Chapter 17
Holland
Holy fuck.
I never actually thought Lainey and I would get to this place. I mean, yeah, we have a shit ton of sexual tension, but I never imagined she’d make a move. Now she’s asking to take charge?
I’ve never really had a girl take charge, and I don’t think my dick has ever been so hard. It is so fucking sexy, and it’s even better because it’s Lainey.
I’m not usually at a loss for words. I always have something to say, that’s just who I am. Right now, all I can say is, “okay.”
Lainey steps back, her movements deliberate as she begins to move around me, her body swaying to a rhythm only I can hear.
Watching her, my jaw clenches, and my chest rises and falls with my quickening breath.
She stops behind me, her hands resting lightly on my shoulders as she leans in, her lips brushing against my ear.
“You’re so tense,”
she murmurs, her fingers digging into the muscles of my back.
“Let me help you relax.”
I let out a low, involuntary groan, my head falling back as her lips trail down my neck. Lainey smirks against my skin, her hands moving down my chest, her nails scraping lightly over my abs.
My mind is racing, and my body is responding to her touch in ways it shouldn’t.
“You like that, don’t you?”
Lainey whispers, her lips hovering over my collarbone. I don’t answer, afraid of what might come out of my mouth. I should tell her to stop. I shouldn’t let this go any further.
I know I tease her, and I definitely talk the talk, but I didn’t expect her to go along with it. This is bad, Holland. Stop her before it gets to a point where there is no turning back.
I can’t. I can’t get my body to cooperate with me. So, I just stand there, letting Lainey do whatever she wants to me.
Lainey’s hands move lower, her fingers slipping down to the towel still tied around my waist. The towel that is now tented with my hard erection.
My breath hitches and my hands ball into fists at my sides. I can feel my heart pounding a million miles a minute, and my body is trembling with anticipation. Just as she’s about to pull the towel loose, she stops.
What the hell? Why did she stop?
“What are you-”
I start, my voice rough with need and probably a little bit of disappointment at the fact that she just halted all of her teasing. Lainey cuts me off with a soft laugh.
She pushes me away from the door and turns to leave with a mischievous look on her infuriatingly gorgeous face.
“Where are you going?”
I ask, my voice tight. I’m trying not to sound too pissed off at the fact that she’s seemingly leaving me with the worst case of blue balls the world has ever seen, although I’m not so sure I’m doing a great job.
Lainey pauses, her hand on the doorknob.
“I’m going home. I’m like, really tired all of a sudden,”
she says, a smirk playing on her lips as she opens the door and walks out of my room and down the stairs.
My eyes widen, realization dawning me. She did that on purpose.
Leaning through the doorframe with my hands at the top, I watch her descend.
“You’re playing with fire, Bug,” I warn.
Lainey turns to face me once she hits the bottom level, her eyes sparkling with challenge.
“And you’re about to get burned,”
she replies simply, before turning the knob and slipping out of the house, leaving me hard, frustrated, and alone.
The door clicks shut behind her, the sound echoing in the silence. All I can do is stand here, my chest heaving, and my body throbbing with unfulfilled desire.
So that’s how you want to play it, Barkley? Fine, I can play dirty too. I can play even dirtier. Lainey thinks she just won this round, but this dangerous game she just started is far from over. A slow, dangerous smile spreads across my face.
Lainey Barkley isn’t going to be able to resist me after I’m done with her.
It’s been two days since what I’m calling the bedroom incident. I think I’ve been rock hard since Lainey left my room. I haven’t been able to get her out of my head.
I haven’t seen her since, not because I’m avoiding her, but because we’ve been busy with classes, and I had practice.
Tonight is Ryker and Gwen’s bachelor and bachelorette parties. So I won’t be seeing Lainey tonight either. Which is fine, because I’m not even sure how to act around her now.
I know she’s attracted to me. I saw it in her eyes. She may have been messing with me, but she wanted me just as badly as I wanted her. She wasn’t completely unaffected.
Tonight isn’t about me or Lainey or our mutual attraction to each other. Tonight is about my best friend and giving him a night to remember.
Flux is packed tonight. The techno music is blaring through the speakers, and the smell of alcohol, sweat, and weed fill the air. You’re not allowed to smoke in the building, but people definitely take a hit or two before they come in.
