Patience

by Sydney Lane

  "Oh, yeah?" The tip of her tongue runs over her bottom lip before she pulls it between her teeth. "I'd ask if you wanna bet on that, but you already did, didn't you?"

  That saucy little shit.

  I've never wanted anything more in my life.

  Chapter 7

  Jenna

  Closing the door behind Eric, I fall back against it. Breathing deeply, I attempt to calm my fluttering heart and racing thoughts. I had to get rid of him before I gave in, and leave he did. But not before he kissed me into next week. Not before he made me forget my own name.

  There's something magical, addictive, about his lips. The way one side curls up higher than the other when he smiles. The way they turn red, like raspberries, after a marathon kissing session. The way they make me want to crawl out of my skin and into his.

  Two more days.

  Two. More. Days.

  So, this isn't going to be as easy as I thought.

  Eric is six feet of blonde, blue-eyed hotness, with high cheek bones and a strong jawline. His face is perfectly sculpted, there's no other word for it. A true work of art, a masterpiece. Almost too perfect to be real except for the small scar under his eye, an imperfection that makes him more perfect. With the body of an athlete and the face of a god, he's irresistible. His legs are long and lean, his muscles well defined, hard and smooth under his skin. An eight-pack and a narrow waist complete the package.

  Oh, and I can't forget his one, and only, tattoo, situated on his perfect ass cheek. He's never really explained how his fraternity crest ended up on his ass, but I'm guessing it involved alcohol. With his recent track record, it likely involved a wager as well. And yes, I've seen it.

  Up close and personal.

  I've spent more nights with Eric than I have in my own dorm room. I've committed every detail of his body to memory, and I know exactly what turns him on. There aren't many places that either my mouth or my hands haven't been... we've just never sealed the deal. And it's not from my lack of trying.

  I lay back on my bed, my body supercharged, and think about those nights. I float away, to that place between awake and dreaming.

  Shadows. Skin against skin. Warmth. Tingling. Rushed breathing. Panting. Hands. Rough. Gentle. Tangled limbs. Hushed moans. Plundering kisses. Pleasure. Pain. Pleasurable pain. Me. Him. Us.

  The door bursts open, slamming into the desk behind it, and Quincy strolls in. I sit straight up, my face flaming as my sexy thoughts vanish. "Holy crap, Quince!" She jumps, her hand still on the door. "You scared the shit out of me!"

  She gasps, looking as disoriented as I feel. "Not as much as you scared me. I'm not used to you being here anymore." I feel guilty for leaving her alone so much. We came to UT together, but with her job and my relationship with Eric, we don't spend as much time with each other as I thought we would.

  No matter what, we're still a team, and I'd still kick ass for this girl. Always.

  "Did you forget about our little shopping expedition?" I try to hide my smile as she scowls, but I fail miserably and burst out laughing. "Oh, come on, Quince! It won't be that bad."

  It's not until she slouches on her bed that I know something's up. I move to the side of my bed, facing her, our knees almost touching. A tear escapes the corner of her eye, and she hurriedly brushes it away. "Aww, Quince. What is it? What's goin' on?" She's my best friend, the closest thing I'll ever have to a sister. When she hurts, I hurt.

  "It's nothing. Just me being emotional." She tries to laugh, but the strangled sound that comes out is nothing short of pitiful. It could only mean one thing. Brody.

  "What has that shitbrick done now?" I'm going to kick his ass. I've warned him on more than one occasion that he'd better not hurt her.

  "Oh, Jenna. He hasn't done anything. It's me." She takes a deep breath and blows it out, wiping more tears from her eyes. "I'm just so stupid. I think... I think I'm in love with him." Well, hell. I thought she was going to tell me something I didn't already know.

  "Of course you are. There's nothing wrong with that."

  "Jenna, I'm scared." My heart breaks for her. I've never been afraid of anything. My motto has always been that if it's meant to be, it will be. The difference is that Quincy has always lived with the threat of instability, of losing someone she loves, and I haven't. Her sister, Katie, is so unstable, so self-destructive, it's a wonder she's made it this long. The person Quincy loves the most is the person who hurts her the most.

