Chapter Four #2
“Can you put a shirt back on? You are very distracting,” I say, and he smiles.
“Yes,” he laughs. “Your air conditioning is shit, by the way.”
“Yeah. Daisy said she’d try to get someone out to look at it. I’ll remind her,” I say. Bodhi stands and steps into the cabin. He walks out, pulling his t-shirt on before sitting back with me. “So…”
“I don’t know where to even start,” he sighs.
“Maybe by explaining why the fuck you unzipped my dress?” I ask.
“Honestly, I don’t know. I don’t know what my goal was, but I seriously didn’t mean to do that. I didn’t think it would drop like that. I figured you’d have something else under it. I just didn’t think, and it was a stupid thing to do. I got caught up in my own emotions and took that out on you.”
“Why?” I ask. “Why did you hate me so much?”
“I hated that you got a second chance at life when Sean and June adopted you,” he says. “I hated that you got a better life, and I was stuck with an abusive and drunk father. I hated that my mom died, and your mom loved you unconditionally. I was jealous because you got help and I didn’t.”
“I remember when your mom died,” I say.
“I am certain my dad killed her, but Dan never could prove it,” he tells me. “It’s not an excuse for how I treated you, but I just wanted you to know that it was never your fault. Not with me. Not with the assault after prom. Not with Jason.”
“What about the assault?” I ask.
“Liv…” he sighs. I know it wasn’t him who attacked me that day, so I don’t know what he’s being weird about.
“What?” I ask.
“Dad was the one who attacked you,” he says. “At least he said he did.”
“What did he say?” I ask.
“Ah… he said he saw the picture and had to… test you out,” he says carefully. “I got pissed, and he said I can’t be mad when I didn’t even like you… You hated me for what I did, and I didn’t want to make it worse. And then you left. You were away from Dad, so I just… I should have told someone.”
“If it counts for anything,” I say with a smirk. “He didn’t like… fully rape me.”
“What do you mean?” he asks.
“He fucked my thighs,” I say, and Bodhi laughs heartily. “He was drunk as shit and knocked me down flat. Maybe he meant to do something else, but he just humped my legs for a few seconds before getting off.”
“Christ, that doesn’t even surprise me,” Bodhi says, still chuckling. “Even so, I’m sorry it happened.”
“Jason did so much worse,” I say.
“It doesn’t matter,” he says. “You deserve to be happy, Liv. Don’t settle for less.”
“I just… I don’t know. It feels so foreign to me,” I say.
“Jason was so amazing in the beginning. I was so young and didn’t realize that grown men shouldn’t want an eighteen-year-old like that.
He took ten years away from me. He turned me into profit and a punching bag.
Hell, the clients that paid to rape me treated me better than he did. ”
“I’ll be honest, Olivia. I don’t know if I have anything nonviolent to say,” he says. “I want to fucking kill him for hurting you.”
“Why?” I ask. “I thought you hated me?”
“I could never hate you, Liv,” he says softly. “I hate myself for ever thinking you deserved anything but the best.”
“Kiss ass,” I say. He chuckles and just smiles at me. “What?”
“You’ve always had the prettiest smile, Liv. I can’t wait to see it more.”
“Oh? So, are we friends now?” I ask.
“Do you want to be my friend?” he asks.
“Hmm,” I say. “Yeah, I think I do.”
“Good, because I already made friendship bracelets,” he teases.
“You are something else, Bodhi,” I laugh.
“Thank you for hearing me out,” he says.
“You’ll be forgiven when Luke stops talking about my tits,” I laugh.
“Jeez. So never?” he laughs with me.
“You’re right. He has been talking about tits since he was eleven.”
“You aren’t wrong,” he laughs. “Like Mrs. Frazier. I don’t know if he ever looked that woman in the face.”
“I don’t know if any boy back then did,” I laugh. “So, class reunion is Friday?”
“Yes, ma’am. You going?” he asks.
“Kate is making me.”
“Did she mention they want the prom King and Queen to come up?” Bodhi asks.
“Cool. So don’t wear a dress with a zipper,” I say, and he laughs. “Is this a trick?”
“No, I think Kate might be up to something, though,” he laughs. “It was her idea.”
“Oh, Lord,” I laugh.
“Are you going to go to court alone?”
“Hell… I don’t know,” I say. “Kate and Luke will get themselves put in jail. So will my parents. I might have to.”
“I can go with you,” he says. “I won’t even need bail money.”
“Do you want to or do you feel like you owe me?” I ask.
“No, I want to,” he says. “You’re a female. I can win you over with food.”
“That is a fair assumption,” I say with a smile.
“Don’t answer or decide right now. Think about it, and if you want someone to go with you, just ask,” he says.
“Why?” I ask.
“Because asking me takes effort that you will only put in if you truly want it and don’t feel obligated because I offered,” he says. “Waiting ensures you actually think about it.”
