“Um ... you did gymnastics?” he asked, staring blatantly at her chest.
“Yup. Believe it or not, I did not come out of the womb looking like this,” she chuckled as she cupped her breasts. “I was a string bean for a long time. Late bloomer. Was killer on the balance beam. It's what got me into my school, I was the best in the district. My mother was a bartender and my dad worked crane for a construction company. We weren't exactly rolling in the dough.”
“If you were so good, why didn't you do it in college or shoot for the Olympics?” he asked.
“Okay, I said I was the best in my district, not the frickin' country. And then during the beginning of my senior year, I basically grew tits over night. Got harder and harder to compete, I got into boys and sex, so it was whatever. Anyway, so I'm telling you I'm not what you think I am, I'm not some rich chick from the suburbs who's used to people doing everything for me. I've always had some sort of job since I was fifteen, I had to beg Katya to help me do my homework just so I could pass school, and every other spare hour was spent in a gym. So I know how it feels to have a lot of pressure on you and to have to work really hard,” she finished her rant.
“It's a little different,” he sneered.
“Yeah. One of us didn't handle it like a pussy,” she shot back.
“See, this is where 'you're dumb' really wants to come out of my mouth.”
She abruptly stood up, causing her chair to screech as it scraped across the ground. He was a little stunned as he watched her collect her purse and slip on her flip-flops.
“And this is why you have no friends,” she told him. “I'm trying to be nice to you, trying to say that maybe, just maybe, someone could possibly understand how you feel, and you're still a dick.”
She went to walk past him in a huff. He should let her go by, he knew. He'd thought they'd been bantering. Just having fun. He wasn't here to have some deep soul connection with her, he didn't need her to understand him. He didn't need her.
Yet before she could get out of range, he snapped his hand out and grabbed her arm. She was abruptly jerked to a stop and he leaned back in his chair so he could look her in the face.
“I'm an asshole,” he said bluntly. “You knew that when you came on this trip. Did you think having sex would change that?”
“No,” she shook her head. “I don't think anything will change you. I think you're a lost cause, Landon Edenhoff. And it's a shame, because maybe once upon a time, you had a chance to be a good guy. A great guy. Goddamn amazing. But you ruined it, and maybe it's time you grow up and stop blaming other people. You ruined yourself.”
Then she shook herself free of him and walked away. He watched her until she'd disappeared around the edge of the pool.
Ridiculously, he found himself smiling. At her tenacity and her spunk. Not very many people stood up to him. Even his twin would rather take his shit than risk his nasty attitude. Not Tori, though. She wasn't about to take any of what he was dishing out.
Shit ... maybe I do like her.
TORI HAD WANTED TO pout. Had almost called Katya and cried to her. Wanted to blab the whole horrible truth about where she was and who she was with, and could the other girl please come pick her up at the airport?
But then she'd thought about it, and she'd realized the only thing worse than finishing the week with Landon would be admitting she'd lied to her best friend.
This was an amazing experience – an all expenses paid vacation to a foreign country. Why was she wasting it on an infuriating man? Sex was the only thing they seemed to have in common, and while it was earth shatteringly, mind blowingly, toe curlingly good, it didn't mean she had to suffer in his presence more than was necessary.
She would use him at night to distract her from the thoughts and nightmares about her shitty life. During the day, she would use her surroundings.
She went to the front desk of the resort and inquired about zip line tours. It turned out a bus left every half an hour, and she had just enough time to run upstairs and grab a tank top before catching the next one. She bought her tickets, then was off like a shot.
The bus ride took a long time. Enough so she got kind of nervous. She was a single woman in a foreign country. Weren't there like a million dateline stories about situations starting like that? She spent most of the drive with her backpack clutched to her chest, looking at her fellow passengers with suspicion.
But when they finally arrived and everyone got off the bus, she saw the majority of people were aged forty and above, and most were couples. There were a couple teenage girls traveling with their family, and one of them complimented Tori on her bag.
She got to chatting with the girls, then was pleasantly surprised when a young man joined them. Turned out the girls' older brother was also along on the family vacation.
“Where you from?” he asked, twisting his baseball hat around so it was backwards on his head.
“California, you?” she replied, gingerly stepping over rocks as they went up a hilly path.
“Virginia, but going to school in Texas.”
“Texas, nice. What grade?”
“Junior. What grade are you in?” he asked, and she threw her head back in laughter.
“Oh, sugar, you're cute,” she teased him. “But I am not now, nor have I ever been, in college.”
“C'mon, you can't be over twenty.”
“Nice try. Tell me, does this clueless act work on college girls?” she asked, but she said it with a smile, and he laughed back at her.
“Sometimes,” he nodded his head. “Okay, let's cut out the bullshit. How old are you, what do you do?”
“I'm turning twenty-five in April,” she replied. “And – drum roll, please – I work in a sex club.”
“I'm ... wait ... so you're a ...?” he let his voice trail off.
“A ... what? Prostitute? No, have you ever been to a sex club?”
“No, I didn't even know they were a real thing.”
“Yeah, they are, and it's not somewhere whores go to find johns. It's really expensive to be a member, super exclusive. I'm the assistant manager and I run the bar,” she explained.
