CHAPTER TEN
REBEL
Nothing sucked more than being dragged to the neighbor’s house for dinner. Under normal circumstances. This time I was more than happy to go. I couldn’t wait to drive Storm crazy.
Her mom opened the door with a beaming smile. She ushered us inside, welcoming us like my parents were old friends. My mom ate it up. She’d always been the friendly type. More so than my father who grunted a hello and ignored the warning glare my mother shot him.
Diane brought us through the house to the backyard. Her husband, Larry, stood near the grill with a beer in one hand. My dad immediately gravitated over to him. Nothing two men could bond over like amicable small talk and beer.
“It’s so nice to have you over,” Diane gushed, offering us drinks and snacks. She’d made a nice spread on the patio table. “Please, help yourselves to anything. The burgers should be ready in twenty minutes or so. Larry is getting started. Can I do anything for anyone?”
“Don’t overexert yourself, Diane,” Mom admonished with a friendly wave of her hand. “We’re fine. You’ve done more than enough.”
My gaze landed on Storm who sat at the table, not at all trying to hide her utter disdain at the sight of me. In shorts and a simple tank top, she still looked good enough to eat. I could hardly wait.
Her brother did a better job at schooling his features. Although I saw in his eyes how badly he wanted to kill me. Trying to protect his sister. Cute. It would take a lot more than that to chase me away.
I took a seat across from Storm, politely accepting the lemonade her mom offered. Since sitting there in awkward silence might tip off our parents to the strange relationship we’d formed, I tried to initiate conversation.
“Are you going to the party later tonight?” I asked, coolly watching Storm. “The one at the graveyard.”
Our parents were engaged in their own boring conversation, oblivious to the rest of us. Storm glanced at her brother before saying, “I’m not sure yet.”
Short and cutting. Just the way I liked it. I waited for Chase to look down at his phone, then I brought my fingers to my mouth in a V shape, flicking my tongue between them.
“You should come,” I said, arching a brow in a silent challenge. “I bet you’d really enjoy yourself.”
Redness crept across Storm’s cheeks. She looked around to see if anyone else had noticed. They hadn’t. My sister sat with my mom, also staring at her phone. Despite being surrounded by our families, Storm and I were in our own little bubble.
“I’m not sure that’s a bet you would win.” In a covert motion, Storm scratched the side of her nose, using her middle finger to do it. Flipping me off with subtlety. Nice.
I grinned. “Only one way to find out.”
Chase glanced up from his phone, eyeing Storm and me. “Are you two fucking or something? What’s going on between you?”
The color drained from Storm’s face as fast as it had come on. She stared at her brother with so much shock and disgust, I laughed my ass off. She could field that question.
“Nothing,” she snapped, lowering her voice when her sharp retort briefly drew her mother’s attention. “And absolutely not. Not that it’s any of your business. Jesus, Chase. Stay out of it.”
Diane glanced over then, her brow furrowing. “Storm, don’t talk like that. If you two can’t get along, don’t speak to one another. We have guests.”
I sipped my lemonade, eyeing Storm over the rim. This was too fun. She didn’t seem to like the gloating smile I wore. A sudden sharp pain in my shin made me suck in a breath. She’d kicked me under the damn table. Fine with me. The more she dished out, the more she would have to take later.
Dinner was interesting. Our parents joined us at the table, dominating the conversation with boring shit. While we ate, Storm did her best to stare at her plate, tuning me out. I waited for the right moment, when no one would notice, before reaching across to dip a carrot stick into the dressing on her plate.
“Why are you so immature?” she hissed, low for my ears only. “You have a pathetic need for my attention. It’s gross.”
“Pretty sure you said that already. Maybe I do. Maybe you like it.” I winked, popping the carrot stick in my mouth. She made it far too easy to drive her nuts.
“I don’t like anything about you.” She tried to kick me under the table again. I’d pulled my legs back, anticipating that move. Frustrated and annoyed, Storm flicked a baby tomato from her salad across the table at me.
I caught it and popped it in my mouth, angering her further. “Who’s immature now?”
When dinner was finished, our parents moved to the lounge chairs in the yard to drink and talk while soaking up the last sun rays of the day. The rest of us helped to clean up the table. I followed Storm into the house, putting empty dishes in the dishwasher.
