2 in the PINK

by Tabatha Kiss

  “I love her!” I say. “It’s a her, right? I don’t want to offend the pupper…”

  “Yes,” Max answers. “She’s a girl.”

  “Oh, good. My days of being outnumbered around here are finally over.”

  Thad reaches behind the couch and pulls out another present, this one a smaller bag with tassels on the side. He sits on the couch and opens it. “And today, after we’re done with breakfast, we’re all gonna walk her out to the dog park for a little fun. How does that sound?”

  I look in the bag, spotting a leash and several toys. “Yes! I can’t wait.”

  Max sits on my other side. The three of us trade her back and forth, laughing and swoon over her little, adorable face.

  I kiss her head over and over again. “Oh, I love you, I love you.” I turn to Max to kiss his cheek. “And I love you.” Then, to Thad and his stubbled chin. “And I love you.”

  Max tosses the ball and the dog rushes after it for what feels like the fiftieth time but I don’t think I’m ever going to get tired of that little face and her adorable bark.

  I glance over at Thad. He sits nearby under the shade of a tree. His back is to it and he has a new notebook in his left hand, his right scribbling along the page with a little pencil.

  I draw Max closer and give him a soft kiss. “I’m gonna go sit down for a bit.”

  He kisses me back. “I’ll be here. She’s gotta lose some of that puppy energy at some point, right?”

  I laugh as he runs after the dog. “I hope so.”

  Thad looks up as I walk closer. He flips the notebook closed and stuffs it into his jacket pocket. “Hey,” he says, smiling.

  “Working on something new?”

  He nods. “Yeah, felt a little spark of inspiration this morning.”

  “Because of me?” I ask. “Or the puppy?”

  “Little of both.”

  “Well, I look forward to reading it,” I say as I drop to my knees. “Two hours with a puppy and I’m already exhausted.”

  “She’s gonna be a handful, that’s obvious.”

  I fall the rest of the way down and lay my head on his lap. “We sure we can handle it?” I ask, staring up into the tree limbs as they wave in the wind.

  “The three of us together? Oh, yeah.” He nods. “No question. Max and I went over this for weeks, Pheebs.”

  “You did?”

  “Yeah, we’re gonna alternate days to come home during lunch breaks,” he says. “Make sure she doesn’t get too lonely. Take her outside. Give her a snack. And she’ll be taken care of during my days off and on the days when Max works from home. And that’s just us. Your office is only a few blocks away so you’ll be able to get home when needed, too. This’ll be easy. And it’s what you wanted, so it’s what you got.”

  I smile wider. “How did you know I wanted a puppy?”

  “Jackie,” he answers. “Max and I have been talking since like July about what to get you for your birthday and we came up with nothing. Finally just called her because we figured she knew you better than anyone. She told us you wanted a live-in butler and a cook. We told her you already had those.”

  I snort.

  “Then, she said a chocolate lab puppy with a pink collar… and we knew that was it. We went to a shelter about a week ago and there she was. Insta-love. She took us both down.”

  “Aww.” I rest my head. “She’s perfect.”

  He smiles at me. “Yeah, she is.”

  I look up in the sky, catching sight of a plane flying high up in the air with a trail of white following close behind.

  “Hey, Thad?”

  “Yes, milady?”

  “Do you miss it?” I ask, pointing up.

  He follows my finger. “Being an airline pilot?” he asks.

  “Yeah.”

  “Oh, hell yeah. Checking into a half dozen hotels a week in amazing places all over the world with a different beautiful woman who I never have to speak to again? It was the best life ever.”

  I glare up at his smirking face.

  He brushes a few strands of red hair off my forehead. “No, Phoebe,” he says. “I don’t miss it.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “I still fly,” he says. “The difference now is that after a long day of being an instructor, I clock off and I come home to the same beautiful woman who I love more than life itself.” He looks forward. “And that pretty bastard.”

