Within minutes, Beth pulled up in front of the red brick manor with gray trim and made a phone call. “We’re here…” Her voice took on her silky, sweet tone she reserved for her boyfriend. She clicked end and angled her body toward Kris. “Jason said he’d meet us here and park the car.”
Kris faked a swoon against the passenger door. “You’re so lucky. Jason’s soooo sweet.”
“Well, from what he tells me, his suitemate can’t wait to meet you, so I’m sure he’ll be just as great.”
“Squee! So cool! I’m so excited.”
“Chill, girl. We’re supposed to be smooth and calm. Know what we’re doing, you know? Act like college girls.”
Jason ran across the grass and pulled open Beth’s door. “Go on up to the front door, and I’ll be right back.” He pecked Beth on the lips and then jumped inside the Honda and peeled off.
Beth and Kris sauntered up the front stoop, staring up at the four-story dorm, which looked like a mansion. Most of the students who walked by didn’t give them a second glance, but Kris caught the glower from a few girls. She’d always stood out among the dark-haired girls in Boston with her long blond hair, especially since she’d added streaks of eggplant and fuchsia.
Jason took the front steps two at a time, then scooped up Beth, planting a kiss on her lips. He set her down, then shifted his gaze to Kris, as though examining her from head to toe; well, maybe he didn’t get past the hem of her dress. “Looking hot, ladies. Come on, Greg’s anxious to meet you.” He held open the door, and they followed. The inside of the old brick manor was spacious with red leather sofas and even a grand piano. He smiled as their mouths dropped open. “You think this is nice, wait’ll you see our suite.”
When he opened the room to their apartment, Kris understood what he’d meant. One side of the room had a full bar built into the wall, and the other side had a terrace overlooking the courtyard. The sky was ominous looking with its oranges and deep blues, making her wonder whether Boston would get a final snow before springtime. God, she hoped not.
A tanned hottie with dark blond hair combed to one side, wearing skinny jeans and a black t-shirt, stepped into the room. She crossed her fingers behind her back, hoping the guy was Jason’s roommate Greg.
He fist-bumped Jason and walked right up to her. “You must be Kristina,” he said in an accent that didn’t fit New England, as didn’t his hair and clothes. Yummy, she thought. He was exactly her type—different. He lifted her hand to his lips, and she felt lightheaded.
“Call me Kris,” she said. “Only my guardians call me by my full name.”
One side of his lip quirked up. “I wouldn’t mind being your guardian. I’ll keep an eye on you all night.” He dropped her hand and strolled behind the bar. “So, what would you ladies like to drink?” Greg looked at Jason. “You already checked their IDs? They’re twenty-one, right?”
“Absolutely,” Jason said, kissing Beth. “Give them our house specialty.”
Greg reached behind him without taking his eyes off her and pulled down two bottles. One with green liquid, the other clear. He flipped the bottles once and poured equal amounts into a short glass, twirled again, and poured another few shots into a second glass. “Two house specials.”
Jason grabbed one and handed it to Beth, then walked over to a stereo and cranked up some tunes, pulling Beth to the middle of the room. As soon as the music started, college students funneled into the apartment.
Kris’ blind date—she’d have to thank Beth later for setting her up with him—stepped around the bar and handed her the green concoction.
She touched a tiny bit to her lips, tasting the drink. It was strong, but good. “Melon?”
“Yep…and a few secret ingredients. If I told you, I’d have to kill you though.” He wiggled his eyebrows. “Careful, they taste so good they can sneak up on you. I wouldn’t want you to get drunk and fall asleep before the party’s over.” He lifted her hand and directed her out the French doors to the terrace. “Tell me about yourself, Kris. Where do you go to school?”
She opened her mouth, but then snapped it shut as she’d almost said the name of her high school. Jason knew she was a junior in high school. Had he really not told his roommate, she wondered. “Hmm…there’s not much to tell. I live in Somerville—”
He cringed.
“Yeah, I know, but I’m leaving soon.”
