Briar Valley: The Complete Duet

4. Willow

CHAPTER 4

WILLOW

HEAVY METAL – DIVELINER

“Are you safe?” Katie asks through the hands-free.

Stuffing notes back into my purse, I shove it back in my handbag. We stopped again after driving for hours to refuel and get more coffee for the road. I’m barely able to keep my eyes open.

“We took the long route to avoid the main roads. No issues so far. I left the apartment keys under the plant pot for you.”

“Good. Be careful.”

“We will.”

“Willow?”

I indicate to pull away from the petrol station where we just refilled our tank. “Yeah?”

“If you ever need to come back to the apartment... it’s yours, alright? I know things haven’t been ideal, but I’ll always be here if you need me. I mean it.”

“Thank you, Katie. For everything.”

“I really wish you’d call me Mum.”

“Yeah, I know,” I reply lamely.

Katie sniffs, presumably stifling her own tears. I don’t offer any comfort. I’m too numb, and frankly, I’m all cried out. There’s nothing left in me to feel any kind of emotion right now.

I’m running on zero sleep and crappy petrol station coffee in order to get us home as fast as possible. The last twenty-four hours have been a blur of tears, packing and grief.

It took all day to get everything ready for the journey while figuring out the quickest route back up north. I planned it methodically, avoiding all main roads and cameras.

“Let me know when you arrive,” she requests.

“I will.”

Disconnecting the call, I feel like an asshole for treating her like shit. Our relationship is still new territory for me. She’s proved herself in the last few months, but my trust is flimsy.

“I don’t like her,” Arianna comments, her feet propped up on the messy dashboard. “She’s annoying and moans too much.”

“That’s your grandma, Ari.”

“No, Lola is my grandma.”

I blink to clear my vision. I’ve tried my best to explain things, but getting a seven-year-old to understand death is tricky. Even when Pedro died, she still believed that he was out there somewhere.

“Lola’s your great-grandma.” I keep my eyes on the snowy road. “But she’s in heaven now, remember? She won’t be there when we get back, baby. I’m sorry.”

“I know, but I can still visit her in heaven. Right?”

“Sure, baby. In your dreams, you’ll still see her.”

“Like Pedro.”

“Like Pedro,” I confirm. “Go to sleep, Ari. We’ve still got three hours to go. Shut your eyes.”

Grabbing my coat, I use my spare hand to drape it over her, letting her snuggle up in the seat. The radio is tinny in the background as I keep driving through the night.

The farther north we get, the thicker the snow falls. As dawn rises, we approach the mountain summit that leads into Briar Valley. Mount Helena is as majestic as I remember.

Arianna stirs in her sleep but doesn’t wake up, too busy sucking on her thumb. With a final breath for courage, I pull onto the rocky terrain and begin the steep ascent.

Within minutes, we’ve spun out of control and are stuck on a huge patch of ice. This is ridiculous. Eyes burning, I rest my forehead on the steering wheel and take a breath.

All I can see is Lola—her bright, friendly smile and wizened face. Her scent is in my nose. Freshly baked cookies and all things homey, transferred through her warm embrace.

I loved the way she always pinched my cheeks before saying hello. Our pep talks around the dining table were one of my weekly highlights after we resolved our differences.

“Dammit,” I hiss, scrubbing my cheeks. “Get it together.”

Grabbing my phone, I send a message to the one number I have saved then wait for whoever is sitting on the other end to come and rescue us. It won’t be long, I’m sure.

Turning up the heater, I point the vent in Arianna’s direction then hug myself, staring at the minutes counting down on the dashboard clock.

Within half an hour, the glow of headlights finds us. Ryder’s bright-red truck pulls up a short distance away, but someone else steps out into the rising blizzard.

Inching through the heavy snowfall, a pair of short, muscled legs approaches the car. Glancing at Arianna, I decide to climb out and do this reunion without waking her.

I’m freezing in just a long, thick sweater and tight yoga pants as I slam the door shut and turn to face our rescuer. Dull green eyes meet mine through the white-laced air.

