Bad Romance (11 page)

You hurt Clara.

The dawn of that realization made me want to get on my knees.

Fuck.

After what my father did to my mother—no. This wasn’t about then, this was now.

“Look, I don’t really give a fuck if you trust me or not. I got my eye on the prize and that prize is Clara. Todd may be my best friend, but he doesn’t deserve her.”

Shannon scoffed in my face, crossing her arms over her chest. “You don’t either.” She darted around me and followed after her friends. They were waiting for her just in th
e tunnel that leads to Pirates.

Shannon was right, of course. But she didn’t know the whole story. Didn’t know the history between Clara and me. Fuck. Not even Clara seemed to remember that. I watched as they disappeared in the tunnel and I jogged to catch up. I was in line behind them well before the crowd of people spilled in behind us. Clara was successfully avoiding me as we wound up and around and went into the building that housed the attraction. Todd pinned me with a glare that I successfully ignored without shoving his fucking ass in the goddamned water.

I was sick of this beating around the bush shit. I slipped past Shannon, who was in some whispering moment with her friend. I came around the other side of Todd to be on the right side of Clara.

“
So afraid of me,” I teased. I watched that pink bloom on her cheek and my cock got so hard it hurt. Fuck. I wanted to bury it in her so bad she forgot everyone but me. Fuck vengeance, fuck breaking her. I just fucking wanted her. I wanted her when it was fucking wrong for me to want her and sh
e didn’t have a goddamned clue.

“
You mean nothing to
me, Dax Trenton,” she mumbled.

When she said my name like that, my full name, it brought back a flood of memories that I didn’t want. Memories of kids blissfully unaware of the hate in the world.

“Is that why you’re so pink?” I leaned in, making sure my lips brushed over her ear and nipped. I swear Todd growled behind me like some overpossessive bear. He could get the fuck over it. “Tell me, Clara, do you get pink like that all over?” I snaked an arm around her waist and pulled her tight into my side. I flicked my tongue over that tender spot right behind the ear. She sucked in a breath and my cock wanted to drop into her cunt so bad it was seeping like an inexperienced boy who the hot girl looked at for the first time. “I’ll make you pink,” I whispered, trailing kisses down the curve of her neck. “Would you like that?” We got to the front where we needed to give party count. I flashed two fingers at the cast member, and she dropped us into the last row. Todd, Shannon, and her friend were right in front of us.

While we waited to load, Clara turned to me and just held my gaze. Her pretty big eyes watching me, she opened and shut her mouth a few times before she finally whispered, “You just left.”

I reeled back and that shit nearly put me on my ass.

She remembered.

Clara fucking remembered and she kept it all locked up like she had no clue who I was?

Fuck. In that moment I respected her as an adversary and as a woman. She was protecting herself. Then, out of nowhere, her lips pulled up huge. So big was that smile it crinkled the corners of her eyes. She reached up and cupped my cheek. I was so fucking flabbergasted I couldn’t even move.

“There you are.”

I was fucking stunned.

She remembered and I was the fucking speechless goober that just looked down at this girl in awe.

In that moment I realized two things.

One.

This woman had the power to make me fall—again.

Two.

This woman had the power to shatter my fucking world—again.

Just then the gates swung open. I gripped her waist, lifted her, and set her into the damp seat of the boat.

The movement seemed to jog her out of her state of euphoria because she tried to shoot to the far end of the boat. Not a fucking chance. I grabbed her around the waist again and pulled her against me. She squealed but settled in once we launched out of load. The darkness seemed to empower her because she whispered at me in this hard bite. “Why are you doing this to me, Dax?”

I leaned over. God, the taste of her was still on my tongue. Salty and sweet like a fucking piece of candy I wanted to eat up. And I would eat her the fuck up. I didn’t want to talk. Not with Todd starting and Shannon shooting me death gazes over her shoulder. It got darker as we neared the drop and just as we tipped up to go over, I dropped my hand between her legs, cupped her hard and nipped her ear.

We fell.

I listened as she shouted my name and ground against my warm hand.

Fuck.

I needed her now. I shifted from her as the lights got brighter around us and just kept tormenting her earlobes, neck, and shoulders. She would give off little mewls of pleasure as she coasted through the age-old Disneyland attraction and it passed by without a second thought.

She was mine.

She’d always been mine.

No one would take her from me again—not even her.

As the ride came to a close, the little boat climbing up the huge ramp to travel back to load, she was panting so hard I thought she would black out.

“
Please,”
she whispered against my cheek.

“Please what?”

“I—”

“You can say it, little mouse.” She stilled in my hold.

Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.

It was my nicknam
e for her when we were younger.

Before the chaos.

Before her mother died.

Before they kicked me out of their lives because of my fucking father.

“Stay with me.” I grabbed her by the nap, pulled her close and kissed her.

I heard Todd and Shannon curse and I smiled against Clara’s lips as she melted into me. I pulled away slightly and nipped at her bottom lip. “That’s a girl. Feel for me, baby. Just take what I have to give you. But I’m going to make you beg me to fuck you.”

The boat slid back up to load/unload and she was jumping out and making her way through the crowds of people. I didn’t rush. I kept her in my sights as she pushed her way through.

I knew what she was feeling.

It’s how I felt when I first saw her.

Frantic and out of control.

My first instinct was to punish. Now, it was to punish and pleasure the ever-loving shit out of her. I’d spanked a few kinky chicks in my time. Clara didn’t strike me as the type of girl to want a spanking. She didn’t have to really. I’d do it anyways. To see her pink all over—fuck. I watched her dart into the bathrooms right by the New Orleans Square Train Station and I leaned against the metal railing and waited. Todd came storming up like a fucking papa bear seething in my face.