  I follow him across the park to see Max lying on his back in the grass with the puppy lapping at his grinning face.

  I laugh.

  “I’m right where I’m meant to be,” he says. “Never been surer of anything else.”

  “Promise?”

  He leans down to kiss me. “I pinky promise.”

  Our lips touch, gently grazing for a moment before he purses down.

  “Okay…”

  We look up as Max walks over holding the puppy in his thick arms.

  “I think I successfully wore her out,” he says as he sits down. “Finally.”

  He lays her on my lap and she settles with a little yawn that tears my heart in two.

  “Tired little… What should we name her?” I ask.

  We pause, each of us staring down at the beautiful lump of tired, brown fur.

  Thad smiles. “Stinky.”

  I gawk at him. “Stinky?”

  “Stinky Pink. It’s cute.”

  I consider it. “It does kind of rhyme...”

  He winks. “That’s kind of my thing sometimes.”

  “Why does she get my last name?” I ask.

  Max laughs. “Don’t start this argument, please.”

  “Yeah, Max and I battled over this already,” Thad says. “Ultimately, we found the best compromise was to give her your name and leave ours off.”

  “Also, doesn’t Stinky Hemsley bring back some bad fourth grade memories for you, Thaddeus?”

  Thad glares at him. “No comment.”

  “Wow…” I shake my head. “Having a puppy is a lot more complicated than I thought it’d be.”

  Max pets her head and she laps at his familiar hand. “It’s worth it,” he says.

  “Yeah,” Thad says. “Agreed.”

  I blink. “A birthday, a new puppy, and my boyfriends actually agree on something… all in one day. I’m officially shocked.”

  Thad leans down to kiss my forehead. “And we’re just getting started.”

  I look at them. My Max and my Thad. Just me and my boys against the world. And now, our girl, too.

  Max settles beside me and rests his head on my hip. The three of us lie still, gazing up into the bright, blue sky. Happy, inside and out.

  We really are just getting started.

  More from Belle Academy

  Thank you for reading 2 in the PINK!

  Catch up with more naughty Belle Academy alumni in Ruin Me. Continue reading to enjoy the first four chapters on me.

  xoxo

  Tabby

  Ruin Me

  Ruin Me

  By Tabatha Kiss

  She’s an uptight bitch…

  but that just turns me on.

  KAI

  Sex. It’s all I think about.

  It has been ever since that bet my friend, Shawn, and I made a few years back. If I can sleep with every female in our graduating class at Belle Academy before we go off to college, victory will be mine. It’s a tiny, elite, private school. That’s 23 ladies and every last one of them thinks I’m a god.

  Except her.

  When my mother got married during my junior year, things got a little… complicated. It made Piper Lynch my stepsister. The Ice Princess herself. It was already a challenge getting under her thick skin, but now? She may as well have installed a chastity belt.

  One week. I have one week to seal the deal with her or Shawn wins. She thinks she’s gotten rid of me by leaving the country but I have other plans.

  This trip to Europe is exactly what I need to get my edge back … and the perfect chance to
get real close to Piper.

  PIPER

  Sex. It’s all I think about.

  Man, woman. Sweet, rough. You name it, I’ve probably tried it. There’s not a lot I’m not down for, and not a lot of people I’d say no to.

  Except him.

  I’ve noticed Kai Casablancas’ pathetic attempts at flirting with me. I’m not stupid. He’s been laying it on real strong lately and I’ve reached the end of my patience with him. You’d think my father marrying his mother would be enough to get him to back off but he’s pursued me like a sick puppy for years.

  My friend, Mandy, and I are going to Europe for a week. One last hurrah before college begins. A chance to experience the world beyond the prude and restrictive halls of Belle Academy.

  This trip to Europe is exactly what I need to finally let loose… and get far away from Kai.

  One

  Piper

  “Harder.”

