Society Girls: Neveah (14 page)

I smirk, and then blow him a kiss. “Let me
know how that ambidextrous thing works out for you.”

Neveah

The fun of the last few hours is forgotten
as I wait for my mom and Sully in Matt and Reina’s apartment.
Because of the threat my father seems to think is coming, we all
felt it was best for them to stay in our building, which is more
secure than just about anywhere else in the world. They’ll have
their own apartment, and anything they need, but we can’t let them
go back home, and neither of them is going to be happy about
that.

The front door opens, and I run to my mom,
hugging her tight. Sully lifts me off the ground with his hug, and
I smile at both of them while I still can. “We should all sit
down,” I say.

Matt drops his keys on the table and sits
down with Reina across from us. “You’re not going to believe this.
I wouldn’t have believed it if I hadn’t seen it for myself.”

“What is it, Matt?” my mom asks him, but he
nods at me to speak instead.

“Our father is alive.”

“What? No, Nev. He’s not. It’s a trick.”

“The trick was that he faked his death, with
help from the U.S. Government.”

“You saw him?” Sully asks.

“Yes. We all saw him today.”

“Why? Why would he do this?”

“He says he stumbled onto something at work
and had to disappear to protect us all. Faking his death was
apparently a convenient way to disappear.”

“Convenient for whom? I’m pretty sure I was
inconvenienced when my husband ‘died’ and Matt, oh Matt,” my mom
says, looking at him.

“I’m trying to deal with it, Qee.”

“How could the man I fell in love with—the
man I married—do that to you?”

“He assured me it was nothing personal. I
was just in the wrong place at the wrong time,” Matt says, although
he doesn’t look sure of anything right now, and who could blame
him?

“Do you believe he was in danger? Or is it
just an excuse for wanting a new life?” Sully asks.

“I believe him. It sucks, but it also sounds
exactly like something our government would do. He said no one
thought I’d freak out so much,” Matt tells him. “And from what I
can tell, he hasn’t been enjoying a carefree life. He didn’t want
to leave all of you, and he’s been planning a way for Nev to join
him on the run.”

“What? Nev?” my mom asks, her eyes going
wide.

“Yeah. He-he sent someone to meet me. A man
he helped as a boy.”

“Did the man take you to him?”

I shake my head. “No. He taught me to not be
afraid of guns, and we fell in love. I got angry at him, and
stormed into his pool house where I came face to face with dear old
Dad.”

There’s so much more to all of it, and I
feel a little guilty for condensing it down, but right now my dad
is the priority, not Dylan.

“I didn’t think you’d ever follow in my
footsteps, but apparently we both fell in love with the wrong men.
I’m grateful that marrying your father gave me the two of you, but
I don’t know how I can ever forgive what he’s done.”

“Dylan is the right man for me. He just
chose the wrong path to follow in this instance.”

“Are you so blinded by ‘love’ that you’ll
forgive this man?” Sully asks.

“I’m not blind, and I’ve told him he needs
to earn my trust, but yes, I can forgive him.”

My brother shakes his head, and Reina speaks
up. “He’s a good man. His sister is one of my best friends. I’m
still having trouble wrapping my head around the fact that Dylan
Gallagher was helping Sadiq.”

“Dylan Gallagher?” my brother asks. “The
manwhore of the NBA? You’re in love with that guy? Good luck,
sis.”

“He’s the MVP of the NBA, and he loves
me.”

“Sure he does.”

“He loves her, Sully. I can assure you of
that,” Matt says. “I saw the way he looked at her, and the way he
fought us all off to go to her when she ran from the room.”

“Well, damn. Nice going, sis.”

“If you ask me for tickets to a game, I’m
going to punch you.”

He shrugs, “I’ll ask
him
, then.”

“Don’t you dare. Please. If he offers some,
you can say yes, but don’t ask. Too many people already try and use
him.”

“I want to meet this young man,” my mom
says.

“Since Sadiq is living with him, I’m sure
you’ll meet him,” Reina reminds her.

“No. I want to
meet
him as Nev’s
boyfriend, not because of Sadiq. That will come first, because it
has to, but I’m afraid that meeting will be overshadowed by my
husband.”

