I crack a smile as I scoop up some fried rice. “I think if you sell me to Hunter, I’ll be available to watch TV with you much less.”
“We’ll negotiate some kind of schedule to split your time between us.”
“I’m glad you’ve put adequate thought into my purchase agreement.”
She nods and flashes me a smile. “I only have one daughter to auction off, I’ve gotta make sure you fetch a good price and the terms are to my liking.”
I dip a piece of chicken into my sweet and sour sauce. “Good thinking.”
A few seconds pass, but instead of dropping the playful topic altogether, Mom looks over at me and asks, “Speaking of Hunter, have you heard from him today?”
I nod, but I take a bite of my chicken so she won’t expect me to talk right away.
Yesterday when I came home in the middle of the school day, Mom was understandably surprised to see me. Given how emotionally exhausted and upset I was, I also didn’t have the composure to pretend nothing was bothering me.
I ended up venting to her about everything—the gross picture being texted around to virtually everyone in our grade, what Sherlock did to Valerie’s car in retribution, and Hunter being a jealous, emotionally exhausting jerk.
It still doesn’t feel natural to talk to Mom about Hunter, though. If I’d been more in control of my emotions, I probably wouldn’t have shared so much.
Once I’m finished chewing and I have no more excuse not to answer, I say, “He texted me earlier to ask why I wasn’t in school. I told him I was playing hooky and spending the day with you.”
“How’s that going?” she asks before taking a bite.
I shake my head, looking down at my rice. “I don’t really want to talk about it right now. I’m taking a day off from all that chaos.”
“Okay,” she says easily. “Well, I just want you to know you can talk to me about him if you need to. I know he’s been a sore subject in the past, but I told you I’d be open-minded, and I mean it.”
“I know. I appreciate it,” I assure her. “You know what else I appreciate?”
“Hm?”
“Hugh Laurie in a comedic role. I was skeptical when you first suggested we watched this. I wasn’t sure I could ever look at him and not see Dr. House, but I find lighthearted Laurie quite acceptable.”
Mom grins at me. “See? I told you.”
“Don’t get me wrong, I still prefer him as House,” I say, before she gets too carried away with her gloat.
Mom rolls her eyes. “Well, of course you do. You’re drawn to troubled men.”
I cock a disbelieving eyebrow at her. “And you’re not? How’s Ray’s loan situation these days? Still resisting dirty money, or…?”
She sighs, her shoulders slumping forward with defeat. “We’re too alike in ways I don’t find convenient.”
I crack a smile, but don’t pursue this line of conversation. I don’t want to talk about either of our relationship issues today, I just want to kick back, eat some delicious Chinese food, and focus on the hijinks of Wooster and Jeeves.
___
Spending the day blowing off steam with my mom was exactly what I needed.
By the time I crawl into bed that night, I’m much more relaxed.
If I allow my thoughts to drift to tomorrow, I do still dread going back to school, but I try not to think about it. It’s not something I can control.
Yes, I loathe high school, especially now that Hunter’s back, but at least I’m almost finished with it. As long as I don’t get caught up in the bullshit, I can finish this year and move on with my life.
I’ll be starting college soon, and college will be completely different.
College will be amazing.
I sigh happily thinking about it. I drift off to sleep with a smile on my face, fantasizing about a picturesque campus in autumn, classes with brilliant lecturers, and all the culture of Boston. I bet there are a lot of great coffee shops, too.
I don’t know what time it is when I jerk awake from a dead sleep to someone climbing onto the bed behind me.
My bed.
Nobody should be climbing into bed with me.
My heart explodes as a hand clamps over my mouth before I can do more than gasp in surprise.
“Shhhh.”
It’s a sound, not a voice, so I can’t make out who it is. I tell myself it has to be Hunter, and I believe it, but I still feel unsure when a hand slides across my hip and his fingers slide into the waistband of my panties to push them down.
“Hunter?” I murmur against his hand, just to make sure.
No answer.
I’m only wearing an ugly nightshirt and panties, so once he shoves those down around my knees, he has a lot of access to me. He uses it, sliding the hand that isn’t clamped over my mouth between my thighs, hooking his leg around mine and spreading them open so he can tease me better.
A jolt of arousal courses through me as he forces my legs open and pulls me back against him. My eyes drift shut as his fingertips lightly brush my entrance.
He slides his hand up my abdomen, then pushes it up under my nightie and fondles my breast.
“Don’t worry, baby.” Relief pours through me at the sound of Hunter’s voice. “You don’t have to say yes. I just need to use your pussy tonight. I won’t be able to sleep until I do.”
Arousal trickles through me at his naughty words.
I love this game. I don’t know how he got into my locked house, and I certainly wasn’t expecting to be played with tonight, but my guards are down enough from being woken from a dead sleep, and besides that, I missed him. If we can play under the dark blanket of night and then pretend nothing happened in the morning, I can live with that.
My body comes alive as he plays with my breasts and teases my nipples. They harden at his touch.
He hardens, too. I feel his hard cock pressed against my butt as he touches me. Feel it harden even more as he slides his hand between my legs and I moan against his palm.
“Fuck, Riley.” He kisses the side of my head, then shifts his body. Since I’m lying on top of him, I shift with him.
I hear him unzip his pants so I know he’s taking his cock out. He keeps his hand sealed over my mouth, but his grip has eased. It’s not tight as he shoves into me, so my sharp cry is louder than I intend it to be.
His hand on my mouth tightens and he rolls me onto my stomach, crushing me beneath him as he pushes more of his cock into me.
“Shhh. You don’t want me to get caught, do you?”
I grab my pillow and squeeze the life out of it as he pushes so deep inside of me, it feels like he’s gone too far. I’m too full of him. It almost aches.
It feels good to be that full of him, though. I can’t help moaning as he eases back, and then drives into me again. Once more, he goes so deep it feels like he’s in my guts, but it’s a heady feeling, being possessed like that.
He doesn’t talk to me much tonight, just buries me in the mattress as he fucks me. It’s not a punishment though, so despite bruising my flesh with his greedy hands and filling my bedroom with the sounds of his skin slapping mine while he fucks me, he makes sure it’s good for me, even though he said he just needed to use me tonight.