by Ruby Vincent
His apology ran through my mind all day and I still didn’t know how to feel about it. I swore I would make him pay for what he did and Michael laid himself bare and asked for the punishment.
My mixed-up feelings faded for a moment as I took in Landon. I knew his outfit wouldn’t disappoint. His jacket color-shifted as he moved, changing from a dark burgundy to midnight black. Landon didn’t opt for a shirt and the deep V exposed his sculpted chest to the feasting eyes of the crowd.
Landon glanced around. Maybe he was looking for me too because he stopped when our gaze connected. My breath hitched.
I wondered if he would always have this effect on me. Even while anger flickered in my soul like stoking embers—even though I wanted to see him cry like I did every night for weeks—Landon Foster made me feel like my heart would either burst or float out of my chest. It tried to do both as we looked at each other across the dancefloor.
“Perfect timing,” said Adam.
Adam’s hands slid down to my waist. He pulled me close and draped my arms around his shoulders. Landon watched the whole thing.
With more strength than I knew I possessed, I turned away from him. “We can stop when he’s not looking.”
“Okay.”
We danced to a few more songs and then Adam gave the all-clear. “He went into the bathroom. Want to grab a drink?”
“Sounds good.”
Adam kept an eye on Landon for me which allowed me to sneak glances at Cole and Michael. I couldn’t help it. Every time I looked at Michael, I found him looking back at me. Cole was a constant presence at his side as they found a spot on the wall and propped it up.
“You okay?” asked Adam.
I tore my eyes off them as he handed me a cup.
“Are you sure you still want to do this?”
“I have to do this,” I said softly—so softly he might not have heard me.
The tempo slowed and couples came together like magnets, holding each other as they swayed to the music. In the corner of the room, I spotted Noah kissing his girlfriend and it buoyed my mood. Something good had come out of my crusade.
“He’s back,” Adam said. “Do you want to go back out there?”
I drained my punch and then plastered a smile on my face. “Let’s do it.”
Adam and I returned to the dancefloor. His hands found my hips and I rested my arms on his shoulders as though it was the most natural thing in the world. On the outside, we looked like the cutest couple.
“If we’re doing this,” Adam spoke up, “we have to sell it.”
“What does that mean?” The question was barely out of my mouth before he bent and captured my lips.
“Urgh!” I cried, eyes bugging out.
It wasn’t a bad kiss. Adam’s experience came through as he pressed a gentle, sweet kiss to my lips, not taking more than I could give. Not bad, but it was so unlike the feverish, mind-melting kisses with Landon that I knew Adam and I truly were meant to be friends.
A gasp pricked my ears.
Landon. He saw.
“A-Adam?”
Adam ripped his lips off mine. That voice was distinctly not Landon.
Melody stood in front of us, beautiful in a strapless, pink dress and shimmering glitter dusting her skin. She had come... and I was the worst person who ever lived.
Adam’s head swung from me to her. “Melody, wait— It’s not what it looks like!”
Her face crumpled. Melody spun on her heels and ran.
“Melody!” Adam took off after her.
Idiot! Idiot! Idiot! What did I do? I’ve been telling Adam she liked him all this time and then I told Melody he was coming to the dance. I saw her face light up. I should have known at that second that she had changed her mind.
My stomach twisted. Why did I get Adam involved in this? He was willing to go as far as he had to be a good friend and now I might have cost him the girl he loves. What do I do?
Go! a voice shouted. Explain it to her. Fix this.
I took off running before the thought fully formed. The skies opened up once more on Breakbattle and I burst through to stinging rain and sweeping, chill winds. In the distance, pink and black figures raced to the main building.
I darted after them. I had to find them and back Adam up. Both of us telling her that we didn’t have feelings for each other would fix this. It had to.
My wet shoes slid on the polished floors. I twisted around, searching for them, but the hallway was empty.
“Where are you? Did Melody go back to the girls’ side?”
I glanced down at the pool of water I slipped in. I immediately searched for more water droplets and found a trail leading around the corner toward the administration hallway.
I picked up the pace. Everything would be fine. I would not be responsible for those two not getting together, not after sabotage, near-expulsion, Cameron Dupre.
The trail led toward the nurse’s office and then veered around another corner, leading away from the girl’s side. The water droplets led me to the door of the library.
Melody ran in here?
Pressing my ear against the wood, I tried to listen for the sound of voices. Nothing came through the solid oak. I grabbed the handle and inched open the door. Quietly, I crept in.
“Adam...”
My eyes flew to the figures at the back of the room.
Oh no.
“It’s you,” Adam breathed. “I’ve only ever wanted you.”
“Oh, Adam.” They attacked each other in a kiss that was the polar opposite of the one he gave me. Adam lifted her and placed Melody on the table, giving her better access to continue ripping off his clothes.
My smile split my cheeks. Apparently, they didn’t need me to explain. They were working out the misunderstanding just fine.
Melody’s breasts sprang free and she threw her bra over Adam’s shoulder. My smile disappeared in an instant.
I really need to get out of here.
