Beneath Our Faults

by Charity Ferrell

  My mind went back to the night I first saw her staring at me from the balcony. I was so intrigued with who those dark eyes belonged to. That's why I stopped and talked to Tommy the next morning, I needed to catch a glimpse of her again.

  She hiccupped. "I try to do what everyone says." She dragged out a deep breath. "You've got to keep living your life, Daisy. He's not coming back," she babbled, in a mocking tone. "How can I live my life without him?" Without thinking, I laced her hand in mine and ran my thumb over the top. My mom used to do that for me when I was younger and upset. I remembered how much it would soothe me. Her breathing was still rapid but I could sense it starting to slow down.

  Using my other hand, I moved the beer damp hair away from her face and behind her ear. "Do you want some more water?" I asked, but before she could answer my question, my phone vibrated in my pocket. Digging it out, I found Lane's name flashing across the screen. Thank god, I needed some backup.

  "Dude, where the fuck are you?" His voice yelled over the music. He must have been downstairs.

  "Spare bedroom. Meet me up here and bring your girlfriend," I said, trying my best to mask my anger so I didn't upset Daisy. I continued to stroke her hand and the whimpers subsided. The room was silent, except our breathing when the door flew open, causing us both to jump.

  Cora took one look at Daisy's blotchy face and wet clothes before turning her snarling scowl my way. "What the hell?"

  Daisy tucked her legs into her stomach, forming a ball with her limbs. "Yeah Cora, what the hell?" I yelled, repeating her own words. "I found her up here roaming around, drunk off her ass like a damn rat caught in a maze. Oh, and she almost fell down the stairs." Cora winced at my angry words. "Why the fuck weren't you or Gabby with her?" My body heated just thinking of what would have happened if someone else found her.

  Cora opened her mouth ready to spew out whatever bullshit excuse she had but Daisy beat her to it. "Please don't fight. I was just going to the bathroom but now I just want to go home," she said, trying to make her voice sound controlled. Her shaky hands bent down on the bed and she tried to push her body up to stand. Giving Cora a sharp look, I spun around to help Daisy get on her feet.

  "I'll take her home," Cora said, stomping up to us and trying to grab her from my hands. She failed as I moved Daisy behind my body. "Or she can stay at my house since that's where she told her aunt she was staying."

  "No," she demanded. "I want to go home."

  "We're neighbors, Cor. I've got this," I demanded, collecting Daisy in my arms. Cora's cold stare deadpanned on me. She didn't trust me with Daisy which was bullshit because it if wasn't for me who knows where the fuck her friend would be right now. Stretching across the bed, I grabbed a blanket and wrapped it around Daisy’s body.

  "Keegan, don't try any shit with her," Cora warned, standing in front of me with her bony finger in my face. I wanted to lean forward and bite it right off her hand.

  "You would really try to accuse me of that shit? What the fuck?" My anger elevated. She must be drunk if she thought I needed to get chicks wasted so I could hook up with them. I would never pull that shit. I only fucked willing and coherent girls.

  "Babe, damn. Chill out," Lane advised, clutching her around the waist and moving her away from me. His face turned serious. "Dude, you know Piper is going to freak the fuck out if she sees you leaving with her."

  "Do you think I could give two shits about how Piper feels?" I bit out.

  "Nooo," he drawled out. "But Daisy might when Piper pulls out her demoness bitch wrath on her." Shit. He had a point. "And you know she will." He added, to further prove his point.

  "I'll deal with Piper." I was going to make damn sure Piper didn't fuck with Daisy. "Let's just get her to the garage without anyone seeing us."

  "I'll call Gaby and tell her to start distracting," Cora added. Her hands snaked into Lane's pocket, fishing out his phone.

  "Good idea, babe," he replied, turning around and kissing her. God, he was so whipped it was sad.

  "Do you want some more water?" I asked Daisy, looking down at her in my arms. Cora was on the phone explaining the situation to Gabby, so we had some time to bide. She nodded and I sat her back down on the bed before handing over the cup. "Drink it slow, not too fast." I kept my hold on the cup, in case she got too carried away. She put her cold hand on top of mine, controlling the cup and drinking it hastily until it was empty.

