Chapter 24
Chapter Twenty-Four
I didn’t own a black dress, but Mother did.
I took her long-sleeved, form-fitting, black minidress and put it on.
Right away, I knew I wouldn’t be able to bend over in it without flashing people.
It was the price to pay for beauty, I guessed.
I paired it with my black boots. I curled waves into my long golden hair and did my makeup darker than I ever had.
My eyeliner was thick and winged, the shadows I used were smoky and shimmery. My lipstick was blood red.
When I was ready, it was dark outside. I paced the foyer, trying to find courage to do what was expected of me as I waited for my rideshare. I would have to sleep with Brandon tonight. As Sharon had said, I had to make this sacrifice to fulfill her precious son’s needs.
I inhaled through my nose and exhaled through pursed lips so I wouldn’t be sick.
I can do this.
I can.
My phone dinged, notifying me of my rideshare’s approach. I grabbed my wristlet and keys before heading out.
As I walked through the party, people said hi to me as I passed. I gave them a forced smile in return. I made sure to stop by where all the alcohol was first before I found Brandon. I poured myself three shots of the first bottle I could get my hands on. I threw them back one at a time.
“Lottie,” a voice I didn’t want to hear said as I threw back the third shot.
Why is he here?
I turned to face Roe.
His gaze was traveling down my body, taking in the sexy look I was going for. I tried to not notice the desire in his eyes as he looked at me. To distract myself, I poured another shot and threw it back.
My belly was feeling really warm, and I knew the alcohol would hit me soon.
“I’ve been waiting for you to call,” he said. “I’ve been trying to give you space.”
“Is that what you were doing?” I snapped. “I thought because I couldn’t commit, you moved on.”
“What?” he said, sounding shocked. “No, Lottie—”
I turned to face him. “Whatever we had or were doing is done. I have to do what is expected of me and what is expected of me is to find Brandon and be with him.” I walked around him and went to do just that.
“Lottie!” I heard him call to me, but I quickly dashed into a sea of bodies dancing to very loud music in the living room.
I found Brandon playing beer pong in the formal dining room. The one where Mother, Clay, and I had had dinner with Brandon and his parents.
He did a double take when he noticed me approaching. I went right up to him and slid my hand into his. “Is this okay?”
His amber eyes were wide as his stare raked over me from the ground up. “You look sexy as fuck.” His words were slurred and his breath reeked of alcohol.
He grabbed my hips and lifted me onto the table, knocking over cups—some empty and some still full of beer.
“Ah, come on!” someone groaned.
“What are you doing?” someone else complained.
“Get out!” Brandon ordered. “Everyone get out!”
There was bitching and whining, but people began filing out of the two doors that led in here.
Brandon’s hands moved more up my waist and he leaned in to kiss my neck. “Did ya wear this for me?”
He was wasted.
I nodded. “I’m sorry about hitting you. I hope you will forgive me.”
He licked from my neck up to my jaw and I had to fight the bile churning in my stomach. “I’ll forgive you if you let me fuck ya ri—right now.” He started kissing my neck again and his hands moved up to cup my boobs.
I swallowed thickly. “Can we go up to your room?”
He didn’t respond, only tried to push me backward.
“Brandon, wait,” I said as I grabbed his hands. “Please, can we go to your room? I don’t want my first time to be on a table.”
He shook my hands off and pulled back to look at me. “Just shut up and lay down!”
I swallowed again and turned to push the cups out of the way so I could do just that.
I can do this.
I can do this.
I would imagine him as Roe or Wyatt or, hell, even Reid. I would do what I had to.
“Taking too long!” He grabbed me by my hips and tried to flip me over. In the process, I ended up kicking him, and he took a couple of steps back, looking offended. “What the fuck?!”
“It was an accident. I’m sorry!” I said quickly.
He came back at me with anger.
I can’t do this.
I can’t.
I thrust out my booted foot and kicked him in the chest. He stumbled until his back hit the wall. I hopped off the table and speedwalked for the door.
“Charlotte!” he yelled.
I glanced back. He was coming for me.
