Skin of the Night: Book One of The Night series

by Claire D. Bennett

  No words were required. Simply the look in his eyes was enough of a statement. He was happy, and I was the reason.

  Holding my gaze captive, he leaned away and raised his hand to his mouth. Then, he sucked on each of the fingers that had been inside of me, savouring the taste of his masterful creation. My mouth dropped open while intense heat restored in my cheeks. God, he was erotic.

  Seeing my expression, his lips curved into a ravenous grin. “What an appetiser, Cara.”

  Lost for words, I merely looked at him. Following a chuckle, he folded his hand around mine and entwined our fingers. Moving next to my ear, he said, “About time we leave this place, don’t you think?”

  I nodded.

  He leaned away to scour the crowd. When he looked back, he said, “I’ve got to find Andy first, though.”

  “Mm.”

  23

  SWEET DREAMS

  While searching for Andy, I had started to sober up somewhat, after which the gravity of what I had done with William slowly began to dawn on me. The ensuing remorse was something I’d tried to drown in three shots of tequila, much to William’s distaste. We’d argued like an old married couple when I had placed the order, and his eyes had been spitting fire when I’d necked them.

  “You’re going to black out, Cara,” he had berated.

  “That’s the point,” I’d fired back. At that point, he had looked rather hurt, which had upset me, too. It was evident that he had understood my intention as well as the reason behind it, and – justifiably so – he resented me for it. However, I wasn’t ready to face up to what I had done. It had been a drunken mistake, and now that some of my lust had receded, I regretted it intensely.

  Consequently, I was drunk out of my senses when we located Andy among a group of women. Previously, I’d thought William was the womaniser between the two, but I’d been misguided. Andy was apparently the more promiscuous man, although I doubted he’d been with anyone following his trouble with Chloe. Either way, he was clearly out of touch with himself in the wake of it, and I pitied him for it. Some part of me could also empathise to a certain extent. In the end, I could hardly recognise myself when it came to the management of my attraction to William.

  Either way, it was a good thing William persisted in supervising him, because he desperately needed someone to guide him away from trouble.

  “Andy!” William shouted over, and his body trembled against mine. He was seething, I could tell, but I wasn’t the cause at this moment – at least not chiefly. “Put your dick away and get the hell over here!” he continued and tightened his embrace of me.

  Like a scared dog, Andy walked over with his tail between his legs. Pouting, he avoided William’s glare and instead looked at me.

  “Christ, is she alright?” he queried once he reached us.

  “She’s completely off her face,” William groused and jerked me towards him since I nearly collapsed. “I need to bring her home, but I’m not leaving you here, you absolute knobhead. I leave you alone for two minutes, and this is what happens. Have you got no self-restraint? If Chloe had seen this…”

  “Chloe, Chloe, Chloe. I swear, sometimes, you’d think you were her boyfriend,” Andy muttered.

  William inhaled deeply. “Well, sometimes, I think she’d be better off with a man like me,” he retorted mercilessly.

  “Careful, Will,” Andy hissed and gave him a vicious glare.

  “Sorry. Tough love,” William replied and sighed long and loud.

  My stomach turned, its contents rising to my throat. It demanded all my remaining strength to swallow it back down.

  “Will,” I moaned. “I feel sick.”

  “You – oh, for fuck’s sake, Cara. What am I supposed to do with you? You never listen.”

  “That’s why you fancy her,” Andy twitted and tucked his hands into his pockets.

  Digging into his own, William withdrew his ticket for the cloakroom and handed it to Andy. “Fetch our things. I’ll meet you outside.”

  By the time William managed to get me into a taxi, I had nearly passed out. So, when he slid in next to me, I rested my head on his shoulder and surrendered to the darkness.

  I woke not much later to the sound of Jason’s voice. “Bloody hell, is she alright?”

  “She’s completely off her face. I tried to steer her away from those last three shots of tequila, but you know how she is,” William’s voice replied with exasperation.

  “Still, I seldom see her this plastered,” Jason murmured.

