Total pages in book: 66
Estimated words: 76696 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 383(@200wpm)___ 307(@250wpm)___ 256(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 76696 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 383(@200wpm)___ 307(@250wpm)___ 256(@300wpm)
I rolled my eyes at him. “My performance was outstanding as usual.”
Kevin snorted. “You look ready to leave.”
“I’m so ready to leave.”
“So what got her panties in a twist then?” he inquired as we headed back into the club.
“She wanted to go to my place for seconds and wasn't happy when I told her no. With Amber in the apartment, bringing Brittany wouldn't be a good idea. It would only upset Amber to listen to us.”
Kevin scanned my face as we left the club in the direction of the car. It was unnerving to have him watching me like that. “What?” I snapped.
“You like her,” Kevin commented.
“Whom?”
“Brian's sister of course,” he said before he dropped into the driver's seat. I didn’t know how he could stand the taste of non-alcoholic beer, but as long as it made him my chauffeur he could drink that piss water whenever he wanted.
“Don't even think about it,” I warned him.
His expression turned serious. “Why not?”
“The girl went through hell. She sure as hell isn’t ready for a relationship,” I said a bit sharper than intended. And neither am I, I added in my mind.
“You mean she isn’t ready for sex. Don't tell me you are that much of an asshole that you can't imagine being with her because you would have to live without sex for a while?”
I scowled at him. “Shut up, Kev,” I taunted him with the name Reagan used for him. “It's not like you know anything about it.”
Kevin gave me a pointed look. “I was exactly like you Zach. I was always looking for the next fling and I couldn't imagine being without sex for long but then I met Reagan.”
A snarky comment lay on the tip of my tongue, but he kept talking. “Reagan was recovering from a bad breakup when we met and she made it pretty clear that she wasn't ready to jump in bed with me right away. But I was willing to wait because I cared about her.”
“How long have you waited?” I blurted out.
He looked uncomfortable talking about the subject. Before Reagan he hadn't minded to brag about his sexual endeavors. “A couple of months.”
“A couple of months!”
How could he have gone without sex for so long? I knew that Reagan had spent the nights in Kevin's apartment a few weeks after they’d started dating. How had he kept his hands off of her though she'd been lying in bed with him?
My disbelief must have been plain; Kevin shook his head. “You are an idiot, Zach.” He started the engine.
“Aren't we going to wait for Jason and Bill?” I asked.
“They found some girls they're spending the night with.” Kevin's expression turned into a scowl.
I chuckled. “I'm sure they'll have fun.”
“You know, since I met Reagan I've realized that my life before her was empty. Some day you will see that being in a relationship is more satisfying than screwing around.”
“For fuck’s sake, stop with that holier-than-thou attitude. You sound like a saint. Believe me, my life style is very satisfying,” I said with a grin; it felt almost forced. Never mind.
“You're an asshole, Zach,” Kevin muttered, his fingers tightening around the steering wheel. Why did he even care?
I shrugged. “So I've been told before,” I said casually. “Why don't you get on Bill’s or Jason's nerves with your new found morals?”
“Because they are lost causes.”
“And I'm not?” I barked out a laugh.
Kevin didn’t reply.
The rest of the ride passed in silence and I was damn grateful for that. I wouldn't have been able to endure more lectures from him. Sex was all I needed.
CHAPTER SIX
Amber
It was silent in the apartment. I was alone, and for the first time in days the protective wall I always had around me when Zach and Brian were around was down and I felt almost relaxed. I walked out of my room and into the bathroom. I locked the door, even though I knew Brian and Zach wouldn’t be home for a while. Law school kept them busy most mornings. Yet a tiny part of me felt safer with the lock in place.
I rushed through my shower as usual. Showers – they brought up too many horrible memories – memories I wanted to forget. The first few weeks after I'd woken in the hospital, I'd showered for hours every day, scrubbing my skin with scolding water until I drew blood. I'd tried to wash their smell away, but it was burnt into my memory and even after all those years I could still smell them on my skin. No matter how much vanilla scented shower foam I used, their stench remained.
The psychiatrists told me that it was my imagination. They didn't know how it was to smell those bastards on me, to see their leering faces whenever I closed my eyes, to hear their taunting words in my dreams, to feel their hands on me. Maybe it was my imagination, but for me it was part of my reality. I was trapped with the haunting memories of that day for the rest of my life.
I shut the water off and stepped out of the shower before more horrible thoughts could take hold of me. I wrapped a towel around my body and twisted another one into a turban atop my head to keep my hair in place before I unlocked the door.
Pumpkin was mewing loudly. I followed the noise into the living room and found him sitting on the loveseat, looking tense. I took a few steps toward him when I noticed movement in the corner of my eye.
“Nice towel,” said a male voice.
I whirled around, clutching the tiny towel still tighter against my body. My muscles seized with fear. On the sofa sat two men. Both of them tall and imposing. Terrifying. One of them had dark skin and he looked impossibly strong. The other was leaner but not less intimidating.
My breath stuck in my throat and my vision narrowed, turning black at the corners.
It will happen again.
happen again