I booked it out of the dining room and bumped into someone just outside, hard enough to fall against them.
They caught me. I didn’t have the time to see who it was, I just knew it was a guy by their clothes.
Brandon came barreling out of the dining room next.
Pushing off the guy holding me, I ran as fast as I could until I had to skirt and weave around people.
I was trying to get to the front door, but as I approached, there were too many people crowded in front of it.
I didn’t have time to push through them.
Before Brandon could see me, I dashed up the stairs.
There weren’t many people up on the second floor.
I opened doors trying to find a place to hide.
The first two doors were bedrooms and people were having sex in them.
The third door was a bathroom. I went in there and shut the door.
I was going to lock it, but I worried that if he found it locked, he’d assume I was in here and then I’d be cornered.
I quickly went to the shower, pulled back the curtain, stepped into the tub, and slid the curtain back into place.
I sat down in the tub and pulled my knees to my chest. My wristlet thunked against the side of the tub, making me wince at the loud noise.
I couldn’t do it.
Sharon would undoubtedly call Mother now. I should have just let him do what he wanted.
My eyes and nose burned.
I should have, but I couldn’t.
The sound of the bathroom door opening made me hold my breath. The door closed and I heard footsteps walk closer. “Charlotte?”
It wasn’t Brandon’s voice.
“Yeah,” I said weakly.
The shower curtain was pulled back halfway to reveal Reid. He stared down at me with an unreadable look.
“How did you know I was in here?”
“You rammed into me downstairs,” he said. “Did you not notice it was me?”
I shook my head. “I was kind of in a hurry.”
“I saw.”
“I came here to sleep with him,” I admitted. “I couldn’t do it.” I was pretty sure I wasn’t going to be able to fix things now.
He was quiet as he stared at me. When he finally looked like he wanted to say something, we heard someone call my name.
“Charlotte!” Brandon yelled just before a door slammed.
“He’s coming,” I said in a panicked voice.
Reid quickly closed the curtain. I heard rustling and a zipper. Then the door was ripped open.
“What the hell, man?” Reid said.
“Seen a girl?” Brandon slurred.
“I’ve seen many girls. They’re downstairs,” Reid said.
“Nebber mind,” Brandon said and the door closed.
I heard Reid zip up his pants before he pulled the curtain back again.
He took a seat on the side of the tub. There was a ding from his pocket.
He reached in and pulled out his phone. He read over whatever he’d just been sent and then began typing out a message.
After sending it, he put his phone back into his pocket.
“We’re going to have to sneak you out of here.
Wyatt says your betrothed is back downstairs. ”
I didn’t bother hiding my disgust at hearing him called that.
Judging by the lifted side of Reid’s mouth, that seemed to amuse him. “You really don’t like him, do you?”
“Can’t stand him.”
He laughed quietly and the lightness in his face made him look really handsome.
I quickly shook my head and chastised myself for thinking that.
“What?” he asked.
“I took four shots not that long ago and it’s affecting me.” It wasn’t a lie. I was really starting to feel the alcohol.
There was a knock on the door, making me jump.
“Easy,” Reid said. “It’s Wyatt.” He got up and opened the door.
Wyatt sauntered in carrying an expensive bottle of whiskey. One blue eye and one green found me right away. “I heard there was a damsel that needed saving,” he said as he climbed into the tub and sat across from me.
“What’s that?” Reid asked, eyeing the bottle.
“A thousand-dollar bottle of whiskey. I doubt they’ll know it’s missing,” Wyatt said as he unscrewed the top, sniffed it, and sipped. His brows rose as he swallowed. “Damn. That’s smooth.”
Reid took the bottle for his own sip. He nodded and held it out for Wyatt, but I snatched it.
Wyatt grinned. “Not just a joint thief.”
I tried a sip to see if I liked it. It wasn’t bad. I took a bigger gulp.
Wyatt took the bottle back when I held it out to him. “Want to tell us what happened between you and Roe? I haven’t seen him that mad in a long time.”
“I told him I came here to do what I’m expected to do and that whatever we were doing is done,” I answered honestly.
Wyatt hissed. “That’ll do it.”
