“I doubt that.”
My jaw dropped more.
“But it’s cute that you think so.”
He did not just call me cute.
My hand sliced through the air. “That’s it, take your pants off.”
We were going to do this shit right here.
As if he didn’t hear me, Preston turned his back to me and began typing a code into a pad on the wall.
He wasn’t getting away that easy.
“Fine, if you won’t take them off, I will.”
I tugged on his belt, and Preston sighed before once again pushing my hand away. “I don’t have time to teach you how to suck cock, Little Bird.”
The fact that he thought I needed to be taught something so basic was ludicrous. “How hard can it be? I just put it in my mouth and suck.”
I grabbed his hand and wrapped my lips around his finger to emphasize my point. Shadows danced across his face, darkening the lust I could see in his eyes. I realized how ridiculous I must look, yet I couldn’t stop my tongue from swirling over his skin.
“Marnie?”
I froze. It couldn’t be.
“Oh my god, Marnie, tell me you’re okay.”
That voice sent chills up my spine, but it was nothing compared to the way my blood froze when I looked into the now-open room.
“Tico?” I muttered around the finger in my mouth.
Preston leaned in and whispered, “Still want to suck my cock?”
Tico was alive.
My knees wobbled against the shock of seeing those warm brown eyes.
Clutching onto the doorframe, I closed my eyes and shook my head. This couldn’t be real. It was just another trick my mind was playing. For months after he was gone, I saw Tico everywhere. He would be smiling at me in a crowd, sleeping on the couch at the Causegrove, and waving for me to follow when I walked down the beach. But every time I reached out to touch him, the haunted image faded away.
“Marnie.”
“No.” I shook my head, denying the familiar tone ringing through my ears. “It’s not real.”
I’d dreamt about this moment a thousand times and wanted nothing more than to wrap my arms around him. But I knew what would happen if I did. I would not give in to this illusion.
A hand touched my shoulder, and for a fleeting moment, I thought maybe I wasn’t crazy. But it wasn’t my beloved friend touching me. It was Preston.
“Open your eyes, Little Bird, and talk to your friend.”
Him!
This was all his fault. Mr. Mindfuck just upped his game. I was wrong. There was no life inside him. I couldn’t believe I ever thought that. Preston Whitley wasn’t human, and he never would be.
I blinked open my lids and glared at him, not caring about the tears burning a trail down my face. “This is cruel, even for you.”
At that moment, I swore to myself that I would watch Preston die one way or another.
