from Pain to Pleasure (Gainesville Book 1) (2 page)

She wasn’t thin like most girls at the school. She had what he admired in several actresses and female singers, a proportionate body. Her breasts looked like good handfuls, as did her butt. He could imagine it in his hands as she rode him, hard. He loved that. She was pretty and obviously didn’t know it. Her blonde hair was partly up in a bun, with loose strands hanging all around.
So sexy
. He smiled as he imagined her red, full lips on him.

Besides the physical attraction, she took his breath away for some reason. He had never had a reaction to a girl like that before. He was the school playboy. A different girl every week, many times several a week. However, he knew right then he could give it all up if he could fuck
her
every day. She didn’t seem like the type of girl to just give it up like the others.

Danielle nervously looked for Brian again. She wanted Alex to leave. Yet, she also didn’t. He was the sexiest man she had ever met. He towered over her at about six foot two. His strong, muscled arms drew her even more. She could see a hint of a tattoo on both his biceps. He made her feel small, but safe, somehow.

His large build didn’t mask his sweet nature, though. His deep voice was not like Brian’s. It was warm and almost seductive. She looked up when he touched her trembling hand. To avoid his gaze, she focused on his wavy, light brown, shoulder length hair. It made her want to put her fingers through it.

For just a few seconds, he saw her eyes. They blew him away. There were a beautiful light green, with a bit of yellow. The pain in them captured his heart. They practically screamed for him to ease it. He hoped it was sexual frustration.

“Did you find it?” Brian’s voice came from down the hallway.

Danielle jumped. “Yes,” she shouted to him and pulled away from Alex again. “Please don’t touch me.”

“I’m sorry.” Alex looked up at the voice, and then at her. She had fear in her eyes again. “Brother or boyfriend?”

“Boyfriend,” she replied.

He leaned toward her. “That’s too bad. I was just beginning to like you.” He rolled his eyes.
Just my luck, she’s taken
.

The situation had become hard for Danielle to handle. If Brian knew Alex practically hit on her, he would be livid. Never mind if he sensed her attraction to Alex. Alex was everything Brian wasn’t. Moreover, what his touch did to her confused her. She never had that reaction to Brian or anyone for that matter. Desire was something she had not experienced unless stimulated physically. That was rare, though.

“Hi,” Brian said to Alex when he reached them. “I’m Brian Foster, her
boyfriend
. Who are you?” He extended his hand, although he wanted to bash the guy’s face in for being so close to Danielle. In public, he always kept control, so no one would know the real him.

Alex took his hand. “Alex Hicks. You starting here, too?”

“No.” Brian kept his cool and put an arm around Danielle’s shoulders.

Alex gave him a once-over. There had to be a reason Danielle feared him. Brian was only about 5’ 8” and thin, and he couldn’t be too strong. Nevertheless, something in his eyes sparked suspicion. Brian hid something. Something sinister. One look at Danielle beside them, and he knew he was right. She quivered as if she expected to be reprimanded.
He’s a fucking bully. I hate bullies!

“Do you need help with her bags?” Alex wanted to stick close to see if Brian would drop his guard.

“Uh…” Brian knew Alex was someone to worry about from the way he looked at his girl. Nevertheless, he had promised he would start to give her the benefit of the doubt. “Yeah, I do. Thanks.”

In a bit of shock at Brian’s acceptance of help, Danielle walked into her dorm room. Half of it was nicely decorated already. She smiled at her roommate, who sat on her bed. The young woman with long curly light brown hair and a bright smile was a welcome sight.

“Hi, I’m Marie Parker from Atlanta. Where are you from?” she asked cheerily, with a southern drawl.

“Just outside of Fort Lauderdale.” She put her bag on the unclaimed bed. “I’m Danielle Brooks.”

Marie got up and opened an accordion door with wooden slats. “There’s almost a half a closet to use. Sorry. I have a lot of things.”

“Don’t worry. I don’t have much.” Brian tore her clothes at times, so her wardrobe was limited. Danielle opened her bag and unpacked her toiletries. “Can I use this dresser?”

“Yep.” Marie watched her carefully arrange things in a strange, but particular, order. She assumed Danielle had OCD. “Did you come here alone?”