He stuck out his bottom lip. “Really? Where? We just met.”
“I don’t know. Someplace warm.”
He laughed. “Yeah. Me too. Back to Cali as soon as I graduate.”
She licked her lips and smiled. “I like the sound of that.”
“Well, Kris, maybe we should get to know each other better before you move away then.”
Kris’ entire body tingled at the fact that this hotter than hot college boy was interested in her. Heck, she may even get to L.A. faster than she thought. His parents probably owned a beach house in Venice.
Greg touched his fingers to the bottom of her glass. “Drink up, babe. There’s a lot more where that came from, and we have a lot of partying to do.”
She tilted back the glass, savoring every drop. He left her on the terrace to greet more students filtering into the suite, all carrying dishes of food in one hand and a bottle of some kind of liquor in the other.
Kris wandered around the apartment, meeting new people, but kept her mouth shut and mostly just let them talk about professors and what they were gonna do for Spring Break. Every time she turned around, Greg was close by, offering her a sweet smile. She’d been so lucky he’d chosen her as his date with all these older college girls around.
When she walked back into the main living area, all the couches, chairs, and tables were back against the walls of the apartment, leaving space in the middle for swaying bodies. An eighties’ dance song belted out of the Bose speakers, and Beth squealed in response, pulling Kris into the middle of the room. Kris kicked off her sandals, and within seconds, Greg handed her another drink and moved up behind her, pressing her closer to her friend. She tipped back the glass, draining it. He handed her his glass, and she pounded it too.
The warmth that surged through her body felt de-lish. She’d needed a release from the strains of her life. A day didn’t go by that thoughts about the night she’d lost her mother didn’t plague her, and every evening, nightmares inundated her sleep as she attempted to rewrite the events of her past. She had no parents, no siblings. And every six months, or less sometimes, she ended up with new foster parents when her current guardians were finally able to adopt a baby or have their own child. No one wanted a troublesome teenager. Beth was the only person on the planet who even cared about her worthless existence.
Greg slid his hands around her waist and pulled her closer. The room blurred for a second, and she stumbled backward into his arms, feeling as though she might fall.
He steadied her. “You okay?”
“Yeah. Just hot, I guess.”
He lifted her hand and pulled her toward the door. “Let’s go get some fresh air.”
Kris followed behind him gratefully. “That sounds good.” Beads of sweat dripped between her shoulder blades even though she could feel the air was cool.
Greg led her down a staircase and outside to the courtyard behind the building. He crossed the common area, walking until they were in the shadow of two buildings at the rear of the complex. The setting sun’s orange rays peeked through massive pine tree branches, casting eerie patterns across the lawn as they swayed gently in the breeze. Greg dropped down on a bench and pulled her onto his lap.
Kris’ heart immediately thumped out a nervous rhythm. She’d only known him a couple of hours; she wasn’t ready for this.
He slid one hand up her shirt and the other between her legs.
She jumped off his lap and staggered backward; he hadn’t even kissed her and was already trying to feel her up. “What are you doing? We just met.” A wave of heat flashed through her body, and the world seeme
d to twist and bend around her as she tried to steady herself. Her mind was clear, but the ground felt as though it was moving beneath her as if she were rocking in a boat.
Greg’s face distorted, and she wasn’t certain if the devilish sneer was because he was angry with her or if she was hallucinating. He stood up. “I thought this is what you wanted. To get to know each other.” He approached her and pushed her back against the brick wall. The grainy material pierced through her thin shirt, scraping her back.
She clawed at his hands and arms. “I mean it! Stop it!”
He smashed his hand over her mouth and slammed her harder against the wall. She tried to scream, she tried to push him off, but his body against hers was too strong. It felt as if her arms were floating and her legs could no longer hold her weight.
The loser must have put something in her drink. He tugged up her dress as she struggled to free herself, but he pulled her body away from the wall and then bashed her head back into it. White stars filled her vision as the world began to close around her. She couldn’t pass out; she had to fight.
