KICK, KICK, KICK…
Kick, kick—
“Not sure that’s gonna help. But if you jiggle the handle, it normally just gives you your change back.”
I turn to my right to see a guy watching me assault the vending machine. “Oh, it’s not my change it ate, it’s the stupid bag of popcorn that keeps getting jammed.”
The guy follows my vision to B5, where it shows four bags of popcorn in a waterfall, hanging over the lever. All jammed.
“Wow, what attempt are you on?” he asks, trying not to laugh at me.
“Five. I’m on attempt number five. I don’t even like popcorn all that much, but now it’s become war. I will get them all down.”
He looks at me, offering his kind eyes and cute smile. “Want some help?”
I throw my hands up. “Have at it.” I step back. Even though I was enjoying taking my aggression out on the vending machine, I did build up an appetite and just fed the machine the only five dollars I had. My cute new friend makes a fist, and with one swift bang against the side, all five bags fall like dominos.
“Seriously?!”
“Just needed that special touch I guess.” He bends down, scooping up the bags for me, while I peek at his bum. Not bad. Standing straight, he turns to me.
“Thanks. I thought I was going to have to take a chair to the glass next.”
Again, with that smile. “I’m glad I was able to help. My name’s Jake. I’m actually in your Psych class.”
“Oh, hey. Jensen.” I stick out my hand to shake his.
“Yeah. I’ve heard Professor Phillips call on you a few times. She seems to have it out for you, huh?”
Boy does she. “I wouldn’t be very happy with me either if I kept falling asleep in her class.”
It’s also been a full week and I haven’t fallen asleep once, so maybe she should get over it. Speaking of week, it’s been exactly that long since Damien dissed and dismissed me, then had his bulldog escort me off the premises. Not my finest moment, since I turned on the faucets in Damien’s bathroom and put the stopper in before I left. At least I walked out of there with some of my pride intact, knowing he could drown in his own stupid bullshit excuses. Literally and figuratively.
The worst part about the whole situation was I accidentally blew off Christine. When I got home on Saturday, I noticed I missed a text from her saying she waited for me and how hurt she was. She would be at the sorority house if I needed her.
The sad part was I did need her.
I needed to confess everything that had been going on in my life the past week. I needed to get all the messed-up shit I got myself into and everything I was feeling off my chest. Because I was feeling some really fucked up shit. When I called her cell, it was no shock Sylvia picked up. As if she had just been waiting for that moment to throw it in my face. I hung up and spent the remainder of the weekend sleeping or at the library catching up on my reading.
Now being Friday, I’m alone again, about to spend my evening eating vending machine popcorn and watching a movie in the communal rec room. Christine has been scarce all week, but then again, I haven’t tried to reach out. Avoiding her is avoiding Sylvia, and it just seems better this way.
“So…I didn’t know you lived in Tanner Hall,” Jake says, handing me my weekend stash of popcorn. “I’m just across the way in Basinger. We could walk together to class sometime.”
“Yeah. I guess.” I say grabbing for the popcorn. I can’t say I’ve seen him in class. But then again, it’s the same population as a small town. “Well, thanks for the help. I’m just…uh, gonna go eat my popcorn now…” I wave my bags, ready to head back to the elevator when he stops me.
“Hey, wait! So, there’s this party tonight.” Jake has his hands shoved in his pockets. “Any chance maybe you would want to go with me?”
I’m expecting him to follow up with just kidding. A few more awkward seconds pass, but he’s still staring at me, waiting for an answer. “Oh, are you serious?”
“I wouldn’t have asked if I wasn’t.”
Well…shit. My first college party. “Yeah, sure. If you want to take me.”
His smile assures me he does.
Well, alrighty then.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t know you weren’t friends with them,” Jake apologizes for the billionth time since we arrived. It’s not his fault. How is he supposed to know I don’t get along with the bitch Barbie factory?
“Seriously, not your fault. It’s fine.” It’s not fine. If I knew he was taking me to a frat party for a Greek exchange with my besties, the Delta Phi’s, I would have stuck to my five bags of popcorn and movie night. Jake hands me another shot of whiskey, and I gladly accept it. I think he truly feels bad so he’s compensating the guilt with booze. This I actually am fine with. I need it to put up with all the glares I’m getting across the living room.
