“She found a girlfriend.”
“Ouch.” But this news makes me feel better about him. Contrary to what some idiots think, there’s no way he drove her to it. It means he might be perfect after all, even though I know there’s no such thing.
“So what specialty do you want to study?” I ask, licking chocolate mousse off my spoon.
He’s watching my mouth, and I can’t help comparing my reaction to him with my reaction to Reed. If Reed were watching me lick this spoon, my panties would most likely evaporate. But while I like Brandon watching me, it’s more in terms of victory. He’s interested. Score one for me.
So what the hell is wrong with me? Brandon is everything I’m looking for, but I’ve spent most of this dinner fantasizing about Reed standing in the doorway of my apartment.
Picking up Tina, I remind myself. He stood in the doorway of my apartment picking up Tina. Not me.
Why am I focusing on a destined-to-be-middle-class college professor?
Brandon leans forward with a serious expression. “I’ve failed you.”
My breath sticks in my chest. Has he read my mind? Did I say what I was thinking out loud? “How so?” I force out.
“We’ve spent the last hour without once discussing your project.” He reaches into his suit coat pocket, pulls out a folded piece of paper and sets it on the table. “Now keep in mind, I didn’t know what kind of look you were going for, so this is just a first attempt.”
He unfolds the white paper and spreads it open. He’s drawn stick people with triangle dresses and rectangle pants. “I thought maybe you could go with a geometric theme.” He points to one figure wearing a triangle on top of his head. “I even added an accessory here.”
I cover my mouth to contain my giggles. “Is that a hat?”
His eyes widen. “Are you serious? You have to ask?”
I try to look serious, but fail miserably. “I’m sorry. What was I thinking?”
He shrugs with a teasing smile. “It was my first attempt. I’m open to revisions.”
This is the sweetest thing that any guy has ever done for me. I cover his hand with my own. “I absolutely love your designs. Thank you.”
The look in his eyes tells me that if he were closer he’d kiss me.
“Let’s get out of here.” His voice is husky as he waves down our waitress.
I’m torn. I really like this guy but Reed has screwed with my head and my hormones. I really, really want to feel something with Brandon. I just need to give him a chance. “Okay.”
After he pays, he helps me out of my chair and presses his hand to the small of my back, steering me toward the door.
“Would you like to go dancing?” Brandon asks.
Dancing seems safe. I suspect Brandon is capable of keeping his hands in publicly acceptable places. “Eager to show me your foxtrot?” I tease.
His eyebrows rise in mock admonition. “You joke now, but once you see the foxtrot unleashed, you’ll be completely underwhelmed.”
I laugh. “I’m preparing myself.”
We banter lightheartedly on the drive over. Brandon is quick-witted and fun to talk to, but something is missing.
That damned Reed Pendergraft. This is all his fault. I plan to fix this tonight, one way or the other.
Chapter Twelve
I’m cursed. I’m not sure what I’ve done in a prior life, but my karma sucks.
Tina is at the club with Reed.
Brandon doesn’t notice as we find a table, and I consider telling him that I want to go somewhere else. But Reed sees me, watching as we walk through the crowd. My pride refuses to let him see how he affects me.
“Do you want a drink?” Brandon asks.
“God, yes.” Classy Caroline. “Seven and Seven.”
Brandon doesn’t seem to notice my comment. I sit at the table and he makes his way to the bar.
We’re overdressed for this place. Belvedere’s is one of three clubs that Southern students tend to hang out at. The Voodoo Lounge, the club I went to with Dylan, features live music. Tina usually frequents another bar, Luna’s, the one we dragged Scarlett to last winter. When Brandon mentioned Belvedere’s, I figured I was safe, especially since it’s a little more upscale. I figured wrong.
Not that I thought Reed would willingly subject himself to coming here, but then again, he was at the Voodoo Lounge. Why wouldn’t he come here?
Perhaps because he’s looked miserable both times.
Brandon returns with our drinks. His eyes are on me as he takes a sip of what looks like whiskey. “Have I mentioned how beautiful you look tonight?”