Greg’s body soared backward, hitting the wall of the building opposite her. She blinked in an attempt to clear her head, trying to register what she’d just seen. Then her body felt weightless as cool air rushed over her skin. Strong arms cradled her body, but they weren’t hurting her; someone was carrying her.
She stared up at the pine trees that rushed by, their long branches reaching out for her, hoping her protector wouldn’t let them take her. That wasn’t right. Trees couldn’t hurt her. She was hallucinating. She struggled to lift her head, to see who saved her. “Who…are…you?”
“You stupid girl…” The familiar deep voice filled her ears, resonating through her body as he pulled her against his chest. “I’m sorry. It’ll be okay…you’ll be okay.”
Hearing his voice sent a thrill through her soul, clearing her mind for a second. Every time she’d tried to convince herself that she’d made him up as a child, her heart argued that he existed. She tried to focus on his face to make out his features, but all she saw were those deep and mysterious eyes that filled her good dreams when she had them. The ones where he whisked her away, as opposed to the nightmares when the thief returned to kill her.
He set her down inside of what must be Beth’s car. “Keep the doors locked until your friend comes out.”
“It’s you, isn’t it?” she struggled to speak through the haze that threatened to steal her into unconsciousness.
“Yes, it’s me.” He brushed her hair from her face, and her world went black.
CHAPTER TWELVE
“This can’t go on, Derrick.” Tori’s words reached him in a whisper that only he could hear as soon as he stepped inside the lobby of his building. He turned to see her sitting at the coffee shop.
Not wanting to deal with her tonight, he sighed but then walked over to her, sliding down in the seat across from her.
“You were watching again tonight, weren’t you?” she said without condemnation, just matter-of-factly.
He bit down on his lip as he glanced at his black jeans and hoodie. How could he possibly deny it? “I have to protect her. She doesn’t have anyone else.”
“Many girls don’t have anyone else.”
“You don’t understand.”
“Try me.”
“Tori, please…let’s not do this. When she’s an adult, I’ll stop. But right now, she doesn’t have parents—”
“She has foster parents. Surely—”
“A new foster family every six months or so doesn’t help instill values. She’s had to protect herself from other kids in her own home, rotten foster parents who only signed on for a government check, and now—” Not wanting to talk about what had just happened, he cut off his words. “What should I do, abandon her?”
Tori shook her head. “I don’t know. I just can’t live with you disappearing every night.”
“Then don’t,” he snapped. He hadn’t meant to sound as harsh as he had, but he was so tired of this conversation when he’d been nothing but honest with her from day one. He’d told her they could only be friends, and she pushed and pushed. “I’ve never asked you to do anything. We don’t live together; we’re not a couple. Besides, I’m always at home or the hospital; this was a rare situation. Her date drugged her tonight and then tried to rape her.”
“So she saw you?”
“No…she was drugged, and the degenerate only felt his body slam against a wall.”
“Derrick…”
He stood swiftly. “Don’t ‘Derrick’ me…I’m not your concern.” He turned to walk away, but then reeled on her. “If someone had been there to protect your mother from that drunk driver, would you have wanted them to stop him?” He didn’t wait for her response. He charged off to the stairwell. The elevator was too slow for him. He had to write a report to send tomorrow. No way would he allow that boy to harm another innocent girl again.
Some would say that Kristina wasn’t innocent, that she’d willingly gone to the party and had too much to drink. But he didn’t see it that way. Taking advantage of a drunk girl was never acceptable, no matter what the situation.
Dammit, Kristina. Dammit, Janelle, he seethed silently. For not listening to him, for not realizing that they needed to be more careful. He reached his door, but didn’t open it. He just fell against it. He was so tired. Not that he required a lot of sleep, but taking care of her had become a full-time job. And now she was drinking.
Warm hands wrapped around his waist. “I’m sorry.”
“Tori, I can’t do this anymore. You have to give up on me.”
She inched herself beneath his arm. “I can’t give up on you anymore than you can give up on that girl.”