  Batting my lashes apart, I saw a white ceiling above William’s jaw and realised he was carrying me across his chest. Where were we?

  This angle made me feel sick again. It looked like the ceiling was spinning. I wouldn’t be able to hold it down for much longer. “Will,” I whimpered. “Toilet.”

  “Ah, fuck me,” he moaned and turned towards it.

  The second he released me onto the floor, I lifted the lid of the toilet and vomited.

  “Cara,” he groaned as he gathered my hair to hold it for me, “you’re a bloody idiot.”

  I couldn’t reply. I retched and retched until nothing came out. Tears welled in my eyes from vomiting so hard. Once I finished, I leaned away, exhausted, and rested my head against the cold glass of the shower.

  “I can’t believe she allowed herself to get that drunk in front of her boss,” Jason muttered from the doorway. “You might be my brother, but for heaven’s sake.”

  “We’ve hardly been together all night,” William defended me. “She was meant to go out with just Ellie, but Andy and I asked to come along. We lost each other in the club. Suppose she didn’t expect to find me again.”

  He was sort of lying, but I appreciated it, nevertheless. I was certain I’d wake up to proper angst tomorrow.

  “You asked to come along? Wearing that?” I heard Jason respond, sounding flummoxed. “And since when do you go clubbing?”

  “Jason, that’s enough,” William growled, sounding like a parental figure.

  “Are you drunk as well?”

  “A bit.”

  “Well, you can sleep here if you’re too tired to go home. I’m sorry you had to babysit Cara, man. I’m embarrassed on her behalf.”

  “It’s alright. It’s not the first time I’ve had to babysit a drunk idiot,” William said and shot him a look. “But yeah, I’ll sleep over.”

  “Can I get you anything?” Jason murmured and rubbed the back of his head.

  “I think Cara could use some water. She’s completely emptied her stomach. While you’re at it, bring some for me as well.”

  “On it.” Jason turned to depart.

  Sighing, William reached over to flush the toilet after me. Upon his retreat, his hand skimmed my cheek to brush my hair away. “Come on, darling,” he soothed. “You need to brush your teeth.” He grabbed my arms to lift me. Tearless sobs escaped me while I grimaced in protest. Although I felt better after puking, all I wanted was my bed. Nevertheless, he managed to make me stand, although his arm remained firmly wrapped around my waist.

  “William, I’m sorry,” I said, but I slurred the words and struggled to keep a steady gaze on him in the mirror. “You deserve better.”

  Pain clouded his features before he averted his eyes. “We’ll talk in the morning. Which one’s yours?” he inquired, indicating the two toothbrushes.

  “Green,” I mumbled just before Jason returned to toss William a bottle of water. Afterwards, he came towards me and undid the cap of another.

  “Cara,” he sighed. “This isn’t like you. You’re worrying me.”

  “Well, I’ve had a rough week,” I mumbled and wrapped my feeble hand around the bottle.

  “Clearly.” Leaning forward, he planted a firm kiss on my forehead while he rubbed my arms. “I’ll make you a full English for breakfast tomorrow, yeah?”


  “I love you,” I cooed and attacked him with a hug.

  He chuckled and pressed me against him. “Love you too, idiot.” He didn’t release me as he turned towards his brother. “Poker night still on tomorrow?” he queried while I raised my bottle to my lips.

  “Of course,” William replied after a mouthful from his own. “Have you got a spare toothbrush around?”

  “Yeah. Bottom left drawer.”

  After Jason and William had forced me to brush my teeth and rinse my mouth with Listerine Total Care to get rid of my bad breath, they guided me to my bedroom where I changed into my pink silk nightie. While Jason tucked me into bed, William leaned against the doorpost with a brooding expression on his face.

  When my eyes closed, Jason said, “She’s going to pass out any moment now. You know where my bedroom is.”

  “You’re sleeping here again? With her?” William asked, and his voice lacked any trace of emotion.

  “Yeah.”

  “Jason, is there something you haven’t told me?”

  “What?”

