Teagan
The second I closed my front door I stripped my pajamas and socks off in the hallway, desperate to be rid of the icky sensation before switching on the light.
Nothing happened.
I tried the light switch in the lounge and then the kitchen before admitting defeat.
I was in the middle a power cut.
Panic tore through me.
Here I was, naked as the day I was born, in the dark….
I managed to find a clean t-shirt of Uncle Max's in the laundry hamper and shrugged it on before feeling my way over to the sink to root for a flash-light. Thankfully I found one and switched it on.
The relief I felt from that tiny yellow orb of light was huge and I sagged against the counter. The wind was picking up outside, the sound of trees swaying against the heavy breeze was growing louder and louder, bringing with it a whole truckload of memories I didn’t care to entertain.
What the hell was I supposed to do now?
Sit in the dark and wait for daylight?
I wasn’t afraid of a bit of wind and rain, it was a given where I came from, but I was terrified of the dark – especially being alone in the dark.
The walls of the kitchen began to close in on me, crushing my windpipe, pressing hard against my skull, and I didn’t think twice about reaching for the backdoor and escaping outside.
It was pitch-black when I stepped outside, the night air was sharp and cutting, but the relief of not being enclosed was enough to calm my nerves.
A loud noise startled me to the left of the bed of petunias and I froze. The sound of a man's voice broke through the silence and I found myself drawn to his voice – Noah's voice.
Without thinking twice about what I was doing, I closed out the door behind me and crept over to the far end of the wall – the one that separated our gardens – and crouched low, shifting around until I found an upturned plastic flowerpot to sit on.
"…Don’t you think I know that, T..."
I stopped breathing. Was he on the phone or was someone out here with him?
"…broken rib…"
Who had a broken rib? Did Noah have a broken rib? I hadn’t realized…
"…Yeah, me, douchebag…"
I dropped my torch with fright and had to cover my mouth as the fear of god spread through me. I'd thought Noah was answering my thoughts but thankfully he rambled on.
"…No, he doesn’t know about it…"
He sounded annoyed.
"…She's not for you, T…"
Who? Who wasn't for him?
"…I mean it…"
I cracked the flower pot I was sitting on.
I cracked the fucking flower pot.
"…Hang on, I think someone's out here."
I clenched my eyes shut and stayed as still as a statue for the longest time.
"…No, must've been a bear or a mountain lion," I heard him say and my heart froze in my chest.
They had bears and mountain lions?
Of course they bloody had and now I was going to be nom-noms for one of them.
Fuck that. Run. Run. Haul ass to the house.
Dropping onto my hands and knees, I crawled as quietly as I could through the mud and leaves towards the house, trampling the bed of petunias in my bid to survive. I made it to the back door and felt around for the door handle.
It wasn't bloody there.
Where the hell did it go?
Dammit, I could have kicked myself in the ass for dropping my flashlight in my rush to safety.
"Curiosity killed the kitty," I heard a voice say and I could have wept.
A light shone down on my head and I ducked my face in shame.
It wasn't a bear or a lion.
It was worse…
****
"Noah," I sighed heavily. "I was just…" I racked my brain, trying to think of a good enough lie to explain why I was outside in the dark, on my hands and knees and covered in compost.
"You were just eavesdropping on a private conversation," Noah offered, his eyes dark, his brows set in a deep frown.
"What're you…Where'd you…" I looked up and glared at him. "You're trespassing on private property – again."
Okay, so not the right thing to say.
Noah clenched his jaw and I felt a sizzle of fear burn through me. "Get up," he growled.
"No." I shook my head. "I'm good where I am thanks."
He sighed in annoyance. "It's freezing cold. The whole street is out," he grumbled gesturing to the sky with his torch. "And you, genius, have locked yourself by the looks of it."
"I have not," I said defensively. "I just don't see well in the dark, that's all. I can't find the handle. If you shine your torch on the door I'll be out of your way in a jiffy."
"You can't see what isn’t there," he grumbled. "That door?" He raised his brows. "Its key accessible only."
I glared at the door. "You tricky bitch…"
"You like talking to wood, don't you, Thorn?" he mused.
"Oh yes," I snapped as I climbed to my feet. "I can't wait to talk to the wood surrounding your dead body."
"Nice," he chuckled. "But you'll be waiting a while."
"I wouldn't be so sure if I were you," I spat.
"What makes you say that?" he asked in an oddly curious tone.
"Hmm, let's see." I pretended to check the reasons off with my fingers. "You fight violently, you smoke constantly, you drink excessively – you more than likely consume illegal substances – and you most definitely sleep around."