That girl… To everyone else, Kristina was just that girl. A girl who’d fallen between the cracks, a girl no one wanted. How could he abandon her too? He closed his eyes and rested his head on Tori’s forehead. “I’m broken, Tori. Can’t you see that? I’ll never fall, which means I’m holding you back from whomever you should be with. We aren’t meant to be. Why can’t you see that?”
“I don’t care.”
Derrick ran his hands through his hair, and then reached behind her, opening the door. He took her hand and led her to his bedroom. She didn’t have to coax him or get him drunk, as she was fond of doing. He needed a release from the angst inside of him, and he would try. He would do everything in his power to submerge himself in her passion. To feel her, to accept her, to make his heart obey. Everything in his head told him that Tori was the woman for him. Only his heart refused to let it happen.
She tore at his shirt, ripping it off him, clearly feeling the energy in him tonight. He backed her up to the bed, and for once, let his body take over, ignoring the screaming in his head that told him this wasn’t right. It was right. This is what his kind did. They found their match, the person who completed them, and they made love, they made a life, they had children, and they lived happily ever after. Tori was his match in every way. They did everything together. What was his problem?
Her lips moved away from his mouth, working their way lower as she unbuttoned his jeans. He gently moved her hands away. He couldn’t. He just couldn’t do it again. He’d caved before, but as much as he wanted to, he couldn’t surrender tonight. It wasn’t right. Normally at least his head was here, but right now, his mind was elsewhere. As much as the lower half of his body wanted her, he couldn’t succumb tonight. He felt nothing sensual for her other than a raw need to fill his physical wants. As beautiful as she was, as much as she wanted him to make love to her, his heart had taken over again. Not tonight. No way could he do anything with her tonight.
He clenched his fists, wanting to ignore the screaming in his head telling him this was wrong. Gasping for air from his inner turmoil, he rolled off the bed. He left the room without looking at her, knowing the dejected look he’d witness.
He practically sprinted to his study, to the bag he’d ignored for a
while. He needed to release the fury inside of him. Picturing the loser he’d pulled off Kristina tonight, he punched it squarely. He’d wanted to kill him. Probably would have if Kristina had been unconscious. He slammed the bag repeatedly until it exploded, wishing it were the man’s insides. It’d taken every ounce of willpower he had not to go back and finish him off after he’d deposited Kristina in Beth’s car.
“I think the bag’s dead,” Tori said behind him.
His heart still pounding out a vicious rhythm, he turned to her. He was finished…with all of it. All of the games. “Tori, I can’t do this anymore. Please go home.”
This time, she listened. Without a word, she turned and walked toward the door, but then whirled on him at the last second. “By the way, don’t call me Tori anymore. I’m tired of it. It sounds like a little girl, not a grown woman with a Ph.D.”
He sighed. “I thought you didn’t like your full name.”
She shrugged and walked out.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
“But it’s prom,” Beth cried over the phone. “What do you mean you’re not going, Kris? We bought dresses, my dad’s letting me use his Cadillac, the cutest guy in school asked you to go with him…”
Kris sighed. “I’m not going.”
“What’s going on? You haven’t been the same since the night of the party. What happened? Jason won’t tell me. He just said that Greg left school. Talk to me, please. I’m your best friend.”
“I just don’t feel like going, okay? I gotta go. I have homework.”
“Since when do you study? You ace your tests without studying.”
“If I wanna get out of this dump, I gotta start putting in some extra work.”
“Okay…but, this discussion isn’t over.”
“Yes, it is, Beth. I’m not going, so don’t bug me about it again. Bye.” Kris hung up the phone and stared down at the picture she’d been drawing. The eyes, she almost had them right. When she’d seen him when she was eight, she’d thought for sure that it had just been her imagination, but he’d saved her again. She couldn’t make him out completely this time, just his eyes and his voice. She could never forget his beautiful voice. Though, she had been drunk, and she suspected that Greg had drugged her too. She didn’t even remember Beth taking her home.
Creatus Series Boxed Set Page 7