“He’s not my boyfriend at the moment,
Mom.”

“But from what you’ve said, you expect that
he will be again.”

“Yes.”

“Then please invite him to dinner with us
before we leave.”

“You can’t leave,” Matt says. “At least not
until we can figure out how much of what Sadiq said is true. I
won’t risk your safety.”

“I have classes in two days!” Sully says,
getting up from the couch. “I can’t miss my classes.”

“I can take care of that for you,” Reina
tells him.

“You think you can take care of me missing
my classes? Seriously? My professors aren’t all warm and cuddly,
Reina.”

“Neither am I, Sully. And yes, I can make
sure you aren’t given any problems when we can let you go
back.”

“I’ll have to see it to believe it, but it
doesn’t seem like I have much of a choice,” he grumbles.

“It will work out. I don’t like this either,
but I know Reina can do what she says she will. I also know that
Matt and Reina wouldn’t tell us we had to stay if they didn’t
really think there was a chance that we’re in danger,” my mom tells
him. She knows about the Society, because when Matt found out, he
needed someone to confide in, and more often than not, my mom has
been his confidant over the years.

“I already have people working on looking
into things. We’ll do our best to figure things out quickly, so we
can come up with a plan for all of us,” Reina tells both of
them.

“So now we go and see Sadiq.”

“Now?” I ask, looking at my mom in alarm.
“You don’t want some time?”

“No. Waiting is only going to make me
question things even more. I need answers, and to be honest, I
don’t want to give him time to formulate something he thinks I
should hear, instead of just telling me the truth.”

“Okay. I know Dylan’s gate code. We can
surprise them,” I tell her, getting to my feet.

Just when I thought things couldn’t get any
crazier, they’re about to. Is it bad that I’m comforted by the fact
that Dylan will be there with me? Probably, but I’m not going to
analyze my feelings right now—that can wait for tomorrow.

* * *

Dylan

I’m sitting by the pool when I hear the gate
to the backyard open. I grab the gun sitting next to me, and jump
to my feet. I’m both relieved, and nervous, when I see Nev walking
towards me. Matt, Reina, her mother, and her brother are with her,
but all I see is her.

“He’s in the pool house,” I tell them,
knowing why they’re here.

“I’m sorry for not giving you any notice,”
Nev says, coming to stand in front of me. I want to reach out and
touch her, but I know I can’t.

“I understand.”

“Are you going to introduce us, Nev?” her
mother asks.

“Oh, um, yeah. Mom, Sully, this is Dylan.
Dylan, this is my mom and my brother, Sully.”

I hold out my hand to her mother. “It’s nice
to meet you, Mrs. Ayoub. I’ve heard so much about you.”

“From my husband?”

“Yes, and from Nev,” I tell her as we shake
hands.

“How many women are you sleeping with right
now?” Sully asks, a scowl on his face.

“Sully!” Nev yells.

“It’s okay. I have no problem answering that
question. I am currently not sleeping with anyone, although I hope
that will change soon.”

“My sister isn’t one of your groupies.”

“Oh my God, Sully. Just stop. Please.”

“I know she’s not,” I say, ignoring Nev,
because as a brother myself, I get it. “I’ve never once treated her
like she is.”

“You just lied to her.”

“Dammit, Sully. This is none of your
business,” Nev chimes in, and this time I listen to her because I
know she needs to be heard.

“The hell it’s not. You’re my sister.”

“I’m not a baby, though. I can handle
myself.”

“She can. Your sister is stronger than
anyone seems to give her credit for. She’s already put me in my
place, and while I can appreciate you wanting to stand up for
her—because I’ve done the same for my own sister—she doesn’t need
you to right now. At least not where I’m concerned.”

“Well, shit. You really do love her.”

“Yes, and as much as I’m enjoying this
conversation with you Sully, I think you should go in and see
Sadiq.”

“You’ll come with us?” Nev asks me.

“If you want me to.”

“I do,” she says.

“Alright, let’s do this,” I tell her,
holding out my hand. She takes it and we walk to the door.

