“I’m stuffed!” I exclaimed, after taking a bite of fried cheese on a stick.
“I was going to take you out to dinner after this,” Michael said ruefully, “but I’m absolutely stuffed as well. I forgot how filling fair food is.”
“I’m fine with going home,” I murmured.
Taking my hint, Michael quickly led me out of the park and back to the car. We were on each other as soon we had shut the doors. Suddenly, there was a knock on the window. We jumped apart guiltily.
A security guard was standing there. He did not look pleased. “Aren’t you a little old to be making out in your car?” he said when Michael rolled down the window.
“Sorry, sir,” Michael replied smoothly. “We were just leaving.” Before the guard could say anything else, Michael put the car into gear and drove off.
“God, that was so tacky,” I laughed as we sped away from the fair.
“Which part?” he asked wryly.
I giggled. “Making out like teenagers in the car. But it was so much fun.”
Michael momentarily took his hand off the shift stick and squeezed mine. “It doesn’t matter to me what I’m doing anymore, Lana,” he said seriously, “as long as it’s with you.”
“How did I get so lucky to find you?” I asked, my voice barely above a whisper.
“I was just thinking the same thing,” Michael replied.
When we got to his apartment, the only thing on both of our minds was making love. As he pushed himself inside me, I knew that I never wanted to feel any other man besides Michael Reynolds.
Little did I know that tonight was the last night we would have together before my world fell apart.
Chapter 20
I spent Saturday at Michael’s apartment. We got up and went for a jog – well, a jog/walk, since I was not a natural runner. “Keep up, Luna,” Michael teased, jogging backwards in front of me.
I slowed to a walk. “You have longer legs than me,” I complained.
“Whatever you say, Luna.” Michael took off, yelling, “Catch me if you can,” over his shoulder.
I sprinted after him. I could see Michael slow down, and knew he was going to let me catch up. “Gotcha!” I yelled, wrapping my arms around his waist. Michael lost his balance and we both went tumbling into the grass.
“Oh my God, are you hurt?” I asked him, smoothing back his hair.
“What do you think?” Michael shot me a flirty grin, then was back on his feet in a flash, jogging in the direction of his apartment. I went running after him, trying not to waste my breath on laughter. When we got back, Michael made us pancakes and bacon.
The day flew by. It was the most perfect lazy Saturday I could have ever imagined.
“I wish we didn’t have to meet MA and Toby tonight,” I groaned. We were sitting on the couch, my legs draped across Michael’s lap.
“We haven’t gone out with them in a few weeks,” he pointed out.
“I know I sound like a bad friend,” I muttered.
“Not at all,” Michael said. “You think I don’t want you all to myself? I just know your friendship with Maryanne means the world to you. Hoes before bros,” he joked.
I laughed. “I think the saying is bros before hoes and it only applies to men.” I smacked him with a pillow from the couch, which led to him pinning me down and tickling me.
“Stop!” I screamed, giggling, not meaning a word of it.
Michael threw up his hands. “As the lady wishes.”
Now it was my turn to tackle him and pin him down. “The lady wishes,” I mumbled, pulling down his shorts. I went down on him, savoring every delish moan of pleasure. When he finished, Michael’s face was flushed. “I’m so afraid I might blink and find out this is all a dream,” he said in a soft voice.
I got on the couch and laid my head on his chest. “I’m here to stay,” I said as his hands stroked my breasts, my hard nipples. “You just came,” I said, laughing. “Don’t drive me crazy if you can’t deliver,” I said suggestively.
It was all of the encouragement that Michael needed. Within seconds he was tasting me, returning the same favor I had just given him.
When it was over we were lying together on the couch, both naked from the waist down, holding each other. I jolted when I heard my phone ringing. Fuck. What time is it?
I pulled myself into a sitting position and grabbed my phone off the table. It was Maryanne.
“Hello,” I said on the fifth ring.
“Lana, I was just about to hang up! I need to tell you something before dinner tonight.”
