“We’re family,” Lincoln said with a shrug when they dragged me out there, like that explained their need to be over the top and impulsive with everything in their lives.
I’d turned and walked away, unable to respond to what I was seeing. What I was hearing.
What they were planning would make my life a hell of a lot easier on so many levels.
With work.
With having them around.
But, fuck, if Dare didn’t want me with Libby before . . .
I knew it was pointless to have another conversation with him. He’d made his opinion clear and wasn’t changing it anytime soon.
So in the few days since he’d crushed my dreams of marrying the girl I’d waited a lifetime for, I’d tried to silently prove I wasn’t going anywhere.
That I wasn’t simply good enough for her . . . but that I was good for her.
And then my bandmates—my brothers—dropped a bomb on me.
A gift and a goddamn death sentence.
“I need to talk to you.”
I looked up when Libby’s voice suddenly came from beside the table, my blood heating and body responding just having my girl so close.
Her dark eyes were full of fire and fixed on me.
She looked like a lethal combination of sex and wrath.
Fuck me if I didn’t get hard.
“You hear the news?” Ledger asked, his earlier smirk now stretched wide.
“Yeah. Maxon. Now.” Every word was said through clenched teeth, her gaze never leaving me.
Einstein walked up behind her, for once not on a phone or tablet, her expression grim as she mouthed, “You’re so fucked.”
“Shit,” I mumbled and slid out of the booth.
Libby was stalking away before I straightened, and by the time I caught up with her near the other side of Brooks Street Café, she whirled on me, already yelling at me below her breath.
“Have you lost your fucking mind, Maxon James? You really think you can do this and Dare will be okay with us being together?”
Not what I expected.
I stilled, wondering what news she’d heard and why she was so damn mad.
“You’re pissed about what I’m doing?” When she lifted an eyebrow in confirmation, I nodded, an edgy laugh scraping up my throat. “Right. Right, because first you were pissed that I wasn’t staying here with you. And now you’re pissed that I am?”
“I’m pissed that you think you can come in here and try to ruin us with a decision that could’ve been avoided if you would’ve just talked to me.”
Funny. She nearly ruined us by not talking to me.
I glanced over my shoulder to make sure no one was looking our way as her accusations got louder and louder.
Locking my gaze with hers, I stepped into her space, leading her backward until she was pressed to the wall without ever touching her.
“I get that for the last decade we’ve been apart, and for the last five days, it’s been you and me in each other’s faces. That takes time to get used to. I know. Now, if you need to bitch and scream, I’m here to calm you. But if you’re gonna come at me because you feel a little trapped after being free for so long, don’t expect me to lie down and take it.”
“Wouldn’t dream of it.”
“You said you wanted to settle down and have a family, and, Rebel, that’s what I’m trying to give you,” I murmured, my voice dropping low as I ran my hand over her flat stomach. The corner of my mouth twitched up when she trembled beneath my touch. “I’ve been waiting most of my life to spend the rest of it with you. You can’t expect me to let your brother stop me.”
“You’re an idiot if you think he can’t stop you. If you think he won’t stop us. And he will if you plan on buying that godforsaken prison and trying to make me live there.”
My brows pinched, and I wondered how Libby knew that I’d been looking at houses at all. “Prison,” I stated dully.
“The Holloway Estate,” she said with a sneer. “That place is a prison.”
I stared at her for so long, her anger started to fade. “The Holloway Estate . . . that’s what this is about?” Before she could answer, I gave a light laugh. “I don’t know, Libby, that place is perfect. It has a guest house away from the main house . . .”
Her jaw clenched.
“There’s a huge row of rooms that can be turned into a recording studio on the other side of the property.”
That fire in her eyes was back, burning brighter than before.
“And the house—it’s massive and extravagant.”
“It should be leveled to the ground,” she seethed.
I cocked my head and finally allowed my growing confusion to saturate my tone. “And it’s everything I hate and everything the guys are drawn to.”
She jerked against the wall and blinked quickly. Her anger fading just as fast as it appeared.
“The guys are buying it, Libby. I’m not.” I studied her stunned face for a second before asking, “Considering I found out an hour ago . . . how do you already know? And what the hell do I need to know about that mansion before they buy it?”
“You’re not buying it?” she asked softly.
“No. Why the hell would I want a place like that?”
A faint smile played on her lips before disappearing, and her body sagged against the wall. “Einstein has that place covered. Completely. Anyone sets foot on it, she knows. Not that anyone has, but if they would’ve shown interest during the last year, she would’ve known. She knew the real estate agent got a call, but she didn’t think it would be for Holloway, so she hadn’t looked into it yet. And then there was a cash offer not long before the four of you set foot on the grounds this afternoon.” She gave me an accusing stare.
“The guys decided if I was going to stay here, they wanted to be around too.” Leaning into her, I softly demanded, “Tell me why you’re mad at the thought of me buying a house.”
“It’s that house.”
Relief filled my veins, but I didn’t let it betray my expression, I only pressed closer to her. “Why that house?”
Her dark eyes searched mine. “That place? It was Holloway owned.”
