Dynasty (Boys of Winter 1)

He nods, and I feel an intense pressure pushing down on my chest. I lean back against my seat as Cruz places his hand over my knee, trying to be supportive and letting me know that he understands just how fucked up this all must sound. “There’s nothing that Dynasty can’t do,” he murmurs, letting the point truly sink in, letting me know exactly what kind of people I’m dealing with. “They’ve erased the whole thing. Kurt William’s never existed and you never hurt a fly. They made it so that you had no lawyer to come in and create a paper trail, the footage of your stay has already been deleted from files, the footage of your arrest at school doesn’t exist, and the paperwork that only just got filled out will also go missing. Dynasty is untouchable. There’s nothing they can’t do. If they want something, they get it. It’s just the way it is.”

I stare out the front windshield, desperately trying to make sense of it all, but what I keep coming back to is why Dynasty is so interested in me? First, they paid for my release out of Sam’s sex trafficking ring, and now, they got me off murder charges. It doesn’t make sense. Why me? I’m just some poor foster kid from … who the hell knows where I’m actually from. I’m a nobody. They should be going after people who could better their cause, make them stronger, not trash like me who gets into more trouble than a horny teenage guy letting loose on a room full of willing chicks.

The five of us are silent until the engine is cut and the garage door securely comes down around us. We all get out of the Escalade and I follow King who opens the door and ushers me in only I come to a startling stop as I find a familiar canvas bag sitting in the foyer of Carver’s big-ass house, one that is supposed to be on the floor of Ember’s spare bedroom. “What the fuck is this?” I demand, staring at my belongings, which should be nowhere near this place.

Carver walks in through the garage behind King, not bothering to stop as he continues deeper into his house. “Your ass lives here now,” he tells me, calling over his shoulder and not even bothering to wait around for an explanation.

“Excuse me?” I grunt, reaching down for my bag. “Are you fucking insane? There’s no way in hell I’m about to live under your roof.”

“Why not?” Cruz asks, stepping in beside me as King takes one look at the fury on my face and disappears.

“Why not?” I scoff, repeating him with as much sarcasm as I can possibly muster up. “Have you met the guy? He’s an A-class asshole.”

“Come on, babe,” Cruz says, taking the bag out of my hands and heading straight for the steps. “He’s really not that bad. You’ve just caught him at a … bad time. Besides, what’s the big deal? It’s not like you haven’t been sleeping here every night anyway, in his bed for that matter.”

“Yeah, but—wait,” I say, pausing as I follow him up the stairs and meet his stare. “You know about that?”

He nods and starts walking again. “I’m not a fucking idiot, babe. I know you have nightmares and for some reason, Carver keeps them away. Am I wicked jealous that I can’t do that for you? Fuck yeah, but I’m not about to lose sleep over it.”

“I—” I cut myself off, not really sure what to say about it all because when it comes down to it, I really have no idea what the hell has been going on between us all. But what I’m getting here is that Cruz really doesn't care whose bed I’m sleeping in as long as he’s still reaping the rewards of having me around, and damn it, I think I like that about him. King didn’t seem to have an issue with it either, not that I’ve really talked much about it to him. Carver though—he’s different.

I follow Cruz to my bedroom and he stops in front of the door, turning to look back at me as his hand rests against the door knob. “Just stay,” he tells me. “Trust me, you’re better off here where you have us to look over you, and besides, news of your arrest has been going all around town and I honestly doubt Ember’s parents are going to let their daughter crash with a felon.”

Cruz opens my bedroom door and dumps my bag just inside before taking off and leaving me in the hallway staring after him. “I’m not technically a felon. I wasn’t convicted of anything. Besides, the guy I killed apparently doesn’t even exist.”

Cruz just laughs as he makes his way back to the stairs. “You did the crime,” he tells me, looking back over his shoulder with a sexy as hell smirk that makes me want to tear his clothes right off his body and let him have me right there on the stairs. “Now you’ve got to do the time.”