  "Oh, Quincy. If I could just make you see how crazy that boy is about you-" Before I can finish, she begins shaking her head, as if she doesn't believe it. "Well, you could look at it this way... at least he's having sex with you. My so called boyfriend would rather keep his guitar than have sex with me." Just as I'd planned, she perks right up, a smile teasing the corner of her mouth and her eyes shining. Not a tear in sight.

  "Yeah, well, there is that." She smiles, her insecurities temporarily forgotten. "And that is pretty darn wonderful. Let's get going so you can plan your weekend of torture."

  "I like the way you're thinkin'."

  Crisis averted. For now.

  Just as the door closes behind us, Quincy turns to me in the hall and says, "Jenna, I'm not afraid of Brody. If he hurts me, I'll survive." She takes a deep breath and blows it out quickly. "But if I hurt Declan, I'm not sure I will."

  "I know, Quince." I throw my arm around her shoulders, gently squeezing. "I know."

  Chapter 8

  Eric

  "I guess I don't have to tell you how fucked up that is." Leave it to Seth, my loud and rowdy fraternity brother, to put it so eloquently. He doesn't even try to hide his laughter when his shoulders begin to shake. As he tilts his head back to take a long pull from his beer, I wonder why I even opened my pie hole.

  "It was just a stupid bet. How was I supposed to know this was gonna happen?" I mean, can't a guy catch a break? I'm just glad my misery is proving to be so entertaining to everyone else, even Jenna.

  "You know what you gotta do, man?" Seth concentrates, narrowing his eyes as he peels the label from his bottle, no doubt concocting some illogical plan that will make sense only to him. I oughta run as fast as I can, but I'm strangely fascinated by what I call Sethology. It's like a train wreck. You don't want to look, but you can't help yourself.

  "Yeah? What's that?" A glutton for punishment, that's what I am. If I weren't so drunk, I'd get up and leave his sorry ass sitting here.

  "You gotta lose the bet. Lose your fuckin' guitar." His voice is suddenly serious, and his chin juts upward, as if he's challenging me. I watch him, thinking he has to be joking, but his eyes tell a different story. He's as serious as a heart attack.

  "No way, man." I shake my head, my heart rising in my throat. He doesn't so much as blink an eye. "Are you kidding me? Those are your almighty words of wisdom?" I just can't imagine giving up this close to the end. I'm keeping my guitar, and I'm getting my girl.

  Two days. Forty-eight hours. That's nothing.

  "Look, E. There are two things I never joke about- my Momma and pussy." He pauses, guzzling the rest of his beer before slamming his bottle back to the table. "Think about it. If you ever want her to trust you again, you're gonna have to lose the bet. If you don't, she'll always think your Fender was more important than her or some other fucked up female logic." At my incredulous look, he taps himself in the chest. "What, man, you don't trust me?" That's the dumbest shit I've ever heard, and he has the balls to look offended?

  His words begin to sink in, and maybe it's the alcohol or maybe it's insanity, but suddenly, I see it all so clearly. It makes perfect sense.

  Everything is going to be just fine.

  All I have to do is lose my guitar. I don't know why I didn't think of this sooner.

  Before I can open my mouth, Seth's eyes level on a spot above my head. "Ain't that right, Bro?" he slurs right before Brody pulls out the stool next to me.

  Signaling the bartender, Brody calls out, "I'll take a Guinness." Then, turning to u
s, he slaps me on the back before asking, "What are you two dipshits up to?" I don't know exactly what it is, but the air shifts between us. Something feels off.

  Seth sits up straighter in his chair, his back and shoulders stiff, as he looks at Brody expectantly, like he knows something. The hair stands up on the back of my neck when I realize he does know something. Fuck.

  He knows about Quincy.

  I thought I was the only brother who knew Brody's dirty little secret. There's a part of me that knows this Jerry Springer episode we've got going on is going to end in disaster while the other part of me is damn relieved that I don't have to be in it alone anymore. It's been hell watching the drama play out, never knowing when the shit will hit the fan, hating myself for even being a part of it. But dammit, the more people who know, the worse the fallout will be.

  "Seth was just giving me some advice." I paste a fake grin on my face, trying to distract them. There's no reason for us to air out brotherhood business in public. We may be one big dysfunctional family, but we keep our shit at home.

