I squeal at the contact and talk to the arse.
“Play fair cute arse.” I then pinch said cute arse, and the bearer of it flinches and tries to jump out of my reach. An impossible feat really, since I’m so close to it that I could probably bite it.
Hey, there’s an idea.
Before I even get the chance, I find my world the right way up again. My head spins, and I have to throw my hands out to steady myself on the car that has appeared out of nowhere.
When the spinning stops, I lock eyes with Rhys, and we double over laughing again.
“Jesus, they’re wasted.” Marcus’s voice draws our attention, and we try to stop laughing. Really, we do.
I look at Ayden, and I have to fight, very fucking hard, not to go to him and claim that kiss I’ve been dying for all night. Why is he even here?
“Get in the car.” Ayden doesn’t sound very impressed. I can’t for the life of me figure out why.
“Nah, we’re good. Thanks anyway.” I try to walk past him, but he steps in my path, and I roll my eyes.
“Dude, we were having fun. Why would we want to leave?” Rhys interjects in a slur.
“Too much fucking fun.” Ayden hisses, glaring at Rhys.
“Hey, back off. She’s my girl.” I say in a childish tone, and Ayden rolls his eyes this time.
“Come on, girls, get in the car.” Marcus urges.
“Hey, Marcus. Why don’t you make me?” Rhys challenges, and Marcus rises to it, grabbing her before she can get away and throwing her over his shoulder again. She doesn’t complain though, just slaps his arse as he carries her around the other side of the car and attempts to put her in the backseat. Somehow Rhys ends up with her legs wrapped around Marcus’s hips, and she drags him into the backseat on top of her.
“Christ, you two are a fucking handful,” Ayden complains, and I shrug, wearing a big shit-eating grin. “Get in the car, Lex.”
I shake my head.
“Really, you’re going to make me force you to get in?”
I shrug and grin, still feeling ridiculously mischievous. “You really think you can?”
He steps up to me so quickly that his scent engulfs me, and I sway, nearly moaning. Taking a step back for every step forward he takes, I end up flush against the car, and he leans in. I think he’s about to kiss me, but disappointment is a real bitch when I realise that he’s only reaching for the handle of the car door to pull it open.
“In.”
I poke my tongue out and slip in the front passenger seat, crossing my arms over my chest, pretending to sulk. I’m not really, though. I’m too fucking happy to care right now.
“You have to be kidding me!” I turn at Ayden’s voice and see that he’s standing outside the back door on the other side of the car, looking pissed. Rhys and Marcus are kissing and grinding their bodies against each other on the back seat.
I can’t help but laugh.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Apparently, the party moved to my house. Well, some of the party, thank fuck. I don’t want Uni students coming to my house, or Travis, for that matter. Having him mingle with my pack is a bad idea. Jesus, I need to stop calling them my pack!
“Lexi, come have another fireball shot!” Rhys sings from the kitchen bench where she has shots lined up.
“Ah… No thanks. I’ll pass.”
“Poo!” She pouts, trying to trick me into feeling bad.
I won’t fall for it, though. My head is spinning enough already, and my drunken state is making it extremely hard to fight off the urge to go over to the kitchen table where all the guys are sitting and straddle Ayden. Maybe even slip his shirt off and run my hands over his smooth, firm chest.
OMG Lexi! Stop!
“I’ll have a shot, Rhys. Stop pouting!” Bell approaches Rhys and takes not one but two shots, downing them in succession. Christ, she’s scary!
“Bitch you said A shot, not two!” Snatching the two glasses back off Bell, Rhys rinses them in the sink.
Shrugging, Bell moves back over to the table to peek at the cards Simon holds. “He’s totally bluffing.” The boys chuckle, and when Simon realises that she’s giving his hand away, he glares, but she ignores it.
“What would you know?” Simon hisses, holding his cards to his chest so she can’t see them anymore.
Colour me fucking pink; she actually smiles down at Simon. I never thought I’d see the day when Bell would actually smile. “I know you let everyone think you lose on purpose just so you can take your clothes off. But the real reason is that you’re actually really shit at poker.”
