“We can talk about this later,” he told her. “I don’t want to keep Rose waiting and it’s a good thirty minute walk back to the house so I better get to it or it will be too late to call you.”
“You walked here?”
“I needed some time to think,” he shrugged.
“About us?”
It was all he could do to keep the grimace off his face. “You do have a way of invading a man’s thoughts,” Will answered truthfully.
“I’m happy to hear that. I guess I should let you go…” she let her voice trail off as she leaned into him, clearly expecting a kiss good-bye.
His intention of leaving one small, chaste kiss on her cheek was quickly overthrown when McKinley locked her arms around his neck just as he lowered his head. He supposed the slow, seductive kiss she laid on him was meant to drive out every thought in his head, and in a way she was nearly successful but for one small memory that kept dancing around and around. For some insane reason, he couldn’t stop thinking about the laughter in Serena’s voice when she’d said, “So you’re saying that your reputation as a fantastic kisser began with kiss-and-tell-Mel?”
“Always leave them smiling and wanting more,” McKinley laughed as she pulled away from him and got into her car.
It wasn’t until after she had driven away that he realized he was standing there with a silly grin pasted on his face. He could only imagine how furious she would have been to learn it was the thought of Serena evoking the love-sick expression he was sporting and not McKinley’s amorous kiss. Turning back towards the house, Will’s mood instantly shifted when he saw Rose cross her arms and skewer him with a reproachful stare. Oh, hell no, he was not going to let her subject him to a lecture about kissing McKinley after the way she had offered him up as a sacrifice.
“We need to talk,” Rose said with a definite edge to her voice.
“Damn right we do,” he shot back, ignoring the look of astonishment on her face as he strode past her and went inside.
Chapter 5
Rose had the good sense to look contrite after Will finally stopped ranting. “All right, maybe I did take it a little too far by urging you to walk McKinley to her car…”
“Maybe? Rose, she was all over me on the porch. Did you honestly think she was going to be satisfied with a handshake once she got me alone?”
“I’m sorry, but I had to do something before she questioned why I needed your help choosing a roofer. She may be rotten to the core, but that niece of mine is sharp and I couldn’t take the chance she would figure out there is more going on here than meets the eye.”
“So you throw me under the bus?”
“I didn’t exactly throw you under the bus,” she said, plucking a piece of imaginary lint off the sofa cushion. “I figured you would volunteer to crawl under there yourself after I told you what McKinley said about your…mutual attraction to each other.”
“Which you knew was a lie the moment the words left her mouth,” Will said with an accusatory glare. He had been pacing back and forth ever since she joined him in the living room, but it only seemed to increase his level of anxiety so he sat down in the easy chair beside the sofa. “I’m sorry for getting so worked up. We need to pull together on this and come up with a course of action before McKinley destroys everything.”
“I agree, but until we know what she is up to, I’m not sure what we can do to stop her.”
“I think I can shed a little light on that one. She doesn’t like it that I live with Serena. She said my being there would stir up memories and cause Serena to have a break down.”
“Do you honestly believe she doesn’t want you there because she’s concerned about Serena?”
“Do you?”
“No, of course not. McKinley loves Serena in her own way but she would never put her sister’s needs…or desires above her own. I knew she was up to something when she came here tonight and tried to convince me that you were irresistibly drawn to each other, but I didn’t dare let on I knew she was making the whole thing up.”
“Any idea why she’s trying to drive a wedge between me and Serena or why she would high tail it over here to involve you in her fairy tales?”
“Isn’t it obvious? She wants you, Will, and she’s going to get you by hook or by crook.”
Will shook his head. “No, it runs deeper than that, I’m sure of it. She deliberately waited until Serena was there to bring up the night her boyfriend caught us kissing, and I think she did it to test the waters…to see how close Serena and I had gotten.”
“Why would that matter? If she doesn’t want you for herself, why would she care if there was anything between you and Serena?”
“I’m not sure, but she seemed overly concerned about Serena remembering what happened the night she was attacked.”
The color drained from Rose’s face. “You don’t think McKinley had anything to do with that, do you?”
“I don’t see how she could, but I can’t think of any other reason why she wouldn’t want Serena to remember. Assuming McKinley has something to hide about that night, it would explain why she tried to destroy Serena’s trust in me.”
“It would explain why she came here too,” Rose nodded thoughtfully. “She knows how close Serena and I have always been; naturally, she would presume if Serena was going to confide in anyone, it would be me.”
“So McKinley was trying to get a rise out of you by saying I was dying to jump in the sack with her. If you had acted the least bit upset, it would have proved you either knew there was more than just a friendship between Serena and me or that you hoped there was. Smart move on your part to act like you believed McKinley’s story, even if you did go overboard by suggesting we get together when I’m done here.”
