RECKLESS (Nash's Story) (RECKLESS series Book 2)

by Ella Col

  “Don’t mention it.”

  I slide from the chair and hold my hand out in front of Caydon. “I’m glad we talked.” I try not sound like I’m growing a vagina.

  Caydon takes my hand and shakes it. “Don’t be a stranger, dude.”

  “Never.” I let go of Caydon’s hand and walk toward the front door. I peek over my shoulder quickly. It’s nice that were both wearing the same smile. Fuck you, Hannah.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Six Months Later…

  What I find funny is the fallacy that engagement parties are a good place to pick up women. I have never found this to be the case. Usually, most women come with dates. My chances of getting laid tonight are slim to none, which makes my situation more depressing than it was before.

  Hannah’s engagement party is an excuse to get drunk on someone else’s tab. And I plan on doing that…getting bombed. I hope I get so loaded that I say something inappropriate in front of Hannah’s fiancé. That will make the happy couple think twice about inviting me to their sham of a wedding.

  Graham, Hannah’s fiancé, has kept a tight grip on Hannah’s waist and has eyed me suspiciously all night long. It’s fucking comical. He’s trying to figure out the dynamics of it all. Finally, he grows a pair of balls and approaches me.

  “Having a good time?” Graham asks.

  “I guess,” I say dryly.

  “I’m still trying to figure out if I’m having a good time,” he laughs.

  The conversation is tight and uncomfortable. “I guess all of this is prepping you for the big show…the ultimate expression of committed love.” Committed love…my ass.

  “I’m just looking forward to exchanging vows with the woman I love. Hannah and I can’t wait to express our promises in front of God for our future. After that…it’s just limitless opportunities.”

  If you go through with marrying Hannah, it will be a future of limitless STDs. You poor sucker.

  Graham is a geeky, modest, conscientious and somewhat shy person. His body language is awkward. He’s a ‘nice’ guy. His light brown hair sticks out all over the place, not because it’s stylish, but because it just falls that way. He can’t help but stare at my physique with his bulging blue eyes. Graham is the total opposite of me.

  “So, you’re into the theatrics of it all?” I ask.

  “Theatrics?”

  “Everyone knows that Hannah loves a good show. I’m sure her wedding will be no different.” Hannah is all about having the attention on her and only her.

  The scene for the engagement party is just as elegant as a wedding might be. The party is majestically centered on the lake water. The century-old trees are well lit with tiny lights. Hell, even the swimming pool has floating flowers in it.

  “It’s our wedding. And I assure you, it’s all sincere,” he defends his slut of a bride. “How about you? Are you looking forward to it?”

  I don’t believe in public executions.

  “The beer is free, and you can bang the bridesmaids. What’s not to look forward to?” I laugh and take a long swig of my beer. His mouth hangs open.

  “There you are!” Hannah squeals. She wraps her arm around Graham’s waist. Her eyes dart from him to me. I don’t even acknowledge her presence.

  “I see you’ve met Nash.” Hannah gives her future husband a quick peck on the cheek. It’s dry and unfeeling.

  “Yes…yes. We were just talking about the wedding.” Graham smiles down at Hannah like she is the only girl living on this planet.

  “Oh?” She raises her eyebrow. “What could you have possibly have talked about? The cake? The dress? The color scheme?” she giggles. Her laugh makes me sick.

  “I’m not even sure what your color scheme is.” Graham is sucked into the oozy-schmooze flirting.

  “I know what it is.” I can’t resist. Even if I wanted to hold back, I couldn’t.

  “How do you know when I don’t?” Graham asks, confused as ever.

  “It’s Hannah’s favorite color. Puke pink. Just like the color of her bedroom.” I take another long swig of my beer and wink at Hannah.

  “Nash,” she whispers. Her eyes are wide.

  “How does he know the color of your bedroom?” Graham questions her.

  I don’t need to see what happens next. I’m sure Hannah has a million lies that she can spew to Graham. She is his problem now. Instead, I decide to clear my head and take a walk around the lake.

