45. Anson #2
“God, so typical,” she muttered, putting her tits back into her tube top.
“You came to get fucked in a bathroom stall,” I mumbled at her. “And you want me to remember your name?”
She stooped to grab her panties. I didn’t move. I stood where I was, my dick out and my head against the cool metal of the stall. My head was fucked. I was so dizzy. I thought I might actually throw up.
“Hi. Rosalie?”
I frowned and looked down at Mackenzie, my phone in her hand.
“Yeah. Hi. This is Mackenzie. Your boyfriend and I just got done fucking in a bathroom stall at a club, and he had me suck him off. He called me your name. Thought you should know he’s cheating on you.”
“What the fuck?” I snarled, stumbling, my pants falling completely to the floor. “Give me that.” My phone must have fallen out during the blow job.
Mackenzie squealed and moved away from me in the tight space.
“He’s an asshole. Ditch him!” she shouted into the phone as I managed to take it away from her. She shoved past me, calling me a dickhead, the stall door slamming behind her.
I stared down at the phone in my hand, Rosalie’s name on the screen, the minutes ticking by with the connected call.
Fuck.
I couldn’t hang up.
I put the phone to my ear.
“Hey,” I mumbled. “Sorry?—”
“Where are you?” she demanded.
“Fuse,” I mumbled.
“I’ll be there in a minute.” The phone clicked off. I stared down at it dumbfounded. It took me a moment to realize she was coming to me.
She was coming.
I tugged my pants up and stumbled out of the stall. Quickly, I rinsed my mouth out and splashed water on my face.
I was falling apart. I looked like shit.
There wasn’t anything I could do about it, though, so I left the bathroom and went back into the club.
“I’m leaving,” I said to Ryder as I swayed. Trent was making out with some chick at the bar. Figured.
“Leaving? You can barely walk. How the fuck are you going to leave?”
“Rosalie is coming to get me.”
Ryder raised his brows. “OK. Well, don’t fuck it up, man.”
“I will,” I muttered, knowing damn well that’s how I worked.
“Have a drink before you go. That way, you won’t remember shit tomorrow if you do fuck it up.” He handed me a shot.
I downed it quickly, knowing it was a bad idea.
“Sit. You look like hell.”
I felt like hell. I took a seat as the room spun.
I wasn’t sure how long I sat there, but eventually, I woke with my head in my arm on the tabletop, Rosalie’s warm hands on me.
“Ani.” She shook me. “Come on. Let’s go.”
I stared up at her groggily. “Hey. You came.”
She frowned at me, clearly not liking what she saw.
I reached for her and tugged her between my legs, my hands on her waist.
“You look pretty,” I said, trying to get the three of her to focus into one. She was wearing a pleated jean skirt and a red top. Simple, yet beautiful.
“Hey, Anson, man, let’s go,” Fox said.
I blinked at him as he moved to stand next to her.
“You going to kick my ass for touching her?” I peered at him. “Spoiler. You’ll win tonight. I’m fucked up.”
“Clearly,” Fox muttered, moving Rosalie aside.
I groaned at her distance.
“You bring the guys?” I asked as Fox helped me to stand. Ryder took up my other side to help since I was such a sloppy mess.
“No. It’s just me and Rosie.”
“Good,” I slurred out.
I must have blacked out on the way to the car because when I woke, we were zooming along the highway with Rosalie in the backseat. I didn’t recognize the car.
“Where are we?” I groaned.
“In my car,” she answered softly. She pressed a bottle of water to my lips. Greedily, I sucked it down and let out another groan.
“I fucked that girl because I thought she was you,” I slurred. “I had to pretend she was so I could get through it.”
“Anson,” Fox snapped.
“Fuck. I’m sorry. I’m a goddamn mess right now.”
“Drink some more,” Rosalie said, pressing the bottle back to my lips.
I sucked more of the cool liquid down and rested my head against Rosalie’s shoulder.
She was still too far away. I tugged her closer and buried my face in her neck.
Inhaling deeply, I breathed her deep into my soul. Summery. Lavender. Strawberries.
God, I’d missed the way she smelled.