My one question, though, where is Christine? She doesn’t seem to be with them and she wasn’t in our room when I left.
“Um…don’t kill me, but I think they’re walking over here.”
I turn to see Sylvia and her pack of hyenas. Literally, picture a bunch of snarling dogs making obnoxious laughing sounds. I’m tempted to cover my ears just to block out the nightmares I’m going to have later.
“Jakey,” Sylvia says, leaning in to kiss him on the cheek. I want to cringe, and also make a mental note to never touch his cheek again since cooties are real and there’s no way I’m catching the Sylvia plague. She pulls away and glares at me with her beady eyes. She swirls her pink straw around in her pink Solo cup. “I didn’t know it was ‘bring your pet to school’ day.”
This time, I do cover my ears as her pack giggles in hysterics. Jesus, my eardrums!
“What’s wrong, freak? Do you have fleas or something?”
“God no, make it stop!” Her eyebrows crinkle in confusion. Her eyes scan the room, trying to understand my desperate plea. Because trust me, it’s desperate. I don’t know whether to put them or myself out of our misery. “Oh, never mind. Don’t hurt yourself trying to figure it out. And for the record, we’re not in school. Hence your lame jab falling flat.”
Jake stifles out a chuckle while a group of confused morons stare back at me. Sylvia’s gaze snaps to him, giving him the “I will eat you and spit you out” look, in which Jake pipes down. Chicken.
“You’re a vile creature, no matter where you are. Don’t forget that.”
I swig my whiskey and take a slow step toward her. “Oh yeah? Well, this vile creature was just about to take my date to my secret sex club and show him just what a wild vile creature I can be. You know, the place you want in. The place you’re not yet invited to.”
Her face blanches. I fight my smile and the four chanting words, winner, winner, chicken dinner, that repeat in my head. Sylvia matches my movement, bringing us almost nose to nose when Jake interrupts our silent battle.
“Wait, we’re going to a sex club? Sweet.”
The realization hits me. Fuck. Why does my mouth get me into these predicaments? I just said I was going to take my date to Son of Satan’s club to do wild creature-istic things to him. Is it even possible that the floor below me will give out and save me the agony of trying to get out of this one?
“Oh, Jensen didn’t tell you? She has the hookup.”
So, guess not.
“What kind of hookup?” Jake asks, putting his arm around my waist. I guess when you willingly offer a wild time to someone, they assume touching is fair game.
I keep my eyes on Sylvia, fearing she might out me to Jake. I’m not so worried about him knowing about the club since I didn’t find it in the first place, but I watch her lips, because if anything like sub, pet, or sex slave comes out, I’m going to jam her mouth full of my fist to shut her up.
“She can get us all into this exclusive club, right, Jensen?”
Her smile is pure evil.
“Actually, I forgot, it’s packed tonight for a thing. We can’t get in.” Lie. It also occurs to me that Damien isn’t even talking to me. I cannot go to the club. “Maybe another night.” I step back, but her hand latches onto my forearm.
“Tonight. Now.”
“I said I can’t.” I shake off the hold she has on me. Her claws get in deep, and I look back at her, unsettled by the obsessive look in her eyes.
“We’re going. Or you’re done. Your choice.”
I hate her.
I hate even more that I know if I don’t oblige, she has the power to take something very important away from me.
“Fine. Let’s go. But make your critters stop laughing or I swear I’ll make our cab crash before we even make it to the club.” Probably because I will grab the steering wheel and kill us myself.
What the fuck was I thinking?
Sweat slicks my skin and I could vomit, I’m so nervous. I should have faked a stroke or something at the party. Maybe a seizure just so they would leave and we wouldn’t be walking into Exquisite. My heart is pounding so violently I fear a heart attack. Or at this point, pray for one. Can people my age have heart attacks? Well, I’m about to find out because my heart is soon to beat out of my chest.
“Jesus, this place is badass. Look at that chick. She’s fucking humping that dude right on the dance floor.” Jake sounds like a kid in a candy store. I roll my eyes and instruct them to keep walking. My plan is to dump them at the bar and sneak out. I don’t want to get caught here. I also don’t want Damien to think I’m fretting over his rejection. Because I’m not. Right?