Danielle lined up the last bottle of hand cream. “No. My boyfriend and Alex from next door are getting my things.”

“Mmmm, Alex. Nice,” Marie muttered quietly.

Marie knew that most girls wanted Alex. He had slept with every girl on the floor but her. She heard it was because one of his buddies had a thing for her, and he had promised to let her be.

By the time Alex and Brian were back, Marie and Danielle were laughing. Marie was a sophomore and had told her stories about her last year at the school. One look from Brian, and Danielle fell silent. Alex and Marie looked at her, and then Brian, before they looked at each other. They knew something wasn’t right.

Alex looked at Danielle again and smiled. “You want some help putting things away?”

She really liked his smile and did the same. “I—”

Brian cut her off quickly. “No. I got it.” He had glared at Alex for a second before he realized he did it. Jealousy was second nature to him. “Sorry, Alex, but I wanna spend as much time with her as I can.”

Alex noticed Danielle glance at him. That made him happy. He didn’t like Brian and had a funny feeling about him. The terrified look in her eyes worried him. He tried to think of an excuse to stay. Nothing came to mind.

“If you need anything, let me know.” Alex quietly left the room. He hoped he was wrong.

Marie stood in front of her bed. “I’m Marie.” She put her hand out.

“Brian.” He took her hand and looked at her skeptically. Already, he didn’t trust her. He regretted his decision to let Danielle stay at school. There were too many temptations; too many other influences.

“You guys want me to take you on a tour of the campus?” Marie offered. She could tell by the way Brian talked that he was controlling. She was a psychology major and knew the signs. That meant Danielle wasn’t the one who had OCD. It was Brian. There was something else as well, but she couldn’t pinpoint it.

Danielle smiled. “Could we, Brian? Please?”

“Fine.” He sensed Marie watching his every move. He didn’t want her to discover their secrets. When they were out of earshot, outside, he grabbed Danielle’s arm. “Don’t you dare make me look bad,” he growled quietly. “Got it?”

She shuddered. The old him was just beneath the surface. “Got it.”

* * *

When they returned to the dorms, Marie was slightly impressed with Brian. He had taken them both to dinner and seemed to know a bunch of students and a couple of professors on campus. Nothing he did showed what was beneath his surface. His eyes told Marie he was not what he seemed, but nothing more.

“Pack a bag,” Brian told Danielle. “I’m staying nearby for the week.”

She turned to him. “I thought you had to prepare for your trip.”

“I’ll do it the day before.” He needed to show her he was worth waiting for and had really changed for the better. The walk had cleared his head. It also made him realize he couldn’t control Danielle’s environment any longer. “I’ll be gone for months. I wanna spend some time with you before I go. Bring that dress, so we can go dancing.”

“Where are you going?” Marie was curious.

Brian looked up at her. “Russia, for a few months.”

“Can I go to the bathroom?” Danielle whispered.

Brian saw that Marie had heard her. Sweetly, he told her, “You don’t have to ask. Just go.” He smiled at Marie and hoped she left it alone.

Danielle left the room quickly. She didn’t want to know why he said it like that. As soon as she turned to where she thought the restroom was, she saw him. Alex talked to another student a few doors away. He looked up and gave her a wide smile. She couldn’t help but smile back. However, she then turned away, terrified.
I have to stay away from him.

Once at the hotel Brian had chosen, he led the way to their room. Danielle always walked behind him. He wanted her to feel inferior. She watched him walk quickly and barely kept up. A shiver ran down her back. His confident gait worried her. She hoped he didn’t revert to the evil man she had been with before.

Almost a week earlier, he attacked her in front of a group of his friends because she had been talking to his friend Anthony alone. The conversation was about school. She had few friends because Brian controlled almost every aspect of her life. Anthony tried to interfere and stop him, but that made Brian angrier. He hit her harder every time Anthony said something. She begged him to let Brian finish.

Afterward, her clothes had been torn, and he had bruised her badly. He left her in the kitchen while she cried in serious pain. Brian usually took a walk after he abused her. When he had left, Anthony helped her change into his friend’s clothes. He had already seen her practically naked when Brian threw her on the floor to punish her.

