Glory

 

I say goodnight to Captain Hot-Ass and his super sexy sidekick in the hall and gather myself to face the firing squad. The moment I open the door, I’m assaulted by laughter. I love these girls. They are my best friends, my family. They pick me up when I am down. I know they worry about me because all I do is work, read, write, and hang out with them, but after Jack and I split up, I needed some time to myself. It didn’t end very well, to say the least.

It was our three-year anniversary, and I went to surprise him at the university where he teaches Intro to Statistics, only the surprise was on me. I timed it to arrive for his lunch break. He always said he was too busy to leave for lunch, so I had Jen and Evelyn create a picnic basket for us of tea sandwiches, a fresh baguette, desserts, and wine to celebrate.  

I arrived at his office about twenty minutes after his class dismissed, opened the door, and lost my mind. His teaching assistant was on her hands and knees on his desk, and he was fucking her like a wild beast. I’m talking hair-pulling, throat-choking fucking. I’m still not certain if it was the hurt of the betrayal or the fact that he didn’t fuck me so wildly, so uncontrolled, so full of lust, need, and madness that spurred my inner rage demon to surface, but surface she did. He never fucked me like that. Ever. In three years! I never saw that side of him.

Some unintelligible battle cry screeched out as I withdrew my baguette like Excalibur from my picnic basket of doom and began to swing it at Jack’s naked body with reckless abandon. Once the baguette was bashed into crumbs, most of which covered him and his skank, who was curled up into a ball sobbing, naked on his desk, I went for the stapler. Jack ran, as he should have, but the fact that he ran into the hallway naked, with a crazy staple-wielding lady chasing him, didn’t do either of us any favors. 

Needless to say, security was called. Jack was placed on leave. Fortunately, he didn’t press charges. That was over a year ago. It’s not that I loved Jack so much as I couldn’t move on. I found it a bit hard to put my heart back out there. I just hadn’t been interested. No one had caught my eye. Well, my neighbor’s cock did, but that didn’t count. 

I shake off the memories as I take Wookie off his leash. He scampers to the kitchen to beg the girls for food. Such a little panderer. I make a beeline straight for the hole in my wall. I have to cover it up and hope the girls haven't already seen it. I pull the large scenic painting off the wall from above the side table of my reading nook. If I rest it on the floor and lean it back against the wall, over the hole, that should do the trick. Now that my secret is hidden by a woodland stream, I steel myself for the inquisition to come. 

When I walk into the kitchen, I head straight for the wine. I pour a glass, and silence descends upon the room. I squint my eyes as I take a sip, a large sip, of my wine. I dare not turn around. 

“Out with it, bitch. Why did you not immediately tell us there was a sex god moving in next door?” Christina asks. I can feel their glares on the back of my head. 

Any other time, I would have called them. I know that. They know that. It’s just after what Beck and I shared, or rather, what I had stolen from him and made my own, I wasn’t ready to share it or him with anyone.  

Reluctantly, I turn to face them. The raised eyebrows, the unspoken accusations, the betrayal of not sharing the hotness stare back at me. 

Then we all burst into laughter. 

“I’m sorry. I ran into him in the elevator where I promptly stumbled over all my words. Really, there was nothing to mention other than the fact I have a hot neighbor now and I made an idiot of myself. Also, he has a hot friend over right now.” 

“How hot are we talking?” Jen asks. 

“Three alarm.” 

“Damn, we need to go next door. How do we get a look?” Jen asks, refilling her glass. The look on her face tells me she's already working up a plan in her head. 

“We are not going next door. Beck just moved in today. He’s still unpacking. They play in a band together so he’ll be around again I’m sure.”

“WHAT? HOLY HELL! NO. FUCKING. WAY!” Ev shouts and starts bouncing up and down. 

“Yeah, Beck said they are in a band. He plays drums and Maddox plays guitar.” I’m not entirely certain what Evelyn finds so unbelievable. 

“He said the name of the band is Beauty of Atrocity.”

At this news, Ti, Jen, and Ev all start yelling, jumping, and grabbing on to each other as they shout and turn in a circle. 

“What the hell is wrong with you all?” 

Ev stops bouncing, and, through a huge smile, says, “Your new neighbor is in one of the biggest rock bands on Earth! They are bad ass, hot, and right next door!” She then carries on with her group jump. 

“He is?” I try to digest this new information. Beck just got hotter, if that’s even possible.

“I knew he looked familiar!” Ev shouts as she laughs. “Holy shit!” 

“He totally has the hots for our Glory! Did you see him eye-fucking her?” Ti asks Jen, who nods in agreement. 

“Oh, stop. He was not. He’s just polite.” That damn blush rises to my cheeks again. 