The bright lights flash, and the colorful dancefloor changes patterns to the beat of the music. This place is always full, but it never gets too rowdy. This crowd doesn’t really do rowdy.
The guys and I are seated in a round booth toward the back of the lounge, sipping on our various choices of alcohol. Whiskey for Ryker and Logan, Mason’s got some sort of rum concoction, I went with scotch, and Patrick isn’t drinking because he’s apparently completely sober now. Boring.
None of us have seen Pat in a while since he moved to California to be a freaking doctor. Don’t ask me what kind of doctor because fuck if I know. What I do know is he’s done well for himself. He got out of here as soon as he could, and I don’t totally blame him.
After the take down of our fathers’ company, we were the talk of the media for a while. Some of it good, a lot of it shitty. Campus was rough for a few weeks until everyone moved on to something new.
We’d told our fathers’ that we’d keep the whole thing quiet from the tabloids and the police, but we never said anything about deterring rumors.
A lot of what was being said was rumors, but there was plenty of shit that was true. People they worked with really didn’t like them, and they weren’t afraid to turn on them.
“So, man, you’re getting fucking married! Shit, I never thought this day would come,”
my idiot cousin says, patting Ryker on the shoulder.
Ryker takes a sip from his glass.
“Yeah, yeah. I get it. It’s a shock to all, including me, but fuck if Gwen didn’t show up in my life and turn the whole damn thing upside down,”
he says, looking a bit nostalgic.
Ryker was Ellington University’s most eligible bachelor. He was untouchable by all, even the professors. He had everyone in his pocket, and the girls? They’d fall at his feet.
Sure, Mason, Pat, Logan, and I are all Elite’s too, however Ryker was the top dog. Everyone wanted him and he knew it. It made his college career a breeze.
He’d had a girlfriend once back in like, high school or something like that. After they broke up, he swore not to date again. So instead, he slept his way through campus.
Then he found Gwen, and she quite literally changed everything. I’d never seen Ryker so crazy for a girl, and he was crazy about Gwen. He still is.
I raise my half empty glass of scotch in the air as a toast and watch as the guys follow.
“To my brother, I am truly happy you’ve found someone that wants to deal with your crazy ass forever. Just remember, I was here first,”
I say, earning a few chuckles from the boys.
Ryker nods once before we all clink our glasses together.
“Cheers, buddy,” I say.
“Cheers,”
we all say in unison.
“Can I get you boys another round? Maybe something to eat?”
a cute blonde woman with a skintight tank that says ‘Flux’ on it asks. Her tits practically spilling over the top of her tiny shirt.
The short as hell shorts she’s wearing leave little to the imagination, and her makeup is a bit over the top, but she seems like a sweet girl.
“Another round would be great, sweetie. Maybe you can join us? We’re celebrating my brother here’s wedding,”
Mason drawls while he obviously checks the poor girl out. The blonde blushes before looking down at the notebook in her hands.
“Christ, Mason. Stop being a creep,”
Patrick scolds. Mason holds his hands up in surrender.
“Hey, I was just inviting her to hang with us,”
Mason states. I wish I could say he’s being an ass because he’s drunk, but that’s just his personality.
“Sorry about our friend, here. He has this thing where he just can’t shut up. We’ll take another round, please,”
I politely tell the girl who quickly walks away from our table.
Ryker smacks the back of Mason’s head, and Mason’s hand flies up to sooth the ache. I chuckle to myself because I’ve missed this. These guys are my brothers, and we haven’t been all together in months.
We probably wouldn’t be if it weren’t for the fact that Ryker’s getting fucking married. It still blows my mind that he found someone he wants to settle down with.
The thought of settling down with someone for the rest of my life unnerves me. I mean, sure, I could see myself getting married one day, I guess. It would take one hell of a girl to make that happen.
A quick flash of Lainey pops into my mind, and I quickly shake it out as the waitress brings over our drinks and places them on the table.
Reaching for my glass, I down it all in one gulp. The burn feels good and it’s a welcome distraction to the fact that I just thought of Lainey Barkley as the girl I would want to marry.
There is no way in hell Lainey and I would get married. Lainey isn’t the type of girl who dreams of a white picket fence and a big house on a hill with six kids and a perfect husband. She’s not the settling down type.
So why do I find myself wanting to make her that type of girl? Making her want to have that big house with all the kids and a big porch swing where we sit and sip our morning coffee together?