“Um, okay,” I said, pulling the phone away from my ear to check the time. It was only six. Good. We weren’t meeting MA and Toby until half past seven.
“It’s just I know that you’re expecting Toby tonight, but the truth is, it wasn’t working with him and…I met someone else. I’m bringing my new boyfriend.”
“Huh?” I was confused.
“I need to go get ready; I just didn’t want to blindside you. Lana, I think he’s the one,” Maryanne said dreamily. “I’ve never felt this way before in my life. I know you and Michael will love him. Bye now!”
Before I could say a word, Maryanne had hung up the phone. Michael sat up on the couch, looking sleepy. “What was that all about?” he asked me.
“Apparently we’re meeting Maryanne and her new boyfriend tonight for dinner,” I said, feeling slightly miffed.
Michael’s eyebrows shot up in surprise. “Not Toby?” he asked.
“I guess she isn’t seeing him anymore?” I shrugged my shoulders, still hurt that this was the first I was hearing about it.
“Hey.” Michael leaned forward and started massaging my shoulders. “Don’t worry about it. I know Maryanne is your best friend, but does she always confide in you when it comes to her boyfriends?”
“Well, no,” I admitted, thinking of how Doug had dumped her before she even told me they had been dating exclusively.
“She’s not like you,” Michael said. “I’m sure you told her about me the second you saw me,” he teased. I turned my head and kissed Michael, who was still massaging me.
“I couldn’t keep you to myself,” I said honestly.
“I’m pretty good at reading people, and I think Maryanne is hesitant when it comes to guys. Like she’s been burned in the past and doesn’t want to talk about it until she knows it’s something real,” Michael said.
I thought of her first boyfriend, Bobby, and how he bragged to the whole school about taking her virginity. “You’re right,” I said slowly. “She’s not an open book when it comes to her relationships. I guess I just thought she’d confide in me a little more.”
“You can’t change people,” Michael said. “If you really care about them, you just have to accept them, flaws and all.”
“How did you lose your virginity?” I asked impulsively, my mind still on Bobby.
“Woah, I wasn’t expecting that question right about now,” Michael said.
“I think Maryanne’s first had a big influence on how she acts now,” I admitted. “And I want to know everything about you. That includes the woman who first had her way with Michael Reynolds.”
“I was fourteen,” Michael started. “Yeah, I know that’s young,” he said, seeing the surprised look on my face. “She was seventeen and my next door neighbor. We weren’t even dating. One day she came over to play video games after school. And it just…happened. I don’t know why. It was meaningless, empty. Nothing like when I make love to you…or how I hope you feel about your first time.”
“I don’t regret a thing,” I said honestly. “I love that you’re my first, my only. And that will never change.”
We sat in silence, Michael stroking my hair, until I reluctantly got up from the couch. “Unfortunately, I need to get ready.”
Michael stretched. “Me, too.”
I showered and changed into a simple gray knit dress with pockets. It was one of the outfits I’d picked up on my shopping trip with Mary
anne a couple of days ago. We were meeting at a bar called The Tracks, which was in the university area near the railroad tracks. They offered half price shots if you ordered while a train was passing.
“You look adorable,” Michael asked when he saw me.
We got to the bar a few minutes early and sat down at a table for four. “I wonder what this guy is like?” I mused. “MA was so excited! She sounded – well, she sounded like how I feel about you,” I admitted.
“So then it must be the real deal.” Michael rested his hand on my thigh protectively. I had come to love when he did that. It made me feel like I was his, and no one else could ever take me away.
I spotted Maryanne first. Her eyes were scanning the crowded room, looking for Michael and me. Her face lit up when she saw us and she waved. The bar was dimly lit, and I struggled to see her date. He was walking behind her; all I caught a glimpse of was thick, jet-black hair. Maryanne’s type. Just like my type.
And then they were at the table. Maryanne yelled over the noise. “Damon, this is my best friend Lana and her boyfriend, Michael.” It was then that Maryanne’s date stepped out from behind her.
