by L. P. Dover
I couldn’t remember going home from the party. Had I drank that much? All I remembered was a beer and a shot of whiskey. Turning over, I buried my face into the pillow. But it didn’t feel right, and definitely didn’t smell right. Opening my eyes, I realized why.
“Holy fuck.” I was still at Chance’s, and I was butt-ass naked. What the hell had happened? I got out of bed and an overwhelming sense of dizziness overtook me. Rushing to the bathroom, I barely made it to the toilet before throwing up the entire contents of my stomach. “Lara,” I called out again. I couldn’t remember seeing her after I went inside. How could I have just left her alone all night?
Throwing on my clothes, I rushed out of the bedroom. There were a couple of guys sleeping on the floor in the living room, but Chance was in the kitchen, drinking a cup of coffee and reading the newspaper.
“Where’s Lara?” I asked impatiently.
Lips pursed, he lifted his head. “I didn’t think you cared.”
“What the hell does that mean?” I snapped.
He slammed the paper shut. “I don’t get you, man. You spend a year of your life trying to get this girl back, and then you fuck around on her? It’s fucked up, even for you.”
“What the hell are you talking about?” My head pounded and I felt like I was going to throw up again.
Eyes blazing, he got up and pointed angrily down the hall. “I’m talking about you fucking Skylar behind Lara’s back. She was devastated when she found you.”
Shaking my head, I backed up. That couldn’t be true. There was no way in hell I’d ever touch Skylar. “That’s not possible,” I growled, running a hand through my hair. “Why can’t I remember anything?”
Chance scoffed. “Perhaps you drank too much?”
“Fuck off, Harris. I had one beer and a shot. After that, I can’t remember shit.”
He shrugged. “Whatever, man. All I know is she’s pissed the fuck off, and wanted me to tell you it’s over. She never wants to see your face again. And I don’t blame her.”
My mind whirled. There was no way this was all real. “Do you mind driving me home?” I asked.
Sighing, he grabbed his keys. “Let’s go.”
I followed him outside and into his red Mercedes. “I feel fucked up, man. Like something’s not right inside my head.” He started us down the road and it wasn’t fast enough. A phone call wasn’t going to suffice, so I had to hope she was at home.
“And you said you only had a beer and a shot?” he asked curiously.
I nodded and the simple motion made my head swim. “Yep, and then nothing but black after that. I remember hearing voices around me, but that’s it.”
“You don’t think you could’ve been drugged do you? Skylar’s never done anything like that before.”
She might not have done it before, but I wouldn’t put it past her. “After the way I treated her last night, anything’s possible. But I know just who to ask for help.”
As soon as I got in my truck, my first stop would be Lara’s house. My only problem was, I had no clue what to say, especially without having proof. I knew something wasn’t right; I could feel it in my blood. I just had to hope Lara believed me.
Lara was nowhere to be seen, not at her house or the tavern. If she was at home, she ignored me. How could I go from getting her back to losing her again? I hated myself for ever leaving her side at the party. Evan and Summer’s house wasn’t far from Lara’s, and I knew I probably wouldn’t be welcome there, but I had to try.
When I got to the door, Evan was the one who opened it, his mouth set in a firm line. “You have a lot of nerve coming here. You do realize Summer’s ready to kill you, right?”
Feeling as if my world was crashing down, I pushed past him, the ache in my chest too much to bear. “I know, but you have to hear me out.” I walked into his kitchen, and the second I did, I saw Lara. She was outside with Summer, sitting by the pool. “I have to talk to her.” I rushed to the door, but Evan grabbed me from behind.
“Dammit, Luke, you can’t. She wants nothing to do with you. Hell, I want nothing to do with you at the moment. How could you do this to her, after all she’s been through?”
My eyes burned and I jerked out of his hold. He guarded the door and there was no way past, except through him. “I didn’t do anything wrong. I think I was drugged.”
He crossed his arms across his chest. “Seriously?”