“He was. He’s totally got the hots for you! From what I saw when we walked up, it's completely mutual.” Jen squeals and grins from ear to ear. 

“I’d give up pop for him. Yeah, I said it.” We all laugh because Evelyn loves soda more than breathing. 

“Okay, so let’s go next door!” Jen takes her wine glass and raises it up in the air as she grabs a bottle of wine from the counter in the other hand, and then dance-walks toward the door.  

“Wait, what? No! What the hell are we going over there for?” I cry as Christina and Evelyn take their glasses and grab a couple of extra ones, following Jen’s lead. 

“House warming party, of course. Grab a couple more bottles of wine, Glory. It’s going down. Then later, maybe you are.” Ti laughs and the others join in. 

“Oh nice, Ti. Real nice.” Feeling a bit peer-pressured by their asses, I do as instructed and follow them out. 

Jen knocks on the door to Beck’s apartment, and a few seconds later, Maddox opens it, and I’m pretty certain I hear a collective sigh out of my girls.  

“Well, hello beautiful.” Maddox gives Jen a sly grin.  

“What’s up, hot stuff? We are the Welcome Committee. Welcome.” She salutes him with her wine glass as she curtsies. 

“Come on in.” He steps to the side and extends his arm, ushering her in. Jen looks him up and down, and he does the same to her. He pays special attention to her ass as she passes, with Jen adding a little exaggerated swing for his pleasure. 

“You gonna eye-fuck me too, stud?” Evelyn asks as she passes. Maddox throws his head back and laughs. Ti and I follow behind, joining him in laughter. 

“I have a feeling you ladies will be the death of me.” 

“You have no idea,” Ti adds while we make our way to the kitchen with our party supplies. 

We get to the kitchen and set the wine and glasses on the island. Beck saunters in, and instantly, I see him naked in my mind’s eye. Bad Glory. Bad. 

“Glory, to what do I owe the pleasure of your visit?” He walks over to lean against the cabinets beside me. 

“The girls thought you all might like some wine.” I turn toward him as I take a sip from my glass.

“That’s very thoughtful of the girls.” He smiles, and I become so giddy inside that I have to lean my hip into the cabinets for support.

“That’s them. Thoughtful lot.”  

“Want some more wine, Glory?” Beckett leans over and takes a bottle and a glass. After he refills mine, he pours himself one. 

Maddox and the girls are laughing on the other side of the island. Maddox is paying extra attention to Jen. Interesting.  

“So Beckett, I hear your band is actually quite popular.” 

“Yeah, we do okay. I was actually surprised you didn’t seem to know who I was. I sort of liked it. It’s been a while since I’ve met someone who didn’t know us.”

“Wow. That must be weird.”

“Weird? I never get that response, but yeah, it’s a little weird having people you’ve never met already know a lot about you.”

“I couldn’t imagine anyone would be that interested in anything I do.”

“I am.” He adds his award-winning smirk, and I’m ready to tackle him to the floor and let him know how interesting I can be. 

“You trying to charm me, Mr. Jameson?” I smile over the top of my glass. Flirting. I can do this. I'm a bit out of practice, but it's like riding a bike, right? A rusty as hell bike. Fuck, he’s hot to boot. 

“If I were? Is it working?”  

“Maybe.” I hope my sly smile is coming off that way and not as some sort of nervous tick looking situation. He leans in closer. His sin and chocolate scent wraps around me like a warm blanket. I want to get under that damn blanket and bang one out. 

“I can’t wait to find out.” 

His breath tickles my ear and sends a jolt straight to my lady garden. I giggle. I mother fucking giggle. What the hell is it about this man that turns me into a giggling, babbling, fucking moron? He pulls away slightly, staring down at me.  

“Sweet Glory, are you blushing?” Beck smiles as he reaches out and pushes a strand of my hair from my face and tucks it behind my ear. Fuck yes. My face feels like it is as red as a damn tomato and hot. I’m hot all over. 

I’ve flirted plenty in my time with good looking men, but this man, he’s in a league of his own. He leans back to my ear, gently sliding his hand down the hair he just tucked behind it. My body breaks out in chills at the contact, and my nipples could fucking cut glass. 

“I’d like to see how far that blush travels.” I’m sure my intake of breath can be heard around the room. Visions of me naked underneath him assault my brain at the speed of light. Each one more sexualized than last. 

“What’s going on over here? Are we telling secrets? I want to know!” Evelyn says as she comes over to poor herself another glass of wine.

Beckett pulls back and looks at me, and that smirk on that handsome as fuck face sets me on fire. He turns and walks over to Maddox and starts talking to him, Jen, and Christina. 

I’m going to stab Evelyn.