The Next Contestant (15 page)

SANDY IS SERVING
Strawberry Margaritas. We’re all on our third one, and getting tipsy. We’re all yapping about dance, about boys and parties. The subject of my brother comes up after I mention this blond hair, blue-eyed boy who has stolen my heart.

“Wait. I’m confused. Who is the dark haired guy you were hanging on at Muze a while back?” Sandy asks.

Tiffany and I start laughing. “You explain that one, Kimber,” Tiffany says as she slaps me on the back.

“All right, all right. That’s my brother, Kolby. Why, do you like him, Sandy? I think you do and that’s why I made it look like he was my boyfriend. To piss you off.”

“Seriously,” Sandy huffs.

“Yeah, totally serious. Come on. It’s not like you weren’t being a bitch. I thought I’d give you something to sneer about. Did it work?”

“Fuck you.” She flicks her hair over her shoulder and begins to laugh.
Whew!

“But! Okay so I kind of have this lie going on. See, I’m dating Jax, one of my brother’s fraternity brothers. He thinks I’m Timber, as in my brother’s ex-girlfriend.” Sandy is looking at me and I can tell she’s trying to figure out what the hell I’m saying here.

“Oh!” Darcy pipes up. “I get it. You’re lying about who you are because your brother will totally freak out ’cause you’re dating one of his frat boys. He doesn’t want to hear… or you don’t want him to hear the things that boy is doing with you, right?”

“Um. Well, I wish it were that simple. My brother is the president of Kappa Alpha Omega and he created the most ridiculous oath known to man… or me. I’m off limits to any and all the brothers. It’s a violation of their stupid rules.”

“Why’s that? Are they all a bunch of pigs?” Sandy frowns. “Even your brother?”

“I bet it’s whatever crap they have going on above Blaze,” Darcy whispers.

I shake my head. “Darcy, that’s just a trash-n-crash for those who are too drunk to drive.”

“Is that what your brother told you?”

“Yes. Why, what did you think it was?”

Darcy’s cheeks turn rosy. “It’s not. I’ve been up there. They have hall monitors, as in guys that watch the floor, and whoever comes up, you know, with ‘their girl’, has to sign in and so does his girl. There is a guy at both ends of the hall and they monitor who comes and goes with their laptops.”

“You’re kidding, right?” I ask.

“No.”

“Did you just wander up to the second level out of curiosity or what?”

“No. You have to be escorted by one of the guys. The door that leads upstairs is locked. I… um… went up there with someone.” Darcy’s face is a little twisted, her cheeks even brighter.

Tiffany throws her arm over Darcy’s shoulder. “Girl, no need to be embarrassed. We’re not in high school. Do tell.”

“Fine,” Darcy says, “but this goes nowhere. Promise?”

We all nod.

“Okay. So that night Sandy and I ran into you two at Muze, well, this guy Nick—”

“Little dickey Nicky?” Tiffany interrupts.

Darcy giggles. “Yeah, that’d be him, little dick and all. Anyway. We danced, we drank and we danced some more. Then we did a little petting and you know?”

“No, we don’t know,” Sandy says. “Please be more specific. What exactly did you do with little Nicky?”

“Uh. So embarrassing! He took me to one of the rooms upstairs and then we were just standing there and he was staring at me. And I’m like what’s the problem. Why are you staring at me like that for? Then he leans in and whispers this in my ear,
I want you to tell me everything you want me to do to you. I want to lick, suck, and taste every inch of you and I want you to do the same for me. But I need you to say it out loud.
Because I was drunk and horny, and what he said was hot, I did it, told him everything I wanted him to do. And then I did it to him.”

Sandy starts laughing and throws a hand over her heart. “Why, you little whore bag. Here I thought you were so innocent. He must have sucked in the sack because you never mentioned him after that night. Until now.”

“Bitch. I never slept with him! I like meat between my thighs, not Vienna sausage. And believe me, sucking on him was like sucking a little smoky. I was sucking and sucking and it wasn’t getting any bigger. For some reason, I started thinking about shriveled up worms and started laughing. I couldn’t stop and I was in tears. He flipped out and told me to get the fuck out.”

I can’t help but laugh. “Oh, girl. I could have told you Nick and his overblown aggrandizing boasting is key to his actual size.” They all look at me, slack jawed, even Tiffany. “Oh, no. No, no. Don’