“Something about the name clued me in.” Despite the amusement coating my words, Libby’s face stayed carefully composed.
“They killed my dad,” she finally admitted on a breath, almost too low for me to hear. “They killed Dare’s fiancée, Gia. They killed dozens of Borellos.” Before I could react, her stare dropped to the floor. “And we killed even more of them.”
I stood there, pressing her against the wall, as the weight of her life and her family crashed around me.
When I didn’t speak, she risked a glance at me. “Irish,” she explained. “They were our greatest enemies. Lily, Dare’s wife, was one of them. They kept her hidden there. That’s why I called it a prison. That’s why Dare would lose his mind if you bought it. That’s why I would’ve refused to live there.”
I pushed away from her and scrubbed my hands over my face. “Jesus Christ.”
“There’s so much blood on that property—blood that can never be washed away.”
“And there’s not blood on your house?” I asked darkly.
The same pain and shame I’d seen throughout our lives filled her eyes. And I hated it.
She’d always despised what her family was. The weight of what they did shouldn’t rest on her shoulders.
“They’re gone now?” I asked. “These Holloways?”
“Sort of.” She lifted a shoulder in a shrug. “Some of them rebelled from within and took out the leader. They disbanded not long after we did. Most of them scattered. A couple of the good ones are still here, like Lily’s ex. Einstein works with them.”
I stared at the girl I’d loved since I was a kid . . .
And suddenly wondered if I knew her at all.
I’d known about her.
Known what her family was.
But knowing was different than hearing. It w
as different than listening to her talk about it like it was everyday life.
To her, I guess it was.
But now, all I could see was the shame dripping from her expression as she’d said, “They killed dozens of Borellos. And we killed even more of them.” Had she ever been behind any of the deaths?
My wild girl begging to be free.
My Rebel.
Fuck.
“Libby . . .”
She opened her mouth, hesitation and resilience warring on her beautiful face, as though she already knew what I was too worried to ask.
“Maxon.”
I blinked, pulled out of the bubble Libby had put us in that felt too insane to be real, and turned to see our manager, Nate, standing halfway between us and the rest of the guys.
With a jerk of his head, he turned and headed toward a booth away from everyone else. A silent offer and demand.
I slowly looked to Libby, her expression now full of worry.
“I never claimed to be easy to handle,” she whispered.
The air fled from my chest. “Fuck if that isn’t the truth.” I closed the distance between us and grabbed her chin between my fingers, tilted her head back, and pressed my mouth to hers for a quick, hard kiss. “We’ll finish talking about this,” I assured her as I stepped away.
She nodded but didn’t look any less relieved.
I turned to leave, then looked at her. “Two stories. Four bedrooms. Three baths.”
Her brow furrowed. “What?”
“Big trees and backyard. Wraparound porch. Shutters on the windows.”
Her eyes widened in question and excitement.
A corner of my mouth lifted. “And you thought I would buy a mansion. I know you, Rebel.” With a wink, I headed to where Nate sat, impatiently drumming the tips of his fingers together, and slid into the booth opposite him. “Surprised to see you in North Carolina.”
His fingers stilled and his gaze locked on mine. When he spoke, his voice was calm and soft . . . and spoke volumes of his frustration. “I was told via text that my boys weren’t returning home as scheduled. I found out from the others that you wanted to take time off and planned to settle here. About an hour later, Ledger hung up after shouting that they were buying property here too. And you thought I wouldn’t show?”
My stare dropped as shame unfurled in my gut.
Nate was more than our manager. We didn’t really know much about his past, but just as he’d been a father figure to us, he saw us as his own sons.
“I should’ve called,” I admitted. My stare dragged to the booth that held the guys, Libby, and Einstein. “I’ve been busy.”
“I heard.” He dropped his hands to the table and shifted closer when I looked to him again. “I’m happy for you, Max, I am. You’ve been my easy kid from day one, and I know it’s because of her. I know the husband and dad thing is what you’ve always wanted, and you’ve never made it a secret that you wanted it with her. But—”
“Don’t ‘but’ me.” I let out a frustrated laugh. “Jesus, Nate, whatever you were about to say, don’t.”
“Maxon—”
“Don’t.” I sank roughly against the padded booth and looked around the café, my jaw aching from the pressure I was putting on it.
I knew the tone he’d suddenly taken on.
I knew that expression.
The one where he was about to deliver shit news and was trying to soften the blow.
I already had Dare trying to stop me from being with Libby . . . I didn’t need Nate on his side.
“It would be one thing if you wanted that life in California while maintaining your image,” Nate continued. “Or, hell, anywhere. But you don’t just want that life, Max. You want to put Henley on hold for it. And that life you’re wanting? It’s not for a month or two . . . it’s forever. You don’t have the luxury of making those decisions.”
I shot him a glare as I prepared to tell him exactly what I thought of his luxuries.
“You boys have appearances on news stations and late-night talk shows. You have shoots for covers. You have a new album to continue promoting. There are benefits and awards shows. You can’t just take a break and move back to your hometown to hide and play lovebird.”
Wanna bet?