  “Why do you always insist on sleeping with her?”

  Baffled, Jason replied, “We do it all the time.”

  “But you haven’t had sex with her, right?”

  “What the fuck? What the hell have you been drinking tonight, Will?” Jason questioned, astounded.

  “Fair question,” Will argued.

  “No, of course I haven’t.”

  “Ever wanted to?”

  “Get out, Will.” I could hear that Jason was losing his patience. I’d called it. If there was one person in this world whom I had thought capable of stirring Jason’s temper, it was William, and I was currently hearing it live.

  “Don’t,” William demanded.

  “Don’t what?” Jason snapped.

  “Don’t fuck her. I have.”

  Complete silence filled the room for seconds that felt like hours. I’d been close to drifting off, but now I was only pretending to be asleep. Although I was drunk, I wasn’t so drunk that this didn’t send my heart racing in panic, and vomiting had made me feel much soberer.

  When Jason finally found his voice, it was low and cold. “Are you taking the piss?”

  “No,” William replied. “It was a happy accident at first, but I’ve every intention of doing it again, so I thought you should know.” His voice was devoid of emotion. He might as well have been reading a sheet of instructions.

  “What the hell, Will? That’s my fucking flatmate! She also happens to be my best friend!”

  “I’m aware. I would say I’m sorry, but I’m not.”

  Jason whirled around in my bed to grab my shoulders, and he shook them so hard that I’d have been an idiot to pretend I was asleep. “Cara! Tell me he’s joking!”

  “He’s joking,” I said.

  “Are you lying?”

  “Yes,” I squeaked.

  He was quick to release me. “What the actual fuck, Cara? And you haven’t told me?” He was fuming. “Did you even plan to?”

  Tears welled in my eyes. I was far too drunk to handle this right now. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to have sex with him.” My voice was light and feeble and broke at several points. “I wasn’t aware he was your brother at the time. Had I known, I would never have done it.”

  “For fuck’s sake, you guys. This is honestly unbelievable.” Jason groaned and dropped his head between his hands while he tried to comprehend the truth.

  “Jason, I’m really sorry.” My tears ran over. “I didn’t want to tell you because it was an accident, and it had only happened once. I thought it’d be best to just leave it at that, especially since it isn’t going to happen again.”

  “Isn’t it?” William chimed in and tilted his head. “That wasn’t my impression when I fingered you at the club earlier.”

  Colour drained from my face. It felt like he had stabbed me straight through the chest, even though he hadn’t told a single lie. However, he had broken his promise, and the betrayal was considerable. I couldn’t recall having seen Jason so beside himself before.

  Blatantly despairing, Jason shook his head. “I honestly can’t believe this has happened,” he murmured to himself, before he turned to glower at his brother. “You really are an absolute prick, Will.”

  “Really?” William countered aloofly. “And how is that, exactly? It’s not like my intention here is to make your life any harder. I can’t help that she’s… Well, that she’s her.” He gestured towards my figure in the bed. “It’s not like I want to feel this way about her. I mean, she’s a right pain in the arse sometimes – even most of the time. Honestly.”

  “Well—” my tone was saturated with sarcasm—“at least we’ve got that in common. You swore you wouldn’t tell, Will! You could at least have warned me before you decided to drop the damned bomb! The fuck’s wrong with you?”

  Jason gaped at me. “You made him promise not to tell?”

  “I’ve wanted to tell you for months, Jase,” William declared, and resentment poured from his eyes when he glanced at me. “Cara begged me not to.”

  “Because I was scared of how you would react!” I defended myself while looking at Jason. “Jason, I was scared you’d be angry with me – that you’d stop being friends with me!” My tears formed relentless rivers along my cheeks.

  Struggling to comprehend the situation, Jason queried, “Does Dad know about this?”

  William responded by raising a brow at him. The entire time, he’d remained wholly composed. It was astounding how he managed that. “Of course he doesn’t, and I wouldn’t tell him either if I were you.”

  “When?” Jason continued.

  Perplexed, William frowned. “When what?”