Danielle cringed as the image came to her.
Please don’t hurt me again
, she silently begged Brian.

That night had been a turning point, though. She finally decided to leave him. Anthony had convinced her that abuse wasn’t normal. She had lived with it her whole life, so she expected it from Brian. He was her first and only boyfriend. She did not know what a normal relationship was like.

Brian opened the door to their room. He held the door open for Danielle and let her in first. Her blonde hair shimmered in the light. He loved her, but he didn’t know how to love her. She was his first and only girlfriend, as well. Since he also grew up surrounded by abuse, he had never felt love. He watched her walk, and slight guilt hit him. It was something that rarely happened. Only since he realized his behavior was abnormal, did he see how he affected Danielle.

The talk he and Anthony had the week before played in his mind. Anthony made him see just how much like his father he had become. He had never wanted to be like the man who beat him all of his life. Yet he eventually resorted to physical abuse to keep Danielle in line. He had always felt that since he hit her with an open hand, it wasn’t as bad. His choice of punishment for major mistakes was unlike his father’s. Brian didn’t use a belt or a rod. He used his dick. Anthony told him that was even worse.

He shook the thought away. Memories wouldn’t help him keep his promise. He only got Danielle back because of it. “Do you wanna go out for dinner?”

Danielle jumped. “I guess.”

She too had been lost in thought, but Alex was on her mind. She had never been attracted to anyone but Brian, although it was minimal. Anthony had opened her eyes to the world she had been fearful of all her life. Before that, she wouldn’t have looked twice at Alex. His kind eyes made her feel comfortable. Never had a stranger done that.

“We could just get room service, if you like.” Brian breathed deeply. His instinct was to tell her they would go to a particular restaurant, and she was to like it. He clung to sanity by a thread. “It’s up to you.”

She smiled. He never left anything up to her. “Well, then I’d like to just eat here. I want to unpack some things. OK?”

“Yeah, I’ll go find the menu.” When Brian found it, he added, “I wanna leave after we eat, so get dressed.”

After she had dried off from her shower, Danielle came out of the bathroom. She wore her only cocktail dress. She wasn’t sure why she had packed it since she rarely wore it. Most of her other clothing covered her arms and legs fully. Brian watched television, dressed already.

“Can you zip this up?” She stood with her back to the side of the bed.

Brian reached over and pulled it up. “Turn around and let me see.” She did, and he frowned. “Fix your tits.”

She looked down and saw what he meant. The strapless dress held her breasts up without a bra. Before it was zipped, they had fallen a bit. Once she adjusted, she looked at him again. “Better?”

“Yeah.”

He looked her over again. That was his favorite dress, because it showed a lot of cleavage. He liked her to dress slutty when they were together. It made everyone want her. He enjoyed pulling her close, so they knew she was taken. Her protests about showing off skin fell on deaf ears. What she thought did not matter.

A knock on the door made them both look up. Brian didn’t make a move, so Danielle answered it. It was a handsome young man with their dinner. He smiled at her, then brought in a rolling tray. Brian waved money, and Danielle handed it to the young man.

He looked at her again, slyly. “Thank you. Your dress is beautiful.”

Danielle blushed. “Thank you.”

Brian turned to see what he believed was Danielle flirting with the room service person. Suddenly, something snapped in his head. Anger and adrenaline filled him. The familiar feeling of possessiveness returned. He slowly got up from the bed and waited for the man to leave.

After she had closed the door, Danielle turned around. Brian was behind her with fury in his eyes. She knew the change was too good to be true. Eyes open wide, she waited for him to attack. She didn’t have to wait long.

“You were flirting with him!” he shouted.

She backed away as much as possible. “No, I wasn’t. He said my dress was nice. You never say things like that to me.”

“He liked it that much, huh?” He grabbed the front of her dress and tore it as far down as he could.

It fell to her ankles. Shocked, she started to cry. “You ruined it.” She immediately wished she had stayed silent.

In a rage, Brian grabbed her by the throat and shoved her into the door. He held her off the floor. “Now it’s trash,” he sneered. “You shouldn’t dress like that without me around, anyway.”

She gasped for air, frightened beyond usual. Although she knew not to talk, she struggled to get free. She clawed at his hands. It did no good.