  "Yeah?" Brody drawls. His rock star voice used to amuse me, and I've gotten a lot of mileage out of it, but right now, it just pisses me off.

  From the beginning, when we first met, it was the fucking three amigos - Brody, Declan, and me. We picked Seth up along the way, but it was always us. I mean, yeah, there are other brothers I'm close to, but I don't trust anyone the way I do them. Problem is, there is no winner in this game. It's hard to choose between your two best friends.

  When neither of us speak up, Brody's eyes travel back and forth between us, a smile on his face. "So, you gonna tell me or what?"

  "This drunk fucker is telling me that I need to lose the bet. On purpose." I roll my eyes, shooting him my cocky smile, as if I wasn't contemplating doing just that.

  "Why the hell would you want to do that?" He laughs, taking a swig of his beer. "I mean, hell, it's almost over. A few more days, right?"

  Seth picks that exact moment to throw some shit in that fan I was thinking about. "Why don't you tell us what you would do, Bro? Share some of your wisdom with us. You know so much about women and all." What the fuck?

  I act like Seth isn't even talking. He doesn't exist. "Two. Two more days. Anyway, I was thinking it might actually be a good idea. You know, let her know I really care about her, that kind of thing." I shrug my shoulders, trying to act as normal as possible.

  Brody's eyes never leave Seth's face as he replies, "Sounds about right. Girls like that kind of shit." You'd never know what was going on if you couldn't feel the electricity in the air, humming with tension, ready to ignite.

  "Yeah. I was thinking-"

  "Tell us what girls like, Bro. You're the pussy expert." Seth interrupts. My nerves are wearing thin. Why won't he just shut up?

  "Seth, you got something to say? Because I ain't got time for your bullshit." Brody's hand tightens around his bottle, his knuckles turning white, as he clenches his jaw.

  "You know what, Bro? I never thought you'd do it." His voice breaks, and I look at him in shock. I've never heard Seth get emotional. "I never thought you'd choose a piece of ass over your brothers."

  Brody stands up, throwing a few bills on the bar. "Seth, you're a lousy drunk. I'm giving you a free pass, but I'm warning you just this once. Don't ever talk shit about Quincy again." When he says her name, there is a fire, a passion, in his eyes I've never seen before.

  It tells me all I need to know.

  With a quick nod in my direction, he walks out. I'm stunned, shocked into silence. That was not how I planned for things to go.

  I'm still reeling from the shitstorm that just took place when Seth bursts out laughing, a huge belly laugh, drawing attention from everyone in the bar.

  "What the hell, man? Are you that fucking drunk or what?" I don't find anything funny about the whole situation, and I'm seriously thinking about introducing him to my fist. This shit's bad enough without his crazy ass making it worse. Why would he deliberately piss Brody off?

  Between laughs, he wipes tears from his eyes, and when he finally catches his breath, he explains, "I've got nobody, man. You guys are my family. All I've got. I just had to make sure he really cared about her. I had to know that if he's willing to screw up the only family I have, she's worth it."

  There it is. Sethology at its finest.

  "That's fucked up." I take another long drink from my beer and order another. My day just went to hell in a hand basket.

  "Yeah, well, I found out what I needed to know." He sighs heavily.

  "What's that?" I hate to ask, but I can't help myself.

  "She is."

  Chapter 9

  Jenna

  Victoria's Secret. Every girl's friend and every guy's dream. I'm on a mission to find something to drive Eric wild. Panties, bras, lingerie, thongs... how's a girl to choose? I don't have a lot to spend, so I've got to make it count.

  "How about this one?" Quincy pops around the rack I'm staring at, holding up a sheer black negligee complete with a barely-there thong.

  "Quince, I want to make him suffer, not give him a heart attack." I smile as I imagine the look on Eric's face if he saw me in that. It's almost worth buying it. "That's why we're here instead of Frederick's."

  Shrugging her shoulders, my best friend looks perplexed as she continues to hold up the pitiful scrap of material. "Sheesh. I'm just trying to figure out what guys like about this stuff." She rotates it on the hanger. "I mean, why pay so much when they'll just rip it off anyway?"