“Zach,” I whimper.

His overgrown, nut-coloured brown hair is windswept and long overdue for a trim. The enthusiastic smile that usually curves his soft, boyish features is nowhere to be found.

His light has dulled.

Vanished. Gone.

“Willow?” Zach stares right at me.

I shuffle my feet while being battered by the wind and snow. “Hi.”

Before I can react, he rushes at me in a blur of movement. I’m suddenly crushed against his firm chest. Two strong arms wrap around me like steel bands, and the pressure feels amazing.

I fist my hands in his hoodie, breathing in his familiar, fruity scent. It’s haunted my dreams for months. I can almost hear the wild beat of his heart tearing free from his chest.

“Willow,” he repeats like he can’t believe it.

“It’s me.” I breathe him in.

“You’re here.”

Holding me at arm’s length, he stares at me, his emerald eyes blown wide with disbelief. There are heavy bags marking his exhaustion, and he seems colder, more serious somehow.

I half expect him to crack a joke, but he slams his lips on mine instead with raw, primal need. I kiss him back, unable to resist. His fingertips stroke along my face as his tongue tangles with mine.

All I can feel is him. His touch. His taste. The sweet, playful, shining light inside of Zachariah that made me fall so irrevocably in love with him even when I didn’t want to. It’s still in there, beneath the grief.

When we break apart, our foreheads rest together in the chaos of the snowstorm as he lets out a bitter laugh.

“I’ve spent months imagining what I’d do when I saw you again,” he admits in a low whisper. “How much I’d scream and shout at you, or tell you to never set foot in our fucking lives again. Even had a whole speech rehearsed.”

I brush my nose against his. “You can yell at me. I deserve it. I’ve hurt you all, and nothing will ever excuse that.”

His hand grasps my jaw to trap me in place. “I’m sure you’ve hurt yourself more than anyone else. Come on, we have to go before we get trapped out here. We can scream at each other later.”

“I’ll hold you to that,” I murmur.

“I doubt I’ll be the only one. Where’s the kid?”

“In the car. I’ll get our stuff.”

Between us, we get everything unloaded and transferred into Ryder’s truck. After Zach extricates Arianna from the front seat, he tucks my coat tighter around her and presses a kiss to her forehead.

“Hey, trouble. I missed you.”

I have to look away when he brushes a loose strand of hair behind her ear, staring at her sleeping face with the same heartbreaking look of disbelief. It severs my heartstrings to watch.

I did that.

His pain is because of me.

“Zach—”

“It’s fine,” he interrupts. “I just missed her, that’s all.”

“She missed you too.”

He nods. “Let’s move.”

All loaded up, I slide into the passenger seat of Ryder’s truck, fixing my gaze out of the window as Zach climbs in after tucking Arianna into the back. She hasn’t stirred once.

He manoeuvres the truck onto the icy road, relief loosening my shoulders when the tyre treads keep it from spinning out of control like we did. We make it halfway up Mount Helena before he speaks again.

“Where’ve you been all this time?”

I shrug listlessly. “Here and there. Katie relocated us to an apartment complex in Southampton for displaced families.”

“Southampton?”

“We’ve been hiding out there for the past few months. It’s hardly been a five-star holiday. More like witness protection.”

He scoffs. “Hasn’t been a walk in the park for us either.”

I pick at a loose thread in my sweater. “You can hate me all you want, I’ll take it. But I came back for Lola, not us. That’s the truth.”

“How thoughtful,” he snarks. “I’m not going to fight with you. Not now. Let’s get through this and figure our crap out later.”

“Fair enough.” My throat locks up, making it difficult to swallow. “How is everyone? The town?”

“In a state of shock. Albie is a wreck. He was with her when it happened. Doc doesn’t think she suffered or was in any pain, though.”

“Should I be grateful for that?” I ask honestly.

Zach shrugs. “I have no clue. Maybe we should be.”

“It’s something, right?”

