips overlaid with a sheer layer of white lace.
“What do you think of this one?” she asked, turning around in front of the mirror.
You look fucking good enough to eat, princess.
I swallowed the words on the tip of my tongue and offered her a charming smile in response.
“I think it’s as perfect as the other twenty-seven you’ve tried on.”
“Four,” she reminded me with a giggle. “I’ve only tried on four others.”
“Why is this prom thing so important to you, anyway?” I asked. “As far as I remember, you never seemed to give a shit about high school activities.”
She smoothed down her skirt in front of the mirror, critically eyeing her reflection. I wanted to tell her how perfect she looked, but I had to bite my tongue again. She wasn’t ready. Two more fucking years.
“I’m going with a boy I like,” she finally blurted, the words coming out in more of a whisper.
I stood up from the bench in the luxurious designer changing room.
“Excuse me?”
She rolled her eyes and turned to face me, a vision in her little outfit.
“I knew you’d freak out,” she said. “That’s why I didn’t want to tell you.”
My hands formed fists at my sides as I fired off questions.
“Who is he? Do I know him? Is he a nice guy? Do I need to beat some sense into him?”
Violet’s melodic laughter echoed in the changing room.
“Yes, I think you do know him,” she finally admitted. “I think he’s one of your friends’ little brother. Matthew Hill?”
My eyes darkened. I knew Matthew’s brother, Calvin, alright. And he wasn’t a very nice guy. Then again, neither was I. But Violet deserved the best.
And if I couldn’t have her, nobody fucking would.
“I don’t like that you’re going with him,” I told her plainly, and she narrowed her eyes at me, putting her hands on her hips.
“Well, forgive me if I think you don’t get to have an opinion,” she told me. “You’ve been gone for what, two years now? Not a single call, not a single text, Devlin. How could you forget about me like that?”