Twisted Mind (Chequered Flag #2) (20 page)

His confusion transformed into wry amusement. “You mean Raine?”

My cheeks prickled with heat. I was thankful of the darkness hiding my blush. “That was Raine? As in Teo’s Raine?”

He traced my bottom lip with his thumb. “Yup.”

My mouth formed an O beneath his touch. Embarrassment flooded my body when I realised how stupid I’d been.

“You were jealous, weren’t you?”

I snorted. “Of course not.”

“
Sure
you weren’t.” He waited until I peered up at him then continued in earnest. “I’d never do that to you, Taz. It’s not who I am.”

“I believe you.” And I did. It was probably why I hadn’t stormed over to him the second I saw him and created a scene. In my heart I knew Dustin wasn’t the type to cheat.

Dustin took my hand, drawing me from the wall. “Come on, I’ll introduce you.”

Chapter

Twenty-Eight

Dustin

I tried to remain upbeat for Tazia, but even with how stunning she looked in her royal purple dress she failed to be the perfect distraction. At least every minute my thoughts drifted back to Elora and the glimpse I’d caught of her at the start of the race.

I had been talking to Cale when the flash of her fiery hair caught my attention. At first I brushed it off, assuming I’d been seeing things. However, when she glanced at me over her shoulder again and waved it felt like a kick to the gut.

Looking back, it surprised me to have stayed on the track for as long as I did. Rather than focus on the race, all I could think about was
her.

Why she was there.

What she wanted.

What it would take to finally be free of her.

Thankfully she hadn’t made direct contact before the race even though in the end it meant little. I’d crashed without her needing to.

She continually fucked up my life.

That was why I hadn’t wanted Tazia to see me after the crash. I hadn’t even considered how things would affect her. I’d been too wrapped up in the past and my rage.

Tazia squeezed my hand and brought me from my thoughts.

I spotted Raine next to her stand-in bodyguards, Flynn and Zeke. Teo wasn’t far away and watched her constantly to make sure she was okay while he spoke to the team boss of Braxton Racing. I was happy for her. Slowly, things were looking up for her with Teo’s help, and she even had a whole team to care for her now. While I’d always be there for her, I had to admit it was a relief to be able to focus on my own problems for once without having to worry about her.

The giant rock on her finger drew genuine happiness from me, only to be dampened by my next thought. I hadn’t known Teo planned on proposing today, and I had intended on attending his race. I wanted to see my brother crowned World Champion, and I had wanted to be there for Raine. The proposal would more than likely be up on YouTube, though it didn’t exactly have the same feeling.

It happened to be two more moments Elora had stolen from me which I could never get back.

“Think you can ease up on my hand a bit? I kind of need them functioning.” Taz stretched up to speak into my ear over the music.

Instantly, I released my hold and tucked her under my arm. “Sorry.”

Raine caught sight of us and waved us over. The excitement pouring off her sent a nervous shiver snaking down my spine.

“You doing okay, sweet girl?” I asked with a nod to Zeke and Flynn.

Teo chose that moment to sneak up behind her and place both hands on her shoulders. She stiffened at his touch, almost spilling her drink on her shoes. Thankfully, the music smothered her squeak.

Only when Teo bent to whisper in her ear did Raine relax and throw him a glower. Teo chuckled and placed a hand around her back to rest it on her hip. Whether it was a deliberate gesture I couldn’t be sure, but his fingers ran over the scar I knew was there.

“Aren’t you going to introduce us?” Teo asked, tilting his head in Tazia’s direction.

Not bothering to wait for me, Taz held out her hand. “I’m Tazia.”

Teo took it, though rather than shake it he drew her into a hug. Whether he meant for me to hear the words I wasn’t sure, yet I heard them nonetheless. “Thank you for bringing my brother back to us.”

I didn’t hear Tazia’s reply, and he released her with quivering lips to hand her over to Raine, who gave her a hesitant hug.

“Please tell me you have some embarrassing stories about this guy.” Tazia jerked her thumb in my direction, casting me a sly grin, which Raine matched.

Raine could list hundreds of embarrassing moments I’d rather not relive. I cleared my throat in warning but from the stubbornness in Raine’s eyes I had no hope in hell of persuading her not to spill my secrets.

“Does anyone want a drink?” I needed an excuse to get out of there before she began.

“I’m good,” Tazia said and Raine held up her still full glass.

“Well I need one.” I ran a finger down Taz’s spine. “You okay for a minute?”

She nodded and I fled to the safety of the bar.

I leaned on the bar top, tapping my fingers to the music while waiting for the bartender to return with my Jack and Coke.

“Hello, Dustin.”

I stiffened at the sickly sweet voice to the right of me and inhaled sharply. I refused to look at her, only focused on swirling the ice around the glass that had been placed in front of me.

“What are you doing here?”

“Why wouldn’t I be here? I always come to your last race of the season.”

“Didn’t you think us breaking up and my threat to get authorities involved were clear enough signs to stay away? Why on Earth would you think I want you here?”

“I’ll have a cranberry juice, please.” She directed her attention to the bartender and I snapped my head towards her. Not once had I ever seen her order a soft drink when we were together except for when…

My mind spun.

The ice rattled in my glass with my shaking hands and I placed it back on the bar.

My breaths came in rapid succession, nearing the point of hyperventilation.

Daring to glance down, my heart skipped a beat when I took in her slightly swollen belly.

Fucking hell, no.

My whole body started to shudder. Whether out of anger or despair I couldn’t be sure.

Elora followed my gaze and her hand moved to caress her bump, cementing the reality in my mind. All specks of hope that she had put on weight were crushed with that single gesture.

“Y-you’re p-pregnant.”

“Yes.”

I took in her size, trying to do the maths in my head.