“All I know is the place is a mess already. We don’t know how to function without her. She was the whole reason Briar Valley exists.”

Reaching over on instinct, I take his free hand and curl our fingers together. Zach spares me a glance before refocusing on the road, his Adam’s apple bobbing like crazy.

“She would want the town to live on.” I blink away my tears. “It’s more than just one person. The family is what makes Briar Valley a home.”

“Our family is broken. Has been since you left.”

“Zach—”

“Forget it.”

I let my hand fall away from his and watch the snow build outside. The sun has risen now, lighting the path ahead as we begin to descend into the woodland surrounding the town.

“How’s Micah?”

“Don’t ask,” Zach growls.

Okay, then.

The awkward silence stretches on until the trees clear to reveal the beginning of cobbled streets. I’m slick all over with anxious sweat, and my hands tremble in my lap.

The idea of facing everyone makes me want to curl up in a corner and hide away from prying eyes. Zach’s eyes briefly dart towards me, assessing my knees knocking together.

“Your hair’s different,” he observes.

“I had to cut it.”

“Looks nice.”

“Thanks. What happens now?”

“Do you want to get some rest before… everything?”

I nod quickly. “That would be good. I’ve been awake for over thirty hours.”

“Jesus, Willow. How are you not dead on your feet?”

“Every time I shut my eyes, I dreamed of you three,” I admit. “Sometimes it’s less painful to stay awake until the point of exhaustion than face that every night.”

Zach flexes his grip on the steering wheel. “The bed felt so fucking empty without you in it. Our entire lives did.”

My chest aches. “It hurt me too, Zach.”

“I know, babe. I’m just struggling to understand why we’ve wasted so much time apart. Life is too damn short.”

There it is again—the all-consuming pit of pain when I remember that I’m not coming home and walking into my grandmother’s arms. Life really is too short.

She would want us to embrace even the tiniest shreds of happiness, however fragile they may seem in the midst of so much grief. We have to live. For Lola. For her memory.

Zach drives straight through the deserted town. Nobody is braving the weather, remaining safely inside, granting us some privacy. Snow is falling thick and fast.

We haven’t seen a single soul when we reach the guys’ cabin, nestled amongst white-capped trees and shrubs atop the rugged hill overlooking the valley. It looks magical, coated in December snow.

I deliberately ignore our old home across the road. Just thinking about all that we left behind makes my heart hurt more than it already does. Zach turns off the engine and sighs.

“Micah will be passed out in his workshop. He’s on lockdown after his recent behaviour.”

“Drinking?”

Zach nods. “Daily.”

“Jesus. For how long?”

“A couple of months now.”

Unable to dive into that, I force an even breath. “What about Killian?”

“I think he’s still with Albie in Lola’s cabin.” He scrapes his hands down his unshaven face. “You should have a few hours of privacy before all hell breaks loose.”

We fall back into awkward silence until I break it.

“Will you shout at me if I say I’m sorry again?”

“Most likely.” He blows out a leaden breath.

“Then I won’t.” I unbuckle my belt. “I’ll take Arianna inside.”

Before I can climb out, Zach grabs me by the wrist. I fight to conceal my reaction to the bite of pain as his fingers grasp the fresh cuts beneath my sweater that I really don’t want him to know about.

The look on his face is scary enough as he looks right through me. Past all the bullshit and lies. My attempt at displaying a strong face. He sees deep into the pits of my tormented heart and understands.

“Willow… I’m so fucking angry at you right now, but I’m also glad that you’re home,” he finally says. “And I love you.”

I manage a tight nod. “I love you.”

“Maybe that’s enough for now. Lola wouldn’t want us to fight about this.” He shakes his head. “She’d just want me to be relieved.”

Tugging my wrist, he pulls me closer until his lips are within reach. We kiss again, but slower this time. Tenderly. Filling the empty spaces in one another that we each left behind.

There’s a burning ache deep inside of me. Far deeper than I could even attempt to reach myself. In Zach’s presence, it reignites, burning in slow, lazy embers until my whole body is alight.

