by Ashley Munoz
“Do you know the name?”
“I know what she’s talking about. It’s…” Decker’s body was suddenly next to mine, his hand grabbing for the remote. He smelled so good I wanted to groan.
One time I’d gone to some fancy cologne store with Juan, helping him look for something new. We sprayed all these little cards, trying to find the right scent for him. I ended up inhaling so much my nose hurt, but now, here smelling Decker, it felt like I’d finally found that perfect aroma, and I wanted to plaster my face to his neck and breathe him in.
Instead I pulled away from him, yelling, “No grabbing!”
“It’s just easier to find it than to try to tell you…you’re going to get irritated.” His strong, very defined arm was nearly across my folded legs, his eyes set in a stern manor, like I was being ridiculous.
I held the remote higher because pride is a fickle beast, one that kept me company more often than I cared to admit, but at least it was consistent and loyal.
“Seriously?”
“It’s my house—you can’t have the remote!” I shrieked as he reached up, but my resistance only made him more determined. Suddenly he launched himself toward me, covering my legs and half my body with his as his long arm reached up and snagged the prize.
“Ha!” He settled back into the couch, but this time he was in the space right next to me.
My heart was thundering in my chest like an eighth grader who’d just been touched by her crush. His body heat was so close it warmed up my feet, which were basically touching his hip now from how they were curled behind me.
He clicked over a few titles until he found what he was looking for, Taylor confirming the choice and setting her laptop aside as soon as he pressed play. I personally wasn’t a fan of horror movies as they usually made me want to pee my pants, but I was here as the awkward chaperone to these two, so…
I tugged my phone out, trying to ignore the music in the movie, the scary images, and the dreary overall vibe in the room. The lights had been dimmed at some point, probably by Taylor, who was sitting next to the switch on the wall. She was huddled under the covers in her chair, but knowing her, she would likely find a way to crawl into Decker’s lap at any moment.
Movement by my feet had me looking over my shoulder. Decker’s hand was in the bowl of chips, the glow of the television highlighting his corded arm. My eyes wandered up his body, taking in the way his jaw moved as he chewed, his eyes on the movie. A flutter erupted in my stomach as I watched him, taking in how good he looked sitting next to me with the lights out and the television on. I briefly considered what this would feel like if I were turned, my body curled into his, my hand in that bowl with his because lime chips were the best thing ever invented. Suddenly, I realized he was essentially eating them all. I gave my head a brief shake to clear away the images I should never have allowed to take root and went after him.
“Hey! Don’t eat them all!” I dove over his lap toward them, not caring at all that I was being awkward, or that it would likely look like we were flirting with each other. Then again, I acted this way with Juan whenever he was over. Taylor probably thought Decker was just another one of my buddies.
“Share!” Decker’s mouth was full as he pulled the bowl away from his chest, trying to block me.
“How can you eat that garbage?” Taylor glared from her spot in the recliner, eyeing us like we were deranged.
Decker froze, his face popping up, those eyebrows arched high on his forehead. He seemed like he wanted to say something, but instead he released the bowl and handed it over to me.
For some reason, the victory felt more like defeat. I liked flirting with Decker, having fun with him, fighting over something stupid like chips. I didn’t like the rogue emotions he kept stirring in me, and all because we’d had some chemistry when his face was between my legs. It was bullshit, just my desperate need to get laid.
So, I switched things up.
“Tay, can you swap me places? The light from the television is giving me a headache.”
“You should just go to bed—I know you hate horror movies. I can see your friend out when it’s over,” she offered sweetly, adjusting the blanket on her lap.
That was exactly what Decker wanted, so I stood and smiled at her, and when I looked at Decker, the expression on his face was odd. I couldn’t decipher it. This would let him get closer to her; this was his plan, and I knew my stepsister would be moving closer to him. Even if she didn’t like him, she’d probably try to sleep with him. I didn’t judge; she had a healthy and vibrant sex life, so I would just let them get to it. Still, something in me shriveled up and died just thinking about it.
“Night, Decker…I’ll see you around.”
His jaw tensed, those viridescent eyes locked on mine. He looked angry, like he’d just lost an all-in bet at a poker table or something…whatever. He was probably hoping I would stay and talk him up or try to get the two of them to hang out. He could do all that on his own.
I didn’t wait for him to respond as I walked down the hall, and just before I opened my door, I looked over my shoulder to see Taylor move from the chair and claim my spot on the couch.
Chapter Fifteen
I was running late for one of my classes, which wasn’t exactly new for me, but noticing the dark red-haired journalism student typing away in the newspaper class was. I must have walked past this room a thousand times, but I had never really looked inside…or if I had, I hadn’t seen her. I would have remembered. There was something about that wild hair and those green eyes that would have stopped me or made me walk in and ask her out.
The memory of what she had done two nights earlier, leaving me alone with her stepsister, sat with me wrong, like warm milk on a sunny day. I knew why she had done it, but still…there was something wrong about being with Taylor without Mallory present. I understood how messed up that was, especially because this entire situation was my fault and my creation…but that didn’t mean I liked it.
