It’s on the tip of my tongue to tell him I’m not a tree, but he looks so earnest I don’t have the heart to scold him.
“There are no feelings for him on my end.” Other than extreme animosity. “If that’s what you’re worried about.”
Seemingly relieved now, he smiles. “Good.”
Unlike a certain asshole, I value honesty, so I tell him the truth. “I’m not looking for anything serious, though. With everything going on with my dad, I just don’t have the bandwidth to deal with a relationship.”
“I get it. And I’m cool going at whatever speed you want.” He inches closer. “I just want to keep getting to know you. Because I’m enjoying it.”
“I am, too.”
Not only is George stable, kind, and normal. He seems genuinely interested in me for all the right reasons.
Which is why I don’t push him away when he leans in…
And the obnoxious headboard banging comes back with a vengeance.
I glower at the wall. “I’m gonna march over there and strangle him.”
“Talk about a mood killer,” George mutters under his breath. “Why don’t we go to my room?”
Back to his room…where we’ll kiss.
And maybe more.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
“Please don’t take this the wrong way, but it’s been a long day and I’m exhausted.”
It’s not exactly a lie. Dealing with Phoenix is grueling and I need to catch up on my sleep.
Fortunately, George doesn’t get mad about me declining and doesn’t push the issue. “No problem.”
I walk him to the door. “I had fun.”
“Me too.”
Cue the awkward moment that always happens after a date…even though I’m not sure this qualifies as one.
George must think it does, though, because when I lean in for a hug, he leans in for a kiss.
And that only makes things even more awkward because we end up doing this weird half-hug thing before his lips brush mine and we exchange a very quick and very chaste kiss.
“Text me so I know you made it home safely,” I joke in an attempt to break up the tension.
It works because he chuckles as he walks down the hallway. “You got it.”
A moment later, he disappears into his room and my phone lights up with a text.
George: I had fun tonight.
Lennon: Me too.
George: Get some sleep.
After placing my phone on the nightstand, I undress so I can climb into bed.
Sweet and safe is good.
I’m slipping the Papa Roach T-shirt over my head when the impulse to join Pettyville strikes.
Gripping the headboard, I slam it against the wall as hard as I can a few times.
Then I moan. Loudly.
Take that, asshole.
Tiny bolts of pleasure course through me, rousing me from sleep. I squeeze my eyes shut as Phoenix’s hot, wet mouth gently laps at my pussy, unwilling to wake up from this dream despite how much I hate him in real life.
Because in my dreams, he’s not an asshole who betrayed me.
In my dreams, he’d never hurt me.
In my dreams…he makes me come harder than I ever have before.
“Phoenix.”
My voice is a throaty whisper as I squeeze my breast.
I trail my hand down my torso so I can slip it between my legs and make this little fantasy more realistic.
A sharp jolt runs through me when my fingers make contact with long, silky strands.
Shock roots me to the spot the moment I open my eyes.
Turns out it wasn’t a lucid dream like I thought…because some blonde’s face is between my thighs.
Something hard digs into my skin as I spring up. “Whoa—”
Words jam in my throat when I realize one of my wrists is handcuffed to the headboard.
What the hell?
I’m about to demand this crazy bitch release me, but a tall shadowy figure on the other side of the room draws my attention.
“I figured the cuffs would help give you the full experience.”
Phoenix’s mouth curves into a cruel smirk as he takes a step forward.
The stream of light spilling in from the ajar bathroom door illuminates his shirtless, jean-clad form like he’s a mythical god…but it’s the dark, menacing look in his eyes that has my pulse racing.
He’s like a dangerous animal cornering its prey as he makes his way to the foot of the bed.
Anger mixed with outrage twists my insides. “What the fuck?”
The blonde freezes.
Crossing his arms, he peers down. “You want to know what it’s like to be me, don’t you?”
“I…you’re crazy.” I bang my wrist against the steel headboard, hoping the cuff will break. “Fucking certifiable.”
Phoenix’s sneer is downright taunting. “What’s the matter, Lennon? Can’t handle it?”
His words are the equivalent of pouring salt in the wound he created.
This asshole has everything I’ve ever wanted.
And he used me to get it.
Scowling, I open my mouth to remind him of that, but he twists the knife he plunged into my back.
“There’s a reason it’s me on that stage and not you.”
If I thought I hated him before, it pales in comparison to right now.
I can feel it pumping through my veins like a toxic venom, fueling me to provoke him too.
I want to kick him and his friend out, but I’d rather extract my vocal cords with a dull, rusty razor blade than let him think I can’t hack the life I gave him.
The life he stole.
I glance down at the girl who’s still hovering mere inches away from my crotch. The fact she’s the same chick who made fun of my weight makes what I’m about to do even better.
Gripping the back of her head, I give Phoenix a sinister stare of my own. “Keep going.”
Our hostile gazes lock as she licks me cautiously, like she’s unsure which one of us is calling the shots now and who she should listen to.
Fuck Phoenix Walker.
I open my legs wider. “More.”
She speeds up her movements, but it’s the pure hunger stealing over his expression as he watches me that causes my nipples to harden against the thin, faded fabric of my T-shirt.
Those sensuous lips part on a ragged inhale as he zeros in on them…and then his stare descends.
The tip of his tongue traces his bottom lip before his teeth clamp down on his piercing…like he’s in pain.
Like he wishes it was his face parked between my thighs.
Tension and wrath fill the space between us in equal measure. We don’t even have to touch one another to feel sparks.
Hell, we don’t even have to like each other.
A sharp breath leaves me in a whoosh when he runs a hand over the large bulge trapped inside his jeans.
His own becomes uneven as he gives me a knowing look.
Like he’s fully aware of what I want…even though I’ll never admit it.
The sound of him tugging down his zipper rivals the frantic thumping of my heartbeat in my ears.
A warm flush spreads throughout me and it takes every ounce of willpower I possess not to watch while he touches himself.
As if sensing that I’m about to fall off the cliff he stuck me on, a cocky glimmer enters his gaze…daring me to look down.