Discovering Zhara: Kissing Benton (Bad Boy Rebels Book 1)

by Jessica Sorensen

  I don’t know…

  Before I can make a decision, the bathroom door flies open. I jump back, my cheeks flushing and my heart racing. Benton blinks at me, looking dazed. And confused. And worried.

  “Zhara, I—”

  “Dude, Benton, there’s some people at the front door that say they need to talk to you. They look like bodyguards or bikers or some shit.” A guy we went to school with is standing in the doorway, glancing back and forth between us with perplexity written all over his face.

  Benton lets out a string of curses as he starts to stand to his feet. “Sorry,” he says to me, then walks out of the bathroom.

  I watch him go, utterly puzzled over what he’s sorry for. Leaving me? Or kissing me?

  Kissing?

  Reality slaps me across the face.

  Oh my Gosh, I just had my first kiss with a guy I barely know.

  The thought makes my head spin because I’m unsure whether what I did is right or wrong. Would my mom have been disappointed in me? Or is this normal?

  I don’t know what to think or do, my mind racing a million miles a minute. Sensing a panic attack coming on, I get up, hurry out of the bathroom, and power walk out of the house, leaving the party without so much as a glance back. When I reach the bottom of the stairway, I notice Benton in the parking lot, talking to two large guys wearing leather jackets and sunglasses. He looks worried and upset. As I start toward the sidewalk, he catches my eye and stares at me with his brow furrowed.

  Then suddenly his eyes light up. “Hey, Zhara, can you come here for a minute?” he calls out, giving me a pleading look.

  I hesitate, wanting to continue running home. But ultimately, Benton’s begging stare wins me over and I walk over to him.

  “Hey,” I say to him, unsure what else to say.

  He offers me a cocky smile, but beneath the arrogant demeanor resides a hint of worry. “Zhara, I’d like you to meet Tank and Ralpho.”

  Tank and Ralpho… what strange names. Even stranger, though, is why is Benton introducing me to them?

  “Um, hey.” I give them a tentative wave, then glance at Benton, lost.

  He gives me another pressing look before turning back to the two guys. “Tank and Ralpho, I’d like you to meet my girlfriend. You know, the one I’ve been telling you about—who all of us have been telling you about.”

  All of us? Huh?

  The guys stare at me with their sunglasses still on so I can’t see their eyes, which makes me feel extremely unnerved.

  “Hey,” they both grumble, frowning in disappointment.

  Their reaction throws me off. Disappointed? Why would they act…

  Wait a second!

  I rewind through what Benton just said and my jaw nearly ninja kicks the asphalt. Girlfriend? Did he just refer to me as his girlfriend?

  “So, as you can see, we weren’t lying.” Benton smirks at the guys then drapes his arm around my shoulder, drawing me closer to him.

  His move is casual, but I can sense the tension flowing off him.

  Who are these guys? And how do they have someone like Benton scared?

  “I guess not,” the taller guy mumbles.

  Then he exchanges a look with the shorter guy. They stare at each other momentarily, as if having a silent conversation. Then the taller guy turns back to Benton.

  “I guess we’ll see you on Monday then.” His deep voice reverberates. He pauses, sticks his hand into his pocket, and retrieves a lighter and a pack of cigarettes. Then he lights up, takes a drag, and releases the smoke in Benton’s face. “Bring the girl with you. I’d like to talk to her some more, but in private.”

  “I don’t think that’s necessary, is it?” Benton grits out, his muscles wound tight. “She’s not part of this.”

  “Oh, but she is,” the short guy sneers, adjusting his glasses. “Monday, Benton, and don’t be late.”

  They turn, walk across the parking lot, and climb into a sleek, black BMW with tinted windows and chrome rims. They don’t start the engine up right away and Benton makes no move to budge or say anything. He waits patiently, staring at the car until they finally they drive off.

  The instant the car vanishes, Benton releases a stressed breath, moves his arm from my shoulders, and rakes his fingers through his hair. “God dammit, why the fuck did they have to come here today?” He curses several more times before his eyes land on me. He blinks, almost as if he’s forgotten I was standing there, then wariness crosses his expression. “So… I’m thinking you might be wondering what that was about?”