“It was your penance for almost blowing it when you unlatched her tentacles and made sure there was a good two feet of space between you,” Rose admonished. “At any rate, I think I managed to throw her off the trail, but you were the one who cinched it by kissing her.”
“I did not kiss her,” Will replied stiffly, “she kissed me.”
Rose arched a brow. “You didn’t seem too put off by it. As a matter of fact, you looked as if you enjoyed it.”
“Because I was thinking of Serena.”
Rose’s face lit up. “Are you telling me you’ve actually kissed Serena?”
“No, so don’t go breaking out the champagne.”
“What are you waiting for?”
Will hoped he didn’t sound as miserable as he felt. “I have been asking myself that same question for quite some time now, Rose, and I still don’t know the answer.”
***
It is not the end of the world, Serena told herself, even though it felt as if it was. Will and McKinley had left hours ago and every minute he’d been gone was more agonizing than the last. She had visions of them dining together; imagined them laughing and flirting their way through the meal then going back to McKinley’s house where they would fall into each other’s arms, unable to resist the attraction that had grown stronger throughout the evening. Her stomach twisted into knots when she thought of them kissing, but she refused to let her mind torture her with what had undoubtedly followed.
God, how spineless she was; pushing Will away because she was afraid of the feelings he stirred inside of her. She’d heard the disappointment in his voice when she told him to go with McKinley, and yet she let him leave anyway. Even worse, she made him believe she wanted him to pursue a relationship with her sister. Given the choice between a frigid blind woman and a sexually uninhibited bomb shell, what had she expected him to do? What would any man do under the same circumstances?
Serena let out an unhappy sigh as she climbed into bed. Somehow, she had to find a way to conquer the past, only then would she be free to offer Will the love she so desperately wanted to give him. Or was it already too late? If he didn’t come home tonight, she would know the answer. If he didn’t come home tonight…Serena buried her face in her pillow in a
futile attempt to drown out her own thoughts. The last thing she remembered before exhaustion overtook her was the soft whimper from Rufus as he flopped his head over the side of the mattress.
***
“Hold her down, she’s getting a little squirrely.”
“Maybe she needs a drink to help loosen her up a bit. Hey, someone pass me a beer, will ya?”
Oh God, oh God, oh God, what were they doing to her? She opened her mouth to scream but the only noise that came out was a gurgling sound as something cold and bitter was poured down her throat. Drowning. She was drowning! Coughing and sputtering, she jerked her head to the side, unaware that her dress had been pushed up to her waist until she was shocked by the feel of bare skin against her exposed flesh.
“Come on guys, help me out here. Hold her arms and legs so I can get her damn panties off.”
“She’s fighting awful hard, Randy. Maybe we shouldn’t…”
“Of course she’s fighting, it’s part of the game. Her sister does the same the thing; fights like a wild cat then purrs the moment you stick it to her. We all know what a slut McKinley is, and little sister here learned from the best. Now shut up and hold her down while I…”
Pain speared through her; sharp, stabbing, excruciating pain that grew more intense with each wild thrust of his hips. Why was he doing this to her? It hurt. Oh God, it hurt, it hurt, it hurt.
“That’s it baby, we’re almost…there…”
The air was forced from her lungs when he fell over her, panting and groaning and reeking of beer. He rolled away from her and there was a moment of relief as the throbbing pain began to ease and she was able to drag in much needed oxygen. Then to her horror another boy took his place, shoving into her so hard she felt her muscles tear and the heat of her own blood, his grunts drowning out the sound of her strangled sobs. She squeezed her eyes shut to block out the sight of his contorted features and the faces of the others who hovered over her, egging him on. The sound of her heartbeat thundered in her ears, but she could still hear them laughing, taunting, hooping as yet another of them took his turn.
“Whoever lasts the longest gets to take her to the prom,” one of them shouted above the din.
She sank into the darkness, let it envelope her, let it erase the memory of their faces and the terrible things they were doing to her. When it was finally over and they let go of her arms and legs, she didn’t move for fear it would draw their attention and they would hurt her again. For several minutes there was nothing but the sound of scuffling feet and a few hushed remarks about removing evidence as they collected their beer cans. Then one of them leaned over her and croaked out that he thought she was dead. Maybe she was. She hoped she was.
“She’s not dead, you moron, she just passed out from the euphoria of being nailed by half the defensive line.”
“Yeah, right. So who won the honor of taking her to the prom?”
“That would be me,” someone replied as he nudged her with his foot, “but I sure as hell ain’t taking this little whore.”
