Just One Glance (Oh Tequila Series Book 5)

by C. A. Harms

Ruby

  Immediately I grabbed my head and groaned as my stomach began to turn. I could still taste the alcohol, and smell it. Oh my hell it was awful.

  “Bathroom.” I peeked through one slitted eye just in time to see Darcy dart from the room before disappearing down a hallway.

  That’s when I slowly observed my surroundings. Boxes tucked in a corner, nothing hanging on the walls.

  “How much did you two drink last night?”

  I jumped at the sound of the question and immediately regretted the quick movements. I groaned, my stomach did another twist. My surroundings were somewhat blurred as I blink over and over to bring it all into focus. That’s when I found Vera leaning in the doorway of her kitchen holding a cup of coffee.

  “I’m dying.” The words come out in a hoarse whisper, making her smile. “Put me out of my misery, please, I’m begging you.”

  “A bit dramatic, don’t you think?”

  I shook my head and instantly regretted it. Gripping the sides of my head, I held my breath and fought back the threatening buildup in my throat. No, God, no!

  In the distance I could hear the sounds of Darcy hurling and coughing. It did absolutely nothing for my control and the bile began to rise. My mouth watered, my body grew clammy.

  “I made coffee.” I held up my hand for Vera to stop, only she didn’t. “And toast, you both need to get something in you to absorb some of that alcohol. I was going to make eggs but—”

  “Nope.” I shook my hand, hoping like hell she got the hint. I couldn’t hear anymore, I needed silence. I was barely hanging on and I think she was enjoying torturing me. I could practically hear the smile in her voice.

  “It’s not going to go away.” I wanted to kill her. I loved her, truly I did, but right now I just wanted to kill her. “You’re sweaty and the tequila you consumed needs to be…”

  I rolled and began to crawl as fast as I could toward the bathroom. I could hear her laughter echoing after me but I kept moving. The movement was too much and I clamped my mouth shut tightly, praying I could hold back long enough.

  It was horrid, the smell, as I entered the bathroom. The sound was worse, Darcy heaving and then coughing, only to heave again.

  Death would be easier.

  “Move,” I barked, and she pushed me away with her flopping hand as she wrapped her body around the base. So many things, terrible terrible things, rushed through my mind.

  This was a mistake, I didn’t drink. It was awful, why would anyone want to feel this way? It’s not liberating, it’s not fun…it’s hell.

  ***

  Attempting to hide the fact that I felt like I’d been run through a meat grinder was difficult. I could see that my father didn’t fully believe my explanation as to why I had been in bed all day.

  Thankfully, last night he was out of town on business and didn’t get home until well after noon today. By then I’d showered, managed to hold down a few crackers, and washed all my clothes from the night before. I only prayed that I still didn’t smell like a brewery. I swear I was sweating alcohol for hours.

  “Did you notify your professors?”

  Of course his only concern was school. Okay, so I was hungover, and not suffering from some type of illness, but he didn’t know that.

  “First thing.” Maybe not first thing, but once I was able to see clearly and remove my head from the trash can. I camped out there for hours, I’d long forgotten the shame of the aftermath of the so-called fun time.

  Note to self: it was not fun.

  “Well, you should try to get some rest.” Maybe I underestimated my father’s concern. “You don’t want to continue on this path. Getting behind in your studies will not be helpful to your future goals.” Nope, he was most definitely the self-centered ass I thought him to be.

  “Yes, sir.” I nodded, and turned on my heels to climb the stairs toward my room.

  Once safely tucked inside, I crawled onto my bed and tucked myself beneath the oversized comforter. The only part of me that remained seen was my face as I curled the blanket up and over the top of my head. It was cozy and safe.

  Closing my eyes, I could sense my body slowly starting to give way to the exhaustion I still felt, only to jerk in surprise when my phone vibrated against the marble top of my nightstand.

  Darcy: You are a rockstar in heels!