I blinked, not understanding what I was seeing. Then I squinted, sure that my eyes were playing tricks on me. But no, it was not a trick, not a horrible joke. I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that Maryanne’s new boyfriend was Damon Winters, the boy I had almost killed when he tried to rape me five years ago.
Chapter 21
I stared at Damon, my whole body tense, expecting to see him looking back at me with the same expression of shock and disbelief. But no, Damon was calm, cool. “Nice to meet you, Lana,” he said with a comfortable smile. “Maryanne has told me so much about you.” He turned to Michael. “And you too, Michael.” He pumped Michaels’ hand enthusiastically.
Maryanne was speaking. I willed myself to focus on her words. “Damon transferred here mid-semester,” she said, her voice bubbling over with excitement. “We met in calculus class.” She turned to direct her next words at me. “I didn’t want to tell you, Lana, because I was so scared someone would pinch me and I would find out it was all a dream.”
“Uh-huh,” I said distractedly. My eyes were focused on Damon. He was watching Maryanne as she spoke, but glanced over at me when she said my name, a smirk playing on his lips.
There’s no fucking way he doesn’t know it’s me. His first girlfriend. Those nights at summer camp. When I beat the shit out of him.
My mind was racing. I felt like I should have said something, should have gotten it out in the open right away when Maryanne introduced us. Damon is the piece of shit who tried to force me to have sex with him. I told myself I could still say the words now, that it wasn’t too late; I opened my mouth to spat them out, but clamped it back shut.
Why is he here? Damon must have known that Maryanne’s best friend Lana was his Lana, from five years go. And Damon wasn’t surprised, so he had seen this coming.
“So Maryanne says you’re a doctor,” Damon said to Michael, flashing his charming grin. It was the same smile that had made my heart melt when I was fifteen years old. I felt goose bumps prickling on my arms, but not the goose bumps I got when Michael touched me.
Michael was responding, but I couldn’t hear him over the deafening in my ears. I felt trapped. It was like I was a teenager again, about to be forced into a situation I wasn’t ready for. But I’d never be ready to see Damon Winters. That chapter of my life was supposed to be closed. Forever.
Maryanne leaned forward while Damon and Michael chatted. “Isn’t he wonderful?” she asked, a dreamy expression on her face.
“Wonderful,” I managed to repeat, feeling like I had the vocabulary of a caveman.
“And you’re going to be a doctor as well?” Damon asked me.
I nodded, studying his face. He looked the same as I remembered, except a little bit older. Those piercing blue eyes, the ones the used to drive me wild, were looking at me with an expression that was, well, triumphant. He’s won. But what had he won? Why was he here? Did he truly fall for Maryanne, then later connect the dots about her roommate? Or was he using Maryanne to get to me?
No, it had to be a coincidence. Damon probably forgot about me the second his family moved away. But deep down I wasn’t so sure.
Michael leaned over. “Are you okay?” he said worriedly. “You’re awfully quiet.”
“I feel sick,” I replied. It was the truth.
“Do we need to leave?” Michael asked.
Yes I wanted to scream, but instead I shook my head no. I had to stick around, figure out what game Damon was playing.
“I just need a drink.” I grabbed the shots menu. Brain Freeze. That sounded like a good one. The waitress hadn’t been to our table yet; I looked around impatiently.
“If you’re feeling sick I don’t think a drink is going to help.” Michael was looking at me, an odd expression on his face.
“I’m sick because I’m stressed.” Again, that was the truth. “Huge project at school,” I said, before Michael could question the source of my stress.
Finally the waitress came over and we placed our orders.
I dug my fingernails into my leg until it bled, willing our drinks to get there. “You can go ahead and bring another for me,” I told the waitress as soon as she set down the first one. I downed the shot, thinking that the name was fitting. Whatever was in it, it burned as it went down my throat, and my head felt light almost immediately.
“Lana, you’re worrying me,” Michael said. Only Maryanne and I were doing shots; Damon and Michael were both drinking beer.