“Zach,” I whine into his lips.

“I know, princess. Let’s get the kid inside. We’re going to freeze to death out here otherwise.”

Grabbing our bags, I let Zach tuck Arianna into his chest to protect her from the snow. We race through the flurries and escape inside the cabin where the guys’ familiar scents slap me in the face.

It smells like pine trees and bonfires. Oil paint and whiskey. Roast dinners and home. All my favourite things, bottled into one essence, pure and inarguably them.

“Jesus Christ.”

Zach glances around the huge mess. “Yeah. May’ve let things slip a little bit.”

The cabin is the same, but it’s covered in layers of clutter, discarded clothes and unwashed dishes. Killian always kept things clean and semi-tidy. This is a complete disaster zone.

I notice they don’t even have a Christmas tree up. We didn’t either. The big day is only a couple of weeks away, yet I had no plans to celebrate beyond a cheap dinner with Arianna.

“Your room isn’t made up,” Zach says over his shoulder. “I’ll put this one in my room for now. Make yourself at home.”

Dropping our bags, I bounce on the balls of my feet. It feels wrong to just invite myself back into their space like nothing has changed. I’m frozen in the entrance and unable to move.

That’s where Zach finds me when he returns a few minutes later. His eyes scrape over me, incisive and searching, seeing far more than I’d like him to. Our sadness whispers to each other.

“I should get some sleep,” I croak. “Before later on.”

“You should.” Zach clears his raspy throat. “Unless…”

Trailing off, the need written across his face is so obvious, he may as well be screaming out for my arms around him. I feel the same, but I still can’t close the distance between us.

“Babe,” he hums. “Please… I need to hold you. I just need to feel you in my arms one more time to know you’re real.”

My feet move of their own accord. We meet somewhere in the middle, the messy cabin falling away as the softness of Zach’s t-shirt meets my nose. God, I’ve missed his smell.

“Fuck.” He rhythmically strokes my hair. “Fuck!”

“I’m right here, Zach.”

“You don’t feel real.”

Unpeeling myself from his arms, I take his unshaved face into my hands and force his eyes to meet mine. The round, youthful angles are covered in stubble, framing his hollow eyes.

“I’m real,” I whisper fiercely. “I know this has been the hardest time of our lives, but I’m here now. I’m in your arms.”

“Why did you leave us?”

I brush my nose against his. “Ari. It’s all for her.”

“We could’ve kept you safe.”

“No, Zach. You can’t. No one can. We won’t be safe until this is all over and Mr Sanchez is gone.”

His lashes lift, casting shadows over dimpled skin. “Gone?”

“I don’t want to talk about him right now. I just want to feel you. Hold you. Touch you.”

Lips pecking mine, I can feel his smile. “I can do that.”

Zach’s hands move to cup my hips and hold me flush against him. I wind my arms around his neck and lose myself to his kiss, bold and insistent, demanding for me to stay at his side forever.

When his hand moves to hook my leg up on his hip, I begin to shift, needing more friction between us. I can already feel the press of his hardness against my core, and it’s driving me insane with need.

When his tongue pushes past my lips to tangle with mine, I can’t help moaning into his mouth. Our tongues duel, both fighting a losing battle. He wants the only thing I can’t give him.

Forever.

A kept promise.

Our future.

Until we’re safe and the monster hunting us has been shackled in the depths of hell, I can’t give any of them what they deserve. And that’s exactly why I had no choice but to run.

“The others,” I gasp. “What if they come in?”

Zach moves to grip my ass. “I don’t give a shit. Let them watch.”

Lifting me so I’m hooked around his waist, he walks me over to the huge, L-shaped sofa in front of the open fireplace and deposits me on it. I let him quickly peel off my yoga pants.

Wrapping a hand around my ankle, he plants a gentle kiss there then begins to trail his lips upwards. Higher. Higher still. Kissing, nipping and licking a burning path to my inner thigh.

“So fucking gorgeous,” he grunts.