I grin and lift an eyebrow. “No, as a matter of fact, you haven’t since you picked me up.”
He slips closer to me and leans over to my ear. “You look beautiful.”
His breath tickles my ear and I wait for heat to wash through my body, but nothing happens other than a mild excitement.
“Hey, there.”
I recognize the voice before I look over at her. “Hi, Lexi.”
She’s parked herself in a chair at our table.
“Aren’t you too young to be here?” I ask.
She grins. “These things can be easily taken care of.”
“Fake ID, huh?”
She gives a half shrug with a smug look.
“I’m surprised your brother approves.” I purposely leave Reed’s name out of the conversation.
She shrugs again. Perhaps that explains his current crankiness. I’m not sure what explains his surliness the rest of the time.
Brandon watches our exchange with interest.
“Brandon, this is Lexi. Lexi, this is my date, Brandon.” I stress the word date. Her obvious matchmaking yesterday with me and Reed needs to be discouraged.
Lexi turns toward Brandon and gives him a dazzling smile, and I feel like I’m in some cheesy movie.
Brandon’s face lights up and he can’t tear his eyes from her. “Hi.”
They stare at each other for several seconds.
This is awkward.
As though Brandon can read my mind, he remembers I’m sitting here. “Uh, how do you know Lexi?”
“She’s on the fashion show committee.”
Brandon turns back to Lexi. “Are you a design student?”
Her eyelashes flutter and she shakes her head. “No, a business major.”
He’s even more intrigued. “How did a business major get on the committee?”
Lexi gives him an explanation about the foundation while I down my drink. Goddamn my luck with men.
“So you know Reed Pendergraft?” Brandon’s eyes darken.
I lean forward, my coordination slightly off. I had half a bottle of wine at dinner and I just drank my Seven and Seven in less than five minutes. “Of course, she knows Reed.” I look at Lexi raising my eyebrows and hoping she gets my point. “He’s on the committee.”
She seems to grasp that I don’t want her to spill that he’s her brother. Her eyebrows lift. “That Reed’s a handful.”
I choke on the last of my drink, and they both turn to me.
“Are you okay?” Lexi asks.
“Yeah, fine.” I stand. “I think I’m going to run to the bathroom.”
Lexi looks up with a questioning glance.
“You stay with Brandon. I’ll be right back.”
On my way to the restroom, I see Reed with Tina. His attention is on Tina, but he looks unhappy. Not that she seems to notice. She’s laughing with her friends, all non-math students. Tina’s not the usual math department student. She actually has a social life.
I still haven’t figured out where Reed fits on the social scale. If the scale is one to ten, Scarlett rates about a three. Tina is an eleven.
Thankfully, it’s early enough that the restroom doesn’t have a line. I check my appearance. All still good, not that it matters. Brandon’s completely taken with Lexi. I should be angry. I should be frustrated. Instead, I’m ambivalent, and I don’t understand it at all. Brandon
is everything I’m looking for, and I’m fixated on Reed.
I need another drink.
I stop at the bar and order another Seven and Seven when I feel him behind me. How can I know it’s him before he even says a word? But I do. It’s as though my body is tuned into his, a frequency that no one has ever come close to matching.
The bartender brings my drink, and I realize I don’t have my purse. But Reed senses my conundrum and silently places a folded bill on the bar. The bartender takes the money and walks away as I take a sip, trying to hide my shaky hand.
Reed continues to stand behind me and as much as I hate it, this man sends electrical currents racing through my body and wicked thoughts through my head. I feel his eyes looking over my shoulder, checking out my cleavage. I’m flushed and the hair on my arms stands on end. Every part of me aches, and it pisses me off that the thing it aches for is the asshat behind me.
I down my drink in several seconds, bang it on the bar then spin around to tell him off. But when I face him, the words stop on my tongue. The look in his eyes is primal, a stark contrast to his usual prim and proper self.
I have never wanted anything more, propriety be damned.
I grab a handful of his shirt and pull him down toward me. “You. Come with me.”
