Chapter 7 The Introduction
THE INTRODUCTION
MAGGIE
Of course Spencer and his stupid band of friends came to the party.
There was never much else to do unless you wanted to drive all the way out to Savannah, and that could get real expensive real quick.
I should’ve assumed I’d run into him. And in true Spencer-like fashion, he had to be dick. Who only thought with his dick.
I wasn’t proud of the reputation I’d garnered back in high school.
Boys like Spencer Church made it hard to forget.
But despite the way I played fast and loose with the boys at Smithson County High, I would certainly never agree to the gangbang situation Spencer propositioned me for!
The whole point was to get a guy to like me!
That hadn’t exactly happened yet, but still.
The way they all started to circle around me made me panic a bit, I admit.
I also didn’t want Celeste to find us and then have to explain how I knew any of them.
That was a part of my life that I never wanted her to see and I didn’t know why.
Maybe because she still seemed so innocent and hopeful.
She had a chance at living a happily ever after whereas I had resigned myself to merely chasing the endorphin rush that came from getting a man’s attention.
It was pure, dumb luck that set Zeke up behind me.
I had been refusing Spencer’s advances, making up a boyfriend out of convenience in the hopes that it made him back down.
Instead, it made Spencer call my bluff, pompously asking Chase Hubbard and Grant Dupree if I had ever had a boyfriend before.
They had both been part of my rotation of hook ups in high school and knew better.
I didn’t even recognize the rest of the guys in the group, and I shivered at the thought of what Spencer, Chase, and Grant might have promised them.
When I turned and walked into what felt like a solid wall, I didn’t think, just reacted.
Zeke’s tall frame, rigid with muscle from what I could tell upon wrapping my arms around him, towered over everyone and a sense of security washed over me as soon as his grip steadied me.
He was handsome, closely cropped hair in the military style, and although he looked downright alarmed, he didn’t question my actions.
And that kiss? Holy hell, that kiss could change my religion.
His lips were strong. Firm. I wanted to get so lost in them that I never had to come back up for air.
Most of the time I didn’t bother kissing the guys I hooked up with.
That wasn’t what they wanted from me, and it seemed easier to cut to the chase and get us both off.
But I craved a thousand more kisses from Zeke Hayes—a million, if he’d let me.
But then he jumped away from me like a terrified little bird.
His facial expression told me he wanted to bolt even if he went through the motions with me.
Perhaps Zeke wasn’t used to girls coming on as strongly as I did.
Or maybe he just felt the power behind that kiss like I did.
Either way, a voice in the back of my mind warned me not to push him much more.
Zeke’s fight or flight instinct had been activated.
It may have settled somewhat while we were outside and he helped me prevent a full blown panic attack, but I got the sense that Zeke didn’t know what to make of me.
Once we got back inside the house, I made a beeline for the living room. Celeste still stood in the same spot I left her in, a Solo cup full of what I knew to be water in hand. She refused to drink in case Iris had an emergency while we were out.
“Hey!” she greeted me. “Where have you been?”
“Just…around,” I replied noncommittally.
I couldn’t remember exactly when I started leading a double life as far as Celeste was concerned.
Our friendship changed my life, and I wouldn’t trade a second of it for anything, but Celeste always had something going on.
I didn’t begrudge her for any of it because I knew she didn’t intentionally try to monopolize our time.
But at the end of the day, I often wound up alone.
Even when we first met and clicked, Celeste had a lot on her plate, and she came as a packaged deal with Wesley Madden.
Their love gave me goosebumps. It was the kind of thing that made even the coldest of hearts thaw.
That was the kind of love I wanted and could never have.
“This is Ezekiel Hayes!” I told her, drawing up beside me. Her eyes instantly zeroed in on the way Zeke’s hand remained firmly clasped in mine, and there was a sparkle in them that I hadn’t seen since Wesley left.
“It’s excellent to meet you, Ezekiel!” My best friend beamed at him.