“You can’t fool me with this nice guy act, Rebel. I know what kind of guy you are.” Storm ripped a plate from my hand, cramming it into the dishwasher so it crashed against other dishes.
I leaned on the kitchen counter, propping my chin in a hand. “Oh yeah? Why don’t you enlighten me?”
She waited for Chase and Arwen to go back outside for more dishes before snarling, “You’re a predator. A sick creep who preys on women, making a game out of driving them to insanity. From what I hear, you’re also a twisted freak who sells illegal goods on the black market.”
My amusement grew as she vented. So badly I wanted to grab her and bend her over the counter while I devoured her from behind. Would she still be this pissed off with my tongue in her pussy?
Ignoring her nasty accusations, I said, “I can’t wait to see those beautiful lips wrapped around my cock. I’m going to fuck your mouth until you’re crying and struggling for every breath.”
I’m not sure how I managed to keep a straight face when Storm’s jaw dropped. She surprised me by snatching a steak knife from the dishwasher, holding it tight in one hand.
“I dare you to fucking try it. I’ll cut your cock off and stuff it down your—”
Chase entered the kitchen with the last few dishes. Storm shut right up. Dropping the knife back into the dishwasher, she took off out of the kitchen into the backyard.
Chase eyed me suspiciously. “What’s your deal with my sister? Seriously. You need to leave her alone.”
“Is this the part where you threaten to kick my ass?” I asked, my tone bored. “Your sister is more than capable of taking care of herself. Did she tell you that she punched me in the face?”
“Yeah, that sounds like Storm,” Chase chuckled. He tossed a dishwasher tab into the machine and turned it on. “Still, if you do something to her, if I have to step in, I will.”
Nothing about Chase threatened me. He was built decent enough. I figured he could throw a solid punch. But he had no idea who he was talking to. People like him didn’t faze me. They didn’t even register on my radar.
“Sure. If you say so.” I turned to leave the kitchen, done with this interaction.
“Wouldn’t you do the same if someone messed with your sister?” Chase’s voice followed me.
My sister was still a kid. Barely a teenager. Arwen was spoiled. A pampered princess who wouldn’t know the first thing about taking care of herself.
“If someone messed with my sister,” I said without looking back. “I’d fucking kill them.”
Chase didn’t respond. I left him there to decide for himself how far he wanted to take this. I didn’t want to hurt the guy. Truth be told, I wanted nothing at all to do with him. He could either stay out of my way or find out what happens to those who fucked with me. His choice.
Outside in the yard, our parents were engrossed in conversation. Talking about work and who knows what else? Boring shit. Arwen nagged my mom to let her go home. She wanted to game with her friends online. After annoying my parents enough, my father told her to just go then. Like I said, spoiled.
I wandered over to where Storm stood near the hot tub gnawing her lip. “Trying to think up a way to bail out? I’m sure we can find a way to pass the time before the party.”
“I’m not going to your stupid party. I have better things to do.”
“Yeah, I guess you’re probably too busy trying to get that stick out of your ass,” I quipped. “How long have you been working on that?”
I wasn’t ready for it when she shoved me. It caught me off guard, knocking me off balance. I fell backwards into the hot tub, the hot water engulfing me. When I surfaced, all four of our parents were staring in our direction.
“Oh my gosh.” Diane flew out of her chair, a hand pressed to her chest. “Are you okay, Rebel? What happened?”
“He tripped,” Storm answered quickly. “I tried to grab him, but it happened so fast.”
Devious little brat. I would certainly have my revenge.
“Right. I tripped. Clumsy me.” As I climbed out of the hot tub, I shot Storm a look that promised payback.
“Get him a towel, Storm. Don’t just stand there.” Diane flapped a hand for Storm to take action.
“No, it’s cool. Don’t worry about it. I’ll just hop the fence to my place and dry off there. I need to change my clothes. Thank you so much for dinner. It was really good.” I flashed my best smile and headed for the fence separating our yards.
Grabbing the top of the fence, I pulled myself up and over. Once I landed in my own yard, my smile faded, my shoulders stiffening. Storm was going to regret that.