“Ha! Woodie, she doesn’t even know you, and she knows you’re a loser!” Shaun stirs, using the name I called Simon when he had the hard-on from watching porn in my living room.
I wait for Simon to lose his shit, but it never comes; he just shrugs and gives Bell a wink. I should probably warn him that she will eat him alive if he tries to follow through on whatever that look was he shot her, but it’ll be too funny to watch. So, I keep my mouth shut.
Shaun and Rhys fought over the stereo when we arrived earlier, so they quickly compromised and made a combined playlist. Now every second song is my kind of music. Fire up the night by New Medicine starts playing, and I can’t help myself. My hips start swaying, and the rest of my body follows.
“Hell yeah!” Rhys downs a shot and comes to dance with me on the other side of the kitchen island.
Tillie and Dale join us then, and I let myself go, feeling the lyrics and beat of the music, singing along and feeling so light and carefree. Hands land on my hips, and my eyes shoot open. I didn’t even know I had shut them. It’s okay, though. It’s only Rhys dancing in front of me. Is it bad that I’d wished it was Ayden? I wonder if he even dances?
“You know, Lex. Every girl should have at least one lesbian experience.” Rhys steps closer and starts dancing against my body. Well, not dancing really, more like grinding. I laugh. This chick is hilarious.
“I mean, Rhys is right about that, but don’t let her weasel her way into your bed, Lexi. There are plenty of girls out there that would be more than happy to warm your sheets.”
I frown at Tillie. I can’t tell if she is just offering advice or if there’s a hidden meaning, and she’s referring to herself offering to warm my sheet. O. K. Shit just got weird.
“I’ll be the only one warming her sheets.”
The deep voice works like a drug, and I melt, closing my eyes. That voice. His voice. It manages to turn me into molten lava and sends a shiver up my spine at the same time. Strong hands slide over the curve of my hips and wrap around my body from behind, effectively breaking Rhys’s grinding hold of me. The heat from a familiar chest against my back renders me useless, and I’m unable to stop myself from relaxing back into him. I can feel every place where our bodies meet. One strong hand on my hip, holding me to him, another hand doing the same across my tummy, his firm chest rising and falling at my back, his hot breath on my neck.
“Well, fuck me. I want Lexi to look like that when I touch her!”
My eyes shoot open at Rhys’s words, and I stiffen. Shit. I’ve let down my wall.
No!
“Girl, she ain’t ever gonna look like that for you. She doesn’t love you.” Bell unhelpfully adds.
As if sensing my change, Ayden slowly loosens his hold on me and steps back. I can’t help but turn to him, once again, the invisible magnet leading me to him instead of away.
“Sorry, Lex.” His smooth voice is laced with concern, as are those ocean eyes of his that I could happily drown in. “I stepped over the line again. I’m trying. I really am.”
The pain behind his words almost sees me cave, give in and throw myself at him. I don’t, though, but fuck my life, I really want to.
Glancing over my shoulder, I see that Rhys, Tillie and Dale are looking on expectantly. I love my new friends, but what happens between Ayden and me is private.
“It’s okay.” Keeping my voice low, I offer him a small sm
ile when I turn back, and he returns it with his own.
Cheers ring out, drawing our attention, and I look past Ayden to see Jared peeling off his shirt. Oh, good god! How is a girl supposed to have self-control around these guys?
“I’m totally down for poker,” Rhys growls in my ear as she passes by, strolling up to the table and seductively pokes her arse out as she takes a seat on Marcus’s lap.
Tillie jumps up and down, clapping, “Yay, strip poker. I’m in!”
And that’s how the rest of the night goes. Fucking strip poker. I don’t play, but I watch on, and I’m in tears from laughing so often that I eventually have to go and remove my makeup because black mascara starts running down my face.
I barely make it back out of my mum’s room when Rhys and Marcus somehow find their way in through the door while Rhys’s legs are wrapped around Marcus’s waist, and he peels her clothes off while their lips are locked.
That girl has no shame. And I love her!