  I almost swallow my tongue as I start coughing. "Rip it off? What kind of movies have you been watching, Quince?"

  When her face grows red and she looks anywhere but me, my amusement turns to shock. She tries to hide behind the rack, but I'm not having it. "Oh, hell no, girlfriend." I have to know what she's talking about. Right now.

  She ignores me, turning to another rack. "Let's see what they have over he-" She begins looking through the bras, sliding hangers back and forth.

  I race to catch up to her as she walks away. "Quincy Priest, don't you dare! You can't drop a bomb like that and walk away." She's a tiny little thing at 5'3", and if I don't stay with her, I'll lose sight of her between the racks. "Who's been ripping clothes off?"

  Shrugging, she finally faces me. "Well... um... I don't know. I just thought it was something guys do." Holy shit!

  "And I'm assuming that by 'guys' you mean Brody?" I don't say it, but I know Declan's not ripping her clothes off. He seems a bit too refined for that. But Brody? I can totally see it.

  "Jenna..." She pauses to look at the lotion counter. "I think Brody likes the vanilla lotion. I may need to pick up some more." She's doing her best to ignore me, but her face gives her away. It's her 'tell'. Rosy cheeks and furrowed brows. She gnaws on her bottom lip as she sniffs the samples.

  "Does he like it enough to rip off your clothes?" I'm nothing if not tenacious. She smiles, and I know I've got her. "Tell."

  "All I'm going to say is that I've lost a couple pairs of panties." I gasp. This is my sweet and innocent friend we're talking about after all. Shit like this just doesn't happen every day, not to her.

  "That is so freakin' hot!" I almost squeal in delight. All of this time, I've been worried about getting Eric in bed, and Quincy was getting prime action I didn't even know about. This is epic.

  "Yeah, I guess you could say that." Her cheeks flame, but she smiles conspiratorially. "He gets kind of wild, and it's like he doesn't have time just to pull them off of me."

  "Oh my gawd! I knew that boy would be good, but I didn't know how good. No wonder you can't stay away from him." She once told me he gave her an orgasm the first time they had sex. I'm still having trouble with that one. I've been with two different guys, and there wasn't an orgasm in sight with either of them. The few I've had have been during foreplay. And only with Eric.

  Quincy's face falls, her smile faltering for a second before it returns. "He does make me feel things I've never felt before." S
he pauses before turning to me and taking my hands in hers. "Jenna, I'm going to tell him. I'm going to tell Declan."

  Now, this is a surprise. "Really? What made you decide to do it?"

  "I just kind of realized that I'd never be happy if I kept holding onto my insecurities. It's not fair to Declan or any of us. I mean, it's not like the world will end if things don't work out with Brody, right?" She squeezes my hand, like maybe she's trying to convince herself instead of me.

  "Oh, don't you worry about that, girl. I think things are going to be just fine." And I believe it. I'd never steer her wrong, not on purpose.

  "I hope you're right. Either way, I can't keep doing what I'm doing." She means the sneaking around, but my mind goes elsewhere. Just call me 'gutter Jenna'.

  I clear my throat. "Oh, yeah. I think you can. Getting your panties ripped off by the hottest guy on campus? Can I say 'more, please'?"

  Finally, a real smile. "That is pretty great." She looks around, blinking rapidly, as if she just realized we're still standing in the middle of the bra aisle. "Come on, we've got some shopping to do. Don't buy anything you're attached to. They might not make it through the weekend." She laughs at my raised eyebrows. "I'm just sayin'."

  Like two teenagers, we giggle as we search the store for the perfect 'tools' of persuasion. I leave with two bags filled with various matching bra and thong sets, some lotion, and two sexy camisoles. I'm going to set my guy on fire tonight, but he's only going to get a sneak preview of what's to come. All of this talk about ripping clothes off has given me a few ideas.

  What was it he said about patience?

  I'm going to make him eat those words. And he's going to like it.

  Chapter 10

  Eric

  Seth and his infinite words of wisdom. What he said has been on my mind all afternoon. He made his point. Sure, he got Brody riled up just to show that he really cared about Quincy, but he was proving a point to me, too.