Love Me Crazy

by M. N. Forgy

  His eyes cast down, his fingers locking with mine. My bracelets clink together as my hand tangles with his palm, our hands lining up with one another perfectly. Using his free hand, he swipes a finger over the lava bracelet wrapped around my wrist, the one my grandma gave me.

  “Why can’t I get you out of my head, River?” Holding my arm up, he wiggles my precious bracelet free and puts it on his wrist. I open my mouth to object, it means a lot to me. He can take another one of these bracelets, but not that one. He sits back, twisting the bracelet around his wrist, that charming smile hitting me so hard I shut my mouth. The black contrasting against his tan skin makes it look better on him for sure.

  “That bracelet means a lot to me, don’t lose it,” I side eye him.

  “I got it now, ain’t nothing going to happen to it.” I swear he’s like a fucking siren, luring me in with his looks and voice. He could get away with anything in this town, and he knows it. I know it, yet I won’t walk away.

  Liquid courage running thick through my veins, I become comfortable with the heights and lay flat on the metal platform, the sky darkening above us. Warner pulls his jacket off and folds it up, his calloused fingers raise my head before resting it back down on his letterman jacket. Situating himself beside me, his shirt slides up and a huge bruise peeks out beneath his shirt on his hip. What the?

  I sit up and pull his shirt up farther.

  “Oh my God, where did you get that?” He jerks his shirt down, his eyes narrowing in on me.

  “That is not from sports, it looks like someone kicked the shit out of you,” my eyes wide, I demand to know what happened. Is he bullied? In a gang?

  Sighing, he lays his head down on his jacket, resting his hands above his head.

  “Does my dad being an angry drunk count as a sport?” he breathes heavily, and my chest constricts. I don’t know what to say, so I just lay my head next to his. It makes me sick to think his dad abuses him. How long has it been going on? Does anyone else know?

  “Parents are a fucking joke,” I mumble, deciding not to pry.

  “Tell me about it,” he mumbles.

  “So enough about me. Tell me, why were you angry the night I met you, are you one of those girls that don’t smile and hides behind a grimace that will one day drown the world in tears?”

  My face contorts into a bored look. He can be such an asshole when he wants to change the subject.

  “I don’t think I’m an angry person, in fact, I usually just roll with whatever is thrown my way, but a person can only handle so much, and that day was mine. My virginity was almost taken without my consent because of something my parents dipped their hands in, and I was making sure that day… that the choice of who I have sex with… was mine.” My voice gets quiet thinking about it.

  “What do you mean?” Warner turns his head to look at me, but I keep my eyes up to the amber sky. My body going numb as I remember what happened to me. It’s not like I forgot, more like I just don’t want to think about it. God, it would feel good to tell someone though.

  Hands on my face, I blow out a breath that feels more like a burden.

  “I found out my parents were pulling a Ponzi scheme.”

  “A what?”

  “Like, they go around town to town telling people they can buy their land and make them rich, and they do… because they sell it to criminals who pay high amounts of money to do things on the down low on said property. I was used in this scheme without even knowing it. Friending the kids next door so my parents can get close to them and buy them out. Only, my parents sent me to the wrong house in the last town. The Chasings.”

  Just saying the last name of the boy who hurt me makes me want to hurl.

  “I was told to play nice with the Chasings’ son, his name was Brick, and my parents praised the ground he walked on. They were different with him than the other kids from towns they wanted me to befriend. They urged me to go out with Brick, and I didn’t even have a curfew. They wanted me to get close to him. Little did we know that the Chasings were just like the criminal type my parents sell to. One night at Brick’s house we were watching Netflix and Brick was drunk, I mean we were both drinking expensive wine, but he wanted to have sex. I didn’t like him like that. He tried to rape me on the floor of his two-story house.” My teeth grit, my eyes filling with tears as I replay the entire night over in my head. “When I broke free, he told me I was nobody, just a tool in my parents’ pocket and nobody would believe me. That my parents offed their own mom for getting in their way, that they wouldn’t give two fucks about me getting hurt as long as I don’t fuck up their clientele. I didn’t believe him, but when I told my parents what happened, they seemed more pissed about me messing up their sell than me.” Hearing me say what happened out loud for the first time ever, sounds strange, like it happened to someone else and I’m telling their story.

