The Secrets We Hide (The Four 2)

“Why?” Her voice was choked, and just like that, tears filled her eyes again, and I could quite happily murder the bastard who made her cry. She was so fucking strong, and to see her fall apart like this killed me. I leaned over her and carefully kissed, licked, and wiped away the tracks of her tears, stroking through her hair, no fucking clue how to make it better but needing to try. Fuck. I’d do anything for this girl.

“I won’t let him hurt you again,” I promised her. We needed to talk about what exactly went down between them in that cellar before I got there, but that could wait.

The distant sounds of the New Year’s countdown drifted through the closed door, and Winter swallowed hard, her eyes finally meeting mine. “I don’t want to miss my first New Year’s kiss,” she said in a scratchy voice.

Who was I to deny her? This was not the way I wanted to see in the new year, but at least I could salvage this one part of it for her.

“Do you want to see the fireworks?”

She shook her head, reaching out to touch the bruise on my face with her fingertips, then slid her arm around the back of my head. I let her pull me closer to her, hearing her softly murmured words against my mouth, right before I claimed her lips. “No. I just want to be with you.”

A couple of hours later, the room was full. My brother, Cass, Z, and Kinslee—all hanging around and getting in the way of me being with my girl. I didn’t mind them being there, but I could see Winter was tired and fucking drained. She was still on the bed, propped up against the headboard, talking to Kins in a low voice, every now and then looking over at me like she wanted to make sure I was still there. Yeah, I wasn’t going anywhere.

Z was on edge, restless, pacing the room, acting like he did after he’d done some shit that was fucked up—I never asked, but he had a lot going on. I’d done some fucked-up shit in my time, but Z? Some things were best left unasked and unsaid. I trusted him more than anyone, though. Even my brother.

“You okay, though? Really?” Cass dropped his heavy weight on the bed, staring at my girl with concern and running a hand through his hair. I never said it, but his relationship with Winter…fuck…I knew they were close friends, and I knew neither of them would fuck with their relationship with me, but I couldn’t help feeling like if I wasn’t around, he’d be all over her. It was most likely my fault, or karma or some shit, for taunting Winter with those other girls before we were together, but that image of her grinding on Cassius, him kissing her like he was fucking starving for her… Jessa had been forgotten the second I saw them together, and all my mind had thought was that Winter was mine.

Mine. No one else’s. I’d hated her but wanted her at the same time—couldn’t get her out of my fucking head. When I’d given in and had my dick inside her, feeling her coming around me, calling out my name, something shifted between us.

We were inevitable. And no one was taking her away from me.

“Cass.” The jealousy sparked from an ember into an inferno, blazing to life. Why was I like this? He was one of my best mates, and she’d made it clear she only wanted me.

“Shit—uh, right. Boys, Kins. Let’s go,” he commanded, after doing a double take at my face. His expression would’ve been funny at any other time, but right now, I couldn’t see any humour. Blame tonight. Blame fucking Hyde. Blame me. Whatever it was, I needed to be with my girl, with no one else around.

The room emptied out.

Then it was just us.

Winter was so exhausted that there was no way I’d add to all the shit she’d been through, but I climbed up on the bed, tugging her into my arms. She curled into me, her body small against mine.

“Thanks,” came the soft voice from where her face was buried in my chest.

“Anything for you.”

TWENTY-EIGHT

“This is for your birthday. You can open it now or save it for the day.” Arlo shuffled in his desk drawer for a minute, then handed me a small gift-wrapped package, and I stared at him, surprised and pleased.

“Thank you.” I gave him a tentative smile. “I’ll save it for the day, I think. Especially since we just got our Christmas gifts. Thanks again for mine, by the way.”

Arlo had given me, Caiden, and Weston the exact same gift—equal amounts of shares in some tech start-up he’d invested in, and I’d been honestly shocked. And touched, actually. I hadn’t been expecting to be treated the same as his own sons, and from the matching look of shock on my mother’s face, neither had she.

He waved my thanks away, then indicated towards the door. “Just a token. Now, go and enjoy yourself.”

With another smile I left his office, taking a detour to put the gift with the others in the bag waiting by the front door ready to take back home, then rejoined everyone else in the conservatory, or orangery, as my mother insisted on calling it. Whatever. It was glass and full of Arlo’s bloody plants that seemed to love tickling me wherever I walked. My mother was having a small gathering since she and Arlo had been away for New Year’s Eve, so consequently I and the rest of the Four were in attendance. Lena had managed to get out of it, but other than that, all the founding families were here, plus a select group of her and Arlo’s closest friends.

“We must go shopping to find you some more appropriate clothing. Maybe I’ll see if we can go with Arlo on his next business trip to London, if it doesn’t interfere with your studies.” My mother raked her gaze over me with a frown, pursing her lips.

I stared down at myself. What was wrong with what I was wearing? I knew how particular she was with clothing, so I’d worn a black, knee-length dress with an A-line skirt and heels. Demure, classy, and totally not an outfit I would have chosen for myself, but I was still working on the whole “keep her happy, don’t make her suspicious” thing.

She must’ve noticed my confusion, because she added, “Your outfit is acceptable. I’m more concerned with your day-to-day attire. Jeans and hoodies are so uncouth.”

Seriously? I rolled my eyes internally, and then a thought

struck me. How was this even featuring on her radar? Every time I was in her presence I tried to dress as smartly as I could, unlike Cade, who still gave zero fucks. She was never around me when I was dressed down in my normal clothes. So how and when would she have seen me?

Making a mental note to mention this to Caiden, I just nodded, rather than replying. In return, she gave me a brittle smile that didn’t reach her eyes, then excused herself to speak to Cassius’ mother.