I stared at Mallory as she focused on her computer screen, and then I glanced around for any faculty that might be near.
“Psst,” I hissed, hanging halfway in through the doorway.
Mallory didn’t look up from her computer. A few other students did though, each of them giving me an odd look before looking back toward a small cubicle room. There was a shaggy-haired kid sitting inside, all glass windows, with his door open. He must have been the editor or something.
“Pssst. Mallory Shaw,” I whispered again, tossing a pencil at her. The object hit her screen and bounced off, rolling to the ground by her feet.
Her head swung in my direction, her face slack with confusion. I smiled at how unaware she seemed and how surprised she was.
Pinching her eyebrows together, she glanced back at the little cubicle room before glancing my way once more. I waved my hand, indicating I wanted her to follow me out of the classroom. She looked around once more before standing up and following me out.
The hall was mostly empty, most people in class or about to get there. Mallory must have been an overachiever if she was already sitting down at her desk and writing. I stopped a few feet away from the door and slouched against the wall.
“Hey.”
She looked down the hall and crossed her arms. “Hey.”
I smiled, liking her feistiness. “What are you doing?”
“What did it look like I was doing?” she volleyed back.
Such a smart mouth. If she had been my girl, I’d have grabbed her wrist and tugged her into a secluded alcove or bathroom then shoved my hand up her white shirt and pinched her nipple. Even now, I could see the outline of her blue bra under the two tanks she wore, one slightly bigger than the other. She had this little gold necklace that looked so fucking good against her tanned skin, and I wanted to run my fingers under it.
“It looked like you were entering launch codes to destroy the male population,” I joked back, feeling a smile creep up my face. I didn’t usually smile. It help
ed with the rumors circling about me, that I was an angry freak. I slightly wondered if Mallory had heard them yet. The way she snuck glances at my hand told me she had, but she was too nice to me for me to get a clear reading.
She rolled her eyes and let out a heavy sigh. “I was writing up a few notes for my article.”
“Ah, right.” Now I felt like a moron—of course that was what she was obviously doing in her journalism class.
“What are you doing?” With her arms still crossed, she leaned forward, bumping my arm with hers. The action took me by surprise, because my scarred hand was wrapped around my elbow, so when she bumped me, it took me right back to that night in Elias’s room when she gripped my wrist, her finger running down the length of my scar. It sent a rush of heat through my chest not having her recoil or act afraid of me.
“Going to class, but I know I owe you a meeting.” I ran my hand through my hair, wondering what in the hell I was about to offer and why. These meetings were a waste of time considering she wouldn’t be allowed to print a single word. Still, we had a deal, and it wasn’t like it was a hardship to be around her. There were a million little warning flags waving in my head, telling me not to do this, but I did anyway. “I usually head to my mom’s house once a week to help her out…I know you don’t know me very well, but it’s a bit of a drive, so it would give us a ton of time to talk.”
Her eyes went wide at my offer, so I quickly made sure I fixed it.
“Talk about the game…for your notes.” I gestured back toward her class for emphasis she didn’t need.
I was an idiot.
She ducked her head, tucking a few strands of unruly hair behind her ears. “Um…okay, yeah. When are you leaving?” Those green irises popped back up, searching my face. God, this would have been so much easier if she didn’t look like she did. She had all these little things about her that I wanted to ask her about. Like, why three piercings on her left ear but only one on her right? Did she have a belly button piercing? What did the circular tattoo under her ear mean? It looked cool as hell, but there were all these little pieces to the circle that made me look every time I saw her. I was way too fucking curious about this chick, which wasn’t good.
“Uh…after a short shift this afternoon at Geno’s, I’ll head home, grab a shower, and then head out. I can pick you up.” I was officially late for class now; Juan was probably shaking his head, thinking I’d ditched again.
“I can meet you in your apartment complex parking lot…I have to head over there anyway to grab something from my friend’s house.”
“Okay, then I’ll see you later.” I smiled at her, withholding the itch to run my fingers across her collarbone. It was so rigid against her necklace, and the way her hair brushed against that indented space was fucking ridiculous. How could something so simple be so hot?
“Okay, see you then.” She returned the smile and sauntered toward her class. Did she always swing her hips like that? Her ass looked amazing in those jeans, and that tank top…it rode up just enough to show off the slightest hint of skin along her back. I nearly groaned once she was inside, but instead I turned on my heel and ran toward my class.
Work took forever to finish. Maybe it was because I’d opted to help Geno with his new remodel of the back-bar area, but I couldn’t seem to get out of there fast enough. Sweaty and covered in drywall, I drove straight home to shower, rushing through every swipe of soap and scrub of my hair.
I kept telling myself to slow the fuck down, it didn’t matter…but for whatever reason, my body knew it was going to be seeing Mallory Shaw and didn’t want to waste any time in getting to her. Logically, it was the absolute most idiotic thing I could do, especially since I was trying to seduce her stepsister…but I couldn’t quite get my mind and my dick to come to terms on that entire situation.