“That's ... really super hot,” he finally said, chuckling as he rubbed at he back of his neck. “Now I feel young and stupid in comparison, all I do is go to school and play ball.”
They fell into a normal first-meeting conversation. She told him about living in San Francisco, and Chris, as he'd introduced himself, told her about living in College Station, a town not too far from Houston. He was twenty-one and spending his Christmas vacation with his family in Bali. He'd wanted to spend his vacation at home in Texas, but now he was glad he'd come along, he told her.
“You're here alone?” he asked as they stood at the back of the shed and listened to the zip line guide explain the safety instructions.
Tori wasn't sure how to answer that question. Technically, she wasn't, but it sort of felt like she was – Landon had hardly spent any time with her during the days. Didn't seem to particularly care for her presence outside of the bedroom, so her first instinct was to say yes, she was on her own.
But then she'd remembered their night together. That weird, charged moment on the balcony. Him saying her full name, him asking her to trust him. Sitting alone in the dark. And suddenly she didn't know what to say at all.
“I'm here ... with a friend,” she answered carefully while they got in line to pick out their gear.
“Well, I'm glad your friend didn't come today,” Chris replied, smiling down at her.
She smiled back, but felt a little strange about it. She wasn't sure what was going on between her and Landon. She had said it was fine for him to go get his dick sucked by some blonde chick in a bar, but really, it was not fine. She wasn't comfortable with the idea of him sleeping with other people while he slept with her, and she was a firm believer in “treat others how you wish to be treated”.
She tried to keep all her actions purely friendly after that moment. When he offere
d to help her into her harness, she declined and got herself strapped in before grabbing her helmet. She didn't want to be alone, though, so she stayed between him and his sisters, giving most of her attention to the younger girls. They all gasped and chatted nervously when they saw how high the zip lines were.
“And there's how many?” Tori asked, staring straight up.
“We have to do four of them,” the fifteen year old responded.
“Next!”
Tori stepped up to the edge of the platform, keeping her back to the open expanse behind her. The guide prattled on and on, reminding her of what to do and what not to do. Different straps on her harness were fiddled with and her helmet was checked, then they finally started hooking her up.
While they got her secured to the line, she took a chance and glanced over her shoulder. Blinked as she stared at the ground so far below her. For some reason, though, it didn't make her more afraid. It actually reminded her of the night before, of being some forty flights up in the air, and not being scared at all.
“Ready?” the guide's voice interrupted her thoughts.
“Ready.”
Tori screamed the whole way across, but by the end, she was laughing hysterically. All that fear, and it was amazing. The jungle looked incredible and she was surprised to see a river far below her. She felt like a bird. A guide and Chris were waiting on a platform at the other end of the line, and by the time she reached them, she was out of breath from laughing so much.
It was absurd, but with each trip across the ravine, Tori found herself wishing Landon had come along. He liked excitement and adventure. He liked doing dangerous things. This may have been somewhat tame, but she was positive he would've loved it. Not a lot of things made him smile – not really smile – but she thought maybe the zip line would've.
When they'd finished all the lines and had turned in their gear, she was genuinely sad it was over. After they got back on the bus, Chris and his sibling all sat around her, gushing on about the exciting day.
“So cool, wasn't it Tori?” one sister asked. “I hope tomorrow is just as fun!”
“What are you guys doing tomorrow?” she asked, trying to comb out her sweaty, messy hair with her fingers.
“Rafting tour,” the other sister answered. “Just beginners stuff, but should still be pretty fun.”
“Sounds great! I've gone rafting before, but same, only beginners stuff. I loved it, so I bet you'll have a blast.”
“You should come,” Chris said. “It's not like by appointment or anything, and if we all show up together, I bet we can get on the same boat.”
“Oh, no,” she laughed nervously. “I'm not gonna crash your family vacation.”
“Please!” the younger sister, who seemed to have taken a real shine to Tori, begged. “It'll be so fun, I promise. We're supposed to get out at this great overlook and have a picnic and this guy is coming along and taking pictures. You have to come. You have to.”
“Well, I guess I have to,” Tori teased, and everyone laughed.
Rafting wasn't the only thing they talked her into – Chris and Co. were a persuasive bunch and she found herself agreeing to dinner at the resort. She promised to meet them in the restaurant in an hour, then she hurried upstairs to change.
The room was empty, which she'd expected. What Landon did with his free time, she had no clue, and she really didn't want to. She was just glad he wasn't doing anything bad in their hotel room.
She hopped in the shower and rinsed herself off. When she came out of the bathroom, she was stunned to see the troublemaker himself sitting just outside the open balcony doors.
“That was a long pout,” he commented before lighting a fresh cigarette. “Where'd you go?”
“I told you I wanted to go zip lining,” she replied. He raised his eyebrows in surprise while blowing a stream of smoke outside.
“Yeah, but you didn't say you were doing it today. It's been four hours, Tor.”
“Awww, did widdle Wandon miss me?” she asked, grabbing some clothing before heading back into the bathroom.