  I stared at the screen, wondering what on earth Darcy was going on about now. I began to question my own sanity. I mean, why was I doing this to myself? Then the photo that followed explained it all.

  Me, on a table, in red heels.

  I squinted and looked a little closer, my eyes practically bugging out of my head. Thank the heavens I didn’t let her talk me into going without panties. You could see right up my dress.

  Me: Delete it.

  Darcy: #1 and #4 are complete.

  Totally ignoring my statement, she continued on.

  Darcy: I made us an appointment for #2 on Thursday night. Just in time to head out for the weekend and wipe out #3, #5, #6 and if you are lucky #10.

  Me: Stop texting me.

  Nothing followed and I’d just laid my phone down when it began to ring. Her name flashed across the screen.

  “What?”

  Her laughter irritated me, but I did my best to keep my voice down. The last thing I needed was for my dad to overhear my conversation.

  “You said to stop texting you.” I found myself wondering how she could be so cheery after a night of heavy drinking. Then there was the morning puke fest that followed. She should feel like death, I know I did. “So, about the rest of your list?”

  “I’m done with the list.” I never should have allowed her to convince me it was a good idea.

  “Um, no.” I half imagined her snarky attitude as she rolled her eyes. “You are not done, which brings me to the purpose of this call.”

  “I’m hanging up now.” Pulling the phone away from my ear, I heard her hollering out to me.

  “No.” She squealed with laughter. “Try to deny that you enjoyed yourself last night.”

  “I hate you.” Okay, there was one point before I became embarrassingly drunk that I was relaxed and carefree.

  “Please.” I lay the phone near my ear. “You love me.”

  “Whatever.” At this point I didn’t have the energy to argue.

  “Thursday, five-fifteen.” I let out a slow easy breath. “It will hurt at first, but you’ll never go back once you’re silky smooth.”

  Without a word, I lifted my finger to the button and ended the call. Darcy was a menace, a full out danger to herself and others.

  But she was right, I did love her.

  1. Rock a pair of heels like the hot girl I am.

  2. Get my girlie bits waxed.

  3. Share my red lipstick with a gorgeous guy. (That means kiss him)

  4. Skip class, because I’m hung over.

  5. Forego panties and go dancing in a short dress.

  6. Give my number to a random guy.

  7. Pick out my favorite nail polish and forget it landed in my handbag while tossing it in the cart. (Shh, it’s not stealing if it’s an accident.)

  8. Get a tattoo in a secret hidden location.

  9. Pierce something, like a nipple or a further south region.

  10. Cash in my innocence, to a well-endowed peer.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Jay

  “Spider monkey!” Isaac laughed so hard he had tears rolling down his face. “I’ve never seen a girl climb a guy the way that little one climbed you. She was all hands and legs. Grinding on you on her way up and down.”

  He imitated his version of my initial meet up with the missing girl. Somehow taking a tiny red thong around campus trying to find the owner dirtied up the whole Cinderella and the glass slipper fairytale. But I’m not actually sure I ever wanted to see the girl again, not after what she’d gotten me into. Then she ditched me. It was some real fucked up shit.

  “Check out this video.” I swiveled around
and found Tweedle-dum, also known as Corbin, standing in the doorway. “I think I have it on video.” He thrust his phone out further so Isaac could take it from him and instantly he began laughing. “See, look at the way she’s wrapped round him.”

  “Is she biting him?” Xavier did his best to attempt to get a good look before taking the phone from Isaac’s hands.” “Fuck, I bet if you could hear her she’d be growling right now. It’s almost like she’s trying to eat his face.”

  They’re all loving my misery entirely too much.

  “That guy, though,” Corbin once again interjected. “He looked hungry too. I wonder if he waited until you were all alone before getting a bit for himself.”

  I stared at him, watching as he chomped on his apple and slurred his speech around each bite. Dude was always eating.

  “You seemed into it though, which I’ll admit surprised me. Never knew you to be all up for the group thing.”