  I keep my voice down to avoid any unwanted attention to Ms. Clark’s geometry room. My nails dig hard into the oak wood desk as Jake’s thick cock pounds me against it. Or was it Jack? John? It doesn’t matter. Either way, he’s starting to bore me.

  “Harder.” I whisper it with a little more bite this time, whipping my head back to make eye contact with him. He’s got that look in his eye, like I’m the belle of his balls. The love of his whatever. I turn back around and roll my eyes as I round my hips to make his thrusts get the job done.

  “You’re so hot—” he grunts.

  “Stop talking.”

  I hate it when they talk.

  I finally get him at just the right angle and that good tickle starts to spread inside. My toes curl in my stiletto heels and I ride the wave over and over again until I get what I came here for.

  The climax is short and sweet, giving my nerves the quick recharge they needed before I walk out onto that stage.

  I stand up and push myself off the desk. His thickness slides out of me as I step away from him.

  “Hey— where you going?” he whines.

  I force my skirt back down and give it a quick look over for stains. If this guy got jizz all over this thing, I swear to god…

  “Hello?” He plants his hands on the desk and stares at me.

  I grab the maroon cap and gown off the table by the door. “Thanks for the hit,” I mutter back at him.

  “Well, can I get your number or something?”

  “No.” I open the door and close it behind me.

  My heels click loudly, echoing through the deserted halls of Belle Academy as I make way for the nearest ladies’ room. I stare at myself in the mirror above the sink and smile at the pink color showing through on my pale cheeks. It’s the perfect shade, one I can never quite get right with make-up alone.

  I slip the maroon gown over my head. It tumbles down my body until it just barely scrapes the floor beneath me. I cringe at my reflection. Hundreds of years of commencement in this country and no one has managed to create a graduation robe that doesn’t fit like a fucking muumuu?

  Oh, well. It’s just tradition. It’ll all be over in an hour. Then I can kiss this fucking place goodbye once and for all.

  I run my fingers through my long, black hair and make sure it’s sitting perfectly before placing the cap on my head. The tassel hangs down on the left side, but I ignore it while I fit the golden trim over my shoulders and make double sure it’s even on both sides

  “All right, Piper,” I say as I grip the tassel and move it to the right side. “Let’s do this bitch.”

  “It brings me great pleasure,” Headmaster Lynch says from the podium on stage, “to introduce this year’s Valedictorian. Not only because of the fantastic example she’s made for her classmates and this small community, but because I was there the day she came into this world.”

  I stare out at the crowd gathered on the front lawn of Belle Academy. An ocean of maroon caps and gowns sits in the front section while friends and family sit on the bleachers around them. I sit on the stage. It’s where I belong, after all. I’ve earned this.

  “I feel nothing but overwhelming pride to be here today…”

  I hold my eyes steady to keep from rolling them. People have already begun staring at me to see if I’ll start crying or show some other form of deep emotion toward my father. If that’s what they want, I’ll give it to them, but not yet.

  My eyes lock with Kai Casablancas’ stare from the front row. His brown hair hangs down under his cap, grazing the tops of his eyes. The corner of his mouth turns upward with a smug smirk.

  “I’m sure every one of us will be keeping a close eye on her from now on, because she’s guaranteed to take over the world. Ladies and gentlemen, Class of 2015, your Valedictorian, and my beautiful daughter… Piper Lynch!”

  I tear my eyes away from Kai and throw on a wide smile as I stand up. Applause fills my ears and I get a quick jolt with each whoop and holler I hear from my classmates. I shake my father’s hand and he sits down on a chair while I take my rightful place at the podium.

  “Thank you, Headmaster,” I say, which earns a few chuckles from the crowd. I smile with nerves full of raw energy and look out into the eyes of my classmates. “Guys, we did it. We actually did it. We’ve worked so hard for so many years to get to this moment. After today, they can no longer call us children. The rules of Belle Academy no longer apply to us.”

  I make eye contact with Kai again in the front row, but quickly move on. The last thing I want to do is look at him. Not during my moment.