Nearly a foot taller than her, Zeke had to lean down even just to shout above the music. “You can call me Hayes. Everybody does.”
For some reason, I liked the fact that he gave her a different, generic name to call him. It was like it somehow gave me a claim over him that I hadn’t realized I wanted.
And yet, the fact that I wanted it frightened me.
“I’m gonna go get a drink!” I announced, my voice just a pitch too high, even over the music. “Wait right here!”
Zeke frowned. “I think I should go with you. What if you run into those guys again?”
Celeste’s eyebrows went up. “What guys?”
Never mind, Zeke had to come with me. “Oh, nothing. We’ll be right back!”
I looped my arm through his and steered us back into the kitchen.
Rather than take a Solo cup of whatever cheap beer lined the kitchen island, I headed over to the far counter where all the hard liquor waited.
That was the only way I saw myself making it through tonight without the shame of Spencer’s proposition eating me alive.
Downing half a cup of the first bottle I touched made my throat burn and my chest wheeze. I thumped a fist on my chest, forcing myself to cough, before grabbing another bottle and refilling it.
“Take it easy, okay?” Zeke patted firmly between my shoulder blades. “Are you even old enough to drink?”
The question made me laugh as it was laced with worry. Did he seriously care about me drinking at a party filled with uncontrolled booze and drugs? Half the people I’d seen so far were underage, some of them still in high school.
“You’re one of those do-gooder types, aren’t you?” I asked as I gulped down another drink. This one tasted fruitier and went down a lot smoother.
Better lighting in the kitchen meant I had a chance to give Zeke more than a cursory glance under faint neon lights.
There was a little bit of length to the hair on top of his head that would have looked much better if he styled it.
I could tell from the way it fell on his forehead that he hadn’t done anything to make his hair appear more presentable.
Soft blue eyes stared at me above high, sharp cheekbones that should’ve graced the cover of a magazine.
The light blue of his shirt only enhanced the brilliance of his eyes and I couldn’t help but wonder if he picked it out himself or if it was a gift from a previous girlfriend. She certainly knew how to dress him.
Except, when I continued my perusal down his body, I noticed a tag hanging out of the bottom of his shirt. With a quick, forceful tug, I yanked it off and handed it to him.
“New shirt?” I bit back a grin.
He flushed. “Yeah. But don’t change the subject. Are you old enough to be drinking that?”
I rolled my eyes and angled my body so that I leaned against the countertop for support. “I’m not old enough to buy it on my own. I think that’s more what you meant, right?”
Zeke’s lips flattened into a thin line, a sight so comical that I burst out laughing. He brightened at the sight of my laughter, looking pleased with himself, and he stepped closer to me so that we were nearly chest to chest.
The temperature rose by several degrees as the storm clouds in his eyes drew me in.
I was mesmerized by the way they focused on me.
My breath hitched and I didn’t dare move.
As much as I wanted to kiss him again, I wanted him to be the one to do it this time.
To prove that he felt attracted to me the same way I did to him.
“I just want to keep you safe, Trouble.” So gently that I almost didn’t register it at first, Zeke tucked the hair behind my ear, tracing the shell of my earlobe down to my jaw.
His fingers continued their light descent, spreading fire in their wake, until they stopped under my jaw.
He tipped my chin up just enough to make me look at him directly.
“I-I’m…I’m not t-trouble,” I stuttered. I swallowed thickly, overwhelmed by his presence and the way his scent tickled my nose. A hint of vanilla amongst a rich pine.
Zeke smiled. And that smile sealed the deal for me. He was breathtakingly beautiful and someone as ugly and awful as me would never land a guy like him.
“Why do I get the feeling that’s not true?” he asked.
With the spell broken as my brain reminded me of all the ways this perfect specimen of a human would never condescend to be with someone like me, I sidestepped him and grabbed the entire bottle of the fruity liquor off the counter.
“C’mon. Celeste is waiting for us,” I called over my shoulder.