Luckily, my phone was water resistant. I pulled it from my pocket on my way into my house. Stripping down, I strode down to my bedroom in my underwear. Well, that was one way to get out of staying and making nice.
It was well after dark when I got ready to head to the graveyard. Remembering what Storm said about not coming, I sent her a DM on Instagram. I didn’t have her number yet. I would have to soon rectify that.
My message included the graveyard address only. Her reply came sooner than expected.
“A perfect place for you to drop dead.”
Wow. That was harsh. Didn’t she know that every nasty word she spoke only encouraged me? Surely she knew the game she played. Storm could deny it all she wanted but I knew she enjoyed this as much as I did.
“Come to the party or I’ll be climbing into your bedroom tonight.” My reply was seen but no response came. Fine with me. She would soon see that I didn’t make empty threats.
By the time I arrived at the graveyard, the party was well underway. People filled the property, including the church. Lanterns hung from the trees to cast the graveyard in a warm, dim glow. Coke was snorted off old and broken headstones while people fucked anywhere and everywhere. Two guys threw punches at the back near the tree line while others cheered them on. Some people only came for the fights. Our parties were well known for them.
I did my best to keep my mind off Storm. I did shots with my friends and even partook in a fight to let off some steam. Nothing like throwing some punches to get the blood pumping and release pent up energy. Too bad the Venom guys hadn’t dared to crash. They usually made an appearance. A fight with one of them always ended bloody.
As the hours crawled by, it became increasingly clear that Storm wasn’t going to show. Someone wanted me to come to her bedroom tonight. Why else would she call my bluff?
Perched on top of a headstone, I pulled out my phone and checked her Instagram story. Then I checked out Athena’s as well. I was able to determine that the two of them had gone to a local music hall to check out a band. That was fine. I could wait. She had to go home sometime.
“Shit, Rebel, what’s your obsession with that girl?” Auryn leaned in to look over my shoulder at my phone. “You need to fuck her already and move on. Or fuck someone else so you can stop thinking about her.”
He nodded to the many women getting drunk and high all around us. Hailey, the girl Storm had seen me with on campus, caught my eye and smiled. Shit. All it took was a second of eye contact to make her head my way.
“I don’t want to fuck anyone else,” I said, shoving Auryn. “Help me get rid of Hailey.”
“You’re on your own with that one, man.” He snickered, knowing how annoying Hailey could be. “Good luck.”
He’d vacated by the time she reached me. More than a little drunk, Hailey immediately tried to kiss me. I pushed her back, holding her at arm’s reach.
“What’s your problem?” she whined. “Don’t you want to fuck me in the woods?”
I really didn’t. It had been months since we’d made out once at a party and she wouldn’t let it go. Like it made us a couple or something. I’d hooked up with plenty of chicks at these parties. Hailey wasn’t special.
“Not tonight. Sorry. I’m a little preoccupied. I have somewhere to be. Maybe another time.” Maybe never. There was only one girl I wanted to fuck tonight.
“Come on, Rebel. I thought we had something. Don’t you like me?” Hailey swayed slightly, too drunk to keep her balance.
“Sure, you’re swell. I’m just not interested in more. Look I’ve got to run. I’ll see you on campus.” I saw the way her face crumpled, her eyes glassy. Time to bail the fuck out.
I took off without a word to anyone. Instead of staying at my own party, I went home and sat in my backyard drinking. Watching Storm’s balcony window, I waited for her to arrive.
Crazy? Sure, why the hell not? I wasn’t going to deny that there may be something incredibly wrong with me. I’d come to terms with it though.
It was after one in the morning when Storm’s bedroom light finally came on. Time to make my move. I’d promised her a late night visit, and I intended to follow through on that promise.
I jumped the fence into her yard, moving quietly. The lattice running up the side of the house next to her balcony seemed sturdy. I wasn’t sure I trusted it to hold me. I used it to get up a few feet before grabbing onto the bottom of the balcony. From there I hoisted myself up. Too easy.
Storm’s curtains were open, giving me a good view of her bedroom. She lay sprawled on the bed on her stomach, her thumbs moving across her phone screen. Eager for her reaction, I tapped on the window.