But me? Now? I blink, and there I am, standing in front of that bus, holding up the front end.
What the? I look to my right as the woman chasing the puppy stops and stares. The dog is all the way across the street now, running toward the lawn in front of the cafeteria.
I glance up to see the face of the bus driver gripping the steering wheel, her mouth gaping.
Oh shit. I carefully set the bus down and step out of the way. The traction of the front tires immediately kicks in, and the bus keeps going.
Once it passes, I notice the woman still standing on the other side of the street, staring at me.
I have no clue what just happened or how I did that. I mean, yeah, I know what River said I did last night—blasting out of the water and knocking those guys to the ground—but I figured it was her imagination. It was dark out. She was in shock.
And she was right. I just lifted a fucking bus. I didn’t decide to do it. I didn’t even think about it. I just…did it.
I’m going to pass out. Or maybe not. I’m breathing just fine. My lungs are filled with fresh clean air. I’m not hyperventilating. But I always hyperventilate and pass out when I stress.
I’m suddenly less concerned about Blake and his bros. I’ll deal with them later. Right now, I need to figure out what happened to me. I’m not entirely in control of my body.
CHAPTER TWELVE
I head straight to River’s sorority house with one thing on my mind. I need to go over what she remembers again. Every detail. Every sound. Every turn the SUV took. I want to return to the scene of the crime so I can figure out what really went down because this situation is way crazier than I thought. And that shock I was in when I woke up is over.
I’m in a new shock now.
Who wakes up ripped like this? Not only that, I apparently go into savior mode when I see tiny furry creatures in distress. I’m guessing about five or six people just saw that display, which means I’m going to have a tough time keeping this quiet.
I march up the steps of River’s sorority house and ring the doorbell. I hear people inside laughing.
The door opens, and it’s Keni, standing in cut-off short-shorts and a red tank top. No bra. My throat goes dry.
“Hello. Eyes up here, asshole,” she says.
Yep. I deserved that. I pry my eyes away from her incredibly sexy body with smooth skin and round hips. I like a woman with meat and curves. I like women without them too. Beggars can’t be choosy.
“Is River here?” I ask.
She frowns. “Maybe. Who are you?”
She doesn’t recognize me. Not only that, she’s acting way different than last night. “It’s me, Huff.”
“Huff?” She scoffs. “You mean, like, Huff’s big brother? Or cousin?”
“No. It’s me. Huff. We met last night. Your crazy boyfriend ran you off.”
She narrows her green eyes. “Um. But I don’t remember you looking like—”
“Huff! What a surprise!” River rushes through the front door, wearing jeans and a sexy torn T-shirt, and bulldozes me down the steps. “You can’t be here,” she hisses. “My sisters all met you last night. They’re going to wonder.”
“They’ll eventually see me around campus, hanging out with you.”
“Yeah. Okay. But I was thinking we’d give it a few weeks so I could tell them you got a trainer and discovered roids, like Blake and his buddies.”
Steroids? Explains a lot about them.
“Sorry. I needed to see you.” I glance over her shoulder at Keni, who’s still standing in the doorway, snarling at me.
River notices and turns to wave Keni off. “Just give us a minute.”
Keni moves to close the front door, glaring until it’s shut.
“What was that about?” I ask. Yesterday, the girl was smiling and friendly.
“Um, maybe she’s disturbed because you just showed up slightly more ripped than a day ago?”
Fair point. “But she looked like she wanted to tear my head off.” As I’m speaking, I notice River staring down at my pants. “Eh hem. Eyes up here.”
River blinks, but keeps looking at my dick.
I go in for her chin and push up. “Stop. You’re making me feel uncomfortable.”
Her eyes drop to my chest, which is pretty much on display in my super-tight shirt.
“What are you doing?” I snap.
“Nothing. It’s just—I can’t—damn, Huff. You look so different.”
“No shit. Can you stop drooling for ten seconds so I can tell you why I came over unannounced.”
“I’ll try.”
It feels really fucking weird to have my best friend ogling me like juicy man-meat, but there’s not much I can do. Plus, she’s all I’ve got. Yeah, Ronno heard what happened, but he didn’t believe it. Probably a good thing because I don’t know him, and he comes off as a loudmouth.
I lower my voice so no one but River can hear even though we’re alone on the sidewalk. “I was going to Blake’s to pay him a little visit and—”
“What! I thought we agreed, Huff. Lie low.”
Yes, but that was the old plan. Old plan was to see how things played out. If Blake and his friends didn’t say a word, it would help keep me from becoming a lab rat. That’s why I was heading over there—to tell Blake we’re not pressing charges for what went down at the party or later last night, but in exchange, he needs to keep his fucking mouth shut. And stay the hell away from River. If they started making trouble, then I’d have to decide what to do. But both Riv and I felt it’d never get to that.
Yeah, we tried to murder two students last night while we were stoned and drunk. Then the guy turned into the Hulk and beat the crap out of us. Not the best story to spread around campus if you’re Blake and company. As for those assholes paying for their actions, it’s a hard yes. But I’ll deal with them when the time is right.
“New plan,” I say. “I need to figure out what happened to me.” I lean in close and whisper, “I just lifted a fucking bus to save some chick’s puppy.”
River’s warm brown eyes turn to giant orbs. “Did anyone see you?”
“Yes.”
“Who?”
“Like…the freakin’ bus driver, the girl and some of her friends, and probably anyone looking out the dorm’s windows.”
River covers her mouth and gasps. “Do you think someone filmed it?”
“I don’t know, but that’s not my biggest problem. When I saw the dog about to get squashed, I blinked, and there I was, holding up the front of the bus.”
“Cool.”
“No. Not cool,” I snap. “It was like I had no choice in the matter. I acted without even deciding to.”
“Of course you did. Anyone would step up to help a puppy avoid becoming a pancake.”
“It wasn’t like that. I’m telling you, my body just…just…” I can’t bring myself to say the words. My heart filled up with this immense pressure, and then boom. Puppy saved. “Never mind. I need to find out where those dickheads took us last night. Maybe something was in the water, like—”