“He probably thinks you’re fucking Rich Boy as we speak,” Reid said.
I took the bottle back from Wyatt for another big gulp. “I don’t know what I’m going to do.”
“You’re going to sneak out of here with us,” Reid said, and I found it very out of character for him.
“Why are you being nice to me?” I asked. “I thought you hated me.”
His whiskey eyes met mine. “Never hated. Might have misjudged you and didn’t like you, but never hated you.”
None of that made me feel any better. “Why didn’t you like me?”
He squatted next to the tub, bringing him eye level with me. “If you come with us tonight, I promise to tell you tomorrow.”
I was already fucked. What did I have to lose? “All right.”
Wyatt stood and handed the expensive whiskey bottle to Reid. “I took a look around before coming here and I found a room that has a window on the left side of the house. If you go downstairs, I can lower her down to you.”
Reid nodded and left. Wyatt held out a hand to me. “Let’s go, gorgeous.”
I took his hand and stood.
His eyes trailed down my body. “Fuck.”
“I’ll let you look your fill later,” I said. “We need to go.”
“With or without clothes on?”
“Wyatt, focus.”
“Have you seen you?” he asked.
I sighed through my nose.
“All right. All right,” he grumbled and got out of the tub.
He held out a hand for me to take and helped me step out as well.
He didn’t let go of my hand as he poked his head out of the bathroom to see if it was clear.
When he saw that it was, he pulled me out of the bathroom, and we rushed into a guestroom a few doors down.
Wyatt worked quickly, shutting the door behind us and taking me to the right window.
He let go of my hand to open it. The window was the kind that you had to push up.
Wyatt climbed out first onto the roof of the first floor. Then he turned to help me out.
“Are you wearing panties?” Wyatt asked.
“Why?” I asked as he helped me walk along the slanted roof toward the edge.
“Because if you’re not, you’re about to give Reid a show.”
“I’m wearing a black thong,” I said as we came to the edge and saw Reid already below.
“You just made me very jealous of Reid right now,” Wyatt said. “Okay, sit down and I’ll help lower you down to him.”
I did as he said, and he got behind me.
I eyed the height. “I’m scared.”
“It’s going to be okay,” Wyatt assured.
“I’ll catch you,” Reid said, obviously hearing me.
“I want you to roll over and swing your legs over the edge,” Wyatt said.
I did as he said. He put his hands under my arms and helped lower me. Before I could feel like I was going to fall, hands touched my thighs, then slid up to my ass, which was out for the world to see because my dress had ridden up.
“I got her,” Reid said, and Wyatt let me go.
I fell and Reid caught me with his arms wrapped around my hips.
He adjusted his hold by hitching me upward.
I yelped, threw my arms around his neck, and buried my face there.
The fear of falling and jolting around made me dizzy.
Yeah. I clung to him because I was dizzy.
Not at all because he smelled divine. Like leather and bergamot, similar to Roe.
I wondered if the leather smell came from all the time they spent on their motorcycles.
“Watch out,” Wyatt said.
Reid took a couple steps back while holding me. I heard a thud.
“You good?” Reid asked.
“Yup,” Wyatt responded. “Hey, Lottie, not complaining, but you’re showing the world that beautiful ass.”
I released my tight hold of Reid’s neck. He set me on my feet gently and I pulled my dress back down over my hips. As I straightened, I noticed they were both staring. When neither of them blinked for a while, I said, “You’re staring.”
That seemed to break their trance.
“It’s hard not to,” Wyatt said. “No wonder Roe was so pissed watching you walk away to that shithead, looking like that.”
Reid looked around on the ground and scooped up the bottle Wyatt had given him. He gave it back to Wyatt. “We should go.”
We snuck down Brandon’s driveway and down the street until we found Wyatt’s car and Reid’s motorcycle.
“You good to drive?” Reid asked Wyatt.
Wyatt nodded as he unlocked his car door. “Yeah. Where we going?”
“My place,” Reid said as he climbed onto his motorcycle.
Wyatt looked surprised by that, but got in the car and reached across to open the passenger door to let me in.