Chapter 18
“What the hell are you still doing here?” Lucas growled. His hands balled into fists as he glared at her, looking angrier than I’d ever seen him. “I thought I told you to get your ass out of my house!”
“Why, so you can replace me with that little whore there?” Kathy taunted, eyes locked on me.
Wes moved to step forward, but I grabbed his hand, pulling him back. She was just trying to get a rise out of everyone, and she wasn’t worth the effort.
“Or is it the fag? Is that it? Do you prefer drug-addicted boys? Going to take them both upstairs and give ‘em go?”
This time, when Wes lunged forward, I couldn’t stop him. Chuck was right there next to him, though, and he grabbed his brother, holding him in place. Wes fought to break free from Chuck’s grip, but even if he was undefeated on the mat, he still couldn’t quite beat his older brother.
“That’s enough,” Lucas snapped, his booming voice echoing across the house. Everyone froze in place, staring at him as he stalked forward. Even Kathy looked terrified. “I told you to be out of the house by the time I got back! After everything you’ve done to this family, you have the gall to stand there and attack not only me but my children as well? I’ve had enough. Leave. Now. Or, so help me God, I will throw your ass out the front door myself!”
Kathy stood there, mouth hanging open, for what felt like an eternity. Lucas was pissed, there was no denying it, and I didn’t doubt for even a second he’d do exactly what he’d threatened. Kathy must’ve seen it too since she let out a huff and turned around, stalking toward the front door. Moments later, it slammed shut, the sound making me wince.
Lucas let out a sigh, his shoulders slumping. Then, he turned and locked his eyes on Sebastian and Todd, frowning at the two of them. At some point, Sebastian had reached out and taken Todd’s hand, the two of them standing side by side, looking up at his father and waiting to see what he said next.
“Drugs?” he asked, his voice strained and tired.
They both blushed and looked down at the ground. Neither one spoke, both probably assuming they were dead men walking.
Wes stepped forward, though, Chuck having finally released him. He put a hand on Sebastian’s shoulder and squeezed. “It’s been handled,” he told his father.
Lucas and Wes locked eyes for a moment, then Lucas nodded. “Good,” was all he said. Then, he turned and headed in the direction of his office, leaving the rest of us all standing there, still shell shocked from what had just happened.
Sebastian and Todd were the first to move again, the two heading for the stairs, still holding hands. Then, Chuck walked over and patted Wes on the back. He grinned at the two of us and winked, then followed the younger guys upstairs.
Once everyone else was gone, Wes faced me. His lips curved up into the barest smile. “So, how about that shower now?”
I rolled my eyes, then laughed. Of course, Wes’s mind would go right back there. He seemed to have only one thing in his brain at any given moment. But, after that headache, it was even harder to deny how nice it would be to slip into the shower with him, to let the hot water wash over me again.
Not to mention how good it would feel to have those hands touching me. “You think you can behave yourself?” I teased, winking at him. The quickly growing bulge in his singlet was enough to answer the question for me. Still, I took his hand in mine and led him upstairs to the bathroom.
This time though, I grabbed some clean clothes from my bedroom first. I wasn’t going to make that mistake again!
And Wes did behave himself, mostly. There was a fair bit of touching on both of our parts, and by the time we stepped out, we were both breathless and grinning. But even though Wes kept teasing me about popping my cherry, he still hadn’t tried to pressure me into actually going all the way with him. For that, I had to give him some respect. He was certainly more patient than his reputation had made him out to be.
After their win on Sunday, the coach gave the entire team two days off of practice. Since they didn’t have to spend most of the evening stuck at school, the guys suggested we hit up the beach so I could try my luck at surfing again.
This time, after I face-planted into the water a couple of times, Wes unhooked my board and gave it to Hunter to hold on to. Then, he pulled me up onto his board, pulling me tight against him: we rode the next wave together, our bodies molded against each other.
Over and over, we did that until I’d started to get a feel for when to stand and how to orient my body. By that point, Wes’s wet suit wasn’t doing much at all to hide his arousal from the close contact. And, when I switched back over to my own board, his friends hadn’t hesitated to start ribbing him about his lack of control.
Even Adrian had started teasing him, saying something about it being no wonder I hadn’t slept with him yet if that was all he was offering. His cheeks turned bright red, but he flipped all three of them off as I giggled and got myself ready for the next wave.
That time, I managed to stay on the board and ride it without face planting! Adrian and the guy cheered as I paddled back to them, and I grinned like I’d just won the lottery. When the next wave came, I road it again, along with the one after that.
I wasn’t going to be winning any surfing tournaments anytime soon, but at least I’d managed to figure out the basics of staying on my feet.
By then, the sun had started to set, so we all headed for the shore, depositing our boards outside of the diner. I wasn’t sure about the others, but I’d certainly worked up an appetite out there, and I was more than ready to stuff myself with some greasy food.
“Heard anything from your evil step-mother?” Adrian asked as we ate, smirking at us.
“She’s not evil.” I rolled my eyes at her dramatic description. “She’s just a cheating bitch. Evil would imply she was intelligent and not just a whore.”
“Ouch,” Hunter said as he winced, then he grinned at us. “At least Lucas finally kicked her ass to the curb. It’s one thing to sleep around when you’re not in a serious relationship, but to cheat on the guy, you’re dating? That’s just low. And slutty.”
“Definitely slutty,” Adrian agreed. Her eyes lit up, and she winked at me. “And trust me, if anyone knows slutty, it’s Hunter!”
“Hey!”
Everyone laughed, and Hunter glared at all of us. But even he started laughing before long as well.
It was good to have friends I could go out and have a good time with. I hadn’t thought I’d ever fit in with these high society rich kids. And now, there I was, having dinner with four of them, laughing and smiling without a care in the world. I’d learned how to surf, gone to a wrestling meet, and kicked some ass at poker.
This time, Lucas didn’t summon us home immediately, but since it was dark by the time we finished our food, we helped load the boards in Hunter’s Jeep, then headed back to the house. Wes reached over and took my hand as we drove, and I grinned at him, my heart skipping a beat.
The moment we walked in the house, though, we froze. The yelling could be heard from across the house, and Wes and I exchanged nervous glances. Sebastian was sitting at the table when we walked through the kitchen, and when we both looked at him, he shrugged.