Tangled Web Series Box Set

by Jade C. Jamison

  Instead, Ron seemed to take that as an invitation. “So he’s not even here when you really need him?” He leaned forward, so she placed her hand on his chest to push him away. That just seemed to make him think he could go further. He tilted her head and laid a kiss on her and she pushed against him until he stopped. Part of her wanted to deck him but she really didn’t want to hurt him or resort to violence. “Stop,” she finally managed and he quit kissing her, even though he kept his hands on her. “What the hell is wrong with you?”

  He kept his voice low but he didn’t release her. “Don’t you get it, Erin? I love you. I have for a long time. This rock star guy can’t possibly understand that. Haven’t you seen how the girls swarm around him like he’s a honeycomb? How can you compete with that? And how can he resist it?”

  Erin wiggled her shoulders but couldn’t get loose. So she said, “Ron, these things are none of your business.” She softened her tone. “And, look, I had no idea you had fallen in love with me. We’ve never gone out, Ron. How can you love me? You hardly know me.”

  “I know enough.”

  No, he really didn’t. She suspected Riley had learned more about her in a week than Ron knew from her past three years at Winchester High. Ron hadn’t ever asked her many questions about herself. Maybe on a date that would change, but it was too late now. And she had to tell him that. “Look, Ron, you’re a nice guy, but your timing sucks. I am dating Riley right now, for better or worse, and I will have an easier time making a decision if you’re not in my face muddying the issues.”

  His eyes searched hers but he seemed to understand. He nodded and took a deep breath. He still hadn’t released her, though. “Could you ever love someone like me?”

  Erin inhaled, giving it some thought. Then she said, “With time, of course. That’s the problem, Ron. We know each other in the context of school but not outside it. How would you feel about going to a metal concert, for instance?”

  The look on Ron’s face said all she’d ever need to know.

  Chapter Thirty-eight

  PURE RED RAGE. That’s what Riley was feeling at first. He should’ve known. Every goddamn woman he’d ever given a shit about actually loved someone else. Marla, Katie…and now Erin. Why the fuck hadn’t she ever told him she was involved with that nerdy theater guy? Riley could have had fun anyway, but he would have kept his heart out of it. Now, though, his heart was too inextricably wound around the thought of her, and seeing her with another man was painful.

  He took a deep breath. The urge for alcohol was strong, and the longer he looked up at Erin in that guy’s arms, the stronger it got. Part of him wanted to go up there and beat the shit out of the guy, but all Riley needed was another high publicity misdemeanor or felony for the press to get wind of. They loved that shit and he was tired of perpetuating the bad boy stereotype. So while he clenched his jaw so hard he thought his teeth might crack, he noticed the slutty girl’s note peeking out of the small trash bag hanging off the car lighter.

  Yeah…some fresh (albeit skanky) pussy could cure a lot of what was ailing him.

  He opened the note even though he didn’t need to. He remembered…Josie, A-3. His chest remembered the trail her finger had traced down to his navel. If they hadn’t been outside and he’d been willing, he knew that girl would have kept her finger moving down to the tip of his cock.

  Yeah, that could be the cure.

  Oh, he knew it would just be a Band-Aid over a spurting wound, but it would do. The first fuck always took the edge off. The ache remained for a long time, but it was easier to cope with when it had been dulled. So he dropped the note on the car seat, shut the door, and stormed across the lawn area to the apartment doors on the bottom floor. He hadn’t even realized until he got closer that his vision was hot and blurry. What the fuck?

  But he knew a girl like Josie wouldn’t give a shit. He ran his sleeve across his face, squinted his eyes, and clenched his jaw again, steeling himself. He rang the doorbell. What the hell was he going to do if she wasn’t there?

  Well, he’d wait to find out.

  But she was there. She didn’t seem too surprised either. Why was that? Her lips curled up in a lascivious smile and she hooked the top of his t-shirt with her index finger to lead him the rest of the way into her apartment. “Well, well, well. To what do I owe this honor?”