I don’t knock because he’s probably looked
outside and seen them already. If he hasn’t, he won’t exactly be
surprised that they’re here. I’m interested to see his face when
the woman he’s always said he loves more than life itself is before
him once again. I’m also interested to see if Aqeelah punches him.
I’d punch him if he was my husband.

I let Nev walk in front of me, and she
squeezes my hand hard, which lets me know she’s seen her father
again. I hold tight to her as we move aside, letting everyone else
in. There is complete silence as Sadiq stands from the couch and
locks eyes with Aqeelah. Silent tears run down her face, and he
reaches for her, only to be stopped by his son.

“Don’t touch her—you don’t get to touch
her.”

“Of course, Sully. I’m sorry,” he says,
retreating back a few steps.

“What are you sorry for?”

“Everything, my son. Everything.”

“She cried for you every night. She still
cries sometimes.”

“That’s enough, Sully. I can speak for
myself,” Aqeelah tells him, breaking free from the shock. “We
should probably sit down.”

Sadiq wisely chooses to sit in one of the
wing chairs, while Sully and Matt flank Aqeelah on the couch. Reina
sits next to Matt, holding his hand tightly in her own. Nev leads
me to the loveseat, and I put my arm around her as she snuggles in
close, seeking the comfort she needs. I know this isn’t about
romance right now—she needs the support I offered her—but I’m okay
with that. I’ll take what I can get and give her whatever I
can.

“I suppose I should start at the beginning,”
Sadiq says, never taking his eyes from Aqeelah. It’s like he can’t
physically stop looking at her. “I’m going to assume that you’ve
been told the parts I already shared with Neveah and Matt, so I’ll
skip the details and just tell you that leaving you—all of you—was
the hardest thing I’ve ever done in my life. If I thought there was
another way to keep you safe, I would’ve done it. I’d have done
anything to stay with you, but I couldn’t risk your lives because I
was being selfish.

“Once everyone thought the body in the
morgue was mine, they snuck me out of the country, taking me to a
military base in Europe. I spent two months there, being debriefed
and tested. Even though I had done everything that was asked of me,
there was still some concern that I might be a double agent. They
weren’t going to bring me into the U.S. until they were sure I was
only who I claimed to be—a man who unexpectedly ended up working
for the wrong people. I was questioned several times a day,
subjected to full body scans and searches, and kept completely
isolated from everyone else on base. I was basically a prisoner,
although I wasn’t chained up or handcuffed.”

“I was in my own kind of prison during that
time,” Aqeelah says quietly.

“I’m sorry for that, but truthfully, I would
always rather you be sad than dead.”

“Sad doesn’t even come close to what I felt.
You were my life, the other half of my soul. When I thought you had
died, half of me died as well.”

“I feel the same way. Not being able to see
you has taken me to some very dark places over the years.”

“With other women?”

“No. Never that, Aqeelah. There could never
be anyone else but you.”

“I have not been with anyone, either.”

“Despite us telling her
she
should
date,”
Sully tells him. “Her life shouldn’t have been over.”

“Sully, please stop. I know you’re angry—I’m
angry as well—but I need to hear what your father has to say.”

He wants to argue, but instead he nods. “Go
ahead and finish your story so we can get out of here.”

Sadiq pulls his eyes from Aqeelah long
enough to give his son a sad smile. Sully won’t meet his eyes, so
he swings his gaze back to his wife before continuing his tale.
“After two months, they were confident that I was who I said I was,
but they didn’t know what to do with me. I was sent to the U.S.,
but again, it was to a base, although I wasn’t as isolated as
before. They allowed me to interact with the soldiers, and even
offered me the chance to do some training. The government knew as
well I did that one day I may be forced to fight for my life, and
they gave me the opportunity to learn how to protect myself. I took
martial arts classes, and eventually weapons classes as well. After
a year, I was as prepared to fight as any soldier leaving that
base.

“They sent me to a small town in Utah,
thinking that hiding me there would be safer than having me in a
big city. It was beautiful there, and the people were accepting,
but it wasn’t the place for me. It was too quiet, and when left
with only my thoughts, I fell into a deep depression. I could never
regret saving all of you, but I missed you so much.”