“No, he didn't,” he corrected her, raising his voice to be heard. “You should've told me – just because we're in a nice resort doesn't mean bad shit doesn't happen. I don't want to get in trouble because your stupid ass got kidnapped and raped.”
“If you're not careful, you'll make me swoon,” she warned him. She dropped her towel and stepped back into her shorts. Then she grabbed her bra and put it on, adjusting her boobs so everything sat right.
“I'm not trying to make you swoon,” he said, and she jumped when his voice was right at the bathroom door. She turned to find him standing there. “What are you doing?”
“Getting ready,” she replied, leaning over the sink and examining herself in the mirror.
“For what?”
“Dinner.”
“We're going to dinner?” he asked, moving so he was standing behind her. She snorted and grabbed her brush, dragging it through her tangled locks.
“You're not invited,” she told him. “I made some new friends on my little excursion, I'm meeting them.”
“Ah, but who said you could go?”
She held still for a moment. Landon used his voice as a weapon of sorts. Or a warning system. In his day to day life, it was low, much like his twin brother's, and serious, completely unlike his bother's. He sounded bored a great deal of the time, like he was over everything. It could switch lightning quick to angry, however. Or to frigid and cold, freezing someone where they stood. He could snap and he could lash with his tongue, she'd seen him do it.
There was another voice he used, though, one she got a feeling not many people got to hear. It was soft and deep and very authoritative. She'd never heard it before their night together in the club, but now it was imprinted on her brain. Like Pavlov's bell to her libido. It meant he had one thing on his mind, and all of his intellect and intensity was now focused on getting it. She took a deep breath, then cleared her throat.
“I don't have to ask your permission to go to dinner, Landon,” she challenged him, then she flicked her eyes down to her watch. She had forty minutes before she had to be at dinner. Was that enough time for a quickie? Did Landon even know the meaning of that word?
“Hmmm, I think you do,” he said softly, and she felt his fingertips against her back, gently smoothing their way down to her shorts. “If you're hungry, don't worry, I definitely have something you can put in your mouth.”
“Smooth,” she chuckled. “Maybe we can play when I get back, but I don't have time -”
Her breath got caught in her throat as his hand raced across her hip and dove down the front of her shorts. Then she gasped when he cupped her crotch.
“I have plenty of time,” he informed her. “And I'm all that matters right now.”
“Landon, I can't ... I promised ...” she began to stutter as two fingers found their way inside her body.
“I don't care,” he whispered back.
Tori shook her head. Sex was awesome, and sex with Landon was so good it should be illegal, but she wasn't some chick who was controlled by her vagina. As turned on as she was and as badly as she wanted to finish what he was starting, she couldn't imagining standing up those two teenage girls. She would feel awful.
“Please,” she moaned, licking her lips and bracing her hands against the sink top. “I swear, when I come back we can do whatever you want, but I promised these people I'd meet them.”
“People?” Landon questioned her word choice, and his fingers stopped moving.
“Yeah, as in other humans beings,” she replied, confused.
“As in not just one sex,” he clarified.
“Two sisters and a brother.”
His fingers disappeared altogether as he pulled his hand free of her shorts. They stared at each other in the mirror.
“Ah, I see now. There's a guy,” he said. She barked out a laugh.
“Yeah, and two girls,” she pointed out.
“They don't count.”
“Oh my god,” she gasped. “Are you jealous, Landon?”
The hand that had been in her shorts was now on her jaw, forcing her to turn and face him. He didn't respond to her question, just kissed her roughly, shoving his tongue deep in her mouth. When he finally pulled away, his lips were replaced with his fingers, still wet from her. He slid them into her mouth, letting her clean up her mess.
“Never jealous. Have fun.”
And then he was gone, marching out of the bathroom like he was completely unaware of the fact she was a flooded wet wreck.
So unfair that he can do that!
Tori was able to make it downstairs only a couple minutes late to her dinner date. Both the teenage girls had clearly made an effort to sort of dress up for the occasion, and she almost felt bad about her ripped cutoffs and plain white tank-top. Chris was still in the clothing he wore to the zip line, though, which made her feel better.
It was a fun meal. She liked to meet new people and she liked to laugh, so she had a good time. She learned more about the two girls, how the one was big into band, and the other was applying to go to Dartmouth next year. As it got later, though, the girls grew distracted by a gaggle of pro-kite boarders. They eventually took off to hover around the boys with a bunch of other girls their own age.
“When I left for college, Kimmy was only thirteen. Freaks me out seeing her like this,” Chris chuckled, gesturing to the older of the two girls.
“She's seventeen, I'm pretty sure she's done more than just gawk at boys,” she pointed out.
“Please, stop, I'm going to be sick.”
Tori laughed loudly, then something caught her eye. They were eating in the same restaurant she'd been in the night before, near the same table. Across from them was the bar, and at the end of it was Landon. He was talking to a girl – not the same blonde as before, but a brunette this time. He glanced at Tori once, then did a double take. Toasted his beer to her before getting back to the girl in front of him.
“Friend of yours?” Chris asked when her laughter died down.
“I wouldn't call him a friend,” she said slowly.
Neighborhood Watch Page 8