Drunken laughter followed but she still didn’t move or make a sound, not even when the one leaning over her gently brushed the tangled hair from her face and whispered in her ear that he was sorry. She lay there long after they had gone, too numb to feel anything but a heavy sadness for what they’d taken from her. How could she face her parents, her brothers, McKinley, her friends? And Will…how could she bear to look into those dark eyes and see the loathing and condemnation for what had happened? She couldn’t do it. No, her only option was to stay where she was, in the blessed darkness where no one could see her and she couldn’t see them. The darkness would protect her.
***
He’d barely reached the end of the block when his cell phone went off. Will absently pulled it from his shirt pocket, groaning out loud when he checked the caller I.D. and saw it was McKinley. How the hell had she gotten his number? He glanced back at Rose’s house but quickly dismissed the idea that Rose would have given it to her. Well, there was one sure fire way of finding out, and that was to come right out and ask her.
“McKinley, how…”
“I know I was supposed to wait for you to call but it suddenly occurred to me that you might need a ride home.”
Good God, that’s all he needed; McKinley giving him a lift home then inviting herself in. “Thanks, but I’m actually only a few blocks from the house. I was going to call you in a few minutes but you beat me to the punch. I must be losing my mind,” he forced a soft laugh, “I don’t even remember giving you my number.”
“You didn’t exactly give it to me,” she confessed. “When I…uh…was plugging my number into your cell phone, I dialed my own phone so my caller I.D. would pick it up. You aren’t mad at me, are you?”
Biting back the truth, he replied, “Not at all. Listen, McKinley, I didn’t expect to stay so long at Rose’s. I have a lot of studying to plow through tonight so we’ll have to get together another time.”
“When?”
Will fought to keep the irritation out of his voice. “I don’t know. Soon.”
“Soon? What kind of answer is that?”
Her tone was sharp, waspish, and if he wasn’t so sure Rose would wring his neck for doing it, he would have disconnected the call and turned the phone off without bothering to answer the question. But of course he couldn’t do that, not when McKinley’s claws were already drawn and he had no way of knowing if it was him or Serena that would feel the sting of her wrath. No, better to smooth her ruffled feathers and play it safe for now.
“Sorry for sounding so abrupt. It’s been a long day and I still have an exam to study for so I probably won’t have any free time until Saturday.”
“Great, it’s a date then. I’ll even make you dinner so we can just relax afterwards and…see where it leads”
Will stopped walking. His mind seemed to have stopped too because he couldn’t process what was happening fast enough to think his way out of it before McKinley rattled off her address and told him to be there at seven. He shoved the phone back in his pocket and picked up the pace, mumbling under his breath all the way home. His tolerance for pain was high but he did have his limits and there was absolutely no way he was going to spend the evening alone with McKinley. Besides, there was someone else he had to consider, to protect. Serena would be hurt if she ever found out…correction, when she found out; McKinley would make sure of that.
Trudging up the stairs to his room, Will had the uneasy feeling the fallout from calling off the date with McKinley could be an even more disastrous than keeping it. How had everything gone downhill so fast? Was his relationship with Serena really so precarious it could be shattered by McKinley’s lies and schemes? The unhappy answer to that was yes. Unless…
Will paused at the top of the landing. What if he told Serena what he and Rose suspected her sister was up to? She might have her doubts about trusting him, but with Rose backing him up she would have to at least consider the possibility McKinley was deliberately setting him up for a fall. Serena never came right out and said anything bad about McKinley, but he had detected a note of disapproval in her voice on those rare occasions when he’d gotten her to talk about her childhood. Maybe she was hesitant to draw attention to McKinley’s faults, but she certainly wasn’t oblivious to them. Which meant he might just have a shot at beating McKinley at her own game after all.
Honesty. Trust. They went hand in hand, didn’t they?
Will retraced his steps and headed down the hallway to Serena’s room. He stood outside the door for several minutes, surprised by the sudden onslaught of jittery nerves. What if she didn’t believe him? What if she refused to believe McKinley could be so devious? He wasn’t sure how he would handle it if she wouldn’t listen to him. He only knew he had to try. Maybe it was time to be honest about a few other things too; like how he really felt about her.
***
Whether it was the sound of creaking floorboards or the feel of Rufus licking her hand that w
oke her, Serena wasn’t sure. Her mouth was dry but her eyes were wet, and the dampness on her pillow was proof the nightmares had started up again, although she remembered very little of it. She sat up slowly, wiping away the tears before reaching across the bed to stroke Rufus’ head. Her insides were shaking, her throat raw, but she still took a minute to say a few soothing words to the only true friend she had.
“I’m sorry you have to go through this with me every time,” she rasped hoarsely. Serena leaned over and planted a kiss on the top of his head. “I’m glad you’re here though. Now scoot your furry butt over so I can get a drink of water.”
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