also stung like a thousand bees were pricking me. I allowed myself to cry because, well, I had no better reason other than it fucking hurt. I watched as it all mixed together and washed down the drain—tears, blood, water, and any hope for a normal, happy life. After getting dressed and slipping back to my room, I swallowed about seven aspirin and promised myself that I wouldn’t get that distracted again. There was a reason I’d put up barriers to the outside world, a reason why I acted tough as nails and like I didn’t take shit from anyone. Deklan had made me forget about trying to be someone I wasn’t, and look where that got me. I tried to forget his sinful eyes and what I now knew to be very kissable lips, but his intense stare kept creeping back into my mind. How do I get over whatever this is?
“You better be taking your ass to work today, too.” My mother’s voice broke through my inner struggle, followed by the wall vibrating as she slammed her door shut. She had gotten up only to tell me that. There was no arguing. Her word was law.
I started thinking up an elaborate lie that would explain away my soreness to anyone who looked too closely. It was quiet when I opened my door. She was probably passed out again. I quickly and quietly tiptoed down the hall and slipped out the front door. Walking to work proved difficult, as every muscle in my back protested. It was a very slow trek and one that if I didn’t pick up the damned pace would make me late to work. I had already been late once, and I was deathly afraid of losing my job and having to bear the brunt of that. I couldn’t be late today. I shuffled along as fast as I could when I became acutely aware a car was slowly following me. The car pulled up and stopped beside me.
“Hey, you need a lift?” a sandy male voice called out through the open passenger window of the rust-colored car. It took me a moment to realize who it was as I squinted to see the asshole from last night in the driver’s seat.
“No, thanks,” I said coldly and started my slow pace back up. I had no problem standing up to him. He was not her. He was a piece-of-shit guy who treated women like shit, and by the way his eyes were hungrily racking over my body, he was also a pervert.
“Aw, come on, don’t be like that.” He put the car in park and got out.
I immediately halted my footsteps, not wanting to walk closer to him, but it did no good, as he stalked toward me.
“You look like your momma worked you over real good last night. I got something that will make you feel better.” He cupped his crotch and squeezed it, winking at me. What the actually fuck? This wasn’t happening.
“Don’t fucking think so, asshole.” I was used to my mother’s pieces hitting on me, thinking it was mother like daughter with us, so I knew how to deal with them, but with this guy, my fear was teetering on the edge. He seemed different, wicked. “Or would you like me to tell my mother?” I leveled my stare at him, trying to make my whole persona threatening.
“Like I care what that bitch thinks. Don’t fucking threaten me, little girl. I always get what I want.” He licked his cracked lips and smiled wolfishly as he leaned in closer.
“You need to fall back.”
Deklan appeared out of nowhere—where did he even come from?—behind the asshole and looked dangerously pissed.
The asshole turned around, seemingly unfazed by the interruption, and looked at Deklan as if he were a fly buzzing around his head.
“This ain’t got nothing to do with you, boy. I’m a friend of her momma. I was just offering her a ride.”
Yeah, a ride I wouldn’t take even if he was the last man on a planet full of zombies.
“I’ll say it one more time, because apparently you didn’t hear me. Fall the fuck back.” The look on Deklan’s face had totally transformed, and I was momentarily reminded of the older brother from this TV show about vampires that Ember and I used to watch on her computer
“You better be taking your ass to work today, too.” My mother’s voice broke through my inner struggle, followed by the wall vibrating as she slammed her door shut. She had gotten up only to tell me that. There was no arguing. Her word was law.
I started thinking up an elaborate lie that would explain away my soreness to anyone who looked too closely. It was quiet when I opened my door. She was probably passed out again. I quickly and quietly tiptoed down the hall and slipped out the front door. Walking to work proved difficult, as every muscle in my back protested. It was a very slow trek and one that if I didn’t pick up the damned pace would make me late to work. I had already been late once, and I was deathly afraid of losing my job and having to bear the brunt of that. I couldn’t be late today. I shuffled along as fast as I could when I became acutely aware a car was slowly following me. The car pulled up and stopped beside me.
“Hey, you need a lift?” a sandy male voice called out through the open passenger window of the rust-colored car. It took me a moment to realize who it was as I squinted to see the asshole from last night in the driver’s seat.
“No, thanks,” I said coldly and started my slow pace back up. I had no problem standing up to him. He was not her. He was a piece-of-shit guy who treated women like shit, and by the way his eyes were hungrily racking over my body, he was also a pervert.
“Aw, come on, don’t be like that.” He put the car in park and got out.
I immediately halted my footsteps, not wanting to walk closer to him, but it did no good, as he stalked toward me.
“You look like your momma worked you over real good last night. I got something that will make you feel better.” He cupped his crotch and squeezed it, winking at me. What the actually fuck? This wasn’t happening.
“Don’t fucking think so, asshole.” I was used to my mother’s pieces hitting on me, thinking it was mother like daughter with us, so I knew how to deal with them, but with this guy, my fear was teetering on the edge. He seemed different, wicked. “Or would you like me to tell my mother?” I leveled my stare at him, trying to make my whole persona threatening.
“Like I care what that bitch thinks. Don’t fucking threaten me, little girl. I always get what I want.” He licked his cracked lips and smiled wolfishly as he leaned in closer.
“You need to fall back.”
Deklan appeared out of nowhere—where did he even come from?—behind the asshole and looked dangerously pissed.
The asshole turned around, seemingly unfazed by the interruption, and looked at Deklan as if he were a fly buzzing around his head.
“This ain’t got nothing to do with you, boy. I’m a friend of her momma. I was just offering her a ride.”
Yeah, a ride I wouldn’t take even if he was the last man on a planet full of zombies.
“I’ll say it one more time, because apparently you didn’t hear me. Fall the fuck back.” The look on Deklan’s face had totally transformed, and I was momentarily reminded of the older brother from this TV show about vampires that Ember and I used to watch on her computer
Similar Books