I looked him up and down, a look a pure disgust. "The cheerleaders talk, Noah." They didn’t – well, not to me at least, but it was an educated guess. "I'll give you 'til you're thirty-five – thirty if that nasty temper gets the better of you."
"Thanks for the morbid checklist," Noah said flatly. "I was going to help you out, but considering you're still a judgmental bitch you can help yourself."
Noah turned to leave and a sudden burst of fear flooded me.
"Wait." I grabbed his elbow. "You're going to leave me here?" I swallowed deeply. "Alone?"
"You'll survive," he said mockingly, pulling free from my grasp. "A tough girl like you," he taunted. "You can talk to some trees if you get lonely. Oh, and watch out for the bears," he added spitefully.
"Wait…Noah, please wait." I raced after him, clutching onto the back of his t-shirt with a death grip.
He took pity on me and stopped walking causing me to smack into his back. I staggered backwards as I tried to regain my balance.
Surprisingly, Noah reached out and caught me and when I felt his hand cover mine my pulse thumped so hard I was almost certain he could feel it.
Nemesis or not, Noah Messina was currently the only thing standing between me and isolated darkness. "Please don’t leave me on my own."
"You're a fucking thorn in my side," he told me, but he didn’t let go of my hand. Instead he held my hand as he walked. The feel of his hand covering mine caused my stomach to twist and flip around.
"Let go for a sec," Noah ordered when we got to the bottom of the garden.
"No way." I held onto his hand with both of mine. Knowing how much bad blood was between us, he would disappear and leave me on my own out here.
"Teagan, let go," he repeated clearly annoyed. "I'll help you over, but I need to jump the wall first."
"I can't," I hissed. It was true. My hands were glued to his in fear. "Please…"
Noah growled and muttered a swear word before crouching down. "Climb on my back, Thorn," he ordered and I did, choosing to ignore the jibe. I wanted to live; name-calling and snarky retorts weren't a priority right now.
I wrapped my legs around Noah's waist and held on for dear life. "Dammit, Teagan, move your hands," he grumbled.
"Sorry," I whispered and moved my hands from where I was covering his eyes.
"Hold on tight," he ordered and I tightened my grip on his neck. I felt his Adams apple bob against my fingers. "Not…that…tight," he complained, gripping my bare thighs firmly.
A hot flash of desire hit me directly in the groin and the way Noah moved, jostling us as he climbed over the wall wasn't doing anything to ease the tension in my body.
The throbbing increased and I moaned when he jumped to the ground, my clit receiving some serious one on one from his back.
"You're really scared, aren't you?" Noah asked in a softer tone when we reached his back door. His breath tickled my forearm. "Your entire body is shaking."
"Mmm," was all I replied – all I dared to allow myself to say as I climbed down from his back and shifted around nervously from foot to foot.
"Where's your family tonight?" I asked him when Noah opened his door and let us inside. I was pleasantly surprised to see his kitchen, which was similar to mine, was lit with several soft-glowing candles. "Are they here?" The silence was eerie and I remembered the murders in the house across the street.
"Stop asking questions," he mumbled, closing the door behind me.
"Are you home alone?" My eyes followed his movements. "All by yourself?"
"Yeah, I'm home alone, please don't call CPS," Noah mocked before rolling his eyes. "I'm eighteen, Teagan, not eight."
"I didn't mean..." I felt my cheeks redden. "Forget it."
"What were you doing outside?" His brown eyes studied me closely and I could feel my cheeks reddening.
"I'm afraid of the dark," I blurted out.
"You're afraid of the dark so you go outside in the dark," he stated in an irritated tone as he stood with his back to the door, frowning at me. "You're wet."
"What? N-no, I'm not," I argued, my voice squeaky and high-pitched as I discreetly crossed my legs.
"You're soaking," he corrected me. "It's dark in here but I'm not blind, Teagan."
I automatically looked down which was the about the worst thing I could do because not only did I realize I was wet, I learned Noah was right about something else. I was soaking.
Droplets of rain covered my skin. My thighs were sticky, I was drenched and my only saving grace was the fact that Uncle Max's red t-shirt fell to my thighs.
Die, die, dear god let me die…
You hate him…don't you?
It's okay, you're both mature people.
It's a natural occurrence. Just…shake it off.
And that's about when I realized another thing. Noah gave me a piggyback.
A freaking piggyback.
A high-pitched whine slipped out of my mouth and I truly felt like lifting my face towards the sky and howling like a wolf. Because of Noah Messina's exceptional ability to summon a tsunami from my vagina I was going to spend the rest of the school year being tortured. Mortification and sexual frustration festered inside of my body. I would never live this down. He would never let me live this down – if he knew…
Did he know?
