by Sam Crescent
Pulling away from the kiss, they both panted. Neither of them said anything. This was a mistake, she knew it. “I’ve got to go.”
This time, she pulled out of his arms with ease, and when she got to the door, she didn’t look back. She didn’t say anything. Opening the door, she knew people were staring at her, but she ignored them all. Ree rushed to her side but she pretended not to notice her friend. Ree wasn’t a friend, not even a little bit. She was only ever after what she could get, and from now on, it wouldn’t be from her.
Leaving the house, she saw Sean hadn’t moved an inch. How long had she been gone?
“You okay?” Sean asked. “You’re shaking.”
“I’m fine.”
“You’re not bleeding or broken. I take it nothing happened.”
“No, nothing happened.” The lie slipped off her tongue and she hated herself for it. Rather than explain herself, she buckled her seatbelt. “Let’s get out of here.”
She couldn’t look up at Drake’s house.
“You sure you’re okay? You look a little weird.”
“You mean because I’ve just come out of my enemy’s house and I’m a little freaked out?”
“Wow, Jesus, Pru. I was only asking because I’m worried about you.”
“You don’t need to be worried. Ree got what she wanted and now we can return to doing what we do best, which is hanging out and having fun.” She wanted to forget the kiss she’d just shared with Drake. Nothing good could ever come from allowing herself to think it was any good.
Biting her lip, she sank down into the seat, feeling his lips still on hers. She had to get over this, otherwise, she’d drive herself crazy.
When they got back to her place, Sean went to the bedroom to set up the movie again as she promised to deal with the popcorn.
After grabbing the kernels out of the cupboard, along with the butter and sugar, she warmed up a saucepan and got to work. She preferred to make her own popcorn rather than buy it out of a packet. She just liked making it from scratch and after her time with Drake, she really needed to get control of her senses.
It had been one simple kiss. Nothing serious had happened and nothing bad had either. One little kiss that meant nothing.
Ree was at the party, so she had done what was needed of her. Now, she just had to forget about the kiss.
Her first-ever one.
Why couldn’t she get that out of her head?
Lots of girls had their first kisses with meaningless guys. It meant nothing.
Drake was just that, nothing and meaningless. She was overthinking everything right now, and she had to stop before she went crazy.
She poured the kernels into the oil, working on sheer memory alone, without really seeing what she was doing. Her mind wasn’t on the popcorn but on the boy she hated. Closing her eyes, she let out a hiss as she touched the side of the pan. She placed the lid in place as the kernels began to pop.
Licking her lips, she remembered the taste of him. She had to get him out of her mind before she went insane.
Melting the butter, she listened to the last of the kernels as they finished popping.
“Everything is all set up. How much longer are you going to be?”
“Nearly done.”
She felt Sean’s gaze on her as she worked. She didn’t know what to say to him. Talking about what happened at the party wouldn’t exactly improve things.
Once she had mixed the popcorn, she poured it all into a serving bowl before shoving a mouthful inside. The butter and sugar tasted good. It was much better than Drake’s kiss or his lips.
Sean stood in front of her, frowning.
“What?” she asked.
“I don’t know. You seem … different?”
“Nothing happened, Sean. You don’t have to worry about it.”
“You’d tell me?”
She forced a smile to her lips. “Of course. Why wouldn’t I tell you about it? I tell you about everything else. It was just a boring party and Drake wanted to play a boring game. Nothing happened. It was perfectly fine. You would have been totally bored.” She slapped his shoulder with the hand that didn’t have sugar and grease. “Now, could we drop this and pretend it didn’t happen? We can go back to our night without any drama or chaos, or anything.”
“If that’s what you want.”
“Yeah, it really is.” She was through with guy talk for the night. “Can we just pretend tonight didn’t happen?”
“Nothing happened. Let’s go and watch a movie.”
This was why she loved Sean so much. He never made things complicated.
Chapter Six
It was just a stupid fucking kiss
Drake tossed the ball into the air before catching it. He did this several more times, and no matter what he did, he couldn’t get Prudence out of his mind. Shit! When had he started to think of her as Prudence? She was trash. The girl from the wrong side of the tracks who shouldn’t even be in his thoughts, especially after he fucked her friend last night. Ree had been all about making noise and it had driven him crazy.
He’d wanted to strangle her to get her to shut the fuck up. Ree was like a little puppy dog that didn’t get the hint. He wasn’t interested in her. She was way too easy for him. Her adoration and neediness were complete turn-offs.
Gripping the ball, he launched it across the room, sending it into the drink cabinet. The glass smashed and he got to his feet. He didn’t do shit like cleaning. There were maids who were paid to clean. Grabbing his jacket and car keys, he headed out of his home. There were a couple of kids playing near the gate. The moment he clicked the button for it to open, they scurried away.
His father didn’t like kids walking around outside of his house and would often take any balls that were accidentally kicked over the fence or had found their way onto his property and pop them. No parents dared stand up to him as they had all the money and power, and everyone else didn’t.