  "We should be good to go," Cora announced, handing Lane's phone back to him. It was like we were on some secret mission. "You two pick her up and carry her to your car. I'm going to assist Gabby in our distraction strategy." She walked to the foot of the bed and gave Daisy a quick kiss on the cheek before leaving. "Call me when you get her home," she called out, walking out the door.

  "Alright, let's do this," Lane clapped his hands and ran his palms together. "How about you carry her and I'll be the view blocker."

  I nodded, gathering Daisy in my arms again with the blanket still wrapped around her. Surprisingly, no one was paying attention to the two guys carrying a body down the stairs. A laugh escaped me when I heard Gabby's ridiculously loud voice call out "body shots!" from the kitchen. Good job Gabby; body shots were always a great distraction.

  Lane, on the other hand, wasn't too happy with their plan. "Cora better not be doing any damn body shots," he muttered under his breath, opening up the door to the garage.

  "Thanks dude," I said, resting her in my passenger's seat. Bending down, I wrapped the seatbelt around her tiny frame and buckled her up before getting in the car.

  "Be careful," Lane cautioned, slapping his hand down on the front of my hood. I backed out of the garage. The driveway wasn't as packed as when I got there so the party was beginning to die down. I glanced down at the clock on my dash, noticing how late it was.

  I drove slow and took the back roads because I didn't want to risk us getting pulled over. A soft groan came from the seat next to me and her head drifted back into the headrest as her eyes fluttered closed. The drive remained silent with the few exceptions of her moans.

  "Don't take me home," she finally whispered, and I gave her a fleeting look. "I don't want them to tell my parents."

  "Huh?" I looked at her incredulously, not knowing what to do with her. "Where do you want to go then?"

  Her body shifted in the seat but her eyes stayed shut. "I think I changed my…." Words stopped when her hands clasped over her mouth. That could only mean one thing.

  A chilly wind rushed into the car as the passenger door flew open and the top half of her disappeared. I turned the steering wheel until we were parked on the side of the dimly lit road. The sound of her heaving up the contents of her stomach echoed through the dark night. I unbuckled my seatbelt, leaning over and grabbing as much of her hair as I could hold back. She continued to let loose and I rubbed my hands down her back, hoping she was making it out of my car and not giving it a regurgitated Daisy shower.

  Another grumble came from outside of the car and the heaving subsided. Releasing her hair, I opened up the glove compartment, grabbing a handful of napkins from my last food run. The door shut and she plopped back against the seat again. "You good?" I asked, handing over the napkins.

  "Sure," she muttered against the napkin at her mouth. "So gross." I watched her face twist up in revulsion and she balled the napkin up in her hand before setting it in the cup holder. "I seriously despise puking."

  "It's happened to the best of us," I reassured, trying to make her feel better. Shit, I've lost count of how many times I've puked on myself, other people and other shit. I patted her thigh with my hand gently but instantly removed it when I felt her entire body tense up at my touch.

  Cursing myself for my stupidity, I put the car back in drive and drove down the street while she violently tugged on her damn dress and avoided all eye contact. "We have three options.” I held one finger up. "One, I can take you home." She flashed those dark eyes at me, shaking her head at option one. I held up another finger. "T
wo, I can take you back to the party and you can stay at Lane's or Cora's?" She shook her head a second time. A third finger went up. "Or three, you can stay at my house." She didn't say anything for a minute while she contemplated her options in her head.

  "Your house it is," she answered, plopping her head down on my console. I shook my head at her choice, curious on how much more interesting this night was about to get.

  I LOVED when I had these dreams. I realized they were bad for me but I always wanted more. I moved my leg against the warm skin tangled against my own. Every nerve in my body came alive feeling his body rub roughly against mine. Sliding against the sheets, I snuggled closer into his touch, sensing the hot hand run up my leg slowly, leaving a trail of goose bumps in its path.