Kissing my left hip, his mouth traces the seam of my plain white panties. I know I’m soaked through already. I haven’t been touched since I slept with Micah on that mountain top.

“Tell me to stop, babe.”

“No,” I moan as he kisses on top of my mound. “Please… Zach. I need to feel your lips on me.”

Hooking his fingers beneath the elastic, he torturously peels my panties off, inch by slow inch. Bare from the waist down, Zach wastes no time burying his face between my open thighs.

When his mouth latches onto my pussy, I grab handfuls of his long hair and cry out. His lips move like a ravenous machine, his tongue delving into my core and parting my folds.

Thumb swiping over my nub and beginning to circle, I moan again, slamming a hand over my mouth to prevent myself from waking Arianna up. His touch feels incredible.

“You’re so wet for me,” Zach marvels as he flicks my clit. “Did this sweet little pussy miss me?”

Swiping his finger through the flow of moisture, he thrusts it into my slit in one fast pump. I’m already on the cusp of falling apart, the fast thrust of his fingers driving me to the edge.

“Oh God, Zach!”

“That’s it, babe. Say my goddamn name. Don’t you dare forget it ever again.”

Giving me a moment to catch my breath as I lay tangled in a gasping mess, he quickly unbuckles his belt and shoves his jeans down. His moments are clumsy, he’s rushing so fast.

Grabbing his arm, I yank him back down so his body covers mine then wrap my legs around his waist. My hand pushes his boxers down to find the hardened steel of his length.

“Willow—”

“I need you inside of me,” I groan pathetically. “Right now.”

With fire burning bright in his irises, he lines himself up and doesn’t give me the benefit of a warning. The sudden pump of his hips feeds his cock deep inside my entrance.

I bite down on his shoulder to silence the moan of pure bliss. My teeth leave a swollen welt, the sight bringing me pleasure. We’re marking each other tonight.

“Hold on,” Zach warns.

Keeping a tight grip on his neck, I let him pound into me at a relentless, bruising pace that betrays his still white-hot anger. Each thrust is its own individual punishment for leaving.

Over and over, his cock worships me in the most brutal way possible. When he pulls out and quickly flips me over, all I can do is grip the sofa cushions and let him raise my ass high.

Zach re-enters me at an even deeper angle now that I’m bent over at his mercy. The smack of his hand on my butt cheek sends tingles down my spine like hungry fire ants.

“Fuck you for leaving,” he hisses while spanking me again. “And fuck you for thinking we could ever survive without you.”

“I won’t apologise again,” I gasp back. “I had to keep her safe.”

Slamming into me again, Zach’s voice is a guttural bark. “That’s our damn job too, and you know it.”

“I’m… her mother. I had to?—”

His next thrust cuts me off and all I can garble out is a strangled cry for more. This isn’t the sweet, dirty Zach that I remember. He’s fucking me even more brutally than his cousin once did.

His fingertips feel like they’re bruising my hips, but I don’t care. I’m thankful that I was able to keep my sweater on, at least. I don’t want any of them to see my arms.

Guided to the edge of a plummeting drop, I stare over the cliff and prepare to be shoved. Zach’s reaching his own release. I can feel it in the increasingly rough slam of his hips on my rear.

Just when I’m about to fall apart in the most spectacular fashion, the pressure of his dick inside me vanishes. It’s cruelly ripped away as he pulls out and takes a huge step back.

“What?” I scream. “Zach!”

A hand wrapped around his shaft, he pumps it one last time and groans through his release. Come shoots all over my ass until I’m covered in his seed and still hanging on the edge of an orgasm.

I scream and rave. Shout and curse. I’m dripping wet and sticky from his release, but Zach remains at a distance, catching his breath. I realise that he isn’t going to let me come tonight.

“That’s for leaving,” he grunts.

Semi-dressed, he turns and vanishes deeper into the cabin before I can utter a single word of frustration. I’m left alone—coated in come and on the verge of a complete meltdown.

“Fuck you, Zach!” I shout in anger.

There’s no response.

This is my punishment.