His eyes widen, but I pull him down the hall to the back storeroom. I jerk the door open and drag him in with me then push him against the door as I close it. His shirt is fisted in my hand, and I maintain my grip, pulling him toward me, as my other hand reaches for the back of his head. I grab a handful of his hair to hold him in place as I press my mouth to his.
If I expected him to protest, I would have been wrong. I’ve released him from whatever has held him back. A low growl escapes into my mouth, and his tongue follows it. His arms wrap around my back and pull me to his chest, crushing my hand between us as he takes control.
His mouth is punishing as he claims mine. Simmering anger ignites my desire, a strange mixture of hate and lust. The concoction makes me so hot I want to strip off my clothes. And strip off his. I want to see what’s under his shirt. I want to feel his skin under my fingertips.
And it pisses me off.
This isn’t me. This isn’t who I am, a sex-craved possessed woman. He’s ruining everything.
His hands slide down my back, cupping my ass and pressing his pelvis firmly against me, so there’s no doubt he wants me as much as I want him. I lift a leg and wrap it around his waist, pressing myself closer to the bulge in his jeans.
A low rumble vibrates his chest as I grab the bottom of his shirt and jerk it up, breaking contact with his mouth as I pull it over his head.
I lean back to examine the fruits of my labor, barely getting a glimpse of his broad chest and toned stomach, when one of his hands grabs the hair at the nape of my neck, tilting back my head, giving him full access to my mouth. His tongue searches my mouth, demanding my own to join with his.
His other hand glides over my ass to my leg, jerking the hem of my dress up so his fingertips brush the back of my thigh as they slide up and hook under the edge of my panties. He palms my butt cheek, pulling me closer. I press against him, desperate to fill this craving for him, pissed at him for turning me into this person I don’t recognize.
His mouth tears from mine and he growls, “You drive me fucking crazy.” He releases my hair then pushes my leg off his waist. I’m about to offer my protest when he slides my panties down over my hips in one fluid motion. They fall to my ankles and I step out of them as I reach for the front of his jeans, fumbling with the button. He groans and helps me but when he gets the button undone, I reach for his zipper, unzipping his pants, then reaching inside and stroking his erection. He groans and presses himself into my hand.
He finds the zipper at the back of my dress then tugs the straps off my shoulders, jerking the front of my dress down to expose my black strapless bra. Then suddenly, his mouth is on mine again, bruising as he claims me. His arm pins me to him while one hand finds my breast and slips under the cup of my bra. He fondles my nipple, making me gasp, but his mouth continues its onslaught as his fingers send a bolt of want straight to my pelvis.
“God, I want you,” he mumbles against my lips as his hand leaves my breast. I’m about to complain when he slips his fingers between my legs, finding the spot that makes my knees buckle. His arm holds me up while his fingers continue their torture, and I moan. “Reed.”
He’s got me so worked up that I’m ready to beg him. He lifts me up and sets me on the edge of a table, tugging up my dress and exposing me. He pulls the front of my bra down so that every private part of me is exposed to him, but instead of shame or embarrassment the raw desire in his eyes makes me bold.
He pulls a foil square from his pocket, quickly slipping on a condom, then he kisses me roughly, his tongue plunging into my mouth as he enters me in one full stroke.
I cling to his neck and wrap my legs around his waist, as one of his arms circles around my back, holding me in place. He pulls back and enters again.
I lean my head back and groan. His mouth moves down my neck, licking as he slows to short strokes.
The ache deep inside me builds, begging for more.
His mouth lowers to my breast, licking and nipping until I moan. “Reed.” I press my hips into his, grinding into him.
The arm around my back pulls me up and his mouth moves to my neck. I cling to him as his pace quickens and the pressure in my pelvis builds. He’s frantic as though he can’t get deep enough and I match his need. My feet lock around his back and he lifts me off the table and moves to the side, pressing my back into the wall. He continues his punishing pace and I’m climbing to a level I’ve never reached before, teetering on the edge of oblivion. And then he plunges deeper and I break, losing all control and crying out. His mouth covers mine as he pushes deeper still and he groans loud and long into my mouth.