  The strong hand stopped at my thigh, rubbing it lightly and hitching it over his waist. I felt the weight of my head fall back against the bed and my breathing grow heavier. I slid my trembling hands up his hard chest, tracing the hard indentations of his six-pack. He moaned loudly, creeping his hands down and cupping my ass to pull me onto him harder. Sighing in pleasure, I stroked my hands over his bare body; his built chest, his six pack again and down his thigh before briefly sliding my hands between his legs over the thin material covering him.

  Another deep groan escaped his chest and I leaned back, allowing his lower body to push into me more forcefully to give me the full feel of the arousal I was giving him between his legs. My legs opened up slightly, spreading wider with an instant need to feel more of him against the hot spot between my legs that were already tingling with sensation but wanting more. My skin trembled with anticipation of his large hands moving up from my waist, rising up my shirt.

  The dream felt so real. I missed the feeling of someone else's skin rubbing against mine and hands discovering every inch of my body. My senses kicked into overdrive and we continued our pleasuring game of who could press into one another the hardest. The throbbing between my legs started grow antsy and I knew I was close, so close to feeling something I haven't had in months; something I had been craving from Tanner more than anything and I was going to get it from a dream. My mouth released one more moan quickly, waiting for the final pleasure moment until I felt a wet, sloppy tongue lick the side of my face. What the hell?

  My eyelids flew open at the same time another lick came my way, this time across my nose. I glanced up to see the small face of a tiny dog above me panting. I froze, worried that I had just been dreaming in bed with a dog or was I still dreaming because last time I had checked, I didn't have a dog.

  A chuckle beside me snapped me back into reality, assuring me I was not in a dream. I was not in my own bed and I had no clue who the dog beside me belonged to. More importantly, though, I needed to find out who was laughing beside me but at the same time, I was terrified to know.

  I inhaled a deep breath slowly, lifting up my head and gasping. My non-dream guy was NOT Tanner. Instead, my slut bag neighbor was lying in bed beside me with his head perched on his arm sporting a huge grin across his smug face. Shit! Crap! I glared into his jaded, green eyes that were staring straight back awaiting my reaction.

  My body sprang out of his bed like I was on fire. "What. The. Fuck. Keegan!" I screeched out each word, running my hands through my hair that was weirdly sticky. Ew. How did that happen? No more vodka for this girl.

  "Good morning to you too, sunshine," he greeted, looking up from the bed with a twinkle in his eye. "Do all girls really freak the fuck out like this in the morning? Thank god I never let them spend the night." He raised his body up, leaning his head against the padded headboard behind him. My gaze drew down his body to the blanket that was only covering up his lower half, giving me a full view of the six-pack I had just been molesting with my hands earlier. Damn, the boy was ripped. Like unreal ripped.

  I shook my head, trying to get rid of the awful thoughts that were trailing through my mind. No, stupid horny girl. You cannot jump into his bed and straddle your neighbor. I hated when my loneliness called out to me.

  That, or I was still drunk.

  Or maybe both.

  Guilt swept its way over those feelings of the reality I was just in bed with someone who wasn't Tanner. My heart started to race, making me grow panicky. "What am I doing here?" I hissed out at him and cringed when my brain suddenly rattled against my skull. My hands moved up to my temples, trying to rub some of the pain away. I felt like I was hit with a frying pan.

  "You don't remember?" He asked, tilting his head to the side.

  "If I did, I wouldn't be asking you."

  The tiny dog that had been bathing my face got up and curled into a ball by Keegan's side. My question went unanswered while he gave the dog a few pets down his back. I racked my brain in an attempt to remember everything that happened last night at the party. Power Puff costumes, check. Witnessing Piper go all bitchy on Cora, check. Drinking too much vodka and ignoring Gabby's protests against it, dumbass double check. Everything after that was a blur as to how I found myself there, in Keegan's bed.

  I raised my hand up, forgetting about my headache, smacking against my forehead causing me to wince out in pain. Idiot.

  His head twisted back and forth, stretching. "You drank too much and came here because you didn't want to get in trouble, then we went to bed. That's about it."

