Page 2 of Corrupt Idol

When she opened her mouth to protest, he leaned down and cupped her chin.

“Please, Violet, I’m having a hard time as it is. I need you to do this for me.”

She took in his weary, defeated expression and swallowed her arguments. He saw her acquiescence in her expression and gave her a wan smile.

“That’s my girl.” Her eyes watered as he pressed a kiss on the top of her head. “It’s going to be all right.”

When he went back into Lynne’s hospital room, she didn’t move. She sat there with his keys on her lap, pondering how quickly her world flipped upside down. She wasn’t prepared for this.Noneof it. This morning her biggest worry was asking Dad if she could move back home and confessing what a mess she’d made of her life in Utah. The moment he picked her up, she launched into her speech. She was too deep in her feelings to notice that he was unusually subdued. He didn’t ask questions. He said yes before she finished her explanation and didn’t give her the lecture she deserved. Before relief could set in, he told her about Lynne, and her already gloomy world darkened considerably.

Slowly, she got to her feet and stood in the doorway of Lynne’s hospital room. Dad spoke to a nurse while Lynne lay very still in bed, a mere shadow of the woman she remembered. Her father nodded as the nurse handed him a list and went over it with him. Even though she had already agreed to pick Jesse up, protests bubbled up in her throat. She didn’t want to do it. Everything in her revolted against Dad’s simple request.

Lynne let out a moan. Dad and the nurse immediately broke off their conversation.

“Jesse?” Lynne said in a voice laced with pain.

Her father’s eyes moved to the doorway and speared her. “Violet’s picking him up. He should be here soon.”

“Oh, that’s good,” Lynne said hoarsely.

There were things she wanted to say, but like all the other times she felt compelled to speak, nothing left her lips. Six years she had kept a filthy secret locked inside of her and even though she ached to let it out, she knew she couldn’t. One utter of the truth would destroy their family. This wasn’t the time. She had to acknowledge there wouldneverbe a right time. She would have to keep it locked inside of her even if it continued to rot her from the inside out. She had to deal with her inner demons as she always had—alone.

She walked through the busy halls on legs that felt as if they were made of lead. The sun blasted her the moment she stepped out of the hospital. She slipped on her shades and climbed into her parent’s SUV. The stifling heat forced her to roll down the windows. She glanced at the clock and felt her stomach lurch. He would be landing in twenty minutes and since they lived on the other side of town, she didn’t have time to dawdle.

She made no move to put the vehicle in gear. She sat there staring through the windshield as memories careened into her. Visiting Texas was bad enough—it brought back everything she strived to forget and now she had to facehim. It had been five years since she came face to face with her step-brother. Even though she made vows to avoid him for the rest of her life, a part of her knew she would have to face him one day. She just hadn’t expected it to be so soon. The day Jesse left for basic military training was the best day of her life. He was a year older, which allowed her to finish her senior year of high school in peace before she moved to Utah to attend college and start over. She hadn’t seen him since.

Her phone pinged. She glanced at the text and ground her teeth as she put the car in gear. Dad messaged her the flight info so she couldn’t claim she’d forgotten the details. She exited the parking lot and merged onto the freeway. She calculated the time. Jesse would have to wait. Hopefully, he would get impatient and get his own transportation and she could put off this fucking reunion for another hour or so.

She blasted the radio as she navigated through traffic and tapped the wheel in time with the beat to convince herself that this was no big deal. Dread lay like a ten-pound weight on her chest. She kept the windows down even though the wind whipped her hair in her face because she couldn’t breathe. She tried to combat her panic by taking in the familiar sights. She had grown up in Austin and after being in the desert, the sight of the rich, green countryside comforted her. The air smelled sweet, or was that just her imagination?

Five years ago, she chose the furthest college from Texas that her parents would allow her to attend, University of Utah. She moved to Salt Lake City and got the fresh start she needed. After two years of floundering in college, she dropped out and went from shit job to shit job. Nothing lasted long and she had been living paycheck to paycheck for a while now. She hadn’t been too worried until her roommates announced that they were moving out of the house they had been living in for four years together. To make matters worse, she had been fired from her latest job for being tardy one too many times. She couldn’t afford to live on her own and didn’t want to move in with strangers, which left her stranded. She was swimming in debt and had been playing around with the idea of moving home so she could sort out her finances when Dad asked her to visit. She took that as a sign and had been totally unprepared for the news that Lynne had only weeks to live. Her life had been going downhill for a while now, but this was the cherry on top. Her step-mom, who she loved dearly, had terminal cancer and she had to face her step-brother after successfully avoiding him like the plague. Life was fucking cruel.

Too soon, she turned into the Austin-Bergstrom International Airport.

Her heart thudded in her ears. If Lynne wasn’t dying, she would be on the next fight out of here. This couldn’t be happening. The thought of seeing him made her lightheaded with panic. This had to be a bad dream.

Her palms sweated as she rode the middle lane and eyed the crowd on the sidewalk. She’d rather pick up a damn stranger than Jesse. Her hands flexed on the wheel as she shook herself. No, this wasn’t how this was going to happen. She was older, more mature. She wasn’t the naive teen she’d been and he couldn’t be the fucker she remembered. He had been in the Air Force for six years. The military probably beat the shit out of him, which he deserved. She was freaking out about nothing. They were both here under dire circumstances. Jesse was here for his mom, nothing else. They could be adults, right? She took a fortifying breath as traffic inched along. She was twenty-three, not seventeen. She could handle this. She ignored the voice in the back of her mind that said she had no choice.

At first, she didn’t see him and her heart soared as she convinced herself that he had missed his flight or better yet, Dad was mistaken and Jesse couldn’t come at all. Before she could sail past the pick-up area, she spotted a lone figure at the end of the terminal in a military uniform. Her heart slammed so hard against her ribs, she thought she might be having a heart attack. He was covered head to toe in traditional camouflage. He wore dark sunglasses, combat boots, and had a large pack slung over one shoulder. She was too far away to know for certain, but her body recognized him. Jesse Sampson—step-brother, tormentor, and object of her nightmares.

As she cruised toward him, she considered stomping on the gas and telling Dad she hadn’t seen him, but Jesse wouldn’t play into her lie. He would say she left his ass, which would stress out Dad and Lynne even more. She couldn’t do that. She straightened her shoulders and pulled into the next lane as her body broke out in goosebumps. This wouldn’t be a replay of the past. She wouldn’t let it. He had changed and so had she. This was her opportunity to show him he didn’t rule her any longer.

It took every ounce of courage she possessed to pull up in front of him. She turned her head and felt her insides quiver as he stared at her through the window. She caught a glimpse of his smile before he headed to the back of the car. He pulled on the lever and paused, eyeing her through the tinted glass. She swallowed hard as she pressed the unlock button, allowing the devil into her safe place. Her stomach rocked, making her feel ill. He tossed his heavy bag into the trunk and came around to the passenger door. She stared straight ahead as he folded his large frame into the seat.

“Vi.”

She didn’t acknowledge him. She looked to the left to see if she could merge into traffic and tried to control the fine trembling in her fingers.

“No hello?” he asked.

She didn’t answer. She couldn’t. Her mind was a complete blank. The years in between made no difference. The sight of him, the sound of his voice flooded her with memories.

She slammed her foot on the gas, causing the SUV to buck forward. She gripped the wheel with white knuckles as she navigated out of the airport.

“Want me to drive?”

She shook her head and silently told him to shut the hell up. She was rattled and desperately trying to find her footing.

“It’s been a long time.”

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