Crossed (Never After Series)
Crossed: Chapter 23

“YOU HAVE NOTHING TO WORRY ABOUT, SWEETHEART. Jason is the best defense attorney in the state, not that I think you’ll actually need him beyond this preliminary stage. You couldn’t have possibly had the strength to do the things that happened to that idiot, and you’re not a suspect, just a person of interest. He’ll make it go away,” Parker assures, his hand touching the back of my neck.

He’s been doing that since I became “his” yesterday. Always touching me. A hand on the knee, fingers on the back of my neck, an arm wrapped possessively around my waist. His tongue down my throat.

And I accept it all, keeping Quinten’s face in the front of my mind. His future. One that I’ll be a part of and that may even be better than it was before.

At least that’s what I’m reassuring myself with. Parker’s a dangerous man, but he’s never hurt Quinten.

“Okay,” I reply, staying docile, even though everything in my nature is begging me to jerk away from his touch and tell him that this whole thing is bullshit. I’m innocent, for God’s sake.

“And you’ll never go back to that club, Amaya.” Parker’s voice is stern.

Sucking on my lips, I nod again, letting the bittersweet emotions pour over me. I’ll miss my outlet for pole, but to be honest, I didn’t want to go back there. Not after what happened.

It’s tainted now.

Right now, we’re in the back of Parker’s town car heading to my apartment. He wants me to move in with him immediately, but I’ve convinced him to give me time. I need to ease Quinten into things, and I also need to tell Dalia.

She’s going to be so fucking pissed.

Parker leans back in his seat, his legs spreading wide like he owns the world.

I suppose he does.

“I’m glad that fucker’s dead,” he states.

“Of course you are.”

He shrugs. “You’re mine, Amaya. I don’t like people touching my things.”

“I’m not a piece of property. Jesus,” I snap.

His smirk drops, a cold, icy glare taking over his face. “You should be a little more grateful instead of such a bitter bitch.” My lungs cramp from his words.

“You’re tainted goods now,” he continues. “In fact, I’m not even sure why I’m still going through with it. The board of Errien Enterprises won’t like that you’re on my arm. It’ll be bad for business when it comes out that a stripper who murdered a man is the one wearing my ring.”

The way he says stripper makes me want to lunge across the seat and rake my nails down his face. He makes it sound dirty, disgusting, when it’s anything but.

“Dancing is real work,” I reply. “It put food on my table and paid my bills. If it weren’t for you, it would have allowed us a cushy life. I won’t act ashamed of it. I’ll never be ashamed of it.”

“Doesn’t matter now, does it?” Parker’s eyes skate down my body, and I feel sick. “In any case, I’m sure you can make up for the loss of my reputation. It’s been a long time, sweet girl.”

I swallow back the retorts I truly want to make and nod.

The car pulls to a stop outside my apartment, and Parker sneers out the window. “This place is as disgusting as ever.”

“It’s home,” I reply softly, my fingers already on the door handle.

I step out into the cold, my stomach twisting with nerves.

“Don’t be long. We have things to do,” Parker’s voice commands at my back.

Is this how it’s going to be from now on? A man controlling my every move, telling me how to look and where to stand and how many minutes to take?

With every step closer to my front door, I feel the reality crashing down on top of me. I’m exchanging one pair of shackles for another.

But what’s done is done.

Dalia’s sitting on the couch reading a book when I walk in.

She glances up at me and must see something on my face because immediately she drops what she’s doing and sighs, leaning back against the couch. It’s incredible, the way she just knows what I’m going to do before I do it, so much so that I’ve joked about the town needing to look closer at whether it’s her who’s the witch.

“Tell me then.” Her voice is resigned. She’s been waiting since

I got home last night, but I put it off, claiming I was too drained to explain.

My stomach tenses into knots that I’m not sure will ever unravel, but I don’t want them to untangle, not when they feel like the only thing keeping me together.

“I’m marrying Parker Errien.” The words feel fake as they roll off my tongue and I brace myself for her reaction.

“Okay.”

I lift my brows, taking a few steps closer now that I know she won’t be screaming at me.

“Okay,” she repeats, nodding.

“That’s all you have to say?” I press. “You’re not…surprised? Or worried?”

“What would you like me to say, Amaya? That I think it’s a terrible mistake? I don’t.” She shrugs. “That I think you’re being trigger- happy and jumping into this too fast? Maybe. But what other choice do you have?”

I open my mouth to reply but she continues.

“It’s no secret Parker’s always been obsessed with you. And time isn’t really our friend right now. I think Parker’s a little bitch just in the general sense, but he’s a powerful bitch. If you think he’s the answer, then I trust you.”

Swallowing back the thick knot in my throat, I walk over to the couch, grabbing her in a bone-crushing hug. “You don’t think I’m making a mistake?” I choke out.

She sighs, her hand rubbing small circles on my back. “Probably. But mistakes are part of life, and I’ll be here for you through every single one of them.”

I pull back, my vision blurring from the relief. “You’re the best friend I’ve ever had.”

“I’m your only friend.” She smiles.

“Even more reason to feel honored,” I jest.

I ignore the hollow look that flashes through her eyes, focusing instead on the small smile she paints across her face. “Don’t forget about me once you’re loaded.”

“Please,” I scoff. “Quin and I would be lost without you. And you’re staying here anyway. I won’t let you lose your home just because I won’t be in it.”

She waves me off. “You want me around when you tell Quin?” I shake my head, dread dropping in my gut.

Quinten loves routine, and I’m terrified about what he’s going to do when I rip him from what he’s known and toss him into this new reality.

At least we’ll be together.

“No, I’ll do it myself.”

She nods and the air grows quiet.

“I’ve gotta go. Parker’s waiting. I just…I’ll let you know what’s going on, okay?”

“Love you, Amaya. You’re a good mom, you know?”

My eyes burn. “I’m not a mom.”

“You are. In every way that counts.” She laughs, shaking her head. “Now leave before I ruin my makeup from crying.”

Warmth fills my chest as I make my way back to Parker’s car, his driver standing outside in the cold and waiting by my door, offering his hand for me to slip back inside.

Dalia is the true definition of ride or die, and I promise myself to be a better friend to her. I never fully let her in because of my trust issues, but she’s proven time and time again that she isn’t like other people. She won’t leave.

She’ll always be here.

“What now?” I ask Parker after I buckle my seat belt.

Parker glances up from his phone, his eyes sparking and his jaw line set in determination. “Now…we have a wedding to plan.”