I glanced over at Lara and I wanted nothing more than to go to her. “Yes. One minute I’m fine, and the next I can barely walk. When I woke up this morning, I had no recollection of what happened after I took a single shot of whiskey.”
“Could someone have spiked it?”
I shrugged. “Probably. I need to get tested to see if there’s anything there.”
“Good point,” he said, rushing to the back door. Summer and Lara both looked at him. “Sunshine, I’m going out for a minute. I’ll be right back.”
Summer waved and then went straight back to consoling Lara. I wanted more than anything to be with her and tell her what I thought, but even I didn’t have the answers.
Evan pushed me toward the door. “Let’s go. Kate will be able to help.” He hopped in my truck and called his sister. She was going to meet us at the hospital.
“Is she going to take my blood?” I asked him.
“Yes,” Evan replied. “I don’t know how long it takes to get the results back, but she has connections there.”
Kate was waiting for us by her car. She had no clue what was going on, so when we got out, she rushed over to me. “What’s wrong? Why do I need a blood specimen from you?”
“Because I think I might’ve been drugged.”
“Drugged?” she exclaimed. “By who?”
My throat grew thick and it was hard for me to even talk about it. Lara was her best friend and right now, everyone hated me. I knew I didn’t do anything wrong, but it was so hard to convince everyone, taking my past into consideration.
Evan noticed my hesitance and explained, “By a girl at the party he and Lara went to last night. Apparently, he passed out and woke up naked in a bedroom. Lara thinks he cheated on her.”
“And I didn’t,” I growled. “That’s why I need my blood tested. I would never do anything to hurt her.”
Kate grabbed my chin and looked into my eyes, searching for something. “What do you remember?”
I shrugged. “Taking a shot of whiskey and then feeling very odd. The next thing I knew, it was morning, I was naked, and Lara was gone.”
“Did you have a headache or nausea when you woke up?”
I ran a hand through my hair. “My head is killing me, and I puked. Hell, I’m still nauseated, I just have nothing left in my stomach to throw up anymore. I also feel like I’m on edge, but that could be because I want to see Lara.”
“Or, it could be the side-effects of whatever drug is in your system.” Sighing, she locked up her car and nodded for us to follow her. “Let’s take your blood and see what we find.”
“How long does it take to get the results?” I asked.
She glanced at me over her shoulder. “Twenty-four to forty-eight hours.”
“You’ve got to be fucking kidding me. How the hell am I going to get Lara to talk to me?”
She shrugged. “You’re not; at least, not until you get these results. Right now, she’ll just see it as an excuse.”
“What about the sex part?” Evan asked. “If he was drugged, what are the chances that he actually had sex with someone?”
That was the question I’d been too afraid to ask. The thought of sleeping with someone other than Lara made me so goddamn furious. I could only imagine how betrayed Lara felt.
Kate sighed and looked at us both. She could see the torment in my face. “The chance of you getting it up after being drugged is slim. I would just let the girl who drugged you know that she could be facing rape charges if she did try to have sex with you.”
Her words gave me renewed purpose. As s
oon as Kate took my blood, I knew exactly where I was going.
“Are you sure this is a good idea?” Evan asked.
I shrugged. “Fuck if I know, but I can’t wait two more days. If I can get proof, then maybe Lara will listen to me.”
“I don’t know, Luke. After what Lara must’ve seen, she’s not going to go on your word. She’ll want the test results.”
The thought of her not believing me hurt. We’d spent so much time building up our relationship, and now, all that hard work was gone. I turned down Skylar’s street and her silver Subaru BRZ was in the driveway.
“Wait here,” I said, getting out of the truck.
Each step I took to her door, I fumed even more. I had a plan and I hoped it worked. I banged on the door as loud as I could, wishing I could just break it down. That was how infuriated I was. Another girl answered the door and I recognized her as one of the many dirty girls who frequented our parties.
Smiling wide, she arched her back as she leaned into the doorway. “Luke Collins. To what do we owe this pleasure?”
“Save it,” I growled. “I need to see Skylar.” Her smile faded and she rushed off, hollering Skylar’s name.
