I shake my head. “Of course not, honey. Why would you think that?”
“Because everyone looks really mad, like the time I spilled juice all over the couch, and Daddy yelled at me and made me go to bed without dinner.”
I have to work really hard to conceal my hatred toward my sister’s father. Another reason I need a job: So I can consult an attorney to see what my chances of getting partial custody are.
Kingston kneels down. “Hey, princess. No one’s mad.”
Belle points to Shawn. “Then why’s his lip bleedin’ too?”
Kingston doesn’t even spare Shawn a glance. “We were just playing around.”
Shawn uses the bottom of his shirt to wipe the blood off. Thankfully, the shirt’s black, so hopefully it won’t stain. He winks when he catches me staring at his abs, which are a helluva lot more defined than they used to be. I may not want to be with him, but I’m sure as shit not blind. Unfortunately, Kingston catches me looking too, which earns me a glare.
I give him one right back. “Don’t even start with me.”
Belle grabs my hand. “Jazz?”
I sigh. “Honey, I promise no one is mad at you. And we’ll do something super fun, but I need to have some grown-up talk with the boys first. Why don’t you go back inside, and I’ll come get you in just a few?”
“Then, you, me, and Kingston will go to the children’s museum?”
I give her a reassuring smile. “We’ll get that all figured out, okay? Just go back inside, and I’ll be there soon.”
Belle twitches her nose. “Fine.”
Nobody says a word until she’s back inside the house. As soon as she closes the door, all bets are off.
“You need to leave,” Kingston tells Shawn.
Shawn scoffs. “Fuck, no.”
I hang my head in resignation. Both guys watch me as I duck into Shawn’s Beamer and grab my backpack.
“Jazz—” Shawn starts.
I hold up my hand. “I know what I’m doing, Shawn. Thank you for last night. I’ll call you later, okay?”
He looks between Kingston and me incredulously. “Are you kidding me right now? You’re taking his side after what he did?”
I pinch the bridge of my nose. “I’m taking my sister’s side. And what’s best for her right now is to avoid causing a scene and confusing her further.”
“I don’t like this.” Shawn adjusts the brim of his ball cap.
“It’ll be fine, Shawn. I’ll call you later. I promise.”
He releases a heavy breath before hooking me around the shoulders and pulling me into a side hug. Kingston looks murderous as Shawn kisses the top of my head, but fuck him. He has no right to say shit right now.
“If I don’t hear from you tonight, I’m coming up there.”
Shawn points two fingers to his eyes, then back at Kingston. “I’m watching you, fucker.”
Kingston’s square jaw tics. “Right back at you.”
Kingston and I stand in silence while Shawn gets behind the wheel and drives away. When he’s down the street, I start walking toward Kingston’s Rover.
“I’m not talking about this out here. Is the car open?”
I hear the locks disengage when we get closer. “It is now.”
I open the driver’s door and toss my bag over the seat into the cargo area. When I see the question in Kingston’s eyes, I say, “I don’t trust you not to drive off if you get behind the wheel.”
The asshole smirks as he rounds the car to climb in on the passenger’s side. “Whatever you say, Jazz. But I’m holding on to these so you can’t run off.” He dangles my shoes by the laces, laughing when I unsuccessfully try grabbing them.
I point a stern finger at him. “You don’t need to be a dick about it.”
“Quit behaving like a spoiled brat, and maybe I won’t.”
“Excuse me?!” I rear back. “You have some fucking nerve.”
“You wanna tell me what the disappearing act was about? And why the fuck you’d go to that asshole?”
My eyes narrow. “Don’t pretend like you didn’t already talk to Bentley.”
“Humor me.” Kingston throws out his hand. “Tell me what you think you saw, and I’ll tell you what you really saw. Then, we can move on to how fucking stupid you were for following someone to that house in the first place.”
“Wow.” I shake my head. “Just... wow.”
“Nothing to say?” He raises his eyebrows. “Fine. I’ll go. I made a huge breakthrough with my dad last night. Huge .”
I golf clap. “By fucking some chick in the middle of a sex club? Congratulations.”
“I didn’t fuck anyone ,” he grits out.
I roll my eyes. “Fine. Got your dick sucked. Whatever.”
“I didn’t do anything with anyone, Jazz.”
My jaw drops. “I was there, Kingston! I was at the back door, looking in. I saw you stick your tongue down some naked chick’s throat! Right before she dragged you down a hallway.”
He closes his eyes for a moment. “That’s the last thing I wanted you to see, but it had to be done. And nothing else happened .”
“Right.” I fold my arms over my chest. “Why should I believe you? Because you’ve been so honest up until this point?”
He growls. “I’m fucking dead serious, Jazz.”
“Fine. Then why don’t you tell me what really happened? And why you had to kiss some naked rando?”
“Because my dad was testing my loyalty. He was questioning me about you... about my feelings for you. When I assured him he imagined things, he asked me how far I was willing to go to prove myself.” Kingston rubs the side of his jaw. “I told him I’d do whatever it took to ease his concerns.”
“And his answer to that was bringing you to an orgy?”
“It wasn’t an orgy. I mean, technically, I guess the fucking occurred all in the same room, but those women weren’t there for the fun of it.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“They were working . My dad and Madeline run a prostitution ring. The real reason behind Ivanov’s party was to invite guests to their newest fetish room. Apparently, they have regular clientele who need excuses to get away from their significant others. Or, some of them just get off on the knowledge that their spouses are nearby while someone else is sucking their dicks, I don’t know. So... Alex, or one of their other hosts , as he called them, throws a party.
“Enough people are invited where it wouldn’t be noticeable if a few disappeared for a while. And it’s not uncommon for men to branch off at these parties to discuss business, which is likely the excuse they use. My dad said it was only one of many things he had his hands on. I got the impression they were going behind your dad’s back on this one; hence, why he wasn’t invited.”
I scrub a hand down my face. Sadly, everything Kingston’s said to this point is believable, considering the players and what I saw. It still doesn’t excuse his actions.
“Kingston, that still doesn’t explain the girl you were with.”
“Yeah, it does, Jazz. I already told you my dad was testing my loyalty to him. His way of doing that was to get me to screw someone else to prove my thing with you is purely physical. Honestly, I think he was also looking for something to hold over me. I don’t know if you noticed, but there were cameras in every corner. My dad said they were there if any of his guests wanted a memento, but I think he uses the footage for blackmail. I wouldn’t be surprised if he planned on sending a video of me with that woman to you to further whatever his agenda is.
“When my dad called her over to us, and she dropped to her knees right there, I knew I couldn’t say no, but I also wasn’t going to actually let her touch me. That’s when I asked if we could go somewhere more private. I think my dad was going to argue until he saw Madeline practically drooling over my open fly. I don’t know what his deal is with her, but I do know my dad doesn’t like competition.”
I clench my jaw. “Kissing is touching, Kingston. And you still followed a naked woman into what I assume was a bedroom.”
He sighs. “You’re right; I did follow her to the bedroom. Where there weren’t any cameras. My dad assured me that room wasn’t being filmed, but since his word means shit, I checked with my detection device to confirm.”