I maneuver through the side of the dance area while reining in the cattle of sisters who keep getting distracted by the scenery. Shaking my head, I decide they can find their own way to the bar. Not even Jake is paying attention anymore.
Fuck this. I’m out.
I turn to escape into the busy dance floor, knowing there’s an exit on the other side when I spot him.
My heart stops puttering in my chest. My lungs seize. He’s walking through the crowd with his hand low on the back of a beautiful older woman. Probably his own age. Taller. Platinum blonde hair that looks like she washes it with pure gold. My stomach drops at the sight of him—and her.
He is truly done with me. I fight off the emotions threatening to rip through me as he makes it across, the entire sea of people opening for him to pass, and then he’s gone. With her.
A single tear falls down my cheek, and I quickly swipe it away.
“That fucking asshole,” I heave. My emotions take a nose dive and any sadness morphs into anger.
Turning around, I dart toward Jake and grab his arm, startling him. “I’ll show you better,” I growl, dragging him toward the bar. I’ll show him just how much Damien Cross means to me, but after I drowned my pettiness in whiskey.
The whiskey is doing the job. The libations are running through me, making my jumbled mind feel loose and uncaring. Maybe a little too uncaring. I’m grinding on Jake, as the music flows through me. I take a quick glimpse at the bar and see Sylvia and her rat gang laughing and sipping on their girly drinks. It’s then my eye catches movement to the right of the bar, where I spot Fredrick standing in the darkened corner. His brows are creased and he’s staring right at me, the same furious expression he always holds toward me on his face. I raise my middle finger and give him a friendly wave.
I wonder if Damien is also watching me. Standing at his mirror, as Jake grinds into me, groping my waist. Stealing small advances as he swipes his greedy hands along the sides of my breasts. I hope he’s enjoying the eyeful of dry humping on his dance floor from someone else, not him. Maybe it will prove to him his refusal didn’t hurt me. If he wants to reject me, I can just as easily replace him
The problem is, I may not be as into this as Jake is. I urge my brain to enjoy his touch. Enjoy the ride as his hard-on rubs against me, but it doesn’t seem to be that simple. My body wants something, someone else. Get out of your head, Jensen. I can do this. I twist around to throw my arms around his neck when a booming voice sounds behind Jake, almost causing me to trip.
“What the fuck are you doing?” Damien appears out of nowhere. His hand goes around my bicep, and he turns his fury onto Jake. “Get the fuck out of my club, or I’ll have you arrested.”
Jake turns to me, then back to Damien, who, may I add, looks ready to murder someone. “Yeah, sure. Let’s go, babe.”
Oh shit.
That may have been the wrong thing to call me.
Jake reaches for my arm, but Damien pulls me into him, letting him know just where he stands. “Touch her, and I’ll rip your arm off and shove it down your throat.”
Jake turns white and retracts his arm. The fury on Damien’s face says he’s leaving alone. “Uh, you okay here?” he asks, already backing away.
Too bad he doesn’t wait for my answer or search out the rest of our group before taking off.
What a pussy.
His fingers bite into the flesh of my arm, no doubt bruising me, and I jerk back from his harsh touch. “That was my date you just scared off. Let me go so I can leave with him.” His nostrils flare, giving me a sense he’s not too happy right now. Good. “Your security team sucks, by the way,” I say, pushing him more, but his grip is firm. “Let me go. I was in the middle of something.”
“Oh, you mean that boy who just took off with his tail between his legs and left you here?”
“Yeah, no thanks to you!” I fight him to release me but with no luck. “Let me go. I need to catch up to him.” My demand falls on deaf ears as he tightens his hold on me and starts dragging me in the opposite direction. “What are you doing!?”
“You think you can come here and pull some silly childish act, and what? Make me jealous?” He pulls me through the crowd toward the private hallway.
“Pfft. I don’t need to make you jealous. I was here to dance and show my date a good time. Just like you were with that blonde! I saw you. Did you take her upstairs and fuck her?”
“You kidding me? She’s a new member and I was giving her a tour.”