Fear spilled into my veins.

“How long?” I hissed, my fingers flexing at my side. I clenched them and locked them against my leg, desperately fighting the urge to pick up my glass and hurl it across the room while I waited for the final blow I knew she’d deliver.

“Five months, give or take a few weeks.”

Although I’d prepared myself for it, I had to prop myself up on the bar to stop my legs crumbling under my weight. I curled my fists around the edge of the counter and inhaled deeply.

Fury took over me and I snatched Elora’s arm to march her from the room. She stumbled along beside me in her heels, struggling to keep up with my furious strides.

“Dustin, stop!”

I kept walking, her protests not even registering.

“Dustin you’re hurting me,” she hissed and tried to pull her arm free.

I loosened my hold marginally, and continued down the empty hotel halls until I stopped outside my room. Unlocking the door, only once we were both inside and I had her exit blocked did I release her.

“What the
fuck
, Elora? You had better start explaining this shit right now before I lose control totally!” I roared, finally allowing myself to snap now we were no longer in public.

“Explain what?”

“Seriously?” I took a step forward, fury pumping through my body. “You’re fucking pregnant!”

Her arm swung in the corner of my eye.

I caught her fist a split second before it hit my jaw.

I kept a hold of it and walked her back to the bed. With a hand on her shoulder I forced her to the mattress, trying not to hurt her.

“Explain.” I dropped my voice to a sinister, cool tone. “Now.”

“It’s not yours. You’re overreacting for nothing.”

“The timing works out perfectly.”

“It’s. Not. Yours,” she spat. “It never was.”

I stepped back, needing space so I didn’t do something I’d regret. “Of course it was never mine. You
killed
my baby.”

My fists clenched and unclenched around the air. Too much energy and rage bubbled within me. It needed an outlet and I happened to be in one of the most conservative regions of the world.

Elora took her gaze from her hands, her eyes holding remorse for once, even if it appeared cold.

“I’m sorry,” she whispered.

“For what? Fucking me over, being a bitch, beating me, turning my life upside down, or denying me the right to know my child? Which?”

“You never had a child! I lied, okay?”

I stumbled back like she’d physically hit me and all of the air left my lungs. I rubbed at my chest, trying to ease the pain and hissed out my question. “Y-you
what?
”

“I
lied
. The baby was never yours and I never had an abortion. You were going to leave me and the real father didn’t want to know. It was all working out perfectly until he showed up demanding he be involved.”

I took a deep breath, turning my back on her so she wouldn’t see me crumble. I desperately tried to process her words, but things didn’t fit together. Her story changed too much. I didn’t know what to believe. In a matter of seconds she’d once again knocked my world off its axis and I didn’t know which direction to head in to right myself.

“What are you talking about?” I spoke slowly, each word taking all of my courage to force out. A part of me didn’t want to know. I had been moving on and she was going to send me straight back to the darkness. But how could I not question her after revelations like that?

“It was a one night stand. When I found out I was pregnant and told the guy he wanted nothing to do with the child. He had only been using me to get to you, yet you never figured it out.”

The hand she placed on my shoulder lightly came as a shock, having not heard her sneak up behind me. I flinched, recoiling from her and stalked to the other side of the room. I leaned back against the wall furthest from her, my arms folded across my chest tightly. “Don’t touch me.”

The tears that formed at the corners of her eyes only intensified my anger.

“Cut the fucking water works and finish explaining. You were at the part where you cheated on me.”

She sniffed and cleared her throat. “I knew you’d never abandon your child, Dustin. Even if you wanted to leave me, I knew you wouldn’t. I didn’t want to go through this alone so I told you it was yours.”

She was sick.

So fucking twisted.

She made me believe I had a child and then she’d killed my non-existent baby for what?

“You didn’t think to tell me you slept with someone else?”

She shook her head and all remorse vanished. It was times like this when I wished she was normal, then again if she had been normal I’d have never been in this situation.

“The other guy didn’t want me and you were leaving me too. If I had told you I cheated you’d have gone—”

“So you made me believe I was going to be a
father
? What kind of fucked up shit is that?”

“It was a win win situation for me. My baby got a dad and I kept you.”

“Then why did you tell me you had an abortion if you wanted me
so
badly? Surely you knew I’d never forgive you for that, not on top of everything else.”

Her jaw ticked at the reminder of her abuse. “The real father came back and he wants me. We couldn’t think of another way to convince you to leave. It was his idea and I did what I needed to.”

Dumbfounded, too many negative emotions poisoned my blood so I couldn’t form a logical thought. Nothing she said sounded logical, though.

“What you
needed
to? Because you couldn’t think of another way?” I ground my molars together. “How about ‘hey Dustin I cheated on you and the baby isn’t yours. I’m leaving you for the real father’?
Anything
would have been better than what you pulled.”

“It wasn’t my idea, Dustin. I went along with it because I couldn’t do this alone. The real father said he’d leave me if I didn’t, and you were leaving me with or without a baby.”

“Fuck, Elora. Do you have any idea what you’ve done to me? Who was he?”

Her expression became steely. “That’s not important.”

I went to protest and she shook her head furiously.

“I won’t tell you, Dustin. It’s none of your business.”

I strode over to the door and hauled it open. “Get out.”

I didn’t need any more answers. It didn’t matter who she’d slept with really. Our relationship had ended long before she cheated and pressing the issue would have only stirred my already erratic thoughts into a bigger frenzy. I knew I wouldn’t get an apology.

One thing Elora never did was apologise sincerely.

“Get out, Elora,” I spat again when she refused to move.

With furious strides she marched over and stood toe-to-toe with me. Fixing me with a burning glare her lips twisted into a sneer. “He was better than you. In every way.”