by L. P. Dover
She smacked me with her purse. “I didn’t get this dressed up to stay home. These are your friends, Luke. I don’t want you to think I’m keeping you away from your life. We can’t just stay at each other’s houses having sex all the time.”
“Why not?” I wouldn’t mind in the least.
Rolling her eyes, she hit me again. “Let’s go, crazy man. It’ll be fun. Maybe something will spark my memory.”
Holding her hand, we walked to her car, so I could let her in. She’d planned on driving since she knew I’d be drinking. She handed me the keys and I drove us to the party.
There were cars everywhere and people scattered about the yard, drinking and having a good time. Like always, there was a spot for me in the driveway. “VIP treatment, huh?” she laughed.
I looked at her and smiled. “That’s pretty much the same thing you said the last time we were here.”
“And that was the night of our one night stand?”
The memories of that night and how stupid I was came flooding back. “Unfortunately,” I grumbled, getting out of the car. “But that’s not happening tonight.”
When she got out of the car, a few of the guys in the yard whistled, but when they noticed she was with me, they backed off—which was smart of them. Lara was a beautiful woman, but I wouldn’t stand for any of those punks salivating over her.
We walked around the back of the house where Chance and the rest of our friends were gathered. Competition was high in our sport, so I didn’t necessarily have close friends inside the group, but we all respected each other. That was why most of my friends consisted of Evan and the rest of the football players.
Chance noticed us and waved us over. “Collins, you made it!” he shouted.
There were other people sitting around him, including Troy Baker, my main competitor. He played dirty on the track and always tried to wipe me out, but I’d bested him every time. With Lara’s hand still clasped with mine, we walked over.
Chance tossed back the rest of his beer and pointed at me. “We all know that fucker, but the beautiful girl is Lara Jacobs.”
Troy narrowed his gaze. “Isn’t she the one who kicked Jonathan’s ass a few years ago?”
The group burst out laughing and Chance’s eyes went wide. “Oh yeah, that’s right. That was so long ago, I’d forgotten about it.”
I hated Jonathan Rimmel. He was a fucking douche, who liked to push girls around. I’d tried to warn Lara about him, but being the stubborn ass that she was, she didn’t listen. And when he tried to force her into one of the back bedrooms, she went crazy on him. She did some damage to his body, but I finished the job. We hadn’t seen him around since.
Lara lifted her arms. “It’s a shame I don’t remember.”
Chance walked over and winked at her. “I do, sweetheart. It was the hottest thing I’ve ever seen. Come sit with us and I’ll tell you all about it.” Then he looked at me. “If you want to go in and grab a beer, Bubba’s in there. He’s been dying to talk to you about his new bike. I figured I’d save your girl and keep her company.”
I glanced at them both, and Lara shrugged as if she didn’t care. “Go ahead. I’ll be fine out here.”
“All right, I’ll be right back.” Then I pushed a finger into Chance’s chest. “If you so much as try to come onto her, I’ll kick your ass. Got it?”
Eyes wide, he tried to look innocent and failed. “Dude, I never put the moves on her. I was just being friendly. You know how I am.”
I couldn’t help but chuckle. “Exactly.”
Lara rolled her eyes and pushed me toward the door. “Go talk to your friend. If Chance puts the moves on me, I’ll cut off his balls.”
Chance grabbed his crotch and shied away, making me laugh. I had no doubt she could take care of herself. Pulling her to me, I kissed her and headed inside. I didn’t like leaving her alone, but I knew she’d get bored as fuck listening about bike parts and suspensions.
There were dozens of people taking shots and making drinks in the kitchen. Bubba was in the corner, wearing his signature green and black jersey and straight-billed cap, talking to two other guys who rode in the class below me. He was only twenty-three years old, and one of the smoothest riders I’d ever seen. One of these days, he was going to be the best.
Bubba noticed me approaching and excused himself from his friends. “Holy shit, you’re finally here.”
I shook his hand and laughed. “It’s been a while.”
