Chapter 21 Willow #2
I blush when he says that, surprised to hear it.
He’s always been friendly and maybe a little flirty, but I just figured he was that way with a lot of people.
I wait for a bubble of excitement to swell in my chest or for butterflies to start flapping in my stomach at his admission, but they never come.
Colin is good looking, and he’s definitely one of the more popular guys on campus, but my body doesn’t react to his presence the way it reacts to Ransom, or Malice, or even Victor.
No. Not them.
Thinking about the Voronin brothers makes me irritated, and I shove them out of my thoughts, not wanting them there.
I want this. I want normal. I want the handsome, clean-cut guy who’s standing here and telling me he likes me.
So when Colin leans in and kisses me, I let him.
His mouth is warm and sure against mine, but still, there’s no spark. No electric pulse of desire. I close my eyes and try to get into it, kissing him back, leaning into him more. He makes a low noise against my lips, and when I feel the tip of his tongue pressing insistently, I let it in.
And that’s… okay. It feels nice, in a wet sort of way. I can’t tell if Colin is a good kisser or not, but then his hands start roaming, rubbing up and down my back before grabbing my ass hard.
I jerk with surprise, and he pulls me in even closer, grinding against me a little. His mouth is more insistent on mine, and he’s practically shoving his tongue down my throat.
That makes my heart race, but not in a good way. He drags my skirt up, slipping his hand beneath the fabric, and I push on his chest.
“No,” I gasp. “I’m sorry. I don’t want—”
“Come on, baby,” he murmurs, not stopping. “Just a little more. I’ve been thinking about this all night.”
His searching hand delves between my legs, and I shove harder at his chest, finally breaking away from him. He blinks at me for a second, looking stunned that I pulled away. Then he frowns.
“What the hell, Willow?” he snaps. “You can’t lead me on all night and then back out at the last fucking second.”
“W-what?” I stammer, stunned.
“I heard a rumor that you’re a virgin,” he says, tugging me back toward him and wrapping his arms around me as he presses sloppy kisses to my neck.
“I’ve never fucked a virgin before, and I want to know if it’s as good as everyone says it is.
Come on, baby. It’s a win-win. You let me have this, and I can make you more popular than April. ”
I jerk back as if he’s slapped me, a sick feeling churning in my stomach. “Y-you—”
“You should be fucking begging me to fuck you,” he continues, his breath hot on my skin. “Not fighting me off. Trust me, sweetheart. I mean this in the nicest way, but you’re never gonna get a better offer.”
My heart squeezes tightly, tears prickling behind my eyes.
So that’s it.
That’s why he’s paid attention to me all this time. Because he wanted a virgin, and he thought I was pathetic enough to be that desperate for him.
He tries to kiss my mouth, but I turn my head so that his lips land on the side of my face. He rolls with that, dragging his tongue up my cheek. His hands tug at my clothes, trying to get them off or get under them, and I fight harder, fear and anger rising up in me in equal measure.
“No!” I grunt. “Leave me alone!”
“Shut the fuck up,” Colin mumbles. “You’ll like this. I promise. I could’ve left that party with any girl I wanted, and I chose you. Don’t be ungrateful.”
He’s bigger than me, and although I manage to wriggle out of his hold enough to turn around and take a half step away, he yanks me back against him again, pinning me to his body as we tumble awkwardly to the ground.
He pulls me up onto my knees, and I can feel him pressed up behind me, grinding against my ass.
“There you go,” he mumbles. “Now you’re getting the idea.”
Panic floods me, and I rear back as he goes to kiss my neck, twisting and elbowing him hard in the face.
I feel the hard crunch of bone on bone as my elbow collides with his nose, and he lets out a harsh yell.
I scramble away while he’s dazed, tripping over my skirt as I try to get up, but he grabs for me again, keeping me from getting to my feet.
When I look back, there’s blood on his face and rage in his eyes.
“What the fuck? You cunt!”
He tugs me down again, and I slip on the wet grass, falling onto my back. I feel my head bounce off something hard, and pain explodes behind my eyes. For a second, everything goes dark, nausea roiling my stomach.
When I blink my vision back, Colin is standing over me. His face is bloody and his clothes are stained from the grass. He draws back and kicks me in the side, and then spits right on the grass next to my head.
“Stupid whore,” he mutters. “You’re not fucking worth this much effort.”
He glances around furtively, like he’s afraid someone might’ve heard our fight and come to investigate. Then he glares down at me once more before striding off quickly, leaving me sprawled out on the grass of the golf course.
I try to push myself to my feet, but the whole world seems to tilt to one side, a wave of dizziness crashing into me so hard that I moan. My head aches, and my side hurts from where he kicked me.
I can feel every single one of those drinks I had earlier, and it’s all too much.
They mix with the pain in my head, making dark spots dance in my vision every time I blink.
Everything spins when I open my eyes, so I press them tightly closed, curling up in a ball and swallowing down the acidic taste at the back of my throat.
I know I need to get up, but I’m too tired. My body feels too heavy.
Consciousness starts to slip in and out, and I have no idea how much time passes. At one point, I’m vaguely aware of a hissing sound that springs up around me, and of something wet splashing over my face and body, but after a while, numbness sweeps through me and I can barely feel it anymore.
Then a gruff voice curses above me, and suddenly, I’m lifted into strong arms.