The party moves to the lounge room, where everyone makes beds on the floor and couches before settling in to watch the movie, After. I hover in the doorway, not sure what to do. I’m tired and really just want to go to sleep, but there are too many bodies and too many hook-ups happening in front of me. Bell and Simon are snuggling up while Tillie is in deep conversation with Allister and Shaun, and Dale is not so subtly checking out Ayden, Jared and Garrett. While the last one is kind of funny, it hurts too much to see everyone else, so I turn around and walk up the hall to the staircase.
It's dark and looming, with most of the lights off in the house. To my left, I can hear quiet chatter from my friends in the living room as the movie starts playing. To my right, I can hear grunting and moaning coming from my mum’s room. Most of my clothes are in that room. Only some remain upstairs in my wardrobe, while the rest are at Marcus’s. I know that if I want to get changed, I’ll have to go up there. I had asked everyone to stay downstairs tonight, and they all respected my wish, but I had also hoped I could avoid going up there too. Going up there only results in anxiety. I fucking hate anxiety. I’m so sick of feeling this way, but I need to go up there. I need out of these clothes, and I need a bed.
Taking each step slowly, I silently climb the staircase, placing my feet in the spots that I know will cause the least creaking. If someone were watching me, they would probably laugh at the way I step on the left side of one step, only to stretch out and step on the right side of the next.
I use the torch on my phone to illuminate the area as I go. I should turn the light on, but I don’t want to alert anyone to where I am. I just need some space.
It’s not until I’m standing in front of my door that I realise something is wrong because where there was a door earlier today when Rhys came over to get ready, there isn’t one now.
A hand lands on my shoulder, and I try to scream, but fear constricts my throat as I spin, ready to fight.
“Shhh, Lex, it’s just me.”
My phone must have tumbled to the floor when I panicked, blanketing us in darkness, but I’d know that voice anywhere. Ayden.
“D-d-door.” I stutter, trying to get air in.
Ayden flicks on the switch next to him, filling the space with warm light.
“Hey. Shhh. Sorry, Lex, I didn’t mean to scare you.” Ayden’s blue eyes lock on to mine, his hands rubbing warmth up and down my arms.
“D-Door.”
He frowns and then looks behind me, realisation instantly widening his eyes.
“Fuck.” His strong hands grip my shoulders, shifting me behind him before reaching in and flipping on the light in my bedroom. Walking in, he checks the window, then the wardrobe and under my bed before moving past me to check the toilet, bathroom and Mike's room at the end of the hall.
I’m shaking by the time he makes it back to me.
“No one is here.” He runs a comforting hand up my arm as he takes out his phone and dials a number.
“Get your dick out of Rhys and get upstairs now. Grab Crowley on the way.” Hanging up, Ayden pulls my quaking body against his chest, cocooning me in his arms. I want to stay there forever.
“Shhh. It will be okay Lex. I got you. I’m never letting you go.”
I don’t argue with him, wanting his words to be true, but knowing I have to let him go… just maybe not right this minute.
Heavy steps pound up the stairs, and I know it’s Marcus and Jared, but I can’t bring myself to pull back from Ayden to acknowledge them. I don’t think I could even if I wanted to. With the grip he has on me, he has no intention of letting go of me either.
“What’s going on?” Marcus sounds more concerned than I thought he’d be. Ayden just interrupted his sex-fest with Rhys, so I was sure we were going to have a grumpy blue balled Marcus on our hands.
Ayden’s body jerks a little, and I imagine him nodding his head toward my bedroom doorway.
“What the fuck?” Confusion laces Jared’s voice, and I know he sees what has me so upset.
“I’ve checked the rooms up here. They are all clear.” Ayden’s smooth voice rumbles through his chest where my ear is pressed to it, and I never want to leave. “We should check the whole house and outside too. Grab the guys but keep it quiet. Let’s not share this with Lexi’s new friends. I don’t want to freak them out.”
“Freak them out? I’m fucking freaked out.” Marcus’s voice rises the highest I’ve heard it go since he was about twelve.
“Suck it up, princess. Maybe you need to go back into the room where Rhys is and ask her for your balls back!” I chuckle at Jared’s dig at Marcus. I can’t help it. These guys make everything feel better, even when we are deep in the thick of it.
