Tangled (10 page)

sipping on giant margaritas. A large basket of tortilla chips sat on the table, accompanied by a little bowl of

salsa and freshly made guacamole.

Right behind Asian food Scarlett’s favorite was Mexican. And the restaurant Michaela had chosen for

them to meet at had delicious chips and salsa. She judged a restaurant alone by the quality of the chips and

salsa.

“God, Michaela, I don’t want to hear you brag about your sex life anymore. I’m so jealous.” Carly

shook her head and took a hearty sip through her neon green straw.

Michaela shoved another chip lathered in guacamole into her mouth. “I am not bragging. Am I

bragging, Scarlett?” she asked after she swallowed.

Scarlett shrugged, not quite sure how to answer. She’d never had close girlfriends before, not even in

school. She was more of a loner, always had been. She’d only come tonight because Austin had convinced

her to go. “You’re kind of bragging. Not that I can blame you.”

“Oh.” Michaela’s cheeks colored pink. “Well, I can’t help it if Austin’s good in bed.” Just the way she

said his name showed how in love she was with him. It made Scarlett a little envious.

“Show off,” Carly muttered, and Scarlett giggled.

And she couldn’t help but think of her own sex god in bed. Trevor had been amazing last night. Mean

and sweet and tender and tough. After that last spectacular orgasm, she’d escaped, unsure of how to deal

with her feelings. He’d walked her to her car, gave her a searing kiss that made her knees weak and filled

her with regret. Then he walked away without another word.

It had left her feeling lonely. She hadn’t liked that at all.

Yet she still wanted him. She hadn’t seen him either since they were off work for the next two nights.

“Are you seeing anyone, Scarlett?”

Scarlett blinked to find Carly looking at her with friendly interest. Her hackles went up, an automatic

gesture and she wondered at Michaela’s friend’s motives. If she was looking to dig up secret information

about her.

Of course, she’s not. She’s just trying to be nice.

“Not really,” she answered, which made Michaela’s head whip around so fast Scarlett thought it

might spin right off.

Karen Erickson

“What does that mean?” Michaela cocked a brow, a little smirk curving her lips that made her look

like a naughty devil. Funny considering she was blonde and beautiful and appeared as sweet as an angel.

“Nothing.” Scarlett shrugged, shoved another chip into her mouth. She crunched and chewed, hoping

they’d move onto another topic but they didn’t. They both just sat there and watched her ’til she finished.

“Come on, you can tell us,” Michaela encouraged. “I need to divert the focus off me.”

“I need to live through others since my sex life is so dull,” Carly chimed in, making them laugh.

“Fine, okay I’ll tell you.” Scarlett breathed deep, tried to ignore the wave of nerves that washed over

her. She could do this, she could confide in someone. A couple of someones who wanted to be her friend.

“I’ve been seeing a guy. Kind of.”

“Ooh, sounds juicy.” Michaela leaned forward, her green eyes glittering. “Anyone I know?”

“Um.” Scarlett bit her lower lip, suddenly feeling exposed. Raw. It was hard to admit. “Yes, you

know him.”

“Don’t tell me you finally landed Drake.” Michaela glanced over at Carly. “Drake’s a guy who works

at a nightclub not far from the theatre that Scarlett’s had a crush on for a while.”

“God.” Scarlett rolled her eyes. “Does everyone know my personal business?”

“Yes,” Michaela answered with a smile. “Is it Drake? Tell us. I thought he was gay. I even heard a

naughty rumor when I went to the theatre a few nights ago but please do spill.”

“Wait a minute.” Scarlett paused, her breath lodged in her throat. “You heard a rumor about Drake?

What was it?”

“Oh. Well.” Michaela cleared her throat, suddenly looking uncomfortable. “I heard he got together

with someone. A guy someone from the theatre. That they did the deed while at Tom’s.”

“What’s Tom’s?” Carly asked as she tucked a strand of auburn colored hair behind her ear, her golden

eyes wide.