  This wasn’t gonna work if she was gonna be stupid. Well, he knew this kind of girl didn’t care how she was treated, just so long as she got to bang the guy, so he didn’t plan to be delicate. “Two things…first, no questions. Second, I need something to drink.”

  “I’ve got beer or…”

  “Something stronger.”

  “You got it.” She walked across the room to the kitchen area and Riley followed. She opened a cabinet and it was full of bottles, but Riley spotted what had once been his favorite: a huge bottle of Jack Daniels.

  “How about some JD?”

  Her hand slinked up into the cabinet and she grabbed the bottle with slender fingers after moving another bottle aside so she could reach it. “You weren’t kidding. This is probably the strongest stuff I’ve got.”

  Riley considered asking her if she had anything illegal too, but fuck. He couldn’t let this make him fall completely off the wagon. In that brief flicker of self-control, he was able to at least make that concession. But his eyes started to cloud again and, as the skinny girl wearing tight denim cutoffs began slinking toward him, the bottle in her hand swaying side to side, he knew he was gonna be bad…he just wasn’t sure how much yet.

  * * *

  Erin looked at the clock…again. Granted, she hadn’t known Riley long, but she did know he was a punctual guy. He wasn’t the type to arrive late. So when the minutes kept ticking by, she started getting concerned. She’d finally gotten Ron to leave, and she was horrified to find it was two minutes after the hour when she got back in her apartment. She’d thought it was strange that Riley wasn’t there yet but didn’t worry too much. Now, though, at ten after, she was growing concerned.

  Finally, she walked over to the window and looked out at the parking lot. She saw Riley’s car. Good. But as she continued looking, she didn’t see him getting out of it. So she walked over to the door. Maybe he was already walking up the stairs to her apartment. But when she opened the door, he was nowhere to be found.

  That was odd.

  She walked over to the stairs and started walking down. Where was he? She half expected to find him still sitting in his car. She couldn’t see through the windshield from where she was, but she kept walking.

  When she got to his car, she peeked in, but no. He wasn’t inside. Why would he park here and not come up to her apartment? Again, she wondered where he would be. As she started to turn away, she noticed a piece of typing paper on the passenger seat. What caught her attention was the red lipstick smeared on it.

  She knew exactly what that fucking note was. It was Jo, the whore on the ground floor. Erin couldn’t remember which apartment the girl was in, but she was certain now that that’s where Riley was. Why, she didn’t know, and she felt the temperature of her blood rising. She opened the door to Riley’s car and leaned over to read the note again. She didn’t want to touch it, but she could read it just the same. A-3.

  She started marching back across the courtyard, praying she was wrong but knowing in the pit of her gut that she wasn’t. That girl was about to find out just what a “stuffy English teacher” was made of.

  When she got to A-3, she rang the doorbell. Jo didn’t answer the door right away, so Erin started knocking on it with the side of her fist. She would save her knuckles for the girl if it came down to that.

  And her expectations hadn’t prepared her for the violent emotions she would feel. When Jo opened the door and Riley stood holding a bottle of Jack Daniels inside a few feet away, Erin felt her heart drop to the floor while her blood pressure spiked. In just seconds, she felt betrayed, humiliated, and unloved. The anger she’d been feeling was sti
ll there, but it was crushed underneath the other overwhelming emotions.

  Words escaped her. She’d wanted to say so many things…to Riley and to Jo, but the words were gone. Instead, all she could do was back away, and she was even inept at that. She couldn’t even close her jaw. But she knew that every inch she was able to put between her and Riley, the stronger she’d become.

  She just wished she could catch her breath.

  * * *

  Riley had the bottle of Jack in his right hand and the slutty girl had just taken up residence in his other arm. She’d run her hands over his chest and was nuzzling his neck, asking if he wanted her to do a strip tease for him.

  He just couldn’t bring himself to kiss her yet. Maybe once he actually took a swig of Jack.

  But that was more difficult than he would have thought too. He had to start somewhere. He started bringing his other hand to the bottle to work the cap off when the doorbell rang. Josie acted like she was going to ignore it, but then the person started banging on the door.