When she came into view, I charged inside, not caring what kind of trouble I was going to get in.
“Hello, lover,” she called out.
I grabbed her by the shoulders and pushed her into the wall. “Shut the fuck up and listen good. I have proof that you drugged me last night.” I showed her the bandage on my arm where Kate drew blood. Her face paled and she started to speak, but I closed a hand over her mouth. “You don’t get to speak, you stupid bitch. I just thought I’d let you know that I’m headed over to the police station to charge you with rape.”
I let her go and stormed out the door. “Luke, wait!” She followed me out to the truck. “We didn’t have sex.”
Rage consumed me and I turned to glare at her, wishing like hell she was a man so I could beat the fuck out of her. “Then why did you make everyone believe that we did?”
Tears streamed down her cheeks and she sobbed. “Because I was jealous. And—”
I held up my hand. “Save it. I don’t want to hear another goddamn word from your mouth.”
“Are you going to turn me in?”
Huffing, I opened my door. “Unless you figure out a way to fix the shit I’m in, you’re damn right I am.” Without hearing another word, I got in my truck and sped out of her driveway.
Evan blew out an audible sigh. “Damn, that was intense. At least she admitted that nothing happened.”
I nodded. “Yeah, but no matter what, Lara’s never going to believe anything I say.”
Placing his hand on my shoulder, he squeezed it reassuringly. “Let’s just wait on Kate to get the test results. She’ll be able to convince Lara you did nothing wrong.”
“I just wish it didn’t have to be like that,” I said, hearing the hurt in my own voice. “She should believe me and not have to depend on the trust of others.”
Evan sighed. “I agree, but you do have a questionable past. Besides, she’s in a vulnerable position until she gets her memories back. You’ll just have to give her time.”
Time was something I couldn’t give, not while Grayson was trying to steal her out from under me.
Swimming in the pool and laying in the sun should’ve been relaxing, but all it did was make me think of Luke. Summer kept trying to talk to me and I pretended to be interested, but it was hard when I was dying on the inside.
“Honey, I’m home!” Evan shouted.
Summer flicked water on me and laughed. “He’s such a dork.” Emma-Grace started crying over the baby monitor, so she paddled to the edge of the pool and got out. “I’ll be back. Maybe munchkin wants to take a swim.”
“I’ll play with her,” I offered. Summer hurried off and I laid back on the float, closing my eyes as the sound of the water sloshed back and forth. A splash came from behind, and I gasped as a set of arms grabbed me from underneath, pulling me down into the water. I screamed, only to be cut off with a mouth full of water.
Under the water, I could hear a chuckle. I was going to kill him. When I surfaced, I gasped for air. “Dammit, Grayson, I’m gonna make you pay for that.”
“I’d like to see you try.”
He took off toward the deep end, but I got out of the water and rushed around the side of the pool without him knowing. Once his head came up out of the water, I jumped on his back, knocking him back under.
“How do you like that?” I laughed as he came back up. We swam to the floats and I climbed up on mine while he got on Summer’s. Lifting my brows, I looked down at his basketball shorts. He noticed me staring and chuckled.
“I didn’t know you were going to be here, but when I saw you, I had to mess with you.”
“Shouldn’t you be at the tavern?”
“In another hour or so. It’s three o’clock. We usually don’t get busy till around five.” We floated around and he never took his eyes off me. “You okay?”
“Yeah,” I lied. “Why do you ask?”
He shrugged. “I don’t know, maybe because I overheard a conversation today on how you went ape-shit at a party last night.”
The blood rushed from my face and I felt faint. “Who . . . who was it?” I asked, choking out the words.
“Some guy who rides dirt bikes. I’ve seen him with Luke before. Care to tell me what’s going on?”
The water felt like it was closing in around me and I couldn’t breathe. Rolling off my float, I swam to the edge and got out. My chest heaved up and down and I could feel the tears coming back with a vengeance.
Grayson hopped out and rushed over, pulling me into his arms. “What the hell? You’re shaking.”