  ***

  I love the lake. I’ve done everything at the lake. Swim. Fish. Canoe. Kayak. Sleep. Fuck. You name it—I’ve done it here.

  Everything about this damn lake is special. It’s a shame Hannah’s little engagement party is tainting the love I have for this place.

  Walking along the shoreline has calmed me down a bit. I pick a pebble up and throw the stone over the flat surface of the water. It bounces off the surface a few times, glimmering in the moonlight before it sinks.

  When I was a kid, skipping stones across the lake was serious competition. Spin, speed, shape, and angle were crucial factors, with angle being the most important. Tonight, throwing the stone is just me...reminiscing about the good old days.

  “That’s really sad.”

  What I first notice about her is the way her hair blends in with the night. The strands fall a little below her shoulders. The darkness of her hair blends with the cocoa color of her tanned skin. She is lying on her back with her bare legs crossed at her ankles. Her elbows prop up the top portion of her body. By accident, my eyes fall to her pushed up cleavage bulging from her bikini top.

  “What’s sad?” I try not to drool. I check my bottom lip just in case I’ve failed.

  “Has anyone ever taught you how to skip stones? That throw was really sad.” She cocks her head to the side. Her eyes move from the bottom of my bare feet to my opened dress shirt.

  When I left the party, I ditched the tie and dress shoes. I rolled my pant legs up so I could dip my feet in the water. Since it is such a nice night, I unbuttoned my dress shirt and allowed the light breeze hit my chest.

  “I wasn’t trying.” I’ve got mad skills skipping stones. There is no need to defend myself.

  I move closer to her wanting to see the color of her eyes. She doesn’t move. However, she does adjust her towel making sure her bottom half is covered.

  “Good to know.” Her tease of a smile curled.

  I’ve never seen her before. I’ve come to the conclusion that she must be a tourist. It’s that time of year. New meat comes and goes while their families rent cottages on the lake.

  “Are you visiting?”

  Squinting from the glare of the moonlight, she smirks as if she knows something that I don’t. “Sort of.”

  Okayyy.

  “How about you?” she asks.

  “Nah.” I point up to the grassy hill. The lights from Hannah’s party glow from afar. “I’m ditching a party.”

  She pats the sand beside her. “Sit down.”

  “Alright.” I’ve got nothing better to do. I plop down next her leaving only a few inches between us. “I’m Nash.”

  “Jamie.” She digs into her purse pulling out a lighter and a plastic bag with a cigarette type of object.

  Once Jamie lights it, I can smell the weed immediately. I watch her as she takes the first couple of hits. After a few takes, she offers the joint between her forefinger and her thumb to me.

  “I’m good.” I put my hand up.

  “You don’t smoke?”

  “Can’t.”

  “Why?”

  “I have a boxing competition in a few months. No drugs allowed.”

  “Bummer.”

  Jamie continues to get high as I sit silently enjoying the sounds of the small waves across the lake.

  “Are you going to tell me where you’re visiting from?”

  “In town.” She laughs.

  “Are you crashing? You know it’s a private lake. Right?” Yeah…I’m a dork. Clearly, she doesn’t give a shit about rules
being that she is openly smoking a joint.

  “Relax, Nash.” Jamie uses her free hand to clasp onto a bottle next to her. Taking a swig, she hands the bottle to me.

  “Champagne?” I take the bottle from her hand and stare at it.

  “You can still drink. Right?” I don’t know why, but I feel like she is judging me with her stare.

  I take a huge gulp of the bubbly substance. “Let me guess…courtesy of the party up the hill?”

  Jamie winks at me. “Absolutely.”

  “Are you crashing the party by yourself?” I assume she had company in breaking the rules.

  “What makes you think that I’m crashing?” With Jamie staring directly at me, I get a good look at her eyes. They’re a dark green. I’ve never seen anything like it.

  “You said…” I begin.

  “No…you said. You assume I am crashing because I told you I was from in town.” I don’t know what kind of tricks Jamie is playing but goddamn she is driving me insane.

  “This is getting old real quick,” I say.

  “No one asked you to stay. If you don’t want to hang out, I’m fine with that.”