  “When did it happen?”

  After a shrug, William rubbed the back of his head. “April.”

  Jason gasped. “April!”

  “Yeah. She was at Disrepute, with Olivia. Remember I told you I’d met a girl named Sandra there one evening?”

  Jason was quiet for several seconds, seemingly struck by shock. “Oh, my God,” he eventually gasped. “Sandra? That girl you just wouldn’t shut up about? That was Cara?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Jesus Christ,” he whispered to himself. “It all makes sense. It was Cara you saw that time, wasn’t it? With Aaron?”

  “Unfortunately,” William confirmed through grinding teeth and gave me a scowl.

  I stilled on the bed at the awful memory.

  “Ah, shit. Fuck. I should never have recommended that bar to her. If I hadn’t, we could all have avoided this,” Jason thought aloud and ran his hands through his dirty blonde mane.

  “Jason, we’re brothers. It was only a matter of time before I’d meet her. You’d only be postponing the inevitable. We would have ended up fucking one way or another. Calm down.”

  “Calm down? You’re telling me to calm down when you’ve fucked and fingered my best friend behind my back, and she turns out to be the girl you’ve been hung up on for months? And you!” He turned towards me, and the anger in his eyes made me sob. “You’ve lied to me for months!”

  “I didn’t lie,” I said, but my voice broke again. “I omitted, Jason.”

  “The result is the same,” he seethed. “Cara, I am so disappointed in you right now.”

  “Jason, please.” I reached for him, but he writhed away from my touch. “I didn’t know what to do,” I explained desperately. “I was scared you’d pick him.”

  “I don’t want to hear it. I need to think. You’ve had some fucking cheek, probing me about ‘Sandra’ this entire time.”

  “Has she?” William queried, surprised.

  Jason ignored him. “How could you do something like that, Cara? How could you play me for a fool like that?”

  I sobbed again. “Jason, I’m so so
rry. I was only trying to find out what was going on. I never meant to hurt him. I really didn’t. And I was scared to tell you because I didn’t want to put you in a situation where you’d have to choose between us. I thought it would be best if Will and I kept it strictly between us and sorted it out like adults.” I glared at William upon my last statement.

  He rolled his eyes and raised his bottle of water to his mouth. After an extended mouthful, he swallowed and exhaled loudly. Was he trying to be even more agitating than he normally was?

  “Adults,” he echoed mockingly. “Spare me, Cara. You can’t even face your feelings. You’re the immature party between us.”

  Furious, I retorted, “Says the man who devises a scheme to try and make me jealous!”

  He winced.

  “What?” Jason was stunned. “What’s she on about, Will?”

  “Nothing,” he murmured and looked away. “Silly mistake is all.”

  “Your brother made me believe he fucked Francesca in his office on purpose,” I revealed without a hint of mercy.

  Jason’s jaw looked about to unhook. “No fucking way. Will, is that true?”

  “I’d rather not talk about it. It was an error in judgment on my part.”

  “You guys…” Jason shook his head to himself, appalled. “You need to clean up your shit. This isn’t it. What the hell are you doing to each other?”

  “Toxic things,” William murmured. “Lots of them.”

  “It needs to end,” Jason decreed.

  “I agree,” I uttered with a sniff.

  William blew his cheeks out and stared blankly at the floor.

  Meanwhile, Jason turned towards me again, and after staring at me for some time, his eyes finally softened. “What about Aaron, Cara? Is he aware of any of this?”

  I wiped my cheeks as I shook my head. “No. Really, Jason, what happened tonight between Will and me wasn’t supposed to happen. I was just very drunk, and—”

  “I’ll stop you right there,” William snapped at me, and his eyes glowed with anger. “Don’t you dare try to blame that on your intake. We both know it was bound to happen sooner or later, Cara, and you’re lying if you say anything else. I did not take advantage of you. Hell, you were the one initiating everything. If anyone took advantage of someone here, it was you who took advantage of me. I might not be as plastered as you are right now, but I haven’t exactly been sober tonight, either.”