  “Are you seriously telling me that you let me leave with some random ape and his side kick?” These were supposed to be my brothers. We watched out for one another, well, beside the crazy pranks we pulled here, but that was different. Outside of our everyday shenanigans we had one another’s back, always, no questions. Or we were supposed to.

  “How’s your ass?” Xavier entered the room and flopped down on the couch. “Or were you the giver?” Nothing but seriousness written on his face. No smirk, no twinkle in his eyes, simply curiosity. “Or was it more of a tag team the spider monkey kind of night?”

  “Assholes.” Once the word left my mouth it was too late to stop it. It was meant for my brothers and in no way to describe the outcome of my previous night, but they ran with it.

  “No judgments here, brother, to each their own.” Xavier propped his feet on the coffee table and I sat in the center of a group of all my brothers wondering how I’d gotten myself into this mess. Night after night, party after party, fucking tassels and streamers on my dick, yet here I was, living out another humiliating moment in my young adult life. When would I learn?

  “There was no man to man contact.” I looked around from one to another, all watching with their brows arched in question.

  “You don’t look so sure.” Corbin took a step further in to the room. “In fact, you look a little green.” I tried to hide the way my mouth began to water and I had a desperate need to swallow, only I wasn’t so sure I could pass the oversized knot that felt like it was lodged there. “Are you sweating?”

  “Knock it off.” Swatting him away, I stood and rounded the couch. “I think I would know.” Wouldn’t I?

  “Unless the dude was like Clayton.” Xavier wiggled his pinky and I was reminded of the time Blake, Elijah’s girl called him out on our camping trip. “In that case you probably feel more from taking a shit than from—”

  “Enough!” I rushed from the room, leaving them all laughing at my expense. I needed a moment, or a fucking decade, to recover from the things rushing through my mind.

  Thing was I honestly had no idea what had taken place. I remember the girl hitting on me, I remember dancing. We got a drink, well, she got a drink and offered me a sip. Something fruity and sweet, not generally my top choice. I prefer a good ol’ beer or a shot of tequila, but refusing would have been rude.

  Wait…

  My mind began to race, the way she insisted I drink more, yet I never really saw her drink much. Almost like she…I paused at the bottom of the stairs, lifted my hand to my head, and ran my fingers through my hair, tugging on the ends.

  No way! I couldn’t have been. Was I?

  “Roofied.” My heart raced and my head pounded. “I was fucking roofied.”

  I couldn’t believe it, but it was the only explanation. I went from being able to speak, to acknowledging exactly what was happening, to waking up naked with a hairy dude. If it was going to happen to me, why couldn’t it have been with a fit guy, maybe one that manscaped. Oh fuck, I shook the thoughts from my head. Why?

  I remembered absofuckinglutely nothing. Not a pant, or a squeal. I was completely lost. A few drinks and I was fucking toast.

  ***

  “Let me get this straight.” Jade cleared her throat and I knew it was coming. “You went home with a guy last night?”

  “No, I went home with a girl, I just woke up next to a guy.”

  She said nothing in return, I was only met with silence. I could almost picture the perplexed look on her face. Her brows crinkled in confusion, her lips pursed. My sister was a smart girl, but she’d never given herself the credit. She was fun, but the men she surrounded herself with bore her. I blame my father for it all.

  “That brings new meaning to the phrase beer goggles.” Oh yeah, and she was also a total brat. “Did he have gentle hands?” She tried to hide her snicker but I heard it loud and clear. “Did he stroke your hair and hold you close, call you precious maybe?”

  “Bitch,” I breathed, hating that I’d even told her to begin with. I should have known better, she was worse than the guys.

  “Please tell me he was at least attractive, tall, dark and—”

  “He was a hairy fucker, big, as in three times my body weight, and a motherfucker.” Like she needed more info to crack jokes about.

  Again I was met with silence.

  “Hello?” Little shit! “Jade?”