  What is her deal? Why do I want to what her deal is? I give her bottle back to her. “I guess I’m kind of hoping that you are an intruder. It makes this conversation more interesting,” I say.

  A naughty smile appears on her exotic face. “Okay. I’ll play along.”

  I lick my lips with anticipation. This is going to be fun. “Who are you?”

  “I’m a jilted stripper slash whore. The future groom uses my services when he’s on business trips.” Jamie is playing her role well. The pitch of her voice vibrates from high to low as she spins her story. “I found out that he was getting married. He broke my heart so I decided to crash the party. I was hoping that he would realize the error of his ways and leave his bride for me.”

  “That’s the saddest story I have ever heard. The groom is a fucking geek.”

  But I have to give credit where credit is due. Nice story…for an amateur. It’s my turn. “I’m the sexy neighbor with the hot body who lives across the street from the bride. For five years, I’ve been sneaking into her window to fuck her senseless and fulfill all of her sexual fantasies.” It’s a true story. Jamie won’t know if it is truth or bullshit.

  Jamie throws her hand over her mouth. I can hear her suck in her breath. “Oh my god. You’re Kevin.”

  What. The. Fuck.

  “How do you know me?”

  “Hannah told me everything about you.”

  “Hannah?” I’m confused. “I thought you knew the groom…not the bride?”

  “Mine was just a story. I was playing along.” Jamie is laughing. “You told a true story!”

  “How do you know Hannah?” I press wanting to everything I can about Jamie.

  Jamie fidgets with the towel covering her bottom half. The goosebumps are multiplying on her body. I take my shirt off revealing my bare chest. I throw the garment to her, urging her to put it on. “Take it. It’s cold.”

  Her arms slip into the sleeves of my dress shirt. She wraps the edges across her chest covering her breasts. Suddenly, I feel remorse for giving her the damn shirt. I’m a sick bastard.

  “For all intents and purposes, she is my cousin,” Jamie admits. However, she doesn’t seem to be too proud of the fact.

  “Cousin?” Hannah never mentioned she had a cousin. And Jamie and Hannah look nothing alike. To be honest, Jamie looks more like Hannah’s mom than Hannah does. Jamie has olive skin coloring and dark features. Hannah is a typical blond-haired blue-eyed princess with peaches and cream skin. “You don’t even look like you could be related.”

  “Technically…we’re not.”

  “Huh?”

  “I don’t know if I should tell you.”

  I hate when people do that. We both know that Jamie wants to tell me what’s on her mind. “Spill it.”

  “Hannah is her dad’s daughter. My mom and Hannah’s dad’s wife are sisters. Hannah’s real mom was kicked to the curb. Hannah’s dad had an affair with her and kept Hannah. My aunt couldn’t have children, so she accepted Hannah with open arms and raised her as her own.” Jamie is blowing my mind.

  “No shit. For real?”

  “Why would I lie?”

  “She never told me.”

  “She would never tell anyone. Hannah would have to admit that she’s not fucking perfect.” Jamie lets the words ooze from her pretty, little mouth.

  “I take it that you’re not a fan of Hannah’s,” I snicker.

  “Is anyone?” Jamie asks.

  Nope. Hannah never had a true friend except for me. Sure, she had followers. But she never had anyone who she could be herself around. It’s kind of sad.

  “But you’re family.” That has to mean something.

  “Hannah is a bitch. She’s pure evil.” Jamie lies on her side.

  The curves on Jamie’s body are fucking sinful. It takes everything in my soul not to reach out and trace the outline of her masterpiece of a body with the tip of my finger.

  My shirt drapes open allowing her full breast to fall forward. It wants to burst from the confinement of her bikini top so I can suck it.

  “I don’t disagree,” I choke. “So, why did you come to the party if you hate her so much?”

  “I should ask you the same question.” Her retort is thoughtful.

  “My dad has a business relationship with Hannah’s dad. My presence is expected.”

  I wouldn’t have come if I didn’t still live under my dad’s roof. It won’t be long before I move into my shitty, puny apartment in town. I’m exactly one week away from moving into my studio apartment above the gym. I’m exactly one week away from becoming totally independent from my father. I’ve never been so fucking proud of myself.