Pulling out of his driveway, he noticed the scared kids watching him. All of his life, kids had been scared of him. Even his supposedly best friends were. Not that he cared. He was so used to watching others cower in fear that if they didn’t do it, it made him nervous.
Prudence.
From the first moment she entered their school, she had smiled at him. Fucking smiled. No one had ever smiled at him. Not even his parents. He was an obligation. Something they had to create together in order for someone to inherit the family fortune. The men who had the first-born son of the next generation inherited a fortune, and well, his father got in there, but then he did fuck everything that walked until one woman came forward with a son that would be born before his uncle’s.
Competition was always rife within his family. You had to be the best at everything. Even his mom, who got the crown of glory for getting knocked up first, had to fit into a certain role.
Again, all his life he was used to playing by a certain set of rules and well, now all of that was changing and he didn’t fucking like it. No, it wasn’t changing at all. One person out of an entire fucking town was testing him. The moment she moved here, she’d been testing him and it grated on his last fucking nerve as well.
Prudence was nothing and yet, kissing her last night had been the last thing he intended to do but he’d done it. Why?
He didn’t have a clue why.
Driving out of town, he pressed his foot to the gas, ignoring all the speed warnings. He needed to fucking breathe and the only way to do that was to drive like crazy. Pulling onto the main road, even with oncoming cars, he overtook vehicles that were going too slow for him, not caring as they honked their horns at him. Nothing was going to stop him from getting what he wanted.
He laughed as he pushed on through. Coming to a diner, he made a quick stop. He jerked his car with the force of his braking but slid into the space easily. One thing he was good at was driving his car. No one else was better than him.
No matter the risks he took while he drove, he’d never been i
n a single accident. He didn’t think it was down to his good driving either, it was down to sheer luck.
He grabbed a breakfast burrito and a coffee to go.
Lingering in the diner’s parking lot wasn’t his idea of fun, so he left, finding a quiet space near a falling-down garage. He stared at the crumbling building that had probably once been a really busy place. There were no signs and most of the windows had been smashed. It looked like there had even been a fire and coming out of the roof there appeared to be a small tree. To most, this was just an eyesore, but he could easily see it being rebuilt and once again being a thriving business.
Too many people were happy to write something off if it looked like it was going to take too much money or too much time. When something was worth the time or effort, Drake didn’t mind dealing with it.
For him, people were never worth either precious commodity. They always had their own agenda, constantly working for something else, which he never failed to find fucking irritating. It was one of the reasons he liked to push people, to see what he could get them to do and how far they were willing to go before they called him on his bullshit.
Prudence, for example. If Sean hadn’t been there, she wouldn’t have gotten naked for him. Drake didn’t like how much the little pussy had control of Prudence. He rarely was there for her when she needed it. If he got into a fight with the little shit, there was no way he’d be able to protect her. Most of the time, Prudence always got involved and it annoyed him how she was still friends with him.
She deserved better.
They were both fighters. They were both better than everyone else, and he didn’t fucking see why they had to put up with the kind of shit that was thrown their way.
Finishing off his food, he tossed the wrappers into the trash bin that looked like it hadn’t been emptied in years. That was another thing he hated. Once someone lost interest in something broken, they always turned their back on it. Why bother putting any energy in the first place if you were just going to give up when things got hard?
He didn’t get it. Never would either.
After climbing back into his car, he pulled away from the garage. He felt calmer than he had before he left. The need to do something crazy had disappeared and now he could think.
Still, his thoughts returned to Prudence, the kiss they’d shared, and the fuck he’d given Ree. She was like a vulture constantly hanging around. He even noticed the way she laughed whenever he bullied Prudence.
He drove back into town, past the first sightings of the town hall, the church tower, and even the neon sign of the local diner with a couple of the letters missing. This town was his home and yet he wanted nothing to do with any of it. The people were all fake and anyone who put up with him was only doing so because of his name. His father was the one in charge of this town, and he merely a puppet as well. What his father wanted, he always got.
He came to a stop at the traffic lights in town. It was rare for a line of cars of any kind, even during the height of tourist season. He knew the town loved being available and easy to get around in. He’d even seen it posted on leaflets and incorporated in slogans.
Coming out of the library, he saw none other than the little bitch herself. Her hair was pulled back into a ponytail and he had a sudden urge to pull on it. To force her to look at him.
The lights hadn’t changed yet, but he was done waiting. Pulling out, he turned his car down the one-way street and up onto the curb, stopping Prudence from walking. He didn’t run her over—there were limits to what he would do. Climbing out of the car, he saw her push a curl of hair off her face and glare at him.
“Seriously? You may think you’re some kind of mad car racer, but you could have killed me.”
“I was nowhere near you.”
“I don’t have time for this.” She went to move away but he caught her arm, forcing her against the car and trapping her there. The only way she could move now was if she pushed him out of the way. “What the hell, Drake? Didn’t you get enough last night?”
“I didn’t get nearly enough of what I wanted.”
