A High so Sweet (Thornes & Roses 2)

“Mr. Thorne,” he greets, his voice happy and light.

“Doctor, I need your help. I’m sorry it’s so late, but I have my girlfriend here and she’s been struggling with addiction. I don’t want to send her to the hospital just yet. Would you be able to come and check in on her?”

“How long has this been going on?” I can hear the worry in his tone.

Sighing, I tell him the story, how Kalyn is only now coming to terms with what’s been going on, the abuse, the addiction. And even though she hasn’t asked for help yet, I need him to make sure she gets through this.

“Give me thirty minutes and I’ll be there, I’m just finishing up at the hospital. In the mean time, stay with her, try to keep her calm and don’t let her out of your sight.”

“See you soon.” I hang up before shoving my phone into my pocket. I could taunt her until she focuses on me only. I could take her to the edge, leaving her teetering, needing nothing more than orgasm after orgasm that I’ll bestow on her beautiful body. But that’s not how I want to help her. Because turning her addiction from drugs to sex is unhealthy, no matter how much I crave a taste of her.

My bedroom door opens, and I know it’s Finn. I don’t look away from the garden, my focus on the window in front of me that offers a view of the woods that line the back of our property.

“I have a feeling someone’s gotten way under your skin,” Finn remarks from behind me. I’m not sure how to answer him because I know Kalyn has always been under my skin. She burrowed herself there long before I even realized what had happened.

I spent my youth enjoying the single life. I never once had a girlfriend, and even when I thought about a relationship, the only person who ever crossed my mind was her.

“There’s nothing to talk about,” I tell Finn, and the lie tastes bitter on my tongue. We’ve always been close. There’s nothing my brother doesn’t know about me. And I know it’s the same the other way around. But with her, I want to keep her all to myself. “Have we found a weakness in that bastard’s armor?” I ask instead before he has time to talk about Kalyn.

Finn sighs. “Yeah,” he tells me, causing me to turn around. “There’s a criminal organization he’s been running; the clubs are a front, but we need to get the team in, they have to dig into it. If I do it, he’ll trace it back to us. The asshole is slimy at best, but his contacts are fucking mafia and cartel.”

“Jesus,” I bite out, running my fingers through my short hair. “This needs to end. She doesn’t need him in her life.”

“And she needs you?” Finn challenges, his smirk curling his lips, and the flash of amusement in his eyes is evidence that my brother is attempting to taunt me.

“I never said she did. All I’m trying to do is help her, to make sure she’s healthy, and alive. This bastard needs to pay for what he did to her.” The anger in my tone is clear, thick and heavy with the threat of just what I’d love to do to the fucker when I get my hands on him. But as Finn said, we have to get as much information about him before making a move. I don’t need the mafia or the fucking cartel coming to Thorne Haven.

“You want to be the hero she chooses in the end,” Finn says nonchalantly. “You’ve always wanted to be that for her, and you can’t deny it because I’ve known you your whole life. I’ve never seen you go off over a girl, or a woman, like this before.”

“She’s special,” there’s no need to deny it. If I did, I’d be lying.

“And you love her.” This throws me for a moment, and my surprised gaze snaps to Finn’s. “There’s nothing wrong with love,” he tells me with a smile; a chuckle vibrates in his chest. “But remember that when she heals, when she’s healthy, she may want to move on from you. Don’t put all your feelings into this because you could be the one getting hurt in the end.”

“I don’t need your advice, brother. You are the last person I should even consider taking advice from. When was the last time you had a girl in your life longer than one night?”

Finn shrugs. “I may not be the relationship type, but I know that happy endings don’t always happen for everyone.”

“It happened for Damien and Nesrin,” I throw back easily. Our elder brother made a life for himself. He got his happy ending, something that everyone wants, but nobody realizes they need until it hits them right in the face.