I studied his face.
He didn't look like he knew.
He looked…well he looked rigid. He was frowning – nothing new there – and his hands were balled into fists at his sides.
I wondered if it was possible that my vagina could have a mind of its own because the signals she was flashing out were all kinds of crazy. And then I wondered why the hell my core was pulsing so much?
He was a bastard – a mean, cruel, sarcastic, oh-so-beautiful bastard. I knew this.
Get with the program, vagina.
How was I supposed to get his top off without him knowing my true intentions? Without him smelling my true intentions…
"Can I have your t-shirt?" Smooth, Teagan. "I mean, will you take your top off for me." Ugh…I loathed myself.
Noah raised his brow in surprise. "I'm not a complete bastard, Teagan, I'll get you a clean shirt."
"No," I shouted before letting out a nervous giggle – more like cackle. "No…" I tucked my hair behind my ears nervously. "I want your one. Uh, please?"
"You're the strangest creature I never knew existed," he mused thoughtfully as he studied me with his razor sharp eyes.
Whatever Noah was looking for on my face he obviously didn't find because he hissed in frustration before sucking in a sharp breath. "Wait here," he ordered in a tight voice as he roughly ran a hand through his hair. "I'll get something for you to wear."
Noah brushed past me and I could clearly see – even in the dim lighting which made being able to see it ten times worse – the stain of my err…girlie juices on his white shirt.
Oh, sweet merciful lord...
Think, Teagan, think…
"Noah, wait," I yelped as I lifted the hem of my t-shirt and pulled it over my head. "I'm naked."
Noah's froze – his whole body tensed – and then he slowly turned around and looked at me.
Covering my breasts with my hands I shifted around awkwardly. "And I really need your shirt."
Okay, so maybe I hadn't thought this entirely through.
My goal was to get Noah's shirt, not lose mine in the process. Now I get that I was butt-naked in the middle of the man's kitchen and all I was concerned about was getting that damn shirt off him.
My priorities were all kinds of messed up…
Noah was breathing hard through his nose as he balled and then un-balled his fists, his entire focus riveted on my body – my very naked body. His eyes never left my body as he reached one hand behind his head and tugged his shirt off.
Biting down on my lip, I allowed myself to eyeball his skin, taking in the toned plains of his stomach, the dark trail of hair, those rolling-pin abs and the nasty looking bruise on the left side of his torso…
My nipples puckered tight. My skin prickled with goose-bumps and my legs, my stupid, traitorous legs were shaking like ivy leaves.
Holding his plain white shirt in his hand Noah made no move to pass it to me. Instead he lifted his gaze to meet my eyes, his expression hungry.
I let out a shaky breath when I saw the intensity in his eyes.
"Do you think I'm stupid, Teagan?" Noah husked, taking a step towards me.
My body stepped towards him without my brain's permission and I watched as Noah's stomach muscles rippled. It took all my self-control to stay where I was and not step closer and touch that smooth toned skin. My hands dropped to my sides and I thought I heard Noah growl.
"No," I breathed, trembling. "I don't think you're stupid, Noah."
He stepped closer, causing me to swallow deeply. "Do you think I couldn't feel you when we were outside?" He tilted his head to one side and took another step until we were chest to chest. "Pulsing against me?" His hips caged me in. "Throbbing?" Bending at the waist, he grabbed my thighs and hoisted me onto the kitchen table.
Closing my eyes, I let out a soft moan as my legs wrapped around his hips.
"You're aching right now," he purred. His hands slid up and down my bare thighs, the friction of his jeans against my clit was torture. "Aren't you?"
"Not for you," I moaned. The pressure in my core was so tight I thought I'd explode if I didn't come.
Noah pressed against me hard and my mouth fell open. His dark hair was soaking and falling into his eyes, those charcoal eyes were burning me.
I suddenly realized that I didn’t dislike Noah and that was a huge problem for me. I didn’t dislike him and I definitely didn’t trust him, but my god did I want him…
"Only for me," he corrected as he slipped a hand between our bodies and slowly thumbed my clit.
"How can I trust you?" I whispered, rocking against him. He felt so damn good, all I wanted to do was let go of the grudge I'd been holding and embrace what Noah was offering me. "I make you angry. You're…always mad at me…"
"You make me hard as fucking rock," he corrected me in a husky tone. "Jesus, you smell so good." Noah pressed himself against me, his hardening cock bulging in his jeans. He felt so very familiar, his touch on my skin felt so incredibly right, like his was the only touch my body would ever need – ever crave.
