Because of Karson

Chapter 23

"Why do I have to be involved in this? I already have too much shit going on," I sneered. Our bodies were still merely inches away from each other.

"If he finds me down here, you're fucked too," he hissed. Straight to the point, huh.

The air left my lungs as I tried to ignore the achy feeling coming from the pit of my stomach. My eyes were saucer wide as my eyebrows furrowed together. "Excuse me?"

"My father will destroy anything I care about just to get back at me for leaving him. To him, it looks like we are friends, so that means it won't end very well for you if he finds me," he simply stated with a shrug of his shoulders. I felt anger coursing through my veins as he blankly stared at me.

"Are you fucking kidding me?" I growled as my eyes darted to the door. "And you need my help? For what?!"

"I just-"

"Dak?" I heard a small voice ask. I jerked my head to my right and saw the door slightly ajar. Olivia's small head poked through as she squinted her eyes. She yawned, opening the door wider as she rubbed the tiredness out of her eyes.

I averted my gaze to look at Karson one last time. I went on my tippy toes to reach his towering height. I put my good hand on his chest, feeling his heart beat fast as he sucked in a breath. I brought my mouth to his ear as I slowly dragged my hand down his chest. I stopped right above his abs, teasing him as I dropped my hand. "I'm not helping you, Ryder. Go fuck yourself."

He scoffed, causing me to smirk as I turned on my heel to walk towards his bedroom door. I carefully picked Olivia up and placed her on my hip. She rested her head on top of my shoulder.

"I'm sleepy," she yawned into my shoulder.

"I know, gorgeous," I whispered as I carried her with one arm. I kept my throbbing hand at my side so I wouldn't cause any more pain. We walked down the stairs, slowly placing one foot in front of the other so I wouldn't trip.

We reached the last step as I turned my head to look for the boys. I made my way to the dining table, but I couldn't find them. I turned around, gripping Olivia tighter as I walked towards the living room. There I found Braxton and Colton laying on the couch with their feet resting comfortably on the coffee table. Jace was sitting on the carpet, leaning up against the couch as they all held a gaming controller.

"You fucker!" Braxton yelled as he threw his controller aggressively onto the couch. He almost hit Colton, causing him to quickly move his body to get away from the controller thrown at him. Colton mumbled a few profanities under his breath as he glared at a raging Braxton.

Braxton just rolled his eyes before his gaze found mine. A smile immediately crawled onto his face. "Pretty girl!"

I smiled as I walked over to them, plopping myself down in between Colton and Braxton. Olivia was still cradled in my arms as she snuggled further into my shoulder. Braxton gently ran his fingers through her hair as I fought back a smile that threatened to break out. He was so sweet.

"What did Karson want?" Colton cautiously asked as he threw a piece of popcorn into his mouth. He chased it down with a bottle of water.

"Something about how I'm fucked if his father comes into town, blah, blah, blah," I rolled my eyes as I let my body sink further into the couch.

I felt Coltons body stiffen beside me as he let out a nervous chuckle. "He told you, huh?"

"I guess he did," I huffed, stealing some of their popcorn as I carefully placed my injured hand in the bowl of popcorn. I made sure my stitches didn't touch the popcorn, only my fingertips.