When did it fucking turn into this? This anger. This sick fascination that morphed into desperate need. When being her brother bled into wanting her. All he knew was that every time she smiled at him, it felt like a punishment and a blessing all at once. And every time she said his name, the word carved a scar inside his chest and made his pulse thump.
He was turning into a fucking monster. A monster who could ruin her and his whole family. He shut his eyes at the thought of his father's thunderous expression or his mother’s horrified face if they ever knew what he truly wanted. Gavin exhaled hard and stepped back. He needed to do something. He needed to stop this.
He turned to go inside and paused. Pulling out his phone, he selected the contact.
It rang twice before Cameron's sleep roughened voice came over the line.
"Gav? What's up?"
Gavin’s voice barely rose above a whisper. "You know I don’t give second warnings. Do us both a favor and stay the fuck away from her."
He didn't wait for a reply. He hung up and walked back inside.
Chapter nine
When Ebony woke up it took her a few minutes to realize she wasn't in her bed. Sitting up, she blearily looked around, taking in the familiar room. The soft ivory blanket that pooled around her was neatly folded to the mattress to her right, Gavin's side. Did he not sleep in his bed? Ebony's lips twisted in thought as she tried to remember what happened after the massage. Looking down she plucked at the oversized t-shirt she was wearing. A plume of the smoky, earthy Tom Ford cologne Gavin religiously wore surrounded her at the movement. She must have grabbed his shirt at some point and simply fallen asleep.
Next to the bed, Duke grunted impatiently, staring at her, willing her to get up. Petting him, she obliged. Ebony made the bed before making her way downstairs, Duke at her heels. The house was quiet and felt empty as she grabbed a cold pressed juice from the refrigerator and slid onto a stool at the counter.
She was messaging Taylor when the French door opened and Gavin stepped in wearing shorts and a t-shirt and covered in sweat.
Ebony's greeting smile faltered as his eyes fell on hers. Taking her in with one glance, a look of pain flashed across his features before he replaced it with one of burning frustration. Gavin marched past her.
What? Yes, her hair was a wild mess of curls, she hadn't bothered doing anything to them once she snatched off her bonnet. And yes, she no doubt looked a little homely justwearing his gargantuan shirt but it was nothing new, he had seen her like this dozens of times.
"Hey! I'm not that bad looking," she called out playfully. She wanted him to stop and turn back, to give her that charming smile he always gave her. It felt wrong that he hadn't already, like a small hole being punctured into her chest.
Gavin stopped but he did not turn around. His broad shoulders were stiff as he stood there with his back towards her.
Was he angry? Ebony tried to ease the tension and apologized. "Umm I'm sorry for falling asleep in your bed last night. Did I hog the bed?"
Still, Gavin did not turn around. She watched his shoulders rise and fall as if he was taking a steadying breath. "I wouldn’t know. I slept in the den," he answered flatly.
The small hole in her chest widened a little as fear began to seep in. "Oh." She looked down at her hands fidgeting with the hem of the shirt and back up to him, willing him to turn around and just look at her.
Before she could say anything else he spoke. "And do me a favor. Wear a bra to breakfast from now on."
Gavin walked away leaving her speechless.
The entire day she had thought about that morning. Unfortunately, it was one of those days where all their classes weren't aligned. Although that never stopped him before from seeking her out in his free periods. While she spent it either in class or busy doing student council work, she had found herself looking up, hoping to see his large frame coming through the door or checking her phone for a message from him. Neither one occurred today.
Considering that morning just a fluke, she tried to approach him again once they got home.
After a few hours, he finally arrived home and she was waiting in the kitchen. He didn’t look at her when he came in. Hiding her disappointment behind a bright smile, she waved her hands in front of a small plate of freshly baked muffins.
"Ta da," she announced. "I made you some protein muffins, low calorie chocolate chip," she added with an eyebrow wiggle.
Gavin looked to the muffins and back to her, his jaw tense. She could've sworn she seen something flash in his eyes but like a flame being snuffed out he looked at her with a flat emotionless stare.
"Thanks," he muttered, reaching for a muffin like a puppet tugged into motion
For a long while, Ebony stood there watching him as he disappeared from sight. There were so many emotions running through her she had to take a seat just to process them. What was going on? She thought in a panic. Was he still mad about last night?
Maybe he was just having a bad day, she tried to reason. There were plenty of days she was silent and withdrawn and Gavin was forced to navigate around her mood. Taking a deep breath, she decided that had to be it and tried to calm the pulsating fear growing painfully inside of her.
Maybe by dinner he would snap out of it or tell her what was wrong.
But he didn’t come down that night.