Moving fast, I half tripped over my feet ducking out the door and hurrying down the hall. He grabbed me the moment I ran around the corner.
I cried out as strong hands gripped me and shoved me against the wall. The haze cleared and Landon appeared before me—whole, beautiful, and spitting angry.
Hot pants ghosted over my face, I was breathing his raw emotions in and the part of me that hungered for him came to life.
“What are you doing?” I cried, chest pounding.
“You said if I wanted you, I had to take you.”
“Wha—”
Landon captured my lips in a kiss that was almost punishing. Maybe I deserved it for teasing him with Adam.
Maybe I liked it.
My body responded to him in an instant. I crawled up his body and wrapped my legs around his waist, welcoming it when he ground between my legs.
We broke apart, drawing ragged breaths, and he put me back on the floor.
“Well, I’m taking you.”
I didn’t have a chance to ask what that meant before he swooped down and grabbed me around the waist.
“Landon!”
The boy hoisted me over his shoulder and strode off.
Chapter Seven
“Would you mind telling me where we’re going?” I asked into his back.
“Where do you think?”
Flushing had a whole new meaning when you were upside down. All the blood had no trouble rushing to my face. I knew where we were going. It was obvious when he stepped inside the dorm building.
I should not go up to that room.
He’s not giving me much of a choice, warred my internal voice.
This is what I wanted. Seduce him, drive him crazy, and then dump him like hot trash the same way he did to me.
A swat landed on my bottom.
“Hey!”
“You’re not with Moon anymore,” Landon stated. “You’re with me.”
His tone left no room for argument. This was a side of Landon I had only seen on the mat. Strong, decisi
ve, masculine, handsy. It was so ridiculously sexy, my heart throbbed harder than my left butt cheek.
Landon threw open his door and crossed to the bed. He flipped me over and dumped me unceremoniously on the sheets. My legs were splayed on either side of me. Cool air wafted over me from the vents, causing goosebumps to erupt on my wet skin.
“Take it off,” he rasped. “All of it. I want to see the real you.”
My fingers moved of their own accord—pulling my suspenders off my shoulder and then my wig. Landon’s tongue darted out and licked his lips as my hair came loose and fell around my shoulders.
I moved to my buttons next and Landon stayed glued to my fingers, watching as they revealed my bindings and then took them off.
It felt like hours, but in reality, it was only minutes until I was before him in nothing but my tank top and pants. The real Zela.
“Your turn,” I whispered.
Landon stripped off his jacket, revealing his bare chest. He was slim, but every inch of Landon was hard, wiry muscle. I ached to rub my hands over the bumps and ridges of his chest, so I did.
He sucked in a sharp breath as my finger stopped at his belt.
Get it together, Zela. Common sense beat back the haze. You lose your head whenever you’re in the same room as this guy. You’re not going to get carried away like you did in the storage room.
I took a deep breath. “Landon, I think we should—”
He leaped and suddenly over a hundred pounds worth of boy was on top of me. Landon pulled me in for a kiss that seared all rational thought into cinders. We rolled on the bed, scrabbling and tearing at each other.
He flipped me and we fell onto the pillows. I tore my lips away, coming up for air.
“L-Landon,” I moaned. “I think we should— we should—”
Landon’s hand slipped through my waistband. I promptly forgot what I was going to say.
He claimed my lips again. My body was humming with so many sensations I thought my nerves would overload. The ball of pain and fury I had been nursing felt small in the face of it.
I gasped as he found a particularly interesting spot. I had to stop this now or I never would. “Landon, please. We should—”
“Don’t worry.” He kissed down my cheek, leaving a burning trail to the shell of my ear. “I have condoms.”
My eyes popped. That woke me up better than a bucket of water to the face. Losing my virginity was definitely not a part of this revenge plot.
“Landon, we need.... t-to talk.”
Damn, it’s so hard to think when he’s doing that!
I untangled my fingers from his hair and bit back a moan when he latched onto my neck. Landon took his hand out of my pants, allowing me to untensed my body.
“Okay,” I whispered. “I was saying—”
Landon pulled my pants down in one smooth move and I freaked. I reached behind me, grabbed a pillow, and smashed it into his face. He let out a muffled cry as I flipped him onto his back and straddled him, holding him down
“Okay,” I cried. “How about we take a minute and just— just— slow down.”
I was talking to myself more than him. My breaths were coming in short, ragged pants. My lips swollen and tender. The cold air touched my ass and I tried to recall how I ended up half naked on top of him.
“Uh, Zela.” His voice was muffled. “I need to breathe.”
“Shush! No one is doing anything.” I swallowed a few times, finding my voice. “Landon,” I began. “I think we should take things slow. It’s been a rough start for us to put it lightly and it’s important that we don’t go too fast before we’re ready.”
It’s important my heart is left intact after I crush yours, I added internally.
“What hm hmmm hm.”
“What?” I lifted part of the pillow, revealing his mouth.
“What does slow mean?”
“It means we won’t be needing condoms any time soon.”
“If that’s what you want,” he said to my surprise. “We don’t have to have sex if you’re not ready.”
