Undone (7 page)

Watching Sophie’s parents fuck was like being up close and personal in a porn video. He'd wanted to stay. His cock
, however, had begged him to seek Sophie out, see if the goddamn prude would finally put out for him. He'd been so hell-bent on getting off, that he'd almost convinced himself that raping her was a good idea.

Now, he'd gone and fucked it up. "Sophie
.” He managed tears, only because the thought of having to literally give up his balls was becoming a reality. He needed to fix this and fast. "Baby, I'm sorry. I'll leave if you want me to, but please just know that I didn't mean it. It was just a reflex, I reacted without thinking." He tried another method. "I'll go and tell your father."

Sophie peered at him skeptically. "He'll kill you."

Andrew shrugged despondently. "It's no less than what I deserve."

"Do it again and it's over, Andrew, I mean it
,” Sophie said after an eternity. She allowed Andrew to come near her, but flinched when he touched her cheek. "I'll put some ice on it; it'll go down in a few hours."

"I'm sorry,
Soph, truly I am. Forgive me?"

After a moment
, he received a jerky nod and Andrew hugged her. He closed his eyes and hazel eyes, clouded over with lust stared at him, haunted him. Ironclad will kept his cock from springing up. But he vowed that once they had her in their grasp, he would make sure he tasted a piece of Ellie’s ass before he gave her over to his bosses.

Life at the mansion continued on much in the manner it had since the holidays began and once the relatives took their leave, the small family of five, including Madeline and Brent, spent their days in relative bliss. The first week of vacation for the children was an utter blur and when the second week began they decided to spend their time together. So Bella, Dylan, Sophie and Andrew sojourned into the city, downtown to be specific, where the festive colors of Christmas adorned every shop window.

They made a stop at Bella's favorite boutique where she bought a few items her older sister was too happy footing the bill for and then they were off to catch the latest high action, fast talking movie Dylan had been hyped to see. They finally settled to have dinner around seven at a fairly new restaurant in Little Village called Hyacinth. There was a fifteen minute wait to which Andrew grumbled all the way up until they were finally seated. With the attempt to distract him, Sophie recounted tales of her freshman year to her siblings and once drinks were ordered, the looming tension from before disappeared
, but made an abrupt appearance half an hour later when their food arrived. Andrew was displeased. Bella rolled her eyes and Dylan glared.

"Andy, there's nothing wrong with the food, please stop making such a big deal out of it
,” Sophie gently chided and received a fierce scowl for her efforts.

"There's a goddamn piece of hair in my food!"

"Dude, chill the fuck out!" Dylan snapped, coming to his sister’s defense.

His commotion having gained the attention of their waiter, he rushed over.

"Is there something wrong, Sir?"

"You're damn right there's something wrong! I want to speak with your chef, better yet, make that your manager."

"Andy."

"Very well,
Sir, I'll get him, please excuse me." Flustered and slightly annoyed, the waiter bounded away in search of his manager.

"Andy
, what the hell is the matter with you?" Sophie asked, wholly embarrassed as people turned in their seats to stare at them. "I'll just get the check and we'll leave…"

"Is everything alright here?" Sophie inwardly groaned, her temples pounding. She ran a hand through her hair in agitation and sighed.

"No everything is not alright. I don't remember ordering a piece of hair in my food and yet here it is. I don't know what kind of business you're running here, but this is just ridiculous!"

"We'll be happy to replace that order for you, sir and I apologize for the inconvenience
,” the manager replied, his voice, despite his annoyance, remained reverently calm.

"There's no need," Sophie turned to say, but stopped short at the sight of the manager and almost
choked on her tongue.

He was built like his father. Tall. Broad shouldered and physically fit. The supple flesh of youth had disappeared beneath the pronounced bone structure of a man
—squared jaw line, wide forehead and toned flesh that no doubt rested beneath the chef's uniform he wore. Those eyes, a perfect match to her own were sinfully dark and brooding, hinting at his passionate and secretive nature. They stared back at Sophie pointedly, memories taking shape between their locked stare. "We…we'll just pay and leave,” she managed to say after a time, pretending as though she didn't know him.