“Ugh, what the heck is this?” She pointed at him and growled. “You hate me. We hate each other, and now you’re chasing me down in the street. This can’t be good for your reputation and it’s certainly not good for mine.”
“What? You got a lot of people invested in your future, Prudence?”
“Stop doing that!”
“Doing what?” he asked, laughing. He loved to see that he could unnerve her. Her cheeks were bright red and she looked flush.
“Calling me by my given name. Go back to calling me Trash or something else just as cruel.”
“Nah, I think I like this name a whole lot more.” He stepped close so his body was against hers.
“Drake, I mean it. Stop.”
“Or what? What exactly are you going to do to me?” He saw her gaze go to his lips and he smirked. She wasn’t going to do anything because she wanted him. She could fight him all she wanted, but he saw the interest in her eyes. There was no denying where her thoughts had disappeared to, and he liked it, wanted it, and he was going to have it.
Reaching out, he twirled a loose strand of hair between his fingers. She didn’t immediately pull away.
He stared down at her as she tilted her head back to look at him. “Why did you stop me here?” she asked, the first to break the silence between them.
“I don’t know.”
“Are you used to not having a clue what you want or don’t want?”
“Do you always know what you want?” He was genuinely curious.
“No, but I want to know why you’re being like this. Why you’re here with me when you should be somewhere else.”
“Where else should I be?”
“Anywhere that isn’t here with me?”
Her attitude didn’t deter him. It would take a lot more than her being pissed off for him to leave or to let her go. “You don’t sound too sure about that.”
“Don’t you have some other person to piss off?”
“Nah, I like pissing you off. It’s fun.”
“I don’t like you.”
He laughed. “Do you think I give a fuck if you like me or not? I don’t care, plain and simple.”
She put her hands on his chest and he loved it. She had willingly touched him and there was no taking that back. “Drake, please?”
“What?” He stared at her full lips. They were nice and plump. He’d never noticed just how perfect they were. He wanted to feel them again. They were incredible last night. He could imagine them wrapped around his cock. Not that Prudence would ever suck him off. She would more than likely bite his dick off than suck it.
“I don’t know what you’re doing and, frankly, I don’t care for it. Leave me alone, please.”
“Nah, I’ve got all day.”
“I don’t and I’ve got places to be.”
“Ah, you’ve got to be with your little gay friend.”
“Sean’s not gay.”
“I know for a fact Ree’s not.” He watched her tense up and he liked that. Any reaction he got from Prudence was a win.
“What did you do?”
“Only what she begged me to.” He pressed his body against hers. “You know how much she’s been wanting me, and well, she got what she wanted last night.”
Prudence’s jaw clenched and she glanced away.
Gripping her face, he forced her to look at him. Her reactions were all for him.
“Get off me.”
Her words were muffled with the way he held her but he understood every single thing she said, and he wasn’t going to let it go. Staring into her eyes, he didn’t see any fear. There was always hatred shining back at him, and he didn’t mind that. Rather, he relished it, but now he saw something else he liked.
He released his hold on her but didn’t entirely let her go. Stroking the tips of his fingers across her cheek, he slid them into her hair.
“What are yo
u doing?”
“Why aren’t you running away?”
“What?” she asked.
“I don’t have you anymore.”
“You’re in my way.”
“Or you want to stay here a lot more than you make out.”
“You’re insane.”
“Maybe? Or maybe you like me keeping you here a little too much.”
She shook her head and yet, she still hadn’t pushed him away. She could’ve been long gone now. It wasn’t like he was going to chase her down the street in the middle of the day. He wasn’t that crazy.
Those lips though, they were driving him crazy and he couldn’t stop thinking about them. Not even a little bit. It hadn’t even been a whole twenty-four hours but he wanted to taste them again.
Why don’t you?
You know you want to.
Look at her, she wants it just as much.
Without taking a second to hesitate, he slammed his lips down on hers, taking her lips once again. He hoped they wouldn’t be as good as he remembered or feel fucking incredible.
He was wrong.
What the hell was it about her? She wasn’t anything special. Just a girl, not even one who came from any wealth. Prudence was exactly what he’d been calling her, nothing. So, why couldn’t he stop kissing her? Biting on her lip, he heard her moan, and it was nearly his fucking undoing. He wasn’t used to this.
“Push me away!” He broke from the kiss long enough to speak.
She put her hands on his chest but she didn’t push him away. Her hands gripped his shirt, holding him tightly to her.
He held her, wanting to get as close to her as humanly possible. The kiss was incredible. The fire. The passion. All of it blew his mind, and his cock was so hard. He wanted nothing more than to take her to the nearest surface, spread her open, and fuck her senseless.
Suddenly, she pushed him away.
“No. No. No. No. No!” she yelled, finally breaking free of his hold and taking him off guard.
She wasn’t trapped between himself and the car.
He watched her.
Her lips looked slightly swollen from his kisses and she shook her head. “This isn’t happening. I don’t like you and you don’t like me. That’s how it’s going to stay.”