My heart slowed a fraction. “Thank you.”
“There’s plenty of other things we can do,” he went on. “You seem to like being fingered.” His hands found my bare ass. “Just wait until I give you head.”
I shoved the pillow back down on his face. “Fucking hell, Landon!” I burned so hot I would have melted my clothes away if most of it wasn’t off already. “Hands where I can see them.”
I heard him laugh as he lifted his hands to his head. This guy was trouble in designer slacks.
“Everything below the waist is off-limits,” I said. “It can’t be all about the physical stuff with us. I want us to talk, get to know each other, and”—a thought suddenly occurred to me—“we’re not exclusive.”
Landon grabbed my wrist and raised the pillow. “Why? So you can hook up with Moon?”
I heaved a sigh. “Will you let that go? I’m not into Adam. I was never into Adam. I only did that stuff to make you jealous.”
“Are you serious?”
“Yes. I’m being honest with you because that’s what I want us to do. The problem with you and me is that we never trusted each other. We can’t be in a real relationship until that changes. Okay?”
Landon didn’t reply right away. After a minute, he said, “Can you stop smothering me now?”
Hiding a smile, I climbed off of him and pulled up my pants. I rested against the headboard and Landon sat up and did the same. We gazed at each other across the pillows.
“Okay,” he finally said. “If that’s what you want, that’s what we’ll do.” He smiled and such was his magic that it pulled one to my lips. “We won’t hook up tonight. We’ll talk.”
“It’ll be nice. There’s so much we don’t know about each other.”
“Where do you want to start?”
I shrugged. “We could talk about your family or the places you’ve been or...”
Landon put his arms behind his head and my attention snapped to his chest as it flexed.
“Or we could talk tomorrow,” I said quickly.
“Good idea.”
We reached for each other at the same time.
I WOKE WARM AND COMFORTABLE the next morning. Landon’s nose was buried on my neck. His gentle exhales tickled me. Slowly, I came into my own.
His arm was draped over my waist, holding me securely to his chest. I wore only my bra and panties, but in my defense, my clothes were wet. It made sense to take them off. A lot of things made perfect sense to my Landon-addled brain last night.
Landon respected my wishes and didn’t let his hands stray below the waist. Instead, he thoroughly tested all the wiggle room in the rules and had his fun above the belt.
I carefully extracted myself from under his arms and dressed quietly in the dark. It was Saturday. It would be easy to spend more time in bed with him and I was weak enough to say yes if he asked. Better not to give him the chance. I needed time to myself to think about last night and what, for a moment, I was going to let happen.
The F dorms were a ghost town. Feeling the freedom, I grabbed my towel and headed into the bathroom for the longest, hottest shower I had ever taken in that stall. The hot water soothed my muscles, but had no effect on my spinning mind.
I padded out of the bathroom to my room. I slowed down when I noticed something leaning against my door.
A present?
That’s what it looked like. A rectangular blue and purple gift bag would be packing a present, but I approached it cautiously. I nudged the bag with my toe and it overturned. A metal water bottle covered in tiny colorful butterflies rolled out.
Hmm. This is nice. I picked it up and checked it over. I’ve been meaning to get a new one anyway. Is this from Landon?
I checked in and around the bag. There was no note or anything to indicate who it was from. I shrugged and took it inside anyway.
Shedding my towel, I dressed in a simple pair of shorts and a loose tee. I
didn’t bother to don my Zeke suit. I wasn’t leaving my room anytime soon. I wanted to be comfortable.
Our door opened minutes after I climbed into bed. Adam came in dressed in his clothes from the night before and the goofiest grin. He might as well have been wearing a sign that said he got laid.
“Heeeyyy,” I drew out. “Good night?”
His grin widened. “Pretty good. Sorry about running off and leaving you. Did things work out with Landon?”
I ducked my head. “Yeah. They worked out.”
“Are you still going to dump him?”
“Nothing has changed.”
Adam nodded and his face scrunched up in a wince. He pressed his fingers to the base of his neck, kneading it as he toed off his shoes.
“Sleep badly?” I asked. “That’s what happens when you bed down in a library.”
His eyes flared. “What? How did you know?”
“I followed you.”
It was Adam’s turn to drop his head. “You didn’t see...”
“I saw enough to know you lied about not wanting to lose your virtue last night.”
He chuckled. “That was the plan, but then I remembered I lost that over a year ago, so why hold back?”
I patted the mattress and Adam sat down. Rising up, I searched out the knot in his neck and massaged it. He groaned under my touch.
“You really are my best friend.”
“Are you and Melody together now? Has it finally happened?”
“We’re taking it slow. As of thirty minutes ago.”
“Slow is good. Landon and I are doing the same thing.”
“You’ve got him on the hook, Zee. He was looking at me like he wanted to light me on fire and toss me in a pool full of gasoline.”
“Ouch.”
“He wants you,” Adam warned. “And you want him despite how mad you still are. Protect yourself or you’ll get burned along with him.”
“I will.” I pressed harder and Adam let out a pleased sigh. “Let’s talk about something else.”