Irreverent humor danced in
his dark, soulful eyes, seemingly aware of Sophie’s pretense. "Nonsense, I’ll have my waiter bring you a new plate in a few minutes. And the meal is on the house, as well as the bottle of wine. Again, I apologize for the inconvenience." He bowed his head and turned on his heel to leave before Andrew could say anymore.

Frazzled and her nerves frayed, Sophie rose on wobbling legs. "I'm going to the bathroom, I'll be right back." She was able to make it to the hidden alcove where the restrooms
were situated without collapsing and once there, she leaned against the wall for a second, her heart racing at an alarming rate. "Oh my God."

"I would be a little embarrassed too, with an asshole like that for a boyfriend." Sophie glanced to her left with a stiff smile. There really was no avoiding him.

"Roan,” she said finally, the name full on her tongue after so many years.

"Ah, so you do remember me."

"You're hard to forget." Dear heavens! Where the hell had that come from? Sophie questioned herself, understatedly mortified.

"It's good to see you too, brat.” He grinned. “You look good."

Oh honestly! How was one supposed to reply to that? Sophie was thankful for the dim lighting in the restaurant as a splash of color reddened her cheeks.

"Uh…I should get back."

Roan stepped aside and swept his hand in front of him. "After you."

Sophie swept passed him, but stopped at the gentle hold on her wrist and the warm body inches behind her. "It was really good seeing you again, Sophie."
When he released his hold, Sophie wordlessly walked away, her wrist tingling where Roan’s hand been seconds ago. She was unnerved beyond words.

“Was that Roan, Sophie?" Bella asked on their way out the restaurant. Dylan walked a few paces ahead of them, while Andrew lagged behind. With his cell phone glued to his ear, he remained tuned
to the person on the other line and whoever said person was, Bella knew they had his undivided attention. She chanced a glance behind her and was somewhat satisfied to see the pained expression on Andrew's face. Their gazes met momentarily through the passing throng of late night downtowners, he raised his hand in a cursory wave and unearthed a fake grin beneath that seemingly perfect mug of his. Bella returned the wave; the smile however, took some effort.

She was not a disrespectful person by nature and had always been taught to give people the benefit of the doubt. For Bella to think badly of Andrew Hunter meant that he had more than likely done something awful to warrant her derision. And most assuredly, he had. Like the rest of her family, Bella had not taken an immediate liking to her eldest sister’s boyfriend upon their initial meeting, but had chosen to give him a chance despite her misgivings.

Tonight, however, he'd not only proven to both her and her twin that he could behave like a world class douche, but he'd also managed to slam home the fact that he was ill-suited to be Sophie’s boyfriend. Sophie deserved better. Their parents had raised them all to expect the best out of life, significant others were included in those expectations.

What Andrew gave Sophie certainly wasn't love and though she had very little experience on the subject, Bella had witnessed enough of her parents' relationship to know the difference. Love was supposed to be all things good and pure. What Andrew offered Sophie was anything but that and, if that dark bruise she'd spied on Sophie’s face proved her suspicions
, then it also meant that Andrew was a violent person and needed to be exorcised very quickly.

The getting rid of part was going to prove difficult, but Bella was up for the challenge. Like her
mom was so fond of reminding her, she'd inherited her father's tenacity, and so she would do everything in her power to see that Andrew betrayed himself the bastard that he was. In the meantime, she needed to discover exactly where Sophie’s affection lay.

"
Soph?" At her failure to respond, Bella tugged on the sleeve of her jacket. "Sophie."

"Hmm?" Dark eyes landed on her in silent inquiry, the warmth Bella spied there brought a smile to her face. She looped her arm through her sister’s and huddled closer.

"Are you all right?"

Sophie returned her smile with a bright one of her own. "Yeah, Belle, I'm fine. Why do you ask?"

She managed an awkward shrug. "Because I've been trying to get your attention for the last ten minutes."

"Oh
.” She sheepishly grinned. "I was just…thinking."

"Oh…bout what
? Roan?"

Sophie peered at her with those big, black eyes, enlarged now by surprise. She appeared at a loss for words
; Bella’s inquiry having robbed her of the ability to speak. She flushed, crimson overtaking the swells of her cheeks. She averted her gaze finding the bustle of Main Street suddenly fascinating.

With a wicked grin, Bella proceeded to prod, armed and ready to wheedle information out of Sophie
, "Well…?"

"Well what?"
she equivocated.