“Just having fun.” I forced a smile.
Feeling a little more relaxed, I turned to Damon. “Why did you transfer here?” I asked.
“My father’s sick…cancer. It…doesn’t look good, so I wanted to be close to him. They’re not sure how long he’s going to live.”
Maryanne squeezed Damon’s hand. He turned to her and smiled. “Thank God I’ve got Maryanne to help me through this horrible time.”
“Have you met his dad?” I asked her.
“Not yet,” she replied.
So, could just be a big lie.
As the evening progressed, I quit counting how many shots I had ordered. Three? Four? Shit, maybe I was on number five. I knew I’d reached my limit when the room started spinning. I managed to stand up without falling over. “I’m going to the ladies room,” I mumbled, making my way unsteadily towards the restrooms.
When I got there, I stood in front of the mirror, bracing my hands on the sink. I looked even paler than usual. My lips were literally white. I turned on the tap and splashed the icy cold water onto my face.
The nausea was overwhelming. I barely made it to the toilet and fell to my knees before the stream of putrid vomit poured out of my mouth. I threw up over and over again, feeling like it was the punishment I deserved. Punishment for thinking I could live as though I were fully human. Punishment for stupidly believing that my past didn’t matter, as long as I had Michael.
When all of the alcohol was gone, I kept heaving, but there was nothing left to come up.
“Lana, are you okay?” Maryanne was knocking at the door.
I stood up shakily. “I’m fine,” I said, flushing the toilet and unlocking the stall.
“Were you throwing up?” she asked, surprised.
“No,” I lied. “I just had to pee.” I walked over to the sink to wash my hands.
“Okay.” I could see Maryanne’s reflection in the mirror. She was standing behind me, looking at me skeptically. “Is everything okay? You haven’t been yourself tonight. Did you and Michael get in a fight or something?”
Poor, naïve, sweet Maryanne. She had no clue that she was sleeping with the enemy.
“I think I’m just stressed out about all the schoolwork I have to do,” I said, using the same reason I’d given Michael.
“We should go soon; Damon lives off-campus, so he doesn’t have a roommate. I’m staying at his place
tonight.” She grinned happily.
“Great,” I managed to choke out, feeling like I might vomit again.
We walked back out to the table. I forced a big fake smile for Michael. He smiled back uncertainly.
“You ready to call it a night?” Maryanne asked Michael and Damon. Damon leaned over and kissed Maryanne on the cheek.
“I can’t wait to have you all to myself.” I could barely hear him over the deafening noise of the bar. His words made me cringe.
When we had settled the tab and were standing outside, Damon put his arm around Maryanne’s waist and turned to Michael and me. “It was great to meet you guys,” he said, sounding completely sincere. He was looking me in the eyes when he said it.
“Yeah, we should get together again soon,” Michael agreed. I nodded, unable to speak.
“I’ll be back home sometime tomorrow,” Maryanne told me. “Maybe I’ll see you.”
“Maybe.”
We headed to our cars.
“Damon seems nice,” Michael commented as we pulled out of the lot.
“Yeah, they make a cute couple,” I said flatly.
“Lana, are you sure you’re okay? Are you still feeling sick? You had five shots.”
“Oh, I’m fine,” I said flippantly.
We didn’t say much on the rest of the ride back to Michael’s apartment. I needed to be alone, to think – but it would just make him even more suspicious if I insisted on spending the night alone in my dorm room.
Despite my protests that I was feeling fine, Michael insisted that I get some rest.
“Let’s at least watch a movie,” I suggested. Then I won’t have to talk.
Concerned that I was coming down with something, Michael got a blanket and tucked it around me on the couch. Then he sat down next to me so I could rest my head on his lap. I felt safe, secure, at least for the moment.
I closed my eyes so that Michael would think I had fallen asleep. I was exhausted, but my mind was racing. My perfect world was falling apart. It was the first time we had spent the night together that we didn’t make love.
Dark Moon Page 13