My mind knew this attraction – and my behavior – was all kinds of fucked up and irrational, but there was this draw I hadn’t felt before – or maybe I had and refused to consider it as anything other than my body's heated response to his assholeness.
"Goddammit, Teagan, you've been driving me crazy for months," he husked, running his nose up and down my jawline. "You're a thorn in my goddamn side."
I groaned loudly but was silenced by Noah's lips as he devoured me. I wasn't sure if I was dreaming because Noah kissing me and rubbing my clit was causing sensations inside my body that were entirely too good to be true.
"You know what this means," he purred as he licked and nibbled my neck, tracing his tongue all over my jaw, plunging into my mouth to duel with mine. "I win," he said against my lips. "And you're the prize."
I moaned when Noah's lips claimed mine, barely noticed the sound of the wind howling outside or the bright flashes of lightening when they lit up the room. My fingernails dug into his back, my heels pressed against his ass, urging him on…
"I always knew she was desperate, but this is a new low for him."
I froze before a huge wave of humiliation engulfed me.
A horribly familiar voice sneered followed by another snickering voice. "Well, if it's handed to the guy on a plate…"
Pulling my face back from Noah's, I blinked rapidly, clearing my vision before seriously wishing I hadn’t.
Ellie, Jason, and a red-faced Reese stood in the kitchen doorway staring straight at us, and the only thing protecting my naked body from being a full display was Noah's partially naked body– though all three still had a pretty good view… and yep, to top it all off I was indeed sitting on a dinner plate.
Oh god…
"What the fuck do you think this is, a peep show? Get the hell out of here," Noah roared as he lifted me off my back and pressed his body tightly to mine.
I wanted nothing more than to shove him away and run for the hills, but that would involve me giving Ellie and Jason full view of my puss and that was something I was unwilling to do.
"Wow, Noah, I didn’t think you'd actually go through with it," Ellie snarled.
"With what?" I asked, staring up at Noah's face. "Go through with what, Noah?" A horrible feeling crept over my skin as I continued to stare up at Noah. "Well?"
"His own execution," Ellie spat. "Because that's what you represent, slut." She turned on her heel and sauntered out of the room with Jason hot on her heels.
My attention fell on the red-headed pervert still standing in the doorway. "Do you mind?" I glared Reese's face. She looked furious. "This is kind of private."
"How could you do this to me, Noah?" Reese demanded, glaring at Noah. "And with that skinny freak …."
"You knew the rules, Reese," Noah said in a weary tone.
"And do your rules apply to her?" she shot back cattily.
"No," Noah replied coldly, tightening his hold on me. "They don’t apply to her."
"You'll be sorry," Reese sobbed before rushing from the room. "You both will."
"They were here," I stated coldly as I pushed him away and got to my feet. I wasn't prepared to delve into the whole Reese conversation. It was pretty obvious something was going on between them – or at least had been…
Picking up my soaked t-shirt, I slid my arms through the sleeves and covered myself. "You said you were alone, but you weren’t. They were all here. You lied to me."
"Teagan, calm down and listen," Noah said in a husky tone as he fastened his jeans before holding his hands up as if he was dealing with a wild animal. "I didn't plan any of this, baby."
"Baby?" I shook my head in disgust as I backed into the hallway. "Have I got a pacifier in my mouth or something? I'm not your baby."
Noah looked sincere, his eyes burned with the truth, but I just couldn’t be sure.
He stepped closer to me. "Come on. I was with you all night. I didn’t fucking plan this."
Reaching a hand out, he snagged the hem of my shirt and pulled me into his arms. His arms snaked around my back, resting on my hips. "Don’t jump to conclusions again," he whispered, dropping his lips to my neck and kissing me softly. "Come upstairs. I'll find you something dry to wear."
His fingernails dug into my skin so erotically that I almost agreed – almost. But then I remembered the summer of hell I'd endured because of the members of this household and the darkness looked oddly appealing.
"I need to go," I muttered as I pulled away and rushed for the front door. "This was a huge mistake."
"Teagan," Noah growled, slamming his hand on the door just as I opened it.
A deep guttural growl rolled deep in chest… a sound that caused the muscles in my pelvis to tighten as he turned me around and pressed me against the door. "I'm not done with you," he husked before lunging at me, kissing me fiercely. Hips lips were severe, hungry and it cost me a lot to push him away.
"I'm not," I gasped. "Doing this." Ducking under Noah's arm, I rushed through the hallway and swung open the front door.
A cry of relief left my body the moment my eyes landed on the headlights pulling into my driveway.
"Keep running, Teagan," he called after me. "Because you're not worth the fucking hassle," was the last thing I heard Noah say before I took off, running towards the sanctuary of my uncle.
****