A soft chuckle meets my ear, and Ayden’s warm hand rubs my back. He’s still not letting go.
Marcus and Jared bicker as they head back downstairs, and Ayden finally shifts me away from his chest. I instantly mourn the loss and fight the urge to throw myself back at him.
“Can we go into your room, Lex? Talk with me for a bit?”
He’s trying to keep me occupied. Take my mind off the fact that not only have my personal items been going missing, but in the few hours since Rhys and I left my house to go to the party, someone broke in and removed my bedroom door.
Ayden steps into my room but turns back to me when he realises I’m not following.
“Lex?”
What I should be doing is focusing on the fact that there is the hottest guy I’ve ever encountered inside my bedroom. Every girl's dream, really. But I can’t. All I can do is focus on the room itself and fight back the images and memories that plague me every time I step foot inside.
“You don’t want me in your room?” Ayden’s voice draws my attention again, and I look at him instead of the bed where I had woken from blacking out to Mike looming over me, trying to get his jeans down.
I shake my head, “It’s not that. It’s the room. There are some pretty awful memories from this room.” My voice is soft, a strange numbness washing over me.
Ayden’s blue eyes soften, and he steps back to me, reaching out to take my hand. “Let’s make some new memories then.”
My brows shoot up. Is he insinuating what I think he is?
His dark brows rise, matching mine as he understands my reaction. Then, that sinful grin of his lights up his face. It’s a grin that lifts those soft kissable lips at the corner, caving in the dimples that sit just either side of his mouth while his eyes brighten and crease ever so slightly at the corners.
I’m so screwed!
He chuckles, “Get your head out of the gutter Lex. I just want to talk.”
I don’t speak but let him tug me into my bedroom to sit on the edge of my bed.
“Were you coming up to go to bed before?” He asks, and I shrug.
“I guess. I think I was trying to get past my anxiety about coming up here because I’m so tired. It’s stupid, really. I thought I could sleep up here. How pathetic is that? As if I would be able to sleep up her
e. I can’t even sleep on my own.”
“It’s not pathetic at all. You should be able to do that if you want to.” He’s still holding my hand, his thumb rubbing over the back. It’s so familiar. So right, but I can’t let it be.
“And yet, I can’t,” I whisper.
“I’ll stay up here with you. I can sleep right here on the floor.” He points to the floor at our feet with his free hand. My eyes follow, looking to the dirty grey carpet and cringe.
“The carpet is filthy.”
“I’ll use blankets, don’t worry. And it’s not that bad.” He grins.
“It’s bad enough.” When did my carpet get so dirty? It has been a long time since I’ve really paid much attention to my room. Probably ever since Mike moved in.
“Lex.” Ayden squeezes my hand, and I glance back up to meet his hypnotising eyes. “I’m not leaving you. I’m staying so you can try to get some sleep.”
I don’t get a chance to respond when we’re interrupted by what one could only assume is a herd of elephants stampeding up the stairs. Moments later, Marcus, Jared, Shaun, Simon, and Garrett are bumping shoulders as they try to squeeze through the doorway into my bedroom.
Having them all in here is weird.
“House is clear. No sign of anyone breaking in.” Marcus sounds puffed. I bet they raced up here trying to beat each other. Adorable idiots!
“The back shed was unlocked, though. No sign of the door which means whoever did this took it with them.” Jared adds.
“What do you want to do, Lex? Stay here or go somewhere else?” Garrett asks, and all eyes turn to me.
“Lex?” Ayden urges when I don’t respond.
“Stay here. If you guys are here with me, then I’m safe. Safety in numbers. Isn’t that the saying?”
“Yep.” Simon nods, “where you go, we go. Which is why I’m pissed at you!”
“What? Why?” I frown.
“You had totally planned to ditch us tonight. You were going to sneak off to go god knows where with a chick we don’t even know. I mean, she’s fucking wicked, don’t get me wrong, but still, we don’t know if she can or will protect you like we will!”
Deep (Heavy Hearts Book 2) Page 23