Twisted (8 page)

“Really?”

Paige grimaces as she notes
the spark of hope in my eyes. “You really like him, don't you?”

“Did something happen between
you two? You seem to have a bit of a vendetta against him,” I say a bit
cautiously.

“It's not a vendetta. I'm
just trying to warn you away from him before you get dragged into something you
can't get out of.”

“Explain to me why he is such
a bad guy.” I want to know what she thought I wasn't seeing.

She gives me a look. “
Riiiiight
. And you're just going to forget about him, just
like that if you don't like what you hear?” she asks, snapping her fingers to
get her point across.

“It depends on what is so
bad.”

“
Blayre
,
if you can't see for yourself how messed up he is after the way he ignored you,
and if you can't see the little games he likes to play with people, then it is
pointless to warn you.”

I begin to realize this very
well could be our first real argument. I hadn't meant to start one and I really
didn't want to lose the only friend I seemed to be gaining.

Paige must be able to read my
expression because her face softens. “Just be careful,” she says lightly before
she moves away to deal with customers.

If this is what my evenings
are going to consist of, I really need to talk Tate into letting me get a
job—or I need to get a life. I'd prefer either over sitting by myself, watching
a comedy that seems more dumb than funny.

When I hear the rumble of the
motorcycle down the street, I instantly think of Cole before I purposely try to
shove him out of my mind. He hasn't contacted me once today and evidently I was
nothing more than a one night distraction. I am determined to move on and not
dwell on him. I barely know him so it shouldn't be that big of a deal, right?

The doorbell rings, and the
light flashing above the front door scares the living daylights out of me as it
brightens the darkened living room. After setting aside my bowl of popcorn, I
get up and walk to the door. My jaw just about drops when I see Cole standing
there. I must have been so lost in thought that I hadn't heard the motorcycle
pull into the driveway. I'd just assumed it was some random guy driving his
motorcycle down the street.

Cole's green eyes sweep me
from my head to bare toes and he frowns. “You're not seriously going to wear
that, are you?”

I glance down at myself. I'm
wearing a bright yellow tee shirt that says,
Who
pissed in your cheerios
in big black letters across my chest. I paired the
shirt with boring gray boxer shorts and my hair was pulled back in a sloppy
ponytail. I am dressed for a night of vegetation on the couch rather than
dressing to impress and it definitely shows. Not that I care. “I'm already
wearing it, what of it?” I ask as I hide the fact that I am thrilled to see
him. The night is suddenly beginning to look brighter.

Amusement flickers in Cole's
eyes. “You don't remember me inviting you to a party at my place tonight, huh?”

He's right, I don't remember
that at all.

“Are you going to make me
stand here all night?”

“I guess not,” I say lightly
as I back up and let him in. I can't help but admire how good he looks in his
jeans and the black tee that hugs his muscles.

Cole looks around the living
room dismissively. “Where's your room?”

“Upstairs.” We head up to my
room and I watch as Cole heads straight to my closet and starts looking through
my clothes. “What are you doing?” I lean against my door frame and watch him
curiously.

“You are not wearing
that
to my party,” he says as he shoves shirts aside. Then he sighs and glances at
me over his shoulder with a look of exasperation. “Don't you have anything
sexy?”

“This isn't sexy?” I ask
teasingly as I pluck at my shirt.

Cole's eyes drop to my bare
legs and then slowly back up to where my breasts are. “I'd find it much more
appealing if it was crumpled up on the floor.”

“I bet,” I muse as I walk
over to him and peer in my closet. “The party is casual, right? Won't any of
those work?” I ask, motioning toward the casual shirts hanging there. I thought
they were all kind of cute.

“Seeing as this is all you've
got, it'll have to do,” Cole says as he grabs a sleeveless black blouse off a
hanger. “Do you have a skirt?”

I'm not too picky about what
I wear so I don't care that he's picking out my wardrobe. I go over to my
dresser and pull out a casual khaki mini skirt. “Will this work?”

“It should,” he says, handing
me the shirt.

“Turn around.” I am not
leaving him alone in my room because I would bet money Cole is a snooper.

He makes a face. “Seriously?”

“Yes.”

“It's not like you've got
anything I haven't seen before.”

“I hope you weren't planning
on trying to sweet talk your way into my panties, because if so, you suck at
it.”

Cole lets out a low, throaty
laugh and then obediently turns around, giving me his back. “I never know what's
going to come out of your mouth. I like that. I tend to get bored easily.”

“You and me both,” I say as I
quickly change. I keep one eye on him, fully expecting him to peek but he
doesn't. “Better?” I ask as I tuck the blouse into the waistband of my skirt.

He turns around and
immediately shakes his head as he walks over to stand before me. He reaches up
and begins to unbutton the first few buttons at my throat, his green eyes on
mine.     

“What are you doing?” I ask a
bit breathlessly.

“Making you presentable,” he
murmurs as he trails a finger down the rest of the closed buttons down my
shirt, making my heart pound. His hands tug on the bottom of my blouse and
pulls it from my waistband before he begins to unbutton the last four buttons
as well. Then he pulls the fabric apart and begins to tie the fabric in a knot
below my breasts, his knuckles brushing my bare skin. He tugs the knot to test
it and then steps back, his eyes approving as they skim over me. “Much better.”

I'm trying to calm my heart
rate over his bold teasing. “I just need to grab some sandals.”

“Get rid of the ponytail.”

He wouldn't be getting his
way entirely tonight. “It's hot out and I like it up,” I say as I pull my
ponytail out and then deliberately pull it back in a sloppy knot.

Cole's lip quirks slightly in
the corner but he doesn't say anything.