  “Damn it,” the girl muttered, then kissed Riley on the cheek. “Just gimme a sec to get rid of whoever this is.”

  But when she opened the door, Riley pulled in a deep breath. It was Erin. At first, she looked furious, but then her face dropped and she looked…unfathomably sad. And he could see it in her eyes. Hell, just the timeframe told him what he needed to know. Whatever he saw between her and Gill or whatever the guy’s name was…wasn’t what he’d thought. Was it? Maybe it could have been, but the look on her face told him he, Riley, was hurting her right now.

  And then all he wanted to do was go to her. Gone was the need for alcohol or the slutty girl. He had a duty to the woman he actually gave a shit about.

  Erin was backing away, like she was horrified. Riley placed the bottle of Jack on the counter and started moving forward.

  “Where do you think you’re going?” Jo asked.

  “Sorry. I’m outta here.”

  “We had a party planned.”

  “Sorry…you’re gonna have to party without me.” He had something he needed to fix. How he got out of Jo’s apartment so quickly, he would never remember, but by the time he was outside, Erin was already running up the steps to her apartment. “Erin. Erin! Wait.” But she didn’t even turn to look, didn’t even slow down. It made him run. He knew if she had a chance to shut the door to her apartment, he’d never have another. The stakes were high.

  He caught up to her by the time she reached the third floor, but only because he’d been taking three stairs at a time. She was moving quickly, but she was no match for him. “Erin…talk to me.” His breath was short.

  Tears were streaming down her cheeks. See that, fucker? You did that. Her lips were scrunched up and she shook her head while reaching for the doorknob. He moved forward and grabbed her by the shoulders. “Nothing happened, Erin. Nothing. And I’m sorry you even had to see that.” She was pulling away from him, but he couldn’t let her go. He pulled her to him and then she collapsed in his arms as she let the tears flow.

  Chapter Thirty-nine

  ERIN DIDN’T KNOW why, but she believed Riley when he told her nothing happened between him and Josie the tramp. She invited him into her apartment so her grief didn’t have to be so public. Inside, he kissed her…and he didn’t taste like alcohol. That too was good.

  She was glad he didn’t say anything about all the candles.

  They sat at her kitchen table. And even though she knew the answer, she asked, “Why, Riley?”

  His brows were furrowed, his mouth screwed up, and that told Erin all she needed to know. He was feeling guilty, and he should. “When I got here, it looked like you were kissing that theater teacher.”

  Erin’s eyes searched his. He continued to look at her, even though she could tell he wanted to avert his eyes out of shame. She didn’t want to chastise him too much, though, particularly because he was already punishing himself. “Well, you do realize he was forcing himself on me, right?”

  “I believe you, Erin…it’s just…when I saw you in his arms…it reminded me of Marla. I couldn’t think rationally; I just had to get away.”

  “Look, up until a week ago, I had no idea Ron Gill even liked me, but...I would never do that to you. I know we haven’t come to any sort of agreement about what we’re even doing, but I…” Oh, fuck. It was truth time, wasn’t it? She paused, a doe in headlights.

  Riley’s fingertips brushed under her chin, urging her to look him in the eyes. “What?”

  She took a deep breath. “This is so fucking irrational. It’s stupid. But…I’ve grown to care about you…deeply.” She just couldn’t bring herself to say the l word…not yet, anyway. She was too fragile, too vulnerable, and frankly she didn’t know how he would react. “And, so, I would never want to hurt you.”

  “I care about you too, Erin, and I’m sorry I hurt you too. I hope you can believe me when I tell you nothing happened between Jo and me.”

  She nodded. “Yeah, I believe you.” She took a deep breath. “I know you’re only here a few more days, but…if we’re gonna do this, we need to stop freaking out about stuff. I swear we’re worse than a romance novel.”

  Riley started laughing. “Okay, I’m out of my element here. Tell me how we resemble a romance novel.”

  “We have one stupid hurdle after another. Why can’t we just agree to be happy around each other and lose all the drama?”