  “Fuck, River.” Sympathy wraps around his words, and it makes me feel vulnerable. Maybe I shouldn’t have told him all that, but he’s so easy to open up to I didn’t realize what I was revealing until now. I’ve never told anyone that story.

  Warner flips on his side and brushes a piece of my hair from my face. I give a tight-lipped smile.

  “Did we move because my parents wanted to protect me, or because my parents needed the thrill of tearing another town apart?” I ask him like he’ll have all the answers, but he just looks back at me with a blank stare.

  “It doesn’t matter, nobody is going to hurt you or touch you again.” His strong words almost make me want to believe it, but if my own parents don’t care about my wellbeing, how can anyone else?

  I smirk, trying to lighten the mood I say, “Sure of yourself, aren’t ya?”

  He grins, but the smile doesn’t quite reach his eyes. He’s serious. Nobody will touch me or hurt me if he has his way about it. The gesture wraps itself around my soul like barbwire, comforting me. I don’t want to ever leave Warner’s side.

  “Anyway, that night with you. I wanted you to replace the harsh touch of Brick with the caress of yours.”

  He doesn’t say anything. Both of us probably thinking about that night we met.

  Night blankets the sky, and the whiskey dances in my veins. Silence falling between us as we stare at the stars slowly blinking through darkness. There’s something about the night sky that draws me to it. The stars and moon, the open sky and dangers lurking in the dark. It summons me like a draft swishing through a back alley at night. Nobody sees or notices me, because everyone is too busy looking over their shoulder for the monster that might be lingering behind the shadows.

  “Do you ever think about just going, like getting in the car and just fucking going?” Warner asks, talking with his hands. He’s drunk. I laugh, my body rocking with the hard chuckle.

  “All the time,” my words slur. “No rules, no parents. Just wild and free,” I giggle.

  “You’d probably pick a Volkswagen bus to ride away in, Hippie,” Warner pokes fun.

  I shrug. “Yes!” I laugh, pointing at the sky. “The inside will be gutted out and have a bed, and the most colorful blankets and pillows.” Warner laughs, but I’m completely serious. It’s something I’ve always wanted. “It has to be baby blue though.” I see it all so clearly, I wish it were true.

  My eyes become heavy, my body numb. Being this close to the stars and the moon, I feel like I’m closer than ever to heaven. I blink slowly, sleep heavy on my lids.

  “Goodnight Warner,” I mumble into his letterman jacket, the smell of him lulling me to sleep.

  “Goodnight River,” he whispers, the smell of whiskey brushing past me.

  Waking up to lightning striking the sky, Warner stirs beside me. The wind picking up brings an angry smell with its presence. Rain. Leaves on the trees in the distance dance with the breeze, the sky lighting up as eclectic bolts slash through the clouds. It’s sexy, and my body vibrates in a way that has me biting my bottom lip. Glancing at Warner, his eyes meet mine, the storm whirling around us cont
aining us into our own atmosphere. I feel… wild and untamed just as the very storm blanketing above us.

  Sitting up, he tilts his head to the sky, his hair blowing with the hostile wind. On my knees, my dress whips around my waist, I can’t take my eyes off him, and I can’t shake this feeling throttling inside my body. I need him.

  Warner reaches for me, fisting my dress and jerking me toward him.

  I gulp the dryness in my throat and straddle his lap, my arms wrapping around his neck. The storm whispers in my ear to follow my body’s desire, and I kiss Warner hard. Our lips pressed against one another. Taking is his hands to my hips he grinds himself against my clit.

  Pulling my mouth away, my head lolls back and I moan to the sky, my hair whisking back and forth. Lightning crackles, a glow spreading across our bodies for a second at a time.

  “Do you wanna ride my cock, River?” he whispers into my ear, pushing my dress up. Wolfish eyes eat at me as he takes me in. I smirk, wanting him to touch me, kiss me, and never stop wanting me.