  I nod. “Yeah, sort of. I mean, I don’t know who those guys are… And you told them I was your girlfriend so…” I have no clue how to finish that statement.

  He scratches the corner of his eye while shifting his weight. “Yeah, about that…” Another shift of his weight. “I think I really need to talk to you, but not here.”

  He sounds just like Tank and Ralpho. “Okay… About what exactly?”

  “About what just happened.” He chews on his bottom lip, eyeing me over with confliction. “And about a favor I might need—Well, all of my friends might need.”

  I point at myself. “You and the Bad Boy Rebels need a favor from me?”

  He lets out a soft chuckle. “Are people still using that stupid little nickname?”

  My cheeks warm. “Some do.”

  “Well, just so you know, we don’t call ourselves that. But yes, me and the,” his lips quirk, “Bad Boy Rebels need a favor from you.”

  “What sort of favor?” I ask, tugging on the bottom of my shirt. Or well, his shirt. Crap! I still have it on. “Should I be worried?”

  He wavers. “Not you, but we might need to be.”

  I frown. “Why’s that?”

  He softly smiles, tugging on a strand of my hair. “If you’ll come here around Sunday evening, I’ll try to explain this better.” He peers around the area. “But I can’t talk about it out in the open. And I need to talk to my friends first.”

  Every instinct I possess is telling me to decline his offer and just go home, but again, Benton gives me a pleading look and I find myself nodding.

  I must be a sucker for that look.

  His smile is close to being genuine as he backs away toward his house. “Thanks, Zhara. And I apologize in advance for what we’re going to ask you to do.”

  Warning flags go up everywhere, but Benton spins around before I can ask any more questions. Sighing, I head down the sidewalk, walking close to the carport to stay in the shade. Summers can be so hot in Honeyton and since it's mid-June, the temperature has got to be at least one hundred degrees.

  But my thoughts drift from the scorching heat, though, as I replay what happened today. I actually went to a party, got kissed, and got called Benton’s girlfriend. Now apparently, I’m going to be asked for a favor from the Bad Boy Rebels.

  “Holy crap,” I whisper as I reach the curb of the parking lot. “This has been the strangest night ever.”

  It makes me wonder—and I’m extremely nervous—what tomorrow will hold.

  Benton

  “You did what?” My friend Xavier exclaims to me over the phone after I finish explaining to him what happened in the parking lot with Zhara. “Are you fucking stupid?”

  “I panicked,” I tell him as I pace my small bedroom. After I returned to my house, I kicked everyone out so I could call my friends and tell them what happened. Besides, it’s not like I actually like having the parties. It’s a disguise, part of my fake lifestyle, part of all of this. “Tank and Ralpho showed up and were asking me all of these questions. And then they brought up the girlfriend Jackson told them about.”

  “You know, I really wish he wouldn’t have done that,” Xavier grimaces. “I don’t know what the hell he was thinking.”

  “He was drunk and trying to impress them,” I say. “I just didn’t think they’d be so persistent about finding out if he was telling the truth or not.”

  “We could always try to tell them the truth,
” Xavier says. “It might be better than actually trying to convince Zhara to do this.”

  “At this point, we can’t do that,” I tell him. “We need Tank and Ralpho to trust us if we’re ever going to solve this goddamn case, which I really want to do because I’m getting fucking tired of it… We’ve been working on it for almost six months.”

  “Yeah, I know, since we all turned eighteen and finally got promoted out of that stupid mundane teenager undercover work.” He pauses, as if reminiscing. “But are you sure there isn’t another way? One where we don’t have to ask Zhara…” He says her name with disdain. “To pretend to be all of our girlfriends for a few weeks?”

  I sink down on my bed as memories of kissing her creep up into mind… The way she tasted… the way she shook… He may sound unhappy about this, but I’m not so sure I am. That kiss… It made me feel something. And I don’t feel anything too often.

  “Not one I want to try,” I say. “But, she might be able to help us.”

  “How?”

  “Well, Tank and Ralpho asked to talk to her privately.”

  “And how’s that supposed to help?”

  “Because if she can impress them during this talk, we might be able to get her on the inside, be our eyes and ears in the inner circle. She could maybe even find out where the underground tunnels are and how they’re getting the drugs past security checks.”