She tried to move me off her, but I wasn’t having it.
“Anson,” Fox warned again from behind the wheel.
I ignored him and clung to her, desperate to keep her near me until the end of time. She gave up trying to move me aside. It was just as well. I wasn’t going to move.
I stayed that way for a few miles before the nausea bubbled up.
“I-I’m going to throw up,” I called out in a shaky voice. “Fuck. P-pull over.”
Fox wheeled the car off the road, and I threw the door open and stumbled out into the night. I heaved my guts into the ditch on my knees. When I thought I’d die, the vomiting stopped, and I sagged back on my legs. I looked to the stars.
“What the fuck is going on with you?” Fox asked from beside me.
I closed my eyes.
“I love her,” I whispered. “And it’s killing me.”
He let out a sigh. “Come on. Let’s get you home.”
I shook my head and opened my eyes. “I don’t want to go home.”
“Why not?”
“Because when I get there, you’ll both leave me, and I want you to stay.”
“You want me to stay?” Fox chuckled softly. “You really are wasted.”
“I want you to stay the night with me. With her.” I looked over at him to see him frowning at me.
“Imagine it’s just us. Me, you, and her.
Together. None of this other shit. Free.
Away from the stress. Only her and her songs and her happiness.
That’s the life, man. That’s where I want to be.
Please give me tonight. I’ll do anything, Fox. The three of us.”
His Adam’s apple bobbed. I didn’t even think he’d answer me. Finally, he did, his voice barely above a whisper.
“OK.”
My heart lurched at his words.
“Let’s get you home,” he repeated in a low voice.
“You need a shower and some sleep.” He acted as if our conversation hadn’t happened.
Maybe I’d misheard him. Maybe he wasn’t going to give in.
Sad, I let him help me to my feet and lead me back to the car.
I managed to get into the backseat, and Rosalie quickly offered me more water.
I swished out my mouth and spit it out the window as Fox returned behind the wheel.
“You have a lot of water in here,” I mumbled.
“Cole likes to keep water in all the vehicles. He’s big on hydration,” Rosalie said.
I grunted. Of course, the prick was.
I closed my eyes again and quietly rode the rest of the way. When we got to my place, Fox helped me get out, Rosalie taking my other side. They helped me into my place and put me on the couch.
“I’ll run a shower for him,” Fox said, locking my front door. He disappeared into my bathroom, leaving me alone with Rosalie.
“When was the last time you ate?” she asked.
I shrugged. Food had been the furthest thing from my mind lately.
“I’m going to make you something.”
“I might throw it up.”
“Well, at least we can say we tried.” She left me, the rattling sounds coming from my kitchen as she tried to find everything. I had no food in the place. I hadn’t bothered shopping in weeks.
“Come on.” Fox hefted me off the couch and took me to the bathroom. I leaned tiredly against the sink.
“I’ll help you into the shower. You smell like stale beer and vomit.”
I mumbled something at him and tried to remove my shirt, but failed.
“Man, I’ll throw you in there fully clothed. I don’t even give a fuck,” Fox said.
“Just help me. I’m sure you’ve taken off a guy’s clothes before. You don’t fuck with three of them and never touch.”
“Fuck off,” he muttered, removing my shirt. He didn’t stop there. He had me stripped down to nothing in no time.
“I knew you were a pro,” I mumbled as he helped me to the shower. He closed the glass door on me but didn’t leave the room. Instead, he leaned against my sink, his arms crossed over his black t-shirt while I attempted to shower.
I washed off the last few days and turned off the water as quickly as I could before Fox came to help me out. He wrapped the towel around my waist, and I fumbled with fastening it, but it was done.
He helped me to my bedroom after, and I sank onto the mattress while he rummaged around in my drawer. He returned, handed me a pair of sweatpants, and helped shimmy them up my legs while I sat there.
“Did it hurt?” he asked as I tucked my junk away.
“What? When I fell from heaven?” I slurred.
He let out a soft chuckle. “No, asshole. Your dick when you had it pierced.”
“Oh. That. Wasn’t pleasant, but I’ve felt worse pain. Sex is good with it. Women never complain.”