  "We didn't uhhhhhh." My voice trailed off waiting for him to finish my sentence and answer me. My eyes roamed around his bedroom looking everywhere but at him. His room had to be the master bedroom because it was gigantic. The walls were painted a light gray similar to mine. A few posters and pictures hung along the walls, but there was nothing personal. No pictures, sports memorabilia or anything like what used to be in Tanner's room. The room was pretty tidy for a guy's room except for the tiny pile of clothes lying on the floor. Other than that, it was pretty much spotless. I looked back and forth to each wall three times, still waiting on his answer and getting nothing. There was no way in hell my mouth was going to form those words out loud for him.

  "No Daisy," he rasped, blowing out a breath, "we didn't fuck last night so you can settle your fine ass down." Well, I wasn't thinking those exact words but it didn't surprise me he would call it "fucking." That's all he did with girls. Relief washed through me at his confirmation. Now, I just needed to get the hell out of there.

  I raced around the side of the bed, stepping over the pile of clothes on the floor, and rushed towards the door. Keegan jumped out of bed at the same time, beating me to my destination. The small rat below us started to jump around on his hind legs, loudly barking and causing the pounding in my head to throb faster. Keegan's bare-chested body formed a barrier between the door and me. Crossing his arms over his chest, his lips formed a smirk and my eyes traced down his body fully taking in his clothes, or lack thereof. The only thing covering his body was a tiny pair of boxer briefs that hung low on his hips, showing off the deep V that disappeared below them.

  "Where do you think you're going?" he asked. The tiny dog continued to yap, jumping around in tiny circles in an attempt to make my head explode. Keegan's fingers snapped loudly, getting the dog's attention. "No bark," he commanded, pointing his finger down at the suddenly silent, obedient dog.

  "Uh home," I spat out like duh. I attempted to maneuver around his body to get through the door, but he stopped me by putting an arm on each side of the doorframe. I stepped back, watching his chest in front of me move with laughter. Asshole.

  "What is so funny?" I demanded, narrowing my eyes. My hand was itching to smack the smile off his face.

  "You see," he started to explain, leaning back on the heels of his feet, "it would be very interesting to see you walk through your front door and explain why you're wearing that." I followed his gaze skimming down my body. Oh hell, the asshole had a point. A t-shirt two sizes too big was covering my upper half while an oversized pair of Nike shorts with the drawstring pulled tight was wrapped around my waist. Neither item belonging to me, but I had a hunch of who the owner
was.

  "Now I can't be positive," his index finger went to the edge of his mouth in a sarcastic gesture, "but I think that might be a dead giveaway you didn't stay at Cora's last night. Unless Cora has turned into a guy and in that case, I’d better let my cousin know." Shit. If my parents found out I was out partying all night, they would most likely force me to come home.

  "Where is my bag?" I asked, realizing this was an easy fix. He opened his mouth to say something, but I put my hand up. “Hold on, how the hell did I get out of my clothes and into yours?"

  "How do you know they're mine?"

  "Don't be an idiot," I snarled, annoyed. "Answer my question". My hand went to my hip and I kicked my leg out to the side.

  "Whoa, calm down there. You're going to scare Theo." Theo jumped at the sound of his name and nuzzled his head against Keegan's foot. "I had to change your clothes because you were so wasted off your ass you could barely stand, let alone take your clothes off. I didn't think you would want to sleep in puke and beer covered clothes, so I changed them. Plus, there was no way in hell I was letting you in my bed covered in that dirty shit." Sweet baby Jesus, he saw me puke and naked.

  The excruciating pain in my head magnified and insecurity sunk into my thoughts of him seeing my bare body. Warmth filled my cheeks, wondering what he thought about what he saw and how I compared to all the other girls he's seen.

  "Don't worry," he said, holding up his fingers in some sort of oath. "I didn't look at anything. Scouts honor.”

  I snorted. "You are far from a boy scout."

  "True," he snickered, "but I did eat the brownies." Oh my god! He didn't even try to control the obnoxious grin..