  “Fuck me, Nine.” I jerk at his unruly hair. Darting his head into the crook of my neck, my head dips back, his hands soaring up my arched back as lips spread across my skin. He’s everywhere at once, but not touching me near enough. I need more, I want more. Lowering myself back into his lap, I kiss him back, my hands on his face, I nip at his lips and suck the taste of him.

  He stops, eyes locking on mine. “I went to every party in the area after that night, hoping I’d see you again,” he confides, and it does something to me. It fuels me forward to knock down walls and give Warner every little piece of myself despite if I get hurt in the end.

  Never taking my eyes off his, I unzip his jeans and shove my hand down his pants. He sucks in a tight breath when the tips of my nails graze his cock. Fisting his length, my fingertips barely touch he’s so thick. Was he this big before? He hisses as if I’m torturing him with my prying fingers. The connection of my hand to his velvety dick makes me wetter than the rain starting to fall around us.

  My bracelets get caught in his jeans, and I have to wiggle my hand free to pull his cock free.

  Lightning strikes giving me a glimpse of the dick that took my innocence not so long ago. It’s veiny, big, and makes me throb and pulse with need. I run my finger over the slit, pre-cum dripping down the head. It’s so much bigger than I remember. Rain pelts down on us, my hair becoming damp, drops of wetness sticking to my eyelashes. Warner stares back at me, his chest rising and falling rapidly as his shirt spots and sticks to his skin.

  Mother Nature breathes down my neck, the rhythm of her dancing in the trees it’s almost as if she’s encouraging me to take Warner. Our connection right now stronger than anything I’ve ever felt before.

  Taking the tip of his velvety cock, I rub it in my wetness between my legs, and my knees tremble. Warner fists my ass cheeks with a hostile growl. Thunder pounding the sky seconds after. Our eyes locked on one another, we’re lost in our own atmosphere.

  “Your eyes, they’re mesmerizing, River,” he compliments, the palm of his hands caressing my ass cheeks like he truly adores me.

  “Don’t stop touching me,” I rasp.

  “NINE!” The strict voice cuts through the wind causing me to freeze, and Warner to tense beneath me.

  A bright light shines up at us, and I pull my dress down and scurry off of Warner. Someone’s here, shit!

  A sheriff’s golden SUV is parked alongside Warner’s truck and a man is flashing a light pointed right at us. How did we not hear him pull up? Or see car lights?

  “Warner is that you up there?” the male voice hollers. Does Warner know this sheriff?

  “Fuck!” Warner loud whispers, shoving himself back inside his jeans and looking down.

  “Who is that?” I ask, the rain starting to come down harder.

  Warner’s eyes flick to mine, his face conveying his annoyance. “Sheriff Randall,” Warner informs, his tone on the edge of dread.

  That doesn’t sound good. Shit!

  9

  River

  “If only Warner took after his dad, he’d of seen trouble before she took him up to that tower!” – Sheriff Randall

  “Get your asses down here, and now!” Sheriff Randall demands.

  Following Warner to the ladder, my heart begins to beat faster and faster. Will we be arrested? I’ve never had a run-in with the cops before.

  “Leave the whiskey,” Warner murmurs, cussing to himself as he begins to climb down. Looking at the whiskey bottle laying on its side, it’s half empty. We drank more than I thought we did.

  Climbing down, my dress and hair whip back and forth as the storm continues its fierce dance, I can’t help but think about everything that just happened. Even with a scary sheriff awaiting my arrival, and the unknowing thought of going to jail or not… I can’t help but smile, because I’d do it all over again.

  As soon as our feet hit the ground, the Sheriff is in our face with a bright light. I wince and look away. I’m too drunk for this. I’m in so much trouble.

  “Well, well, well!” he clicks his tongue.

  He shines the light directly in my face, causing me to have to look away, I have no idea what the Sheriff looks like because of how flashlight happy he is.

  “Who are you?” Assuming he’s talking to me, I raise my hand to block the light and open my mouth to answer.

  “I’m—”

  “She’s River Addington,” Warner answers for me. He does that a lot. I can’t tell if it’s a control thing, or if he’s doing it to protect me.