  “That sounds risky, though,” Xavier tells me. “Do you even think she’ll go for it?”

  “I guess we’ll find out Sunday,” I say. My tone is casual, but on the inside I’m nervous.

  If she says no, the case could be ruined. If she says yes, then her life could be at risk. I don’t know how I feel about that, but I can’t see any other choice. You don’t lie to drug lords like Tank and Ralpho and they’re not even the highest guys up.

  I just hope everything works out and no one gets hurt. And that whatever I was feeling when I kissed Zhara doesn’t get in the way.

  About the Author

  Jessica Sorensen is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author who lives in the snowy mountains of Wyoming. When she’s not writing, she spends her time reading and hanging out with her family.

  Also by Jessica Sorensen

  Other books by Jessica Sorensen:

  Sunnyvale NA:

  Isabella Anders

  Isabella Anders 2

  Isabella Anders (coming soon)

  Bad Boy Rebels:

  Discovering Zhara: Kissing Benton

  Untitled (coming soon)

  Perfect Rebels:

  Finding Wonderful

  Untitled (coming soon)

  Lexi Ashford:

  The Diary of Lexi Ashford

  The Diary of Lexi Ashford 2

  The Diary of Lexi Ashford 3 (coming soon)

  Shadow Cove Series:

  What Lies in the Darkness

  What Lies in the Dark (coming soon)

  Mystic Willow Bay Witches Series:

  The Secret Life of a Witch

  The Secret Life of a Witch 2

  The Secret Life of a Witch 3

  The Secret Life of a witch 4 (coming soon)

  Unearthly Balance:

  Captivate

  Captivate 2 (coming soon)

  Rebels Revenge:

  The Opposite of Ordinary

  The Heartbreaker Society: The Deal

  Standalones:

  The Forgotten Girl

  The Illusion of Annabella

  Confessions of a Kleptomaniac

  Rules of a Rebel and a Shy Girl

  Fire Breather Series:

  The Allure of Madness

  The Allure of Madness 2 (coming soon)

  Broken City Series:

  Nameless

  Forsaken

  Oblivion

  Forbidden (coming soon)

  Guardian Academy Series:

  Entranced

  Entangled

  Enchanted

  Entice (coming soon)

  Guardian Academy, Dash’s Series:

  The Forest of Shadow and Bones

  The Forest of Shadow and Bones 2 (coming soon)

  Sunnyvale Series:

  The Year I Became Isabella Anders

  The Year of Falling in Love

  The Year of Second Chances

  The Year of Kai & Isa (coming soon)

  Unraveling You Series:

  Unraveling You

  Raveling You

  Awakening You

  Inspiring You

  Undoing You (coming soon)

  Sins & Secrets:

  Sins & Secrets

  Sins & Secrets 2

  The Coincidence Series:

  The Coincidence of Callie and Kayden

  The Redemption of Callie and Kayden

  The Destiny of Violet and Luke

  The Probability of Violet and Luke

  The Certainty of Violet and Luke

  The Resolution of Callie and Kayden

  Seth & Greyson

  The Secret Series:

  The Prelude of Ella and Micha

  The Secret of Ella and Micha

  The Forever of Ella and Micha

  The Temptation of Lila and Ethan

  The Ever After of Ella and Micha

  Lila and Ethan: Forever and Always

  Ella and Micha: Infinitely and Always

  The Shattered Promises Series:

  Shattered Promises

  Fractured Souls

  Unbroken

  Broken Visions

  Scattered Ashes

  Breaking Nova Series:

  Breaking Nova

  Saving Quinton

  Delilah: The Making of Red

  Nova and Quinton: No Regrets

  Tristan: Finding Hope

  Wreck Me

  Ruin Me

  The Fallen Star Series:

  The Fallen Star

  The Underworld

  The Vision

  The Promise

  The Fallen Souls Series (spin-off from The Fallen Star):

  The Lost Soul

  The Evanescence

  The Darkness Falls Series:

  Darkness Falls

  Darkness Breaks

  Darkness Fades

  The Death Collectors Series (NA and YA):

  Ember X and Ember

  Cinder X and Cinder

  Spark X and Spark

  Unbeautiful Series:

  Unbeautiful

  Untamed