I broke down and cried against his chest. “I found him with another girl.”
His body tensed. “Please tell me you’re fucking joking.” He let me go so he could look at me.
“I’m not,” I cried. “I can’t believe he’d do that to me. We were at a party and he left me to get a beer and talk to his friends. An hour later, he still hadn’t come back, so I went to look for him . . .” I shook my head, unable to say anymore.
Sighing, he brushed the tears off my face. “I’m so sorry, Lara. I know you love him.”
“Did,” I corrected him. “I can’t love someone who’s going to do that to me.” I still loved him, but it felt better to refer to it as past tense.
“I wish there was something I could do. Want me to kick his ass?” His face lit up and I knew he’d find enjoyment in that.
A sad chuckle escaped my lips. “No, it’s okay. Listening to me cry about him has to be burden enough.” I knew how he felt about me, and hearing me cry over another man wasn’t something he’d want to hear.
“Grayson,” Summer called. “I didn’t know you were stopping by.”
He slowly let me go and we turned to face her. Emma-Grace was in her arms, wearing her bathing suit. “I first went by Lara’s and when she wasn’t there, I came here. When I saw her in the pool, I had to surprise her.”
“More like attack me,” I added.
He nudged me in the side. “At least it made you laugh. I’ve missed the sound of it.” By the look in his eyes, he still wanted me back. It made me wonder if he was going to try harder now that Luke and I weren’t together.
Summer bounced Emma-Grace on her side and passed her to me. “This little one wants some auntie time.” She passed her to me and we got back in the pool. Emma-Grace loved to throw food on me almost as much as she loved splashing water in my face. “I’ll cook dinner after this,” Summer offered.
Grayson got back in and played peek-a-boo with Emma-Grace. “Sounds good,” I said. “But I need to go home and get my toiletry bag. In my fog this morning, I completely forgot it.”
Summer nodded. “Okay, I can take you in a few minutes.”
“Nah, I got her,” Grayson cut in. “I can take her on my way to the tavern.”
Sum
mer lifted her brows at me, waiting for me to choose. “It’s fine. Grayson can take me.”
They both seemed happy with my choice, but I wasn’t about to start dating again. After what Luke did, I wanted to swear off men.
“Thanks for driving me home,” I said to Grayson.
He reached over and squeezed my hand. It didn’t take much effort, since we were close together in his little sports car. It scared me being in something so small, but I didn’t say anything about it. “No problem. I know you’re going through a tough time right now.”
We arrived at my house and he followed me inside, his shorts were still soaking wet from the pool. “Do you have a change of clothes with you?”
He shook his head. “I’m probably just going to head home in a bit and get some new ones.”
“Won’t you be pushed for time?”
“Maybe a little, but it’ll be okay,” he said with a shrug.
Rolling my eyes, I set my purse down on the coffee table and walked into the laundry room. “Take them off and I’ll throw them in the dryer.” There was a stack of fresh towels on top of the dryer so I grabbed one and hurried back out into the living room. But he was already naked, holding out his wet clothes. I gasped. “Oh my God, I totally wasn’t expecting to see all of that.” Averting my gaze, I held out the towel.
A sly smirk spread across his face. “You’ve seen me naked plenty of times before.” He handed me his shorts, then took the towel and wrapped it around his waist.
“Yeah, but I don’t remember any of it.” Without looking at him, I rushed back into the laundry room to throw his clothes in the dryer. There was no way I could sit in a room with him while he sat with just a towel covering his junk. It felt wrong. But then again, it was my fault because I told him I’d dry his clothes.
Grayson patted the spot beside him on the couch. “Wanna talk?”
“Actually,” I said, pointing up the stairs, “I think I’m going to take a quick shower. Do you mind?”
His smile slightly faded, but he nodded. “Go ahead. I’ll wait here.”
“Thanks.” My phone was in my back pocket and it vibrated. A rush flooded my body. Was it Luke? Turning on my heel, I flew up the stairs into my room. I didn’t want to look at my phone, but curiosity got the best of me.