  I made the decision to move out when my dad began putting pressure on me to give up boxing. I don’t blame him for asking. Mark was hurt badly after getting jumped from one of his competition opponents. He was hospitalized for a long time. It was a really hard time for Reece, Caydon, and me. Caydon and Reece actually broke up for a while. All is well now, but it was touch and go there for a while.

  With a lot of help from all of us, Mark is getting better. But he’s not well enough to return to his classes. Therefore, I took up the slack at the gym. And I love it.

  I’ve been able to sock away money for the competition, as well as securing my own piece of shit place in the part of town my dad would never approve of.

  “Do you always do what Daddy tells you to do?” Jamie is a smartass. It’s frustrating, yet sexy as hell.

  Touché.

  “What’s your story?” I want to know everything about her. Where’s she’s from. Where she’s going.

  “I’m doing Hannah a favor. Believe it or not, I’m her maid of honor. Every friend she’s asked to be in the wedding said no.” Jamie flips her long, luscious dark hair over her shoulder. “I may not like her. But I’m not a heartless bitch.”

  “She would never do the same for you.” Hannah wouldn’t. She doesn’t have a kind bone in her body. Life for Hannah is about getting what she wants. “And what’s to say she won’t find someone who will be in the wedding at the last minute. Then, you are out of a job.”

  “One can only hope,” Jamie sighs. Her smile curls around her white teeth. Jamie bites her lip and looks up at me. “You’re cute. I can see why Hannah liked you so much.”

  I’ve been told fifty million times how attractive I am by women. I’m used to it. It’s a compliment that I’ve always taken for granted. However, when Jamie tells me I’m cute, it makes me feel good.

  “Thanks.” It’s all I can say. Nice.

  “I am planning on getting out of here soon. Want to take me home?” Jamie asks.

  “Yes,” I answer too quickly.

  Together, Jamie and I walk silently back to the party. Never did I think of the fact that I’m shirtless and she is wearing my shirt with only a bikini under it
. Guests of the party stare at us with their mouths gaping open. My arm instinctually wraps around Jamie ushering her to my car.

  Before we make it to my car, Hannah stops us. In a hushed voice, she chastises both Jamie and me.

  “How dare you,” Hannah’s voice quivers. “She’s my cousin, Nash.”

  Jamie rolls her eyes. “Calm down, princess. I took a swim in the lake. I was cold. Nash offered his shirt to me.”

  “Jamie, I know that you are getting back at me for what I’ve done. How many times do I have to apologize? But this is Nash. You can’t do this.” Hannah points at me with tears in her eyes. “You know what he means to me.”

  What the hell?

  “Save it, Hannah.” Jamie puts her hand up. “I’ve put up with your emotionally manipulative performances for way too long. And for a while, I fell for it, because it’s what you learned while growing up. But sadly, it’s worked all too well for you.” Jamie’s voice is deep and intense. “But the scariest kind of manipulator is the one who knows exactly what she is doing. You always know what you are doing. And you’re trying to do it right now.”

  “Jamie…” Hannah begins to say something.

  Jamie steps in front of Hannah. “I told you to save it.”

  Jamie hypnotizes me with her deep green eyes. “Nash, I’m tired. Please take me home.”

  “Sure.” I open the passenger door of my car. Jamie slides into the leather seats. She peers up at me. Her eyes plead with me to hurry. So, I do. I push pass Hannah and jump into the seat of my car.

  As I back out of the driveway, Hannah stands there with tears rolling down her face. I wince. I would love to say that I love seeing her like this. However, the nice part of me hates it.

  “Crocodile tears.” Jamie interrupts my thoughts.

  “Huh?”

  “Don’t fall for that shit. That girl will eat you up and then spit you out,” Jamie warns me as if I don’t already know that.

  “I’m not fucking stupid,” I say.

  “Oh no?” Jamie turns her shoulders so she is facing me. “Tell me how a guy like you has allowed a girl like Hannah to talk him into fucking her while she has a boyfriend.”