She winces as she attempts to raise her arm. “It hurts like a bitch.”
I finally see the area where she hit on the corner of the bookcase. I slowly rub the pad of my thumb over it, feeling how soft and smooth her skin feels against mine. The area is red and a little puffy, but no cuts or bleeding. “Well, that’ll teach you to bring assholes like him back home.” It’s a snarky comment, I know, but we need to talk about the elephant in the room.
“Screw you,” she hisses, putting her arm back down and shifting away from me.
“Excuse me?” I ask, following her as she walks toward the kitchen. “You come home at three in the goddamn morning with some fuckface who only wanted to use you for sex, and you’re pissed atme?”
She digs around in the cabinet and grabs a bottle of ibuprofen. She slams the door shut, scowling at me. “Maybe I wanted to be used. Did you ever think of that? Maybe, just maybe, I wanted to have a guy want me, even if for a night, even if it was just sex.”
She walks around me and heads to the fridge where she grabs a bottle of water.
I stand there like an idiot, my jaw locked. I’m seething, certain she has to be testing me.
“Guys do it all the time.” She shrugs casually, twisting the lid off and shaking two capsules out. “Hell, you’re a walking, breathing example. So why can’t I?” She swallows the pills, keeping her eyes locked on mine, daring me to challenge her.
My jaw clenches again, taking a step toward her. “You aren’t like that, Viola,” I tell her sincerely.
“And how would you know?” She steps toward me, closing the gap between us. “You only assume I’m not. Just because I like to read and don’t flaunt my body doesn’t mean I don’t like to have meaningless one-night stands, too.”
My breath hitches as my eyes watch her chest rise and fall. She’s just as worked up as I am.
I study her carefully, trying to read her body since I know she’ll never say the words she really wants to say.
“You broke your own house rule,” I inform her, needing to break the tension.
“Well…” She shrugs. “If you can’t beat ’em, join ’em.”
I furrow my brows. “So, you only brought him back here to piss me off, is that it?” I cross my arms over my chest, feeling my face heat as my body burns with rage. “You wanted a reaction?”
“I wanted to give you a taste of your own medicine,” she replies, chewing on her lower lip. “Doesn’t feel so great, does it?”
I swallow, stepping back. “I don’t know. You tell me. You’re the one with the wounded shoulder blade, princess.”
She rolls her eyes. “It’s not a wound although it did hurt like hell at first. But it’ll heal. Plus, you’re the one who broke his nose.”
I scoff. “It’s not broken,” I assure her. “But he’ll be hurting in the morning.”
“So, your plan is to just beat up every guy I want to have sex with?”
“I didn’t beat Jason. Although, I could’ve.” I shrug.
She snorts. “Whatever, Travis. You’re such a hypocrite.”
Just as she takes a step around me, I grab her arm and pull her to my chest. “How so?”
I watch her throat move as she swallows. Her body is flush against mine, her breathing labored.
“You sleep with every other girl on the planet, but the second I bring a guy home for a good time, you want to beat the shit out of him. You’re the one who gets high-fived for your one-night stands, but God forbid, I want someone to fuck my brains out because you go all Mike Tyson on the guy.”
My cock twitches at her words, and I can feel it harden under my sweats. The way she talks is so unlike her, and it takes all the willpower in me to say what’s really on my mind.
“You aren’t that girl,” I whisper.
“Maybe I want to be,” she whispers back. “Even if just for a night.” Her body is begging for it, and I can see the lust in her eyes.
I bow my head, lowering my eyes to hers, our lips almost touching. “Sorry, princess. I don’t fuck virgins, remember?” I know it’s a dick move, but as much as I want her to be, I can’t have my best friend’s little sister underneath me.
“Good thing I’m not a virgin.” Her tone is brave, and I wonder where it’s coming from. “But if the real reason is because you’re afraid you won’t live up to the Travis King name, then—”