“That it has, my friend. I thought you’d ditched us there for a while. Harris told me you were killing it on the track. What brought on the change? Some folks said you were struggling there for a while.”
I glanced out the door to Lara who laughed along with whatever Chance was saying. “A lot of things have changed. I’m just glad I have my fire back.”
“But at least you’re still on a winning streak. I know Troy’s just salivating, waiting for you to slip up.”
I scoffed. “He’ll be waiting a long time. So tell me about your new bike.”
Bubba’s eyes lit up and he went on and on about the new suspension and top of the line handle bars. Once we got started talking, others joined in and it turned into a huge debate on what brands were better than others. I’d missed talking to the guys about that kind of stuff, but I wasn’t there to shoot the shit with them for hours.
I patted Bubba on the back and shook hands with the others. “Guys, I hate to cut it short, but I gotta get back outside.” Then to Bubba, I nodded down at his phone. “Give me a call in the next few weeks and we’ll go riding. I want to see how good you are in the woods.”
He chuckled. “You’re on.”
Before heading outside, I walked back into the kitchen to grab a beer from the cooler. A set of arms wrapped around my waist from behind. I assumed it was Lara, until I saw long, red fingernails.
“What the fuck,” I growled. When I turned around, my stomach clenched. I prayed like hell Lara hadn’t seen what just happened. “What do you want, Skylar?”
Skylar Wells was notorious among the dirty girls. None of the guys had ever been able to resist her, including myself. She had long, dark brown hair, bright blue eyes that could see into your soul, and dick sucking lips that could make you forget your own name. Looking at her now, she did nothing for me. There was only one girl I wanted and she definitely wasn’t it.
She rubbed up against me, raking a nail down my chest. “It’s been way too long. I need some time with you, baby.” Her hand squeezed my dick and I batted her arm away.
“I don’t want anything you’re offering.” I grumbled, stepping away from her. “And don’t touch me, ever again.”
“Yo, Collins!” a voice shouted from the living room. I walked away from her to see who shouted my name and she followed. What the fuck was I going to do? She was following me around like a bitch in heat.
The voice belonged to Cedric Carmichael, a retired motocross champion and an old mentor of mine. He was eight years older than me, and had quit riding after a car accident left him with two broken legs. I was just a teenager when he took me under his wing.
“Well, I’ll be damned.” I laughed.
Grinning wide, he grabbed my hand and pulled me in for a hug. “How ya doin’ kid?”
“Can’t complain. I haven’t seen you around in a while.”
“I decided to take a year away and spend it with the family.” He let me go and I got a good look at him. His dark hair was graying on the sides, and he had lines on his face from too much stress. “Now that I’m not riding professionally anymore, I decided to offer up riding lessons. You wouldn’t believe the amount of students I had sign up.”
“No surprise there, you’re one of the best.”
He winked. “I did teach you everything you know . . .”
“A lot of it was my own talent, douchebag,” I joked.
He chuckled and his focus landed on Skylar. “Who’s your friend?”
I groaned. “She’s not my friend. I can’t
seem to get away from her.”
Skylar scoffed and held out her hand. “I’m Skylar Wells. It’s nice to meet you. You’re a legend around here.”
Cedric beamed. “Thank you, pretty lady.” He picked up a bottle of Jack Daniels and poured us each a shot.
One of our rookie riders bumped into me and fell down to the floor. I grabbed his arm and helped him up. “You okay?” I asked, trying to hide my smile.
Holding up his thumb, he nodded. “Perrrr-fect. Just a lil’ drunk.” He was shit-faced, with makeup all over his eyes. There were two girls across the room, snickering and taking pictures of him. By morning, his photos would be plastered on every social media outlet. That was the kind of shit I liked to avoid. He’d learn from his mistakes soon enough.
“Drink up,” Skylar said, handing me a shot glass full of whiskey.
As soon as I took the shot, I was getting as far away from her as possible. The last thing I wanted was for Lara to see me with her.
Cedric held up his glass and clanked it to mine. “To legends.”