“Not even the one tonight?”
I rubbed my eyes at his words. “I thought she was Rosalie.”
“Even worse, man.”
I looked up at him. “I’m really fucked up. I probably won’t remember shit tomorrow.”
“For your sake, I hope you don’t.”
I nodded. I hoped I didn’t, either.
“I’m not this guy. I don’t fuck random women in bars. I fucked up tonight. I-I just wanted to…” I blew out a breath. I didn’t know what I fucking wanted. To forget? To feel? To pretend? All of the above?
A soft knock on the door pulled me away from the staring contest I was having with the two silent Foxes in the room.
Rosalie stepped in, holding a plate. She knelt in front of me and offered me the food.
“Grilled cheese. I didn’t know I had cheese.”
“It’s really the only thing you have in your fridge, aside from the half stick of butter in there and the old bottle of ketchup. And I used the last four slices of bread you had.”
I didn’t say anything. Instead, I bit into the warm grilled cheese and groaned softly. I was starving. Having a proper meal when you were fucked up wasn’t exactly in the cards. Food had been the last thing on my mind for the last few weeks. Each day, it got progressively worse, too.
I polished off the food quickly, and Fox handed me another bottle of water. I sucked down the entire contents, my stomach full.
I hope it helped.
“Here.” Rosalie held out two pills. “You’ll want these onboard for the morning.”
I snatched them from her and downed them with the second bottle of water Fox handed me, opting not to finish the entire thing and simply sipping what I needed.
“Bed,” Fox said, moving to pull down my blanket.
I hadn’t slept in here in forever. Mostly, I’d crashed on the couch or at Ryder’s place.
I grumbled, but I managed to get into bed. Fox tossed the blanket over me. He and Rosalie made to leave, but I sat up and grabbed both their hands.
“Stay with me,” I husked out. “Please. Just… one night. You said you would.”
Rosalie cast an uneasy look to Fox, who stared down at me, his expression unreadable. I didn’t really think he’d agree, but he finally nodded, sending my heart shooting into my throat as he gestured to Rosalie to get into bed.
“I-I have sweatpants in the top drawer if you want to change,” I said thickly.
She hesitated for a moment before going to the dresser and pulling out a pair of pants.
She disappeared into my bathroom as Fox stepped out of the room, his phone in his hand.
I knew he was calling home. Whatever he was told would dictate whether or not they’d be staying.
I waited, my pulse roaring in my ears. When Rosalie stepped back into the room, she was wearing my sweatpants. They were way too big on her and hung off her slender frame, but fuck if she didn’t look beautiful anyway. She cautiously walked toward the bed, making my pulse pound harder.
Fox returned to the room before she made it to me and went to my dresser.
He also pulled out a pair of sweatpants and quickly changed without bothering to go into the bathroom.
He approached my bed and whispered something to her that I couldn’t hear.
A moment later, she was crawling across the mattress toward me.
I swallowed hard as I stared at her.
Carefully, she settled in next to me, Fox moving to lie on the opposite side of her.
I breathed out, having the very real knowledge that they were both in my bed and she was next to me.
“Can I hold her?” I called out softly.
Fox sighed. “This is so fucked.”
“That’s it. I just missed her. I promise nothing else.”
“Fine. It’s up to her,” Fox muttered.
“LeeLee?” I reached out for her, knowing I’d never be such a pathetic pussy if I were sober. I wasn’t even trying to tell myself no. I was rolling with it, hoping something finally broke my way.
When she didn’t pull away from me, I dragged her closer. Fox shifted closer, too. I didn’t give a shit, though. I wrapped her in my arms and clutched her against me, her chest to mine.
“I’m sorry,” I whispered to her. “For all this.”
She said nothing as I continued to hold her. I didn’t expect her to say anything. I’d been a supreme fucked-up asshole. I was lucky she was even here.
Fox shifted and wound his arms around her from behind.
I closed my eyes, and my heart felt slightly fuller than it had been lately.
She didn’t touch me back, but I deserved that. Instead, I closed my eyes, grateful for the opportunity to hold her for a night.