  “Give me a minute.” Void of any emotion, I was unsure of what in the hell would come next. Then…

  “Are we talking a light coating of peach fuzz, or full on body suit of hair?” And there she went. “Could you braid it, like that kind of hairy? Could you at least see through the maze and know there was a real person beneath? When you say hairy are you referring to the entire body, or was it like chest, ass, and maybe a little back?”

  “I’m hanging up now.” I suddenly felt like I needed another shower.

  “No, wait!”

  “Goodbye, Jade.” I ended the call. Lying back on my bed, I made a pact with myself. No more drinking at frat parties. Hell, no more drinking, period. I would never again find myself in a situation like last night. That one I knew would follow me forever.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Ruby

  I couldn’t breathe, or so it felt. I swear the air from my lungs had been ripped from my body right alongside the strip that was just jerked away from me. There I was on a table, on full display for a stranger. My girly bits, front and center, legs spread, knees facing the ceiling, and a woman applying a warm material over my flesh before bam, ripping it away, along with the hair that had once been there.

  Oh my, I seriously couldn’t believe I was actually doing this. Getting waxed.

  How do I actually get myself into these things?

  Darcy’s face flashed before me and my nostrils flared as I fought the sting. Oh yes, her, the devil’s spawn.

  I then spent the remaining portion of the torturous event imagining the millions of ways I could make her suffer in return. I was going to kill her, strangle her with my bare hands and enjoy every second of it.

  As I walked out of the small room and into the lobby, I found the culprit of my downward spiral reading some celebrity gossip magazine. She was so engulfed in whatever drama lay inside that she didn’t notice my arrival until I tossed the stress ball I had been squeezing for the last thirty minutes and hit her in the forehead with it.

  The magazine slipped from her hands and she fully intended to go all bitch on whoever was responsible until she saw me.

  “Don’t you feel better?”

  “My hoohah is on fire.” The words left my mouth before I could stop them. My brain to mouth filter was only getting worse. The more time I spent with Darcy the less I could control it. That could be a good thing, or a really really bad one. Looking around, I noticed a few other waiting guests of this torture chamber were smiling at my words. See, they knew exactly what I was referring to, fire down under was no joke.

  “Oh stop, that is what the cooling gel is for.” Standing, she hooked her arm through mi
ne and pulled me closer. “And by this time tomorrow you won’t even remember what it felt like.”

  “Twenty-four hours.” Was she kidding me? “My crotch is going to feel like this for an entire day?” I knew my eyes had to be the size of saucers.

  “No, silly,” she said nonchalantly she walked me toward the door. “That will subside very soon. But twenty-four hours is what they recommend you wait until you get busy with someone. We don’t want your girl down south to chafe and get irritated.”

  Get busy?

  She was warped, a psychotic mess, and I should run. I should run fast and never look back. She was pulling me into the depths of sin and I was letting her.

  “Wanna clear number three off the list now?” I paused and she laughed. “Just saying, that guy in the blue shirt over there is eyeing you.”

  Immediately I began scanning the street, looking for a flash of blue anywhere. Not that I was actually considering walking up to him and kissing him, but I’d be lying if I said that the curious feeling I had wasn’t distracting me. The idea of any guy staring at me was hard for me to believe. I wasn’t that girl, the type who gained the attention of any man. I was the one they scanned right over to get to the more attractive one. I had no appeal, and even if I continued to allow Darcy to drag me to all these places, and convince me to do all these things, I would still be that girl that every guy couldn’t see. I was invisible.

  Then I saw him, the guy that she’d said was staring at me. The instant spark of hope I’d felt moments ago left in a rush. “That’s not a guy.” My words were nothing more than a disappointed mumble. “That’s a boy.” He couldn’t have been more than fifteen, sixteen tops.

  I tried to hide the fact that my heart felt as though it was in my throat.

  To know what it felt like to be desired by anyone was something I had never felt. I craved that feeling. Craved the rush of excitement, the desire that pooled between two consenting adults. But I’d only ever heard about those feelings, watched them in movies, and more than anything I wanted to experience them for myself.