  “Freedom,” I continue. “That’s what this feeling is. Complete, utter freedom to be whomever we want to be. We can go anywhere and do anything we want. My father was right before. I am guaranteed to take over the world, but so are each and every one of you. There’s nothing to stop us now.” I pause and look out at everybody with a long smile as they grin back at me. They’re all eating out of the palm of my hand. I look at their faces and see their real futures. A few have potential, but the rest of them? No way. But I’m not going to be the one to tell them that, no matter how much pleasure it would bring me to knock them all down a peg. I’ve spent years being the perfect princess of Belle Academy. I guess I can fake it for a little bit longer. My eyes fall once more onto Kai’s face and I swear I see his head shaking back and forth.

  “Look into the future with me now,” I continue. “Imagine what you look like, where you’ll be, who you’re with… then hold onto it with everything you have. I can’t guarantee it’ll come true, but I can promise that with the right amount of dedication, determination, and focus… you might get close. But never forget where you came from. Don’t forget about the echoing hallways of Belle Academy. Don’t forget the faces of those sitting next to you because we all came from the same place. We’ll understand your struggle and we’ll help you along the way. Congratulations, graduates. I can’t wait to see what we make of ourselves. Thank you.”

  The lawn erupts with applause. I hear the whistles between their lips and the clapping of their hands. It’s a good feeling, one that brings me sincere warmth. I step away from the podium and walk across the stage to take my diploma, as we rehearsed the day before. My father extends his hand to me and passes the rolled up sheet of paper off to me. He steps closer and pulls me in for an emotional hug. I let him have it. He’s been waiting as long as I have for this moment. As he releases me, I catch sight of tears in his eyes.

  “Congratulations, Piper,” he says, his smile full of love for me.

  I force a tear down my cheek and brush it away with my palm. “Thank you, daddy.” I shift my position to give the photographer offstage a better view and smile for the photo. I recognize him from Ms. Clark’s geometry classroom as he snaps our photo. So that’s who he was.

  The little princess of Belle Academy is all grown up.

  Ninety more days, and I’m out of here for good.

  Two

  Kai

  I twirl my rolled diploma about in my fingers from my chair in the front row and wa
tch as my classmates cross the stage after me. Each name called brings the flash of memory to my mind.

  Shawn Monty. My best friend. No other description necessary.

  Charles Moore. The editor of the newspaper.

  Monica Myers (Belle Academy Female #18). The carpets don’t match the drapes.

  Annie Prescott (Belle Academy Female #19). She and Barbara Lee (Belle Academy Female #12) gave me my first threesome. Thanks, ladies.

  Stewart Ryan. Resident douchebag.

  There are twenty-three female students in the Class of 2015 and I’ve been inside exactly twenty-two of them.

  All of them except for unlucky #13. Piper Lynch.

  She’s sitting on the stage now with that smile on her face. Yeah, that smile. The one she wears but doesn’t mean anything by it. Luckily for her, no one else but me has been able to see through it, but I’m not telling anybody. Her eyes follow each student as they pass by. I’d do anything to be a fly on the wall of her mind right now and hear what she’s really thinking behind that thick wall of glass and ice.

  I’m running out of time. A few years ago, Shawn and I made a bet. It was stupid, passive. Something neither of us started taking seriously until it became clear that I was actually capable of pulling it off.

  Bang every girl in our graduating class before college begins. All twenty-three of them.

  I’ve been stuck on twenty-two for weeks now.

  Juliet Cole (Belle Academy Female #5) was the last to fall. She’s got a thing for toes.

  But Piper fucking Lynch? I thought she’d be the easiest of all of them at first. She and I have been in the same class since kindergarten. We used to be forced into play dates when our mothers used to hang out. Those stopped when my mother and her father got a little too close to each other. Their affair broke up both marriages, but out of the ashes grew their own union and Piper and I were suddenly kin.