In the middle

Chapter 55

I was halfway home when my phone started ringing. Great, it was Kaden. "Hello?" I picked the call up. 
"Hey, can you meet me at mine now?" His? I wasn't sure I even knew where he lived. I had never been there before. 
"Uh, sure. Can you send me the address?" 
"Sure." And just like that he had hung up. I put the address into maps and headed away from home. I wondered if Harry was home, would he be wondering where I was. Maybe he'd call me soon. 

I guess it didn't matter. I'd have to meet Kaden no matter what. 

Kaden lived right in the city, a fucking penthouse of all places. I pulled up to a valet of course. My crappy car was probably the first of it's kind here. 
I got out and handed my keys to the valet driver. 

That was the richest I have ever felt in my entire life. I walked through the front doors to a massive foyer. 
I walked over to the front desk. 

'Yes?' The lady behind it looked me up and down. Rude bitch. 'I'm here to see Kaden Ramos.' 
'If you say so.' She picked up a phone a dialled someone. 

'Hello Mr. Ramos, I have a......girl here to see you. Yes, of course.' 

'Through to the elevator to the thirty-first floor.' She pointed. I gave her a sarcastic smile and walked off. 
I was the only one in the elevator so I didn't have to take extra time waiting for people to get off. 

When the doors finally buzzed and opened I walked into a living room right away. Ezra was sitting on a couch, a glass of rum or something half empty. 

'Good, you're here!' Kaden mentioned. You could see half the city from this view, it was a small apartment. Smaller than I thought it would be for a Ramos brother I mean. 

I looked around casually. 'Nice place.' Yeah thanks.' He noted plainly. Not a care at all. Johnson was also here and some other guy I had seen around the warehouse but didn't know. I think he worked for one of the twins or something. 

'So, how did it go?' Kaden asked. Ezra stood up and had walked over to us in the kitchen where we were all now standing. 

'The....?' I was in a daze after seeing the apartment. 'Jesus Christ, with Luis!' Ezekiel informed. 'Oh yeah! The date.' I smirked. I could feel myself blush a little again. I thought back to his lips on mine, his fingers brushing against my skin. 
It almost made me wanna call him up and meet up again. 

'What? What is with that look?' Ezra asked me. I shook myself back in reality. 'Oh right, no yeah it was good.' 
'I don't give a shit how it was. What did you find out?'
'Ohhh. Well he said he knew you guys which was Kinda obvious but when I asked about you guys he said he just wanted to reconnect. Make emends.'

'That's all he said?'
'Yeah, pretty much.'
'Well is that all he said or was that pretty much all he said!' Ezekiel yelled. I got nervous again. It made me not want to meet their eyes. It gave me an instant flash back to my dad as a kid. Always drinking, always yelling. 

'That was all he said okay! Jesus, you know I get I work for you and all but I went on a date with him and you guys wont even tell me a single thing about him at all. So don't get mad at me for doing your dirty work. And by the way, I don't even know what beef you all have with him because he's actually a nice guy. A gentleman, I know none of you are familiar with the concept.' 
I was frustrated, I had no idea what was going on. I did what they said and somehow I am the one getting yelled at. 

Ezekiel grabbed my arm tightly and pulled me close to him. His breath on my face, I could smell alcohol. I tried to pull away but he only squeezed tighter. Now I was a little scared, shivers ran across my skin but I had to be strong. 

'Don't you dare talk to use that way. Do you understand me bitch!' He spoke quietly. I tried to pull away again but again he squeezed tighter. It was really starting to hurt now. 

'After everything we have done for you and your brother!'
'Don't say that, we all know what you did for my brother was only cause you were getting something out of it. I don't know what yet but you guys only ever do what's good for you!' 

'What the fuck did you just say to me?' He spat in my face. 'Zeke, let her go!' Kaden spoke. But his brother ignored him. 

'The ONLY reason why you are even here right now is because you slutted your way into my family!'|
'Let me go!' Now I was having to hold back tears. He pulled me even closer. 'And trust me.' He looked me up and down viciously. 'I got no benefit of that!' It looked like he was going to smile but he didn't. Pure anger just now. 