“To legends,” I repeated. I tossed back the liquid and felt the burn all the way down. I slapped a hand to Cedric’s shoulder and smiled. “It was good seeing you again, Ced. But I need to hit the can and get back to my girl.”
He chuckled. “Go for it. I’m sure I’ll see you around.”
Turning on my heel, I took a step forward and it felt like the whole world spun out of control. My vision went blurry and everything on my body felt heavy.
“Luke, you okay?” someone asked. The voice sounded like Skylar’s, but I couldn’t tell.
“Bathroom,” I choked out. The hallway was dark, but there were arms wrapped around my waist, keeping me on my feet. There were voices whispering, but it was all just jumbled words. I was so dizzy, all I wanted to do was lay down. Everything seemed so far away, even the voices that talked around me.
I didn’t want to give in to the darkness, but it crept up on me so fast I didn’t have a choice.
Chance Harris was such a charmer, I couldn’t help but be fascinated by the words coming out of his mouth. He had charisma in spades, just like Luke. I could see why so many people followed them. He told me all about the douchebag who’d tried to force me into a bedroom at one of their parties. It was hard to imagine myself dating a guy like that. Apparently, I had kicked his ass pretty good, which made me feel better about the whole thing.
“Want to take a walk?” Chance asked, nudging me in the side.
I glanced inside the house and couldn’t see Luke. He had been gone a while, but I didn’t want to follow him around like a lost puppy. Taking a deep breath, I nodded. “Sure.”
Holding out his arm, I took it and a sense of déjà vu overcame me. It was like I had been there before, doing the same thing. We walked around the pool and into his yard, away from all the screaming people who kept getting pushed into the water.
“I’m so glad you decided to give Luke another shot. He was absolutely miserable without you,” Chance confessed.
“I wish I could remember. It’s not easy when you’ve lost the last five years of your life.”
“I bet,” he murmured. “So much has happened in my life over the past five years. I can’t imagine trying to get it all back.”
We strolled over to a wooden bench and sat down. The night was humid and hot, but the stars above distracted me from the sweat dripping down my back. I really wanted to go inside and find Luke. “So tell me about the race next weekend. Are you riding in the four-fifty class or the two-fifty?” I asked.
A slow smile spread across his face. “Two-fifty. I want an actual chance at winning. Getting my ass kicked by Collins all the time can hurt the ego.”
I squeezed his arm. “Luke says you’re amazing. I can’t wait to watch you guys on Saturday.”
“So you’re coming?”
“Of course,” I exclaimed excitedly. “I can’t wait.” The race was in Charlotte, so there was no way I’d miss it.
“How is the PR stuff coming along?”
“Great. I’m hoping to hear back from a few people next week.” I was mainly waiting on Shelby Reynolds. She was the one I needed above anyone else.
Chance cleared his throat. “Do you think maybe when you get into the swing of things, you’d be able to work for me as well?” He flashed his puppy dog eyes and there was no way I could turn him down.
“Okay,” I answered him. “Just give me a few weeks to get settled.”
“Hell yeah!” He fist pumped and got to his feet. Pulling me in for a hug, I laughed. “Let’s go tell Collins I snagged you up. He won’t get pissed will he? I know how protective he is of you.”
We started back toward his house and I waved him off. “He’ll just have to get over it, if he is. I make my own choices.” When we got back to the house, things had started to calm down. I glanced down at my phone and gasped. “Holy shit, we’ve been gone for over an hour.” I couldn’t believe Luke hadn’t tried to look for me.
“I’m sure Collins got caught up talking shop. So many people were excited to see him,” Chance said, walking beside me. We stepped inside and he was nowhere to be seen. I followed Chance through the kitchen and into the living room.
“Has anyone seen Collins?” he called out.
A guy on the couch raised his hand. “About forty-five minutes ago.”
Chance burst out laughing. “If it isn’t Cedric Carmichael. What’s up, fucker?”
Cedric stood and hugged him. “Nothing much, just got back from a year long vacation with the family.”