  Riley looked at her hand on the table and took it in his. “That sounds like a great idea. I think I can do that.” His thumb glided back and forth over the top of her hand. “But I wanted to talk to you about something.”

  “What’s that?”

  “My parents told me about your job.”

  She bit her lip. “You know about that?” He nodded. “It pisses me off. They’re telling me what I can and can’t do in my personal life. And I don’t know any way to fight them.”

  “It’s wrong.”

  “Yeah, I know it’s wrong, but the bottom line…they can let me go anytime and just give a bullshit reason for it.” She sighed. “But they don’t need an answer until Monday.”

  “Then that should work perfectly, right? I’m leaving Monday. So we can spend the weekend together, and then I’ll leave and no harm done, right?” He took a deep breath. “Unless, of course, you want me gone now.”

  “No, Riley. That’s what I meant earlier. I care about you, okay? So, of course, I want us to spend every moment together until you leave.”

  “Including coming to a barbecue at my parents’ house tomorrow afternoon?”

  Her mouth twitched up in a smile. “Are you inviting me over to meet your family?”

  “I believe I am, Erin.”

  She leaned over the table to kiss him, and she wondered if they’d get any sleep before she had to meet the parents.

  * * *

  Fuck…Riley was nervous. He wasn’t worried about Erin. He knew that if his family gave her a chance, they’d love her as much as he did.

  Shit. He did love her, didn’t he?

  Whoa. That hit him like a truckload of bricks.

  But it was a good emotion…something he hadn’t felt in a long time. The only reason why he was afraid of the feeling was because it made him vulnerable. But he trusted Erin and forced himself to ignore the logical part of him telling him it was all a bad idea.

  He knew his brother would love her. Well, maybe not. They didn’t have the same taste in women. But, at the same time, he just couldn’t imagine anyone not liking Erin.

  So the two of them left her apartment a little before noon to head over to his family’s house. They’d made love multiple times throughout the night and the morning and he felt satisfied and content. Well, he decided, if the family treated her like shit, they’d leave. He could take her out to a nice place to eat.

  As he and Erin got closer to his Mustang, walking hand in hand, he said, “What the fuck?”

  “Oh, no.”

  Someone had thrown close to a doz
en eggs on his car and had run a set of keys down the driver’s side. He walked around the car twice to assess the damage, and he knew it could have been worse. The tires were all okay and he had a locking gas cap so the bitch couldn’t put sugar in the tank. He looked over at Erin and she simply raised her eyebrows. They both knew who’d done the damage. No fury like that of a woman scorned…and he guessed he’d scorned Jo pretty well. Looking at his car, he figured he’d gotten off easily. He’d have to ask his parents to take it to an auto body shop and he could mail a check when he knew how much it was going to run.

  “Shit.” He unlocked and opened the passenger door for Erin. Only one egg had hit the windshield and it was near the center. He figured he’d be able to drive okay to a carwash before they went to his parents’ house. “Guess I had that comin’, huh?”

  Erin shrugged and got in the car. As Riley walked over to the driver’s side, he nodded. Yep, definitely got off easy.

  * * *

  Erin tried to relax as Riley drove from the carwash to his parents’ house. It didn’t matter that their relationship would be over on Monday and it also didn’t matter that she already knew his mother. She wanted to make a good impression as his girlfriend.

  Yeah…that’s what she was, all right. The last week had been crazy, and until this point she never would have been able to say she’d been in a whirlwind romance. But that’s what it had been—fast, furious, and romantic, even with all the hurdles she told Riley she didn’t want more of. And even though he was leaving Monday and that would be the end of it, she’d never regret her time with him.

  They arrived a few minutes late, thanks to the carwash detour, but no one there seemed to notice. Erin got to meet Riley’s father, brother, sister-in-law, and their three children. The three kids were under ten and loved Riley. His niece, quite the little blonde charmer, whom Erin estimated was around five, definitely not yet school age, was fascinated by Riley’s tattoos and kept gliding her hand over his arms. At one point, Riley picked her up and kissed her on the nose.