I wasn't exactly sure what I
expected, but it wasn't the two-story run down house on the opposite side of
town. From what I could see through the crowd, the house resembles your typical
bachelor pad. The furniture is old and miss matched and the walls are bare.
It’s
evident no one has taken an interest in decorating.

Cole's hand firmly wraps
around mine as he leads me through the crowd and I catch sight of Paige and
Blake sitting on one end of a crowded sofa. Paige is holding two shot glasses
while Blake has a bottle of tequila in his hand. We make our way over and Cole
gives the couple sitting on the other side of the couch a look, making them
quickly scurry away. A second later, I find myself being pulled down onto
Cole's lap once he settles on the now available couch.

I'm flashing a lot of thigh,
so I shift and try to tug my skirt down but Cole's hand immediately settles
there, making it impossible for me to adjust my skirt. I can't help but shoot
him a look while I am conscious of his warm hand on my bare skin.

A smile plays at the corners
of his mouth as he holds out his free hand to Blake, palm up. The bottle of
tequila is dropped in his hand as Cole looks up at me, his eyes now glinting
challengingly. “Open.”

It looks like I'm in for more
games tonight. He certainly keeps things interesting but I'm also not the type
who likes to be told what to do. I decide I need to pick and choose my battles
with Cole's naturally commanding nature, and this wasn't really a reason to
challenge him. I am looking forward to feeling the buzz from the alcohol so I
meet his gaze and open my mouth. He pours more than what would be a shot,
making me swallow much more of the burning liquid than I had initially
intended. Once he pulls the bottle back, I quickly wipe a few drops off my chin
and fight the urge to cough while my eyes water. Cole chuckles lowly and then
takes a long drink before handing the bottle back to Blake.

My attention shifts to Paige,
and I note that she already looks drunk and is whispering in Blake's ear and
giggling, her hands running over his chest. As my eyes shift to wander the
room, I quickly realize this is not like the frat party. There is loud music,
but no one is dancing. People are mingling, drinking, and doing drugs. From
where I sit, I can see into the kitchen and there is a game of poker in process
at the kitchen table.

Cole gains my attention by
wrapping his arms around me and pulling me down for a kiss. I've never been a
fan of watching people put on PDA's, but at the moment I don't care that I am
one of them. I'm here to have fun after all, so I welcome his kiss.

Throughout the evening, we
end up moving around the house. We find ourselves in the kitchen at one point,
grabbing more alcohol and a few times I watch Cole deal drugs whenever someone
would come up with cash. He never approached the subject with me, so I am
assuming he figures Paige would have told me by now. Even though I'm drunk, I
watch Cole closely as he works. He's definitely all business and almost
detached at times. At one point I was a little irritated when a cute girl came
up to him and tried to flirt while purchasing acid. He didn't even crack a
smile at her, which made me feel better. People also kept coming up and asking
Cole where Ethan was. Cole just promised them he'd be by later so I was
assuming Ethan was the older brother.

The room begins to spin and
before I know it, Cole has me up in his room. I barely catch a glimpse of blue
walls before he gently pushes me backwards, making me fall back on his bed as
giggles escape me.

I'm a happy drunk. Who would
have guessed?

Cole follows me down onto the
bed and settles on his side next to me, his head propped up on a palm as he
gazes down at me from where I lay. “Up for more fun?”

I try hard to pull my
thoughts together and it's a bit of a struggle. “Sex?”

“Obviously. But I was
referring to this first,” he says, pulling a plastic packet out of his pocket.
He slides out a small pill and holds it up. “Open.”

“What is it?” I ask as I
squint, trying to focus on it.

“Ecstasy. You'll love it.”

I lick my dry lips uneasily.
“I don't think so.”

“Why not? I'll take good care
of you,” he promises, gently brushing some hair off of my cheek.

“My brother would kill me.”

“Your brother? Why would you
care what he thinks?”

“He's a cop.”

“Your brother is a cop?” Cole
asks slowly, his eyes searching mine intently now.

“
Mmhmm
.
He's not your biggest fan.” Can someone put a muzzle on me? Words are flowing
out of my mouth before I can pull them back.

“Wait, was that your
brother
last night?”

“Wasn't it obvious? He's too
young to be my dad. I just moved in with him.”

Even in my drunken state, I
can see that he looks absolutely fascinated by what I’m over sharing. “And your
parents?”

“Dead,” I say flatly. “Are
you going to quiz me all night?”

“No. Open,” he says softly.

“I said no.”

“
Blayre
,
you're way too uptight. Loosen up a little.”

“Cole...”

“What are you so worried
about?”

“Why are you being so pushy?”
I counter back.

“You think I'm being pushy?”

“Didn't I just say that?”

He sighs and slips the pill
back in the packet. “Even drunk you're difficult.”

“I aim to please.”

Cole chokes back a laugh.
“Let's put that smart mouth to better use,” he says as he leans over and kisses
me.

All my thoughts disintegrate
into nothing as his lips move against mine, his tongue becoming quite the
distraction. My hands wander over his broad shoulders before sinking into his
hair. His hands explore my body as his mouth devours mine. I've never let a guy
touch me before so when his hand caresses my bare stomach and then slips
upwards, I feel myself hesitating. Do I really want to go this far on the
second date? Cole's hand slips under my bra and his thumb brushes my nipple,
making me gasp and squirm.

Too late now.

I'm lost in the feel of his
touch and I love the sensations he's pulling from me. I'm enjoying myself in
his arms when his warm hand leaves my breast and slides down to the waistband
of my skirt and begins to slip underneath. My entire body tenses because this
is now going way too far and I need to put a stop to it. Number one, I'm not
going to sleep with him and number two, I don't want him to find my scars. I'm
not ready for anyone to know my secret.