"Roan Westport."

"What about him?"

"
Kinda weird seeing him after so many years, huh? I didn't even realize it was him until after you came back to the table."

Sophie managed a shrug
. "He didn't change that much." Which wasn't exactly true. In comparison to the boy he'd been at fourteen, the Roan she’d seen tonight had grown to an almost gigantesque form, easily towering over Sophie’s 5'8 frame. Not only had she noticed the height difference, but Sophie had not been impervious to Roan’s devilishly good looks. Moreover, if she was to be perfectly honest, she’d go so far as to say she'd found him attractive.

Of course that little tidbit wasn't something Sophie was ready to divulge to her inquisitive sister, no matter how good Bella’s intentions. "It was good seeing him again. It was kind of him to do what he did." Which she'd forgotten to thank him for, Sophie silently realized.

Roan had handled the situation with Andrew beautifully and having appeased him with a free meal and excellent wine, they'd departed the restaurant in far better fashion than they'd entered it, much to Sophie’s relief. She had to make sure to remember to come back and thank him for curtailing disaster. It must've been a pain explaining it to his boss, Sophie surmised, hoping that he hadn't gotten into too much trouble for it.

"Yeah
, real decent. After what happened with Devlin, I thought—well, you know." Boy did she. She had been far too preoccupied with mending her parents' relationship in the past to realize the effect their inevitable union would have on those around them, namely Devlin and Roan. It'd taken Sophie several years to understand just how much Devlin may have loved her mother and how much Roan may have lost in the process. Her youth hadn’t allowed her to empathize until only recently and she’d truly hoped that Devlin had eventually found someone to settle down with, someone who could give Roan the stability he’d needed.

It was a sheer wonder really that Roan has spoken to her at all, considering she’d been the driving force behind—well
, everything.

With a wearied sigh, Sophie met
her sister’s gaze with a halfhearted smile. "Let's just chalk it up to coincidence and not tell Mom or Dad about this. We'll probably never see him again, anyways."

"Would you rather see him again?" Bella guilelessly inquired, carefully assessing Sophie’s reaction.

"What are you up to?" Sophie asked through narrowed eyes.

Bella gasped dramatically, putting her free hand on her chest
. She stared at her older sister, the epitome of innocence. "Me? Now why would I be up to anything? Honestly big sis, you're getting quite paranoid in your old age."

"And you, little sister, are a terrible liar. Spill."

"OK. Fine. So you know that look Daddy gives Mom when he thinks no one's looking?" she asked after a beat and at Sophie’s wary nod she continued, "The one where he looks really hungry and the only thing that'll satisfy his hunger is Mom? Yeah, well, Roan was looking at you like that. His eyes were glued to your ass until the very second you sat back down at the table."

"Bella!"
she screeched, her expression vacillating between scandalized and mildly flattered, while a telltale flush bloomed across her cheeks. Bella grinned. Oh yeah, there was hope for her yet.

"Don't look so scandalized,
Soph, it's a good thing."

"It most certainly is not a good thing; I have a boyfriend, Bella, one
, I might add, I'm very happy with.”

She pursed her lips. "Now who's the bad liar?"

"Belle…"

"Hey
, baby," Tall, dark and douchebag appeared at her sister’s side, his hand instantly finding a place at Sophie’s waist. He stopped their progress and gently tugged her from Bella’s side. "You're going to hate me," he began, putting on display the best set of acting chops Bella had seen since Jimmy Porter’s portrayal of Hamlet in the school play. She stood at a distance, fought—and lost—a battle to roll her eyes as she looked on.

"What's going on? Is everything
OK?"

"Actually, no, it's not. I need to borrow your car. You remember Jason, right
? The friend I told you lived around here? Well, something's come up with his girlfriend and he needs me to haul ass to him. He's in some real shit."

"Um…yeah, sure, just drop us off at Lulu's and we'll just call for a car when we're ready to go home." God, her poor deluded sister
; she was far too kindhearted for this jerk. "Do you want me to come along, maybe…"

"Thanks, babe, you're the best." The ensuing tongue action raped Sophie of her words and Bella almost lost her dinner. "No, it's alright, I'll just hightail it there and back in no time." He caressed Sophie’s cheek, his smile almost loving. "You know I love you, right?"