“Of your secret loft? You know what? I don’t want to know. I need to get back to my date. He was going to take me home and—”
Damien drags me along so quickly, I nearly fall. “Damien!” I yell, but he ignores my plea as he shoves me inside the elevator. “Seriously, what’s your problem?”
He doesn’t answer me. The door closes, and our heavy breathing is the only sound in the enclosed space. The doors open to his private loft, and he tosses me into the room after unlocking the door. Only when the door shuts behind him does he speak. “You wanted my attention? You have it.”
“That’s not why—”
“Take your clothes off.”
“What? No!”
“I only ask once. Then I’ll remove them myself. But if I do, it will be after I take you over my knee.” I inhale a sharp breath. Nerves flutter in my stomach as butterflies swarm to increase the staccato of my heart. His eyes are black, obsidian, and the threat he carries both scares and thrills me. But I push further, harder, stoking at the flames burning inside him.
“No.”
The man in front of me transforms. His eyes darken as the twitch in his hand vibrates at his side. His brows crinkle and I watch as his jaw locks, threatening to snap. Heat spreads down to my core. “What did you just say?”
“I said no.”
He takes the three steps separating us and lifts his hand, lacing his fingers around my neck. The hold he has on me isn’t threatening. He doesn’t attempt to hurt me, but his touch sets fire to my skin. I fight not to press my body into his and beg him to take me and make me his. “Why did you come back here?”
“Because you did this. You brought me into this. And you should finish what you started,” I whisper, finally admitting I want to play his little game.
“You’re a child.”
“You’re a coward,” I seethe.
His hand stills around my neck, he allows me to drop to my knees in front of him. His eyes shine with anger, yet a small spark of curiosity peeks through.
“You forced me to come here and want things.” I bring my hands to his suit pants and pull at his belt. “Now you have to fulfill your duty to me.”
He doesn’t stop me when I get his belt undone and pull it from his pants. “And what duty is that?” he asks, losing some hostility in his voice.
“To teach me.” I pull down his zipper. “Show me.” With an unsteady hand, I grab for his cock. He’s already hard and full in my hands. I can’t stop my hand from shaking. I take a deep breath and—
“Open your mouth and loosen your jaw.”
His hand leaves my neck, squeezing my chin and pulling it down, widening my mouth. I do as he instructs. He takes a step closer, eliminating any space between us. Wrapping his fingers around his dick, he pumps himself twice in his hand before bringing the tip to my mouth. “Wider.”
I do as he says, and he places himself on my lips.
“Wider.”
I’m not sure how wide he wants me to go. “Have you done this before, Jensen?”
Embarrassment washes over me. “No.”
“Jesus.” He’s mad. Probably because I’m going to suck at this. His hand is back to my chin. “Relax your jaw. I’m gonna slowly fuck your mouth.” I relax, and he guides his cock into my mouth. I close my eyes, but he taps his fingers against my cheek. “Keep them open. I want to watch your eyes.” He slides farther, the silkiness of him against my tongue, and I take him in as far as I can until my throat begins to lock. He pulls out and repeats.
“That’s it. Take me deep.” He moves his hips back and forth, while I do my best to keep my jaw loose. His soft grunts set fire to my core. I do my best to keep my tongue wet, lapping at the crown of his cock when he pulls out. A hand wraps behind my scalp, taking control and pulling my head closer to him, making sure I have no control. But I don’t want it. I’m losing myself in the erotic act. But at the same time, gaining my own sense of boldness. I lift my hand and reach farther into his pants, cupping his balls. I’m no expert, but this seems to be a good thing because he groans and jerks farther down my throat. I gag for a quick second, but that doesn’t stop him.
“Jesus, you have a mouth made for my cock,” he groans as my lips stroke up and down his shaft. “Has anyone ever come down your throat, Jensen?”
I shake my head, and he smiles. “So fucking innocent,” he hums, picking up the pace. In and out, he punctures the back of my throat. I’ve become lost in the motions, the need to please him. Each pleasurable sound he makes sends a wave of electricity to my center. I catch myself starting to moan with each thrust, anticipating his release, feeling the excess saliva drip down my chin.