I dressed quickly, grabbed my bag and laptop, and headed down to my truck. Mallory was already resting against the back taillight, her arms crossed over her chest and a pair of sunglasses perched on her face. I glanced around, trying to figure out where she’d come from. She had said she had a friend who lived here, but was it a male or a female? Was it the same friend’s house she’d left at two in the morning the week before?
“Hey.” I winced. Fuck the sun was bright today. I needed my sunglasses.
“Hey.” She gave me a small wave, leaning away from the truck. Her demeanor was more reserved than it had seemed that morning in the hall, like she’d had time to reconsider this whole thing and now might back out. My stomach felt like it was filling with lead at the idea of her telling me she couldn’t go.
“You been waiting long?” I gripped the strap of my backpack and opened the back door to my truck.
She angled her body to the side and swung her arm toward the apartments at our backs. “No, my friend lives over there. I took a nap, ate some lunch, and even cleaned his fridge out…” She ducked her head, laughing. “Sorry, when I say it like that, it does sound like I was waiting. I don’t often get spaces to myself since I live with Taylor, so when my friend is gone and I can hang by myself, I go a little crazy.”
I smiled at her, wishing I knew who this friend was, because my mind had locked on to the term his and now it wouldn’t let it go. I didn’t need to be territorial when it came to her. I didn’t need to do anything but let her set up more time between Taylor and me…
Still, I couldn’t help myself.
“Since you’re here…do you want to see my place, so if you ever have an issue and your friend isn’t home, you can knock on my door?” Real smooth, Duggar. Really fucking smooth.
I almost couldn’t face her from how mortified I felt, but thankfully she took mercy on me with a little smile and held her hand out. “Lead the way.”
So I did. I walked with her next to me, not really needing to show this girl my space but still wanting her to know where I lived in case she ever needed me.
We jogged up the stairs and stopped in front of the door.
“You’re in C block?” She laughed, the sound warm like a little ray of sunshine at my side. I wrinkled my eyebrows, bringing my key out.
“C block?”
“It’s an inside joke with my friend…” She shrugged then followed me inside. It was modest and humble, nothing fancy or very nice. Every dollar I earned, I shoved toward my mom’s house. I couldn’t even remember the last time I had purchased something for the apartment.
“My roommate Marcus is usually here too…but yeah, this is my place.” Why was this so fucking awkward? Why had I assumed she’d want to see where I lived?
She walked ahead of me, looking up and around, her pink lips drawing to the side in a sly smirk as she picked up a framed photo of me and my kid brother. “I like it.”
“It works for now.” I shrugged, feeling my neck grow hot. Having her eyes on my space was like opening my head and telling her she could stroll through. Don’t mind the secret doors all locked up; I’ll open those suckers right up for you.
“Yeah, I get that. I think about what it will be like when I have my own place, what it will look like…if it will feel different once I’m done with school and out there on my own.” Her wistful look made something in my chest ache.
I wanted to engage in this conversation with her, but it was hitting on far too many triggers for me. Once upon a time, I’d dreamt of a life like that, of what my future would hold…the excitement of the unknown. Now, I just worried about my mom and little brother making it.
“We should head out…it’s going to take a bit to get there.” I held the front door open for her.
She set the framed photo down and followed me out.
Chapter Sixteen
“Where are we headed?” Mallory asked from the passenger seat.
She smelled like almonds and cherries. It made me remember her smell from that night, and her taste…she had tasted just as good as she smelled.
Clearing my throat, I pulled away from the curb. “Pinehurst.”
I saw her
head turned in my peripheral vision. I imagined how gorgeous those red strands of her hair looked glowing in the sunlight pouring through the windshield.
“Your mom lives in Pinehurst?”
I glanced over, one hand on the wheel while I maneuvered us out of the complex.
“Yeah, my little brother lives there with her.”
“That’s like a three-hour drive or something, right?”
Had I forgotten to mention that it would be three hours there and three back? I had said it was a ways out of town, right? What did it mean that I didn’t feel the slightest bit bad about having her to myself for a six-hour period today?
“Yeah…” I cleared my throat, my hand hovering the blinker signal. “You probably don’t want to spend the entire day doing this.”
My hand pushed down, signaling that I needed to turn just as her soft voice piped up.
“No…it’s okay, actually. I don’t have anything planned today, just some homework and catching up with my friends, but that all can wait. I really need to get started on this piece, so I’ll go.”
I slowly let the air out of my chest as some kind of weird sensation filled its place.
Guilt.
Hope.
“Cool.” Like hell I’d tell her I was glad for the company, or that she was wasting her time with me. Once she hit submit on that article, it would be flagged, and the team’s lawyers would get involved.
“Okay, well I can ask these while we drive then work on my laptop while you help her out, I guess.” She sounded contemplative, like she was trying to figure out where she fit into this plan and why I had asked her along.
Of course, I didn’t actually know the answer to that. I shouldn’t have asked her, but for some reason I wanted to see her, and if this was the only way…well, then this was it.
“So tell me about the involvement of the other players. Walk me through when and how you knew about the card game based on your own experience on the team.”