Michaela giggled, looking a little embarrassed. “A voyeur’s club. Austin took me there once. We had

an, um, interesting time.”

“Oh my gosh, Michaela, you have the most adventurous sex life ever. I swear…”

Scarlett heard the women talking but couldn’t make out exactly what they said. In fact, they seemed

diverted enough that maybe if she didn’t speak up, they wouldn’t ask her any more about Drake.

Getting together with someone from the theatre a few nights ago at Tom’s.

Like Trevor…

She pressed her lips together, anger making her see red. Holy crap, she figured he’d gone off and

fucked someone else after she’d rejected him, but she never expected it to be Drake. The man she’d wanted

for months. And Trevor had known that, too. He’d watched her try to chase Drake, threw himself at her

instead and then
he
ended up with Drake by the end of the night.

What. The. Hell?

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Scarlett played it cool during the rest of dinner. She polished off two margaritas. She ate a delicious

shrimp salad and loaded up on too many chips covered in guacamole and salsa. She laughed. She joked.

She committed to dinner with the girls next week, same night and place, and she walked out of the

restaurant and into the warm early fall night with a smile on her face.

But inside, she hurt. She raged.

She hurt more.

Men sucked. The heels of her sandals clicked on the sidewalk as she headed toward her parked car,

her keys clutched in her hand. This was why she didn’t indulge in any sort of relationship, just got a thrill

off the chase instead. Because they couldn’t be trusted, they were disloyal and they couldn’t keep their

dicks in their pants.

I told him to go be with someone else. I deserve this.

With a sigh, she unlocked her car and climbed in, settled behind the steering wheel. Her cell phone

rang, and she grabbed it, answering it without checking the caller ID.

“What are you doing?” Trevor’s voice purred directly in her ear.

Her body went liquid at his sexy voice, and she momentarily forgot that she was angry with him.

But then it all rushed back with a vengeance, and her mouth tightened. “Getting ready to hang up on

you.”

She withdrew the phone, her finger poised over the end button when she heard Trevor’s shouted

protests. Slowly she brought the phone back to her ear. “What?”

“I should be asking you that.”

“Men suck.” She voiced her earlier opinion, not ashamed one bit that she said it out loud.

Trevor actually had the nerve to chuckle. “They do. But sometimes they change. For the right

woman.”

“Please.” Scarlett snorted, not caring that it was unladylike. “You wouldn’t know the right woman if

she smacked you in the ass.”

“Is that an offer?”

What, he wanted to be spanked? She doubted that. “Give me a break.”

“How about I spank you? Tonight? Want to come over?”

“No.” She said it immediately, not wanting to change her mind.

He sighed, the sound filled with frustration. “Did I do something to offend you?”

“You always do something to offend me.” She sunk the key into the ignition and started the car,

flicking on the air conditioning so it blasted directly on her face. Cooling her down while listening to the

man who heated her up.

Hang up the damn phone.

She couldn’t do it.

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Karen Erickson

“I can’t win, can I?” He sounded genuinely confused, and her first instinct was to feel sorry for him.

Her second instinct? Attack.

“No you can’t so why don’t you call your boyfriend and invite him over? He might like to get

spanked.” The sneer in her voice was hard to contain.

Trevor was silent for a solid thirty seconds. So long, she thought they lost their connection or at the

very least, he hung up on her. “What are you talking about?”

“Don’t play stupid with me, Trevor. Your new boyfriend Drake. You know the guy I’ve been

interested in for months. God, I’m the one who’s stupid, not you.” She leaned her head against the steering

wheel, feeling like an absolute idiot.

Hang up the phone.

“Drake is not my boyfriend. Who told you that?”

“It doesn’t matter. What matters are the rumors going around that Drake hooked up with someone at

Tom’s. And, hmm, what a coincidence that we were there last week, and that when I left you, you said you

could find someone else to satisfy you. Sounds like you did.”

“You left me high and dry, Scarlett. You basically challenged me to find someone else. I really didn’t

think you cared. You’re carrying on like this makes me think you do.”