“Where did that boy go who used to pull my hair and call me names?” I ask with a smile.
“He grew up and learned how to respect women,” Bodhi says, matching my smile. “What’s your favorite flavor of ice cream?”
“What do you think my favorite is?” I challenge him.
“Hmm…” he says, looking me over. “Vanilla.”
“Rude!” I gasp. “I am not a vanilla girl!”
“No?” Bodhi asks with a playful smile. My face instantly turns red, and I cover my cheeks, making him laugh heartily. “Don’t worry. I won’t tell anyone, Liv.”
“You just love teasing me. That’s what it is,” I say.
“Tease you? I thought we were talking about ice cream, ma’am.”
“You are a menace, Bodhi!” I declare and playfully push his shoulder, making him grin. “I’m not very picky, but I do prefer savory over sweet.”
“Got it,” he says, still smiling. “I’ll think of something.”
“For what?” I ask.
“Winning you over with food, of course,” he says. I yawn so hard that my eyes water, and he chuckles. “Tired?”
“Yeah. I’ve not gotten a lot of rest lately,” I say. “Knowing he is on house arrest definitely helps.”
“Have you eaten?” he asks.
“Not since the diner,” I laugh.
“Liv, humans have to eat. You know this, right?” he asks.
“I do. I was looking forward to pizza, but then Kate bailed,” I say. “I need to do groceries, but I never got to the store today.”
“How about this?” he says. “Go get comfortable, and I will grab some things from the house to bring over and cook for you.”
“You want to cook for me?” I ask.
“I do. Is that okay?”
“Uh. Yeah, I’ve just never been cooked for,” I say.
“Go on inside, and I’ll be over in a second,” he says, patting my knee.
We get up and go to the door. I try to turn the knob, but it doesn’t budge. “That little shit,” I sigh.
“Kate locked the door, didn’t she?” Bodhi asks, chuckling.
“Yes. Why the fuck would she do that?” I wonder.
“Mmm. I think I have a good idea,” he says. “Come on. We can just go over to my house and walk around.”
“I have to jump a railing?” I ask. “That’s a long drop…”
“I won’t let you fall,” he laughs.
“Ugh!” I groan, but follow him over to where our railings meet. I watch as he slings one leg over before pulling the other over, and then hopping down to the other side. I look at him with wide eyes and shake my head at him.
“I’ve got you,” he laughs. That little shit just wants me to spend more time with Bodhi, which I’m not against… Damn her.
“Fine. Okay. Alright. I’ll do it,” I huff. “I have little legs. I can’t just sling my leg over like a damn giant.”
“Turn around and pull yourself up onto the banister,” he says. “You can either turn and hop down, or I can just pull you back.”
“What if I fall?” I ask.
“Well, you’ll get to have another hospital stay,” he laughs. “You won’t fall, Liv. I promise. If you do, I’ll jump so you aren't in the ICU alone.”
“You’re such a dork,” I laugh, but turn around.
I hold onto the banister and lift myself to sit.
His hands are immediately on my waist, and I feel stable enough to try to turn.
In doing so, I get a bit too confident when I go to grab the other banister and miss.
I shriek, but he swiftly wraps his arms around my body and pulls me over instead. When I am standing, I am laughing.
“You are still clumsy as fuck, Liv. Good to know some things don’t change,” Bodhi laughs and opens his back door. When we walk inside, I look around and admire the place. It’s cozy and inviting.
“This is beautiful,” I say.
“Daisy did most of the work,” he says. “But it’s been updated a bit. You go over. I’ll be there in a second.”
“You sure?” I ask.
“I know the way,” he says with a grin. “I’m going to rinse off in the shower before I come over.”
“Okay,” I laugh. “I’m going to open the windows to help catch some breeze in the house.”
“Sounds good,” he says with the sweetest smile.
I walk outside and go over to the cabin.
When I get inside, I start opening the windows as I go to my bedroom to find an oversized t-shirt.
I open my bedroom windows before I go to my bed.
When I glance up, I can see through one of the bedroom windows of Bodhi’s house and see a bed.
The light comes on, and I should close my curtain.
I should stop being a creep. Instead, I stand there and watch him pull his shirt off.
He tosses that somewhere I can’t see and then works his jeans off.
“Oh, dear God,” I groan and sit on the bed when he pulls his boxers off. The man is hard and fucking huge. Even from this far away, I can tell he is thick, too.
Bodhi walks away for a moment, then returns and sits on his bed, holding something.
I watch as he reaches into his nightstand and gets something out, but I realize it’s lube when he pours some into the thing he is holding.
He slowly eases his cock into the device and presses a button on the side, making his eyes roll back when it lights up.
It’s right now that I realize his window is open too because I gasp loudly when he starts fucking this toy, and his head snaps to look in my direction.