“Must be nice,” Chance teased. “I want to hear all about it, but first, we’re looking for Collins.”
Cedric nodded toward the hallway. “He went that way, with some girl named Skylar.”
My blood boiled, and I could feel the heat scorching its way through my body and up the sides of my face. Chance stiffened beside me and grabbed my arm. “Thanks, Cedric. We’ll find him.”
Teeth clenched, all I could see was red. Chance pulled me out of the room into the hallway. “Who the hell is Skylar?” I growled.
Chance closed his eyes, but kept his hands on my arms. He knew I was a bomb about to explode. “She’s one of the dirty girls. The guys love her.”
“Has Luke ever messed around with her?”
The look on his face was answer enough. I felt sick, disgusted beyond belief. What if he was in a room with her somewhere? My hands shook and Chance grabbed them. “Hey, calm down. There’s no way in hell Luke would ever fuck things up between you again. He’s worked too hard to get you back.”
“I hope you’re right,” I whispered low. I could barely recognize my own voice.
Chance’s house was pretty large, so there were doors on both the right and left sides of the hallway. It was as if it went on for miles.
Chance took the lead and peered inside each room, shaking his head when he came up empty. There were only three rooms left, when the door on the right opened. A girl sauntered out, straightening her skirt. “That was fun,” she gloated, strutting by us.
Chance’s grip on my arm tightened and I realized who she was. “No,” I growled, my eyes burning like fire. I didn’t know what I was going to see peeking into the room, but finding Luke on the bed, naked, with his arms behind his head as he slept, was more than I could take.
Turning on my heel, I jerked my arm out of Chance’s tight grasp and stormed down the hall. “Lara, wait!” he shouted.
Tears streamed down my face, but I was way past sad . . . I was infuriated. How the hell could he do that to me? Stopping at the edge of the hallway, everyone froze, watching on in wonderment. I glanced at Chance over my shoulder. “When he wakes up, tell him it’s over. I don’t want to see his face ever again.”
Everyone moved out of my way as I charged to the door. I had to get out of there, away from those people . . . away from Luke. How could I have been so stupid?
I half-expected to get a visit in the middle of the night, or frantic phone c
alls from Luke begging me to listen to him, but there was nothing. My eyes hurt like sand had been thrown at them. Every time I closed them, I could just imagine Luke and that girl being together. I don’t know how many times I threw up, but my whole body was sore. It was almost as bad as I felt after the car accident.
Pulling out my phone, there was only one person I knew to call. I waited for Summer to answer, and when she did, I couldn’t speak.
“Lara, you there?” I nodded and all that escaped my lips was a whimper. “Oh my God, Lara, what’s wrong?”
“I need you,” was all I could say.
I could hear her scrambling around on the other end and then the sound of her car roaring to life. “On my way. Be there in a minute.” She hung up and a few minutes later she came barreling through the door. Her gaze met mine and she rushed over and sat next to me. “I’m here now. Come here.”
I leaned into her and cried. She rubbed my back and froze when I spoke. “He cheated on me.”
“What? How can that be?”
“I saw the girl leave the room . . . and there he was, naked on the bed. It made me so goddamn sick.”
She held me tighter. “Oh, Lara.”
“What am I going to do? I feel like such an idiot.”
“I know what you’re going to do.” She lifted my head, her eyes blazing. “You’re going to pack a bag and stay at my house. The last thing you need to do is sit here by yourself, wallowing in your grief.”
“It’s not that simple.”
She nodded. “I know, but it’s a start. I don’t want you alone.” Grabbing my arm, she lifted me off the couch. “Let’s go. I refuse to see you like this again.”
It took all the strength I had to get off the couch, but I did as she said and packed a bag. Unfortunately, her house wasn’t as far away as I wanted it to be, but it’d have to do.
The sun shining the through the window woke me up, a screaming headache greeting me the second I cracked my eyes open. Sealing the light out with my arm, I reached for Lara, but her side of the bed was cold. “Lara?” I called out for her. Maybe she was downstairs.