“Yeah, that’s it. So eager. Take me all in.” He talks dirty to me, using both hands now to press my head into him. “God, fuck…” Another deep grunt. Another powerful jab. I gag, and my hands go to his hips so I don’t lose my balance. My knees scrape against the tiled floor. My core is on fire.
“Is this what you wanted? Do as I please, my cock filling this innocent mouth? I’m about to come down your throat. And you won’t be so innocent anymore. How will you feel then?”
He’s trying to scare me. Hope I’ll plead for him to stop. But I refuse to walk away now. I can’t reply with this thickness full in my mouth, so my answer is to work him faster. I fight through the soreness in my jaw and suck him harder. His mouth parts as his eyes become feral. I know the way I challenge him, refuse to bow down to him, angers him, but turns him on just as much.
“Wrong answer,” he growls, fucking my mouth faster, rougher, until he expands and a sudden gush of liquid shoots down my throat.
The swelling of his cock and cum filling my mouth is strange, but not unwelcome. I do my best to suck him clean, but some of his juices manage to drip down my chin. The taste isn’t awful. I work him until my jaw finally gives and he pulls out of my mouth.
“Now. Are we done here, Ms. Stone?” He tucks himself back in his pants and I’m caught off guard by his coldness. He thinks this change in attitude will do the trick. But I’m not leaving until he gives me what he demanded from me.
“Actually, we’re not.” I stand, latch my fingers to the hem of my top, and lift, pulling it over my head. Dropping the material to the ground, I push down my jeans.
“What are you doing?”
“Showing you I can handle whatever it is you think I can’t. Or, Mr. Cross, is it that you’re too scared I can?”
His eyes light up. The twitch in his hand flares. He’s on the brink. He wants to fight me. The strain in his eyes says exactly that. But I don’t stop. I unlatch my bra, exposing my full breasts to him, then push the thin lace of my thong down my legs. “What are you so worried about, Damien? That you may enjoy me? I think my innocence intrigues you. I’m a white canvas for all those thoughts running through your head. I’m offering you to mark me with—”
He can no longer control the twitch.
He advances on me, digging his fingers into my waist as he lifts me into his arms and carries me to the corner of the loft where his bed resides. “You think this is a game? You can just taunt me? I’m not your hero. I won’t save you. I won’t treat you like the delicate girl you are.” He tosses me onto the bed, my body bouncing and hair falling around my face. “I won’t be gentle with you. I won’t be kind. You will be a toy to me.” Like the animal he’s trying to paint himself as, he crawls up my body, using one hand to roughly squeeze my breast. “Remember that when the regret hits you for tempting such a bad man.” He slams his mouth onto mine and kisses me so fiercely, his teeth scrape against mine. He thinks he’s hurting me, but he’s doing the exact opposite. My lower belly is in a tailspin of sensations. His body covering mine feels right. His tongue working furiously in my mouth is perfect. God, I feel high. I can’t deny the small panic that I may have poked a bear I can’t tame. The fact remains the same, I’m inexperienced, messing with the master himself. But I want this. I want him to show me what it feels like to truly let go.
My hands dig into his hair and squeeze. My hips pull off the bed, allowing our bodies to grind. His hold on me tightens, his kiss deepens. “What the fuck are you up to?” he growls, taking a free hand to my breast and pinching my nipple. My head thrashes and my back is off the mattress, grinding into him. The small amount of pain is nothing compared to the shooting sensation down below.
“I’m using you to get fucked, Mr. Cross. What does it look like?” I moan, completely lost to the feeling he’s creating inside me.
Damien pinches my nipple harder, and I scream in surrender. He rips his lips off mine to bend down and sucks my flesh into his mouth. My fingers dig into his scalp urging him to release me. “Damien,” I plead, but my words fall on deaf ears. His intentions are clear. He wants to bruise me, mark me. His hand which is far from gentle, overpowers me and dips between my legs, opening me up. Two fingers plunge deep inside me, and with every pump, my body thrashes but begs for more. He pumps into me once, twice, three times. I can’t take any more. The sensations become too much. But then again, I fear him ever stopping. His mouth frees my throbbing nipple, but he’s not done. With both hands, he squeezes both my thighs and spreads me wide open. Before he devours me, his head lifts and when our eyes connect, I see it. The hunger. A shiver runs down my spine just as his mouth, eager and hungry, hovers over me for a moment and his hot breath tickles my most sensitive place. He begins to eat away at me like a starved savage beast.