My arm was on fire right now. The longer he had a hold the harder it was to fight back tears. I hated this, I felt weak but if I even tried to fight back I'd be dead within seconds. And that would make my brother dead cause I knew what Harry would do. 

The buzz of the elevator sounded, Ezekiel's hand still gripping my arm. It seemed like he was starting to enjoy this control over me right now.

'Ezekiel? What are you doing?' I recognised the voice instantly. It was Julian. 

'Ezekiel, seriously. Let her be now!' Kaden spoke to his brother again. 'Don't test me again!' Ezekiel threatened me. 

'Zeke, LET HER GO!' Julian was by my side now and had a hand on his brothers arm. 

Finally, he let go. I could feel the blood rush back to my fingers. Pain coursed through my arm, I bit my tongue to hide the pain and push back on-going tears. 

'What the hell is going on?' Julian demanded. His brother straightened back up and leaned against the island. 'Nothing.' Ezra spoke for his twin. 

'It didn't look like nothing!' 
'Well it was so leave it be.' 

A bruise in the shape of a hand was swelling on my arm. I'd put some ice on it as soon as I got home and hoped Harry didn't notice. 
'Come on!' Kaden nudged me. I followed him through the living room and down a small hall. He opened a door and I took tail into an office. 

He closed the door behind me. 

'You okay?' He asked me. 'I'm fine!' I lied. Truthfully I wanted to grab a gun and shoot Ezekiel in the face a bunch of times but that would make all the Ramos brothers go after me. Any way I thought about it, it didn't end well for me or Harry. 

'So he didn't say anything else about us when you were with him?' 
'He said he knew you guys years ago. You grew up together.' Kaden looked me dead in the eye now. I took a step back, I was still on edge. 
'Didn't he say anything else about us?' I wasn't sure what Kaden wanted to hear. 

'No, look all he said was he wanted to make things right. I don't know what else you want me to say.' I defended gently. I didn't need to piss off another Ramos brother. 

'It's okay. I'm sorry about Zeke, he's just stress you know.' Clearly. 

'You need something cold on that!'
'Yeah, I'll put some ice on it when I get home.' I shrug away. 'Look, I need you to try and get something more off of him okay?' I nodded. 

'I'll try but I don't know what else to ask him.'

'Did he say what he did for work?'
'He said he's a mechanic.'

Something shattered back in the kitchen, drawing mine and Kaden's attention away. 'What the hell was that?'

We walked back out where everyone else was. I stayed far away from the twins. 'What's going on?' Kaden asked. Johnson was picking up broken glass in the kitchen. Ezra's hand was cut, did he smash or it something. 

Julian was standing, his face fuming. I had no idea what had happened, most of me didn't want to know. 
'I should probably go home.' I speak up. 

'Yeah, right.' Kaden responded. 'I'll talk to you later.' Ezra mentioned across the room. It made my skin crawl again. Was that a good talk to you later. Probably not, he'd probably dish out the exact same as what Ezekiel had said and done to me. 

'Yeah, I'm leaving too.' Julian stormed towards the elevator. 'Julian!' Ezekiel shouted but he was ignored. I stepped into the machine, Julian closing the doors behind him. 

'Hey.' He spoke when we finally started moving. 'Hey.' I replied. 

'How's your arm?' I looked down  at it. It still hurt like a bitch. I was glad I didn't cry, that would have made things worse and proven a point to Ezekiel. 
'I'm fine.'

'You don't have to lie, not to me.' His words were soft. They reminded me of a distant time. It made me feel nervous, in a good way again. 
'It's fine. I promise.' But that was still a lie. 

'And your stomach?' His voice seemed shaky. 'Same I guess.' Now I could feel his eyes on me, I wanted to cry again but in a different way. 

'How are you getting home?' 
'I drove here.' I mentioned. Finally the doors open and I steppe out, I'll see you around okay?' I smiled to him before quickly pacing out. 
It was different being around him now, but also the same.