“What the fuck!” he barked. I shrugged. I didn’t owe him shit about this. He had no clue. He came into the picture well after I’d lost Clara.

Shannon darted into the bathroom. Her friend Cat came to stand by Todd while looking down at her phone. Poor girl had no clue what she got herself into with this mess.

I didn’t need to worry at the moment.

Todd could seethe in his fucking corner.

Clara had nowhere to hide.

I had her cornered like a cute little fuckable mouse.

I wasn’t going to let her leave this place without first, a really damned good orgasm. And second, knowing she was mine and only mine. If I had to toss Todd and Shannon in the Rivers of America to get this shit done—so be it. I was done fucking around. No more leaked videos or games. I’d wanted Clara Parker since I was a little brat that didn’t know a hard cock meant I could put it inside her warm little body. Yeah, it was fucked up wanting to hump your best chick friend as kids. But could you blame me? She was hot. She was everything I didn’t deserve. That’s exactly why I wanted to earn her. And earn her I fucking would.

Chapter Eleven

Clara

Oh. My. God.

Oh. My. God.

Oh. My. God.

I kept repeating the same three words over and over again in my head as I panted, leaning my forehead against the cool bathroom stall door. Not the most sanitary place to have a nervous breakdown, but could you really blame me?

He knew me.

He knew that I knew him.

God, this was such a mess now.

I could feel the burn in the back of my throat. I wanted to cry. I wanted to just run and breakdown in my bed, with some Starbucks and a Marvel movie. But no. I was stuck, here, in the best place in the world with a man I equal parts loathed and loved. Yes, I’d loved him. I loved him when I was a little girl. That never stopped. I tried to hate him for what he did to me with the video, but that seemed so far away now. It was out of character from the boy I knew. I wasn’t naïve. I was well aware that people changed. But he seemed so desperate to hurt me. I’d tried to stay away from him, honestly I did. But his pull. He was like a caged lion stalking me around life while I trembled. The tiny mouse hoping when the beast caught her he would be her warrior, not her enemy. I groaned and turned, leaning my back against the stall doors.

Knock, knock.

“Clara? You in there?” The unease in her voice was obvious. I turned, flicked the lock, and opened up.

One look at me and she knew.

“
Shit!” She pushed her way into the tiny stall and slammed the door closed, relocking it.
“I’m so sorry I let him push his way into our day. I swear I thought Todd had more balls than that.”

I shook my head. “No, this is no
one’s fault, Shannon. I—I mean─” Fuck, I had to tell her. I let out a huge breath and charged in. This wasn’t going to reveal itself. This was my job as her best friend to give her all the facts. “I know Dax.”

She looked at me with that drool stare. “Yeah, we all do—unfortunately.”

I was shaking my head. “No, I mean, knew him, know him. Remember the story I told you right after we met? About my best friend that I’d lost?”

She nodded. “Yeah, I mean it was weird. I thought it was some imaginary thing.”

“No, the friend was Dax Trenton.”

She arched a brow when I didn’t continue, and I blew out air again. If I didn’t stop it I was going to pass out.

“Well, my dad brought home this boy when I was seven. Something about how family services and my mom who worked for them said the boy was being abused and we were going to adopt him.” Shannon’s eyes were wide at this point but I kept on. “Well, we were inseparable. Literally, we went everywhere we could and he was like my guardian. I worshipped him, fell in love with him. Then one night, my mom was crying and yelling, my dad was shouting at some man that came to our house. He took Dax, it was his father. I was eleven. My mother died the next day, or night, logistics. Everything happened at once. When I was old enough I tried to find him. Nothing. It was like he was a ghost, or died. His dad—well, he’s a drug and arms dealer. Works mostly out of Mexico and South America. He’s a bad dude. No child should have to be stuck with him. So, I tried so hard—then he was just there—in my kitchen…” I trailed off and those tears started to slide down my cheeks.

“Oh, fuck, Clara.” She wrapped me up in a hug and I sank against her.

All of this was too much. I didn’t know what Dax wanted and I had the feeling he wasn’t going to tell me. But I wanted to know what happened, why he’d left, who took him that night.

“You should’ve told me.” Shannon pulled back and studied me. I smiled back at her. “I was nervous. I thought he would get bored and forget about me. He didn’t seem to remember me but in the line—he looked—but I said—” I groaned and finished, “He knows who I am and knows I know. I don’t want to go back out there! He’s saying things, bringing up old memories and I just can’t.”

Shannon, all cool and calm, grabbed my shoulders and got to it. “Look, we will go out there. I’ll tell them you're on your period and we have to go home. Periods scare dudes, no matter how old, so that’s done. We will get you home, without Todd.”

I had to agree. Todd wasn’t making things better. They were worse. Because I liked him, but I loved Dax. It would always be Dax for me. I just hoped he didn’t break my heart while he was here.

I just nodded. Shannon dragged me to the sinks and touched up my makeup, got me ready to go out there.

“Okay, act crampy.”

I laughed. How could I not? How does one act crampy? Normally you train yourself to not look like you're on your period. I let Shannon drag me out and back to the devil. I caught him in my gaze instantly. He was all muscular swagger. Dax leaned against the big brick planter, his arms crossed and was looking right at the exit of the bathroom. And that smile, his big, mischievous, and panty-melting smile filled me with heat and there I was, all pink again. He was all-American handsome, yet dipped in sin.

“Okay, boys. We have a menstruation emergency and it’s time to hit the road.” Shannon was loud. So loud that even men coming out of the men’s room shrank back in fear. Like the idea of a bloody vagina would rub off on them. Just as I rolled my eyes and turned to head back the way I’d come, unyielding fingers wrapped around my upper arm and I was pulled against a steel wall of a man. Hot breath caressed my ear and I trembled. I shit you not, my body shivered and nearly melted.