The words reverberated in my mind, lashing and begging to be said.
Begging to voice their defiance. Begging to show their weight.
Because Nate and I both knew I could walk away without looking back, and he’d have nothing. Our original contract with him stated five years before any of us could walk at any moment—everything after was to be dealt with, and decided upon, as it came up.
We’d given almost double that.
But I couldn’t do that. Wouldn’t.
Not to Nate. Not to the guys. Not to our fans.
All reason had fled my mind the moment I’d finally gotten a taste of what I’d been waiting for my entire life.
Because a future with Libby was all I wanted, but I had a life I couldn’t abandon either.
“I’ve waited for her forever,” I said, the words rasping up my throat.
Nate dipped his head in acknowledgement.
“I’ll do anything to keep her now that she’s mine.”
His hands lifted off the table in a placating gesture. “Bring her with you. She can come to anything. Be at everything. I’ll make it happen.”
My head was shaking before he finished. “She can’t.”
He watched me, mouth slightly open in a look of confusion and defeat.
“The reason she never came back with me before? It’s because she wanted to be here—wanted to settle down and have a family here,” I explained, then leaned forward to drop my elbows on the table and my head in my hands. “Her brother won’t let us be together because of my profession and the life that follows it. If I want any chance of being with her, she can’t come with me.”
Nate was silent for so long I finally looked up at him. “Her brother,” he stated dully. When I nodded, he rubbed a hand over his face, muffling his strained laugh. “Am I missing something, Max? She’s your age. Her brother shouldn’t have a say.”
I breathed a laugh. “Yeah . . . it’s complicated.”
He eyed me warily. “Are they close? You know . . . too close?”
I swallowed the bile that immediately rose at the thought. “Fuck. No, Nate. Jesus. Their dad died when they were younger. He’s protective.”
“That’s a little too protective.”
“Tell me about it.” Not that it would change anything. I didn’t feel like being on an ex-mafia boss’s shit list. “But I want to be where she is—and she’s gonna be here.”
“Max . . .”
“You said I could have that life anywhere if I maintained my image. I will. I’ll go where you need me to for whatever is scheduled. Shows. Shoots. Ceremonies. But I’ll be coming back here, and I want things to slow down so I can make up for the time I missed with Libby.”
Nate was silent again for a while. “If anyone deserves the whole love and marriage thing, it’s you. But if it’s making you say slow down today . . . will it have you saying stop tomorrow?”
I knew what he wasn’t asking . . . what he was wondering. Was Libby the one pushing me to take a break?
But she’d already made it clear she didn’t want me to leave Henley, just as she’d made it clear what she did want for her life.
And I couldn’t fault her for that.
“Stop will come eventually. It has to for everyone in this industry. Right now, all I want is time. Time she never asked me for. But time we need.”
He leaned back in the booth. “I can respect that.” After another moment, he said, “I’ll have to look into studios around here for you boys.”
“The place the guys are buying has a great building on the property that can be transformed into a space for both practicing and recording.”
Nate nodded, an exaggerated sigh leaving his lips. “Of course it does. Loud and overs
tated, as usual?” When I only rolled my eyes, he asked, “And what did you find?”
“Something perfect for us. Exactly what she’s always wanted. Under the radar.”
A look of approval crossed his face. “Of course it is.” He drummed his hands on the table. “Well, I guess I’ll need to take a look at these properties and say hello to this girl of yours. I hate saying I didn’t give her a second glance when we first met, since I didn’t expect much of the two of you.”
A smile quickly covered my face. “I could’ve told you how it would’ve played out between us. She’s my wild one. I knew it’d take a while to catch her, just didn’t know how long.”
When I stood from the booth, Nate stopped me. “I am happy for you, Maxon,” he said again. “I want the best for you, but it’s my job to look at the bigger picture. I have to think about what’s best for each of you individually, as well as the band. At the moment, that’s continuing. And when it comes time to slowing down or ending, it’s doing it the right way.”
“I know.” Like I was drawn, I looked toward Libby when her laugh rang through the café. My mouth twitched into a smile at the sound and the sight of her head dropped back as she laughed freely. “All I want is time,” I whispered, my gaze never leaving my rebel.
“We’ll figure out a way for you to have it—for you to do your jobs quickly and get back to her,” Nate assured me. “We’ll keep your move to Wake Forest quiet as long as we can to give you as much time as possible without people trying to pry into your lives here.”
My smile fell.
I was used to prying eyes.
I was used to hiding from the world in plain sight in cities like Los Angeles.
Trying to hide in a town the size of Wake Forest—especially with the guys drawing attention? Or when the world caught wind of my relationship with Libby? It would be impossible.
If I hadn’t considered it . . . I doubted Libby had.
If I wasn’t prepared for it . . . I knew there was no way in hell she ever would be.
Libby
EINSTEIN’S FIST MET MY SIDE so suddenly and unexpectedly that my laughter ended on a wheeze.
My eyes cut in her direction to see what her problem was but didn’t make it to her. Because there, just inside the front door, was my mother—stare wide with horror and rage as she took in the boys we were with.