Page 11 of Redeem
“I’m as hard as a fucking tent now, and gotta face Mr Gibbson.” Keegan palms his cock through his slacks. I giggle and he chuckles, reaching out for me. “You make me so hard.”
Madden clears his throat, and I know we need to get to class. I don't want to be late and cause the school to call my father. I don’t want to be on his radar at all.
“Come on, we have a class to get to.” I wrap my arm around his waist, and his body tenses under my touch. I stop and pull my hand away. Though he quickly schools his features, I know somethings wrong.
I grab his shirt, and he doesn't have time to move before I lift it. Nasty black and blue bruises run up his ribs. Keegan quickly pulls his shirt down and takes a few steps away from me.
“What the hell happened?” I ask, my hand coming to my throat.Who hurt him?
“It’s nothing, don't worry about it. I had a fight with one of the guys on the swim team.”
I don’t believe him. I trust him, and I know he's lying to me. Probably to stop me from being upset. I look at Madden, but he just shrugs, kicking off the door.
“Let’s go,” Madden says and I follow him out.
CHAPTER10
KEEGAN
Lily clings to my leg, pressing her wet cheeks into my pants. “Don’t go. I want chu to stay wif me,” she says through tears.
It breaks my heart to leave her, but it’s my birthday, and the guys have organized something at the shed. There’s no way I’m taking Lily there. She’ll be safe here with the babysitter, who is late. I check my phone again, shaking my head.
Reaching down, I grab Lily and draw her up to my hip. She leans her head on my shoulder, looking up at me like I’m the only light in her life.
“I’ve gotta go out for the night, but when you wake up, I’ll be right here. Lucinda will be here soon, and you can have a movie marathon with chocolate.”
Lily’s eyes light up and she smiles. I wipe away her tears from her cheeks, pressing a gentle kiss against her forehead.
The front door swings open, and Madden walks in, swinging his car’s key fob around his finger. He takes Lily from my arms, spinning her around and around. She giggles, and I smile, watching them both. Madden’s always had a soft spot for Lily. Even though he's a big grizzly-looking bear that would snap your neck without thinking twice about it, I trust him with her. He and Emilio are the only people I trust to look after her. Them and the babysitter I’m seconds away from firing.
“I’m so sorry I’m late, Keegan,” Lucinda says as she comes through the open door, clutching her bag strap. She smiles shyly at me.
“Movie, chocolate, then straight to bed. Keep her in her room, Lou,” I say just as a loud crash comes from the kitchen, followed by cursing. Lily jumps down from Madden’s arms and crashes into my legs.
My mother stumbles out of the kitchen, swaying from side to side.Fucking hell. Picking Lily up, I press a kiss against her cheek and pass her over to Lucinda, who runs up the stairs. She knows what it’s like here—an always drunk mother and abusive, fucked-up father. She knows not to say a word to anyone about what goes on in this house, and I still have no idea why she sticks around, but I’m grateful. It gives me time to be a teen, knowing that Lily is protected while I’m away. My father won’t ever touch her. He knows he’d be a dead man. He can do whatever the hell he wants to me, but she’s off-limits.
“Madden, so good to see ye,” my mother slurs her words. She reaches for Madden and trips over her feet, falling into a heap on the ground. She laughs hysterically before it turns into sobs.
Jesus Christ.I glance at Madden, who looks just as deflated as me. This is my birthday, the one day I need Mom to not be drunk. Madden remembers the mom I used to have...this woman is a shell of the person we once knew. She hasn't even wished me a happy birthday. Hell, she hasn't in years. I’d just hoped that today, things would be different.
“Let’s get her to her room before Dad finds her like this.” I sigh, lifting her up off the floor as she mumbles something incoherent. We carry her down the hall and tuck her into bed. As soon as her head hits the pillow, she’s out.
“Let’s get the fuck outta here. It’s been a week from hell, and there’s only one thing I wanna do.” The corner of my mouth lifts.
“Get fucked up and ye dick wet?” Madden finishes for me and I grin.
“Yeah, that’s the birthday wish,” I say, following Madden out of the room. Madden heads down to the front door, but I quickly move down the hallway to peek into Lily’s room. She’s sprawled out on her bed, cuddled into Lucinda. The babysitter waves me off, and I smile, shutting the door once again. One of my girls is safe and sound. Now, to find the other one and, hopefully, get my birthday wish.
* * *
Madden pulls up next to Emilio’s car in the warehouse parking lot. There’s a crowd of people waiting to be let in, and they just might be waiting all night in the freezing cold. Once this place is at capacity, that’s it. We don’t let anyone else in. One, because it would be crowded as fuck, and, two, because we can.
Kicking the car door shut behind me, I follow Madden toward the entrance. The security guards nod as soon as they see us, opening up the red rope to let us in.
“Happy birthday, Keegan,” someone says from the line, and then others chime in.
I throw a wave over my head before stepping inside. There’s only one person I want to see tonight, and we have unfinished business from the other day in the classroom. She probably has more questions about the bruises lining my ribs, since I’ve dodged her while they heal. I don’t need her pity.