When he stops, he turns to set me on the table, still inside me. His hands cup my face as he looks into my eyes, filled with wonder and lust. The sight of his desire kindles the flame in my gut, and I’m ready to go another round, but the doorknob shakes. We both jerk to reality. We’re in a storeroom in various states of undress. Alarm spreads across his face, and he blocks the door.
I scramble off the table pulling up the front of my dress as I search for my panties.
Oh, God. I can’t find them.
I look up at Reed, but he’s bent over, picking up his shirt off the floor and pulling it over his head.
Shit.
The door opens, and Reed pulls me against his chest, turning me away from the door and zipping my dress. He kisses me long and slow. I wonder why he’s kissing me when we’ve been caught. The sex-crazed maniac he’s turned me into craves him all over again.
The door opens and a guy grumbles. “Get a room.”
Reed lifts his head and grins at the employee. “What do you think I’m doing? How about you leave so I can get lucky?”
I want to cry with gratitude. Reed’s saving me from embarrassment.
“How about you do it somewhere else?” The guy holds the door open, waiting.
Reed keeps an arm around my back and escorts me out the door, then pushes me against the wall, kissing me again. When the employee leaves the storeroom and walks past us, Reed lifts his head, resolve replacing his lust.
“This was a mistake.”
“Excuse me?” I’ve never experienced anything like I just had with him. And now he’s calling it a mistake?
He takes a step back, the man who fucked me senseless retreating behind his wall of disdain. “Caroline, we’re both here with other people.”
Oh, dear God. He’s right.
How in the hell could I forget that?
What is this hold he has over me? It has to be chemistry or powerful pheromones. Voodoo. Only something unearthly would make me behave this way. Tears fill my eyes at the realization. I just did what every guy in high school thought I did. For three years, I’ve been
so careful with my reputation, careful to not give anyone just cause to call me a slut. Look at me now.
“I have to go to the bathroom.” I push past him toward the restroom door, but he grabs my arm and pulls me to his chest.
“Caroline.”
I look up and the disgust on his face rips away my last shred of dignity.
Anger roars in my head. Anger at him but mostly anger at me. I’m a fucking idiot. “You got what you wanted, Reed. Congratulations. You just achieved what every guy in my high school and a good portion of the guys at Southern hoped to achieve: a quick fuck with Caroline Hunter. You’re the lucky winner, but don’t worry.” Hate rushes through my blood and disgust because this close to him, I still want him. I still ache for him even after what he’s done. I am a complete fucking idiot. “I won’t make that mistake again.”
I jerk out of his hold, and shove the bathroom door open and hide inside.
I can’t stay here long. He’s right. We’re both here with someone else. And even as infatuated as Brandon was with Lexi, one of them is bound to notice I’ve been gone awhile.
I need to pull myself together. I can lose it when I get home, but not now.
I can’t face Reed again and not crumble, and I’m scared Reed will be in the hall when I open the door, but he’s gone. I’m equally relieved and devastated. What I expect from him at this point is beyond me.
I feign a half-smile when I reach the table. Brandon and Lexi are deep in conversation, and they look up, surprised to see me. If I had even half the feelings for Brandon that I feel with Reed, I’d fight for him. For the possibilities of what we could have. But every fucking relationship I’ve ever had doesn’t even come close to what I just had with Reed. I want to burst into tears. Instead, I grimace. “I have a headache.”
Concern washes over Brandon’s face, but I hold my hand up in reassurance.
“It’s only a small one, but I ran into a friend and she’s offered to take me home.”
“No.” Brandon reaches for his jacket. “You’re my date. I should take you home.”
Disappointment and guilt flood Lexi’s eyes.
At least one of us should be happy. Why is it always someone other than me? I pick up my purse and wrap and smile at Brandon. “You’re a wonderful guy, but you don’t deserve someone like me.” No, he doesn’t deserve a girlfriend who fucks another guy in a bar storeroom while on a date with him. “Thank you for dinner, but I’ve got a ride home, so stay with Lexi.”
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