“Is this what you had in mind?” He nips at my skin, pulling away only to replace his tongue with three thick fingers. Oh God. I can’t. It’s too much. My body begins to spasm under his hold. “Having a stranger in your cunt, violating you, touching your most innocent spot?” He pulls his fingers out and brings his tongue down to my center. In and out, he takes turns fucking me with his fingers and tongue. I’m falling apart. Nothing he’s done to me thus far has compared to now. The way he’s talking to me. Trying to push me away. It’s only sending me into a bigger whirlwind of arousal.
“More. I want more,” I moan, grabbing his sheets and fisting the silk material.
He bites down on my clit, and I scream. “You silly girl. You have no idea what you want. What you’re asking for.” Again, his fingers assault me. One, two, three. He stretches me more and more with each added finger to nearly the point of pain. If I were to guess, he’s trying to shove his whole fist up me. My mouth opens to protest, but I refuse to let him scare me away.
“Fuck me,” I moan, the words barely above a whisper. “I want you to stop being such a scaredy-cat and fuck me.” My demand ignites a fury inside him, and before I take my next breath, he’s driving multiple fingers into me. He’s trying to break me, but it’s not going to work. “Are you scared I won’t enjoy your cock inside me? Man issues?” I pant, playing with fire. But this is the only way to break him. “Do you need something to get you—”
He’s off me then, cutting my words short. He latches roughly onto my hips and flips me, my stomach smacking the bed. A spike of nerves rush through me at the anticipation. His fingers dig into my hips lifting my butt. My head flies back to see what he’s about to do just as his hand rises and falls, his open palm striking against my butt cheek.
One strike, two strikes, three… “You will learn to watch your tongue with me.” A fourth. A fifth. “Do you understand me?” Six.
Fuck, my ass is on fire. My legs are wet between my thighs, and I have no intentions of obeying him. “I can’t make any guarantees—Shit…” Seven.
“Your fucking mouth. You’re gonna learn.” His voice is hoarse. He stops spanking me, and the sound of paper tearing fills the room. He uses his knee to kick my legs apart. “You fucking asked for this. Remember that.” That’s when I feel him between my thighs. With two hands back on my hips, the grip no doubt going to leave a bruise, he slams into me.
I yell. Then cuss. My eyes squeeze shut at the unexpected surge of pain. I’ve only had sex once, and Damien is much larger than my first experience. I’m worried he really is going to break me. He pulls out and the pain just as quickly dissipates. He gives no pause to allow me time to adjust to how thick he is. Just as the tip of his cock breaks my entrance, he slams back into me. My body rides up the mattress and a stifled moan escapes up my throat. Gone is any pain, and in its place, pleasure. A surge of sensations explodes between my legs at each assault. Damien releases a low roar of pleasure.
“Is this what you wanted, pet?” Again, and again. “For me to fuck you? Break you?” Again, and again. One hand releases the death grip on my side, and he brings it around the front to my center, rubbing down hard on my clit. “Have you finally lost your voice, my innocent little toy?”
That I have. No words are forming. Just feelings. Sensations. Everything feels tight. My skin, my stomach, my insides. My orgasm starts to ignite. I clench down on him, my eyes slamming shut as I explode. “Oh God, Damien…” I moan, long and hard.
His hand leaves my clit. Skating his fingers across my scalp, he gathers the strands in his tight grip and pulls back, leaving me no choice but to submit and allow it. He rides me hard until I feel him swell and pulsate. A feral growl fills the room as his own orgasm violently erupts through him.
A few seconds pass before he lets go of my hair and falls on top of me. My heartbeat is slamming into the mattress. It is near impossible with his heavy body covering mine to catch my breath. I inhale slowly, hoping to calm the pulse in my chest, my head, and in between my legs. I close my eyes and try and focus on each slow intake of breath when I accidentally pass out.