“Don’t you dare blame me for this. And I am
not
carrying on. I’m…” What was she doing? Acting

like a jealous shrew. Making a big deal over something she had no control of. He wasn’t her boyfriend. She

wasn’t his girlfriend. He could fuck whomever he wanted.

“I don’t think you know what you’re doing,” he said, so softly she had to strain to hear him.

“You don’t know anything about me.”

“You’re right. I don’t. But I’d like to find out. Who are you, Scarlett? I mean really? And where do

you come from? Did you go to college? Do you have any brothers and sisters? What’s your favorite color?”

“What does it matter to you? We’re not in a relationship.”

“What if I told you that it does matter to me? That I’m interested because I want to get to know you

better.”

“Why? What about Drake?” Why was he saying these things to her? Giving her hope? She’d been

hopeless for so long she’d gotten quite used to the feeling.

“Forget Drake. You want me to be honest with you?” His voice had gone rougher, as if he might be

angry, and she heard the harsh pants of his breath.

He definitely sounded angry, and God help her but she found it the slightest bit arousing.

“Yes,” she breathed, clutching the cell phone tight. Afraid of what he might say.

“I fucked Drake, all right? That night at Tom’s, we were together after you left and I fucked him.

Sometimes I like to get off with another man. It’s one of my quirks. But I thought of you the entire time.

Just like you said I would. It was your face I saw, your body I was coming inside of.”

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His words should’ve disgusted her, but her panties went wet at the vision of him naked and entangled

with Drake. Thinking of her while that big cock of his was buried deep inside Drake’s ass.

She was sick. Twisted. But she couldn’t help it.

“It meant nothing with Drake. Absolutely nothing. He’s called me a few times since then, but I’ve

brushed him off. I’m not interested in him. I’m interested in
you.
” Trevor paused, his breathing sounding

even louder in her ear. “I want you, Scarlett. So fucking bad I can hardly stand it.”

“You just had me last night,” she whispered, his words made her nipples harden, rubbing painfully

against the confines of her bra.

“And I want you now. My cock is hard just talking to you. I’ve jacked off three times today thinking

of you.”

“You have not.” Oh, the thought thrilled her, the idea of him stroking himself with visions of her

dancing inside his head.

“I have,” he growled. “Come over and I’ll come all over those pretty tits of yours.”

“Trevor Braxton, you are so crude.” She secretly loved it.

“You love it,” he echoed, as if he could read her mind. “Come over, Scarlett. Let me show you how

much I want you.”

“God, I shouldn’t.” She flicked on the headlights, watched the beams of light shine on the brick wall

of the building she’d parked in front of.

“Oh yes, you should. I’ll show you a good time.” His voice took on a teasing, leering quality, and she

laughed.

“You’re so cocky.”

“There you go saying that word again. I love it when you say that.” He paused. “Though I would

prefer it if you dropped the ‘y’.”

“Oh you mean like this?” she asked innocently. “You like it when I say the word cock?”

“Hell, yeah.”

“Do you like it when I talk about how much I’d like to suck that big, juicy cock of yours?”

“Fuck yeah, sweetheart.”

She laughed, trying to fight the arousal that threatened to swamp her. This was damn insane. “You’re

sick.”

“Sick for you.”

Scarlett didn’t know if she should believe him. She knew he was a player of the utmost degree. He’d

gone off and scored with Drake immediately after being with her.

Could she really blame him though? That night had been a challenge, a fight. A battle that she thought

she’d won, letting him get her off and then walking away without a backwards glance. Now that she knew

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Karen Erickson

he’d been with Drake, had consoled himself with the man she originally wanted, it made her realize that

she hadn’t won the battle at all.

She was a big, fat loser. And it sucked.

“Come on, Scarlett. Come over and let’s get naked together.”

She was silent, released a slow trembling breath and she heard him sigh.

“Don’t be scared, sweetheart. Come over. Let me make it good for you.”

So tempting, his words, his promises. Promises she knew he could deliver. The man was a master in