  “Ah, the new people that moved into town,” he nods, but the sound of his voice tells me he’s not happy about our arrival. I wonder if he knows what my parents do for money. Thunder booms in the sky so loud the ground vibrates. I can’t help risking a look at Warner, he’s staring at me too. Our eyes silently fucking each other. We would be if it wasn’t for this cock block sheriff.

  Suddenly a hand is in my line of sight, breaking my trance.

  “Hey!” The sheriff snaps his fingers. “Both of you, get in the back of my car. Now,” he demands, flashing the light on his golden SUV. Now that the light isn’t in my face I can get a good look at him. He’s tall and broad, wearing a sheriff’s hat and tan clothes. His face is smooth shaven, and his dark eyes cast a soulless lonely stare. Dropping my gaze, I notice no wedding ring. He’s married to the job, probably.

  “What about my truck?” Warner steps up, his arm outstretched and pointing in the direction of his red Ford. Sheriff Randall stops, turning the light back on us.

  “From the smell of you two, I don’t think you need to be driving!” Using my hand, I huff in my palm, the smell of stale whiskey pretty strong.

  “Why are you even here?” Warner starts to argue, pissed he has to leave his truck. I cross my arms curious to hear how he even knew we were up there.

  “You two are in serious shit, I wouldn’t press your luck. I could have you both thrown in the drunk tank tonight and booked for underage drinking!” He points at us. I roll my eyes and nudge Warner.

  “Just lock it up, it will be worse if our parents have to pick us up from the station,” I try and defuse the situation.

  Warner casts me a glance before shoving his hand down his pocket and clicking the lock button. His truck’s taillights lightening up indicating it’s locked.

  “Let’s go.” Randall waves his arm toward his SUV.

  Warner follows the Sheriff, and we both get in the back seat. The air conditioning on blast makes me shiver, and I have to cross my arms to keep my hard nipples from ripping through my top. Pushing my wet hair from my face, goosebumps begin to race up my arms as I buckle up. My parents are going to kill me.

  “You know this is private property, you can’t be up there, Warner.” Sheriff Randall doesn’t even acknowledge me as he types on his computer in the front seat.

  “We weren’t doing anything wrong,” Warner insists, looking out his window.

  Randall huffs. “Last time I c
hecked, you ain’t twenty-one.” My stomach drops with that comment.

  Sighing loudly, the Sheriff backs out of the gravel drive and heads back to the town. The ride is quiet, the town pitch black as everyone is asleep at this hour.

  My shoulder is nudged, and I glance at Warner.

  “You cold?” He raises a brow, looking my body over. He shimmies out of his letterman jacket and hands it to me before I answer. Wrapping it around my body the smell of him warms me up instantly.

  He grins, his eyes prancing around my body.

  “What?” I mouth silently, my cheeks hurt from smiling.

  “You look good in my jacket,” he approves. I smile.

  “Huh?” Sheriff Randall looks in the rearview mirror thinking Warner is talking to him.

  “Nothing,” Warner snaps. His hand is laying between us, I decide to cup it. I wonder if he’s nervous about his dad’s reaction when we pull up. He looks down at our hands, his brows furrowing. Maybe holding his hand was too much? He grasps my hand back and places it right on his hard-on, his mouth cocked open, he gives me that devilish look like he wants me to jerk him off in the back seat. Lips pursed, I tear my hand from his and he silently chuckles, happy with himself.

  Asshole. I flip him off and look out my window.

  We drive past Warner’s house and pull up to mine first. Butterflies swarm in my stomach, but not like the kind I get when I’m around Warner. These are more like a box of shaken wasps released in my gut.

  The front porch light kicks on, and my mother steps out with a blue silk robe on, my father in a red one right behind her. Their drawn faces tell me they’re not happy. Rain falling around them, the storm at its peak, they look like something from a horror movie. They must have been looking for me and called the local sheriff. I bet that’s how Randall found Warner and me.

  I give Warner a look telling him I’ll see him later, as the Sheriff opens my door and I climb out. My mother rushes out into the rain and wraps her arms around me.

  “Where the hell were you River? We’ve been worried sick!” she hollers in my ear before ushering me toward the house. I don’t answer her, I’m sure Sheriff Ass will tell her all about how he found me.