Why is it that the one girl I shouldn’t want is the one girl I can’t fucking get out of my head? Is it some kind of cruel joke? Is this karma for something I did? I don’t get it.
“Uh oh. Here comes trouble, and she brought friends,”
Mason shouts over the blaring music. My eyes follow his line of sight and land on exactly what he’s seeing.
A leggy brunette with curled hair that falls over her shoulders in a blue dress that ends mid-thigh and heels that make her at least 4 inches taller walks toward us. Lainey is followed by Gwen, Ellie, Hailey, and Gwen’s best friend Damian.
The group doesn’t look exactly thrilled to see us here, and honestly, I’m a little pissed as well. What the hell are they doing here? Clearly they didn’t know we were here, considering the looks on their faces.
As they approach, I can’t stop my mouth from watering, and I have to mentally will myself from getting out of my seat and throwing Lainey over my shoulder to get her away from all the male attention she’s receiving.
I’m not usually a possessive guy, at least, I’ve never really had anything to be possessive about. But God damn, if I wouldn’t throat punch every single dude in this place for looking at her wrong.
That includes my cousin who is ogling her like she’s his next meal.
Reaching across the table, I slap Mason on the back of the head just like Ryker did, although this time he doesn’t have a clue why he’s being hit.
He shoots me a glare.
“What the fuck, dude? What was that for?”
I just shake my head, not wanting to give away my reasoning. I won’t hear the end of it from any of the guys if they find out I’m horny for my sister’s best friend.
When they stop in front of our booth, Gwen and Ryker exchange a small smile. Lainey glares at me. What the hell did I do?
“What the hell are you doing here?”
she spits, directing her question to me, and not the four other guys sitting at the table with me.
“What am I doing here? What are you doing here? It’s reserved for us guys tonight. Take your girls club somewhere else,”
I reply just as harshly. How can she be mad at me for booking a popular, exclusive club for the bachelor party when she did the same thing for Gwen?
Lainey’s eyes narrow, and she looks like she might explode until Gwen puts a hand on her shoulder, effectively distracting her from tearing my head off.
“It’s okay, Lane. We can all hang out together,”
Gwen reasons. Ah, Gwen. Always the reasonable one. She has a temper too, don’t get me wrong. There were plenty of times I heard her and Ryker going at it, but she’s leveled out a bit.
Lainey on the other hand? I think she’s filled with so much anger and rage that it all just bubbles to the surface when she’s upset. She may act like nothing bothers her, but I know there are certain things that do.
Lainey’s lips turn down into a pout, and my dick twitches in my pants because fuck, if that isn’t the most adorable thing I’ve ever seen.
“This is supposed to be your bachelorette party. You’re supposed to be living it up and getting shitfaced. Not hanging out with your fiancé,”
Lainey whines. Gwen laughs before scooching into the booth next to Ryker who throws his arm around her shoulders and kisses her temple.
“I wasn’t going to get shitfaced anyway. This is perfect, just the way it is. I promise,”
Gwen tells Lainey, who still looks unsure of the whole situation.
Haley and Ellie grab chairs from a close by table and stick them at the end of our booth. Damian does the same, yet Lainey continues to stand.
“Come here, babe. I’ve got a great place for you to sit,”
I tease, winking at her as I gesture to my lap. Her face twists in disgust while chuckles fill the table.
“Ew, Holland. Stop being gross,”
Ellie squeals.
“I’d rather sit on burning coals than on your lap, you creep,”
Lainey says before turning back to look at Gwen.
“I have to go the bathroom. I’ll be back.”
“Do you want me to come with you?”
Ellie asks her, concern lacing her features. Lainey shakes her head.
“No, I just have to pee. I’ll be quick.”
As she begins to walk away, my eyes trail after her, focused on her ass as it sways back and forth to the beat of the music. My god does that woman have the perfect ass.
Before I know what I’m doing, I’m standing from the booth and about to follow her.
“Where are you going?”
Pat asks, his brow furrowing.
Without taking my eyes off of Lainey through the crowd, I say “I’ll be right back.”
Where am I going? Well, I’m following Lainey to the bathroom like a fucking creep. Could I tell you why? No, no I couldn’t. Here I am, standing outside the woman’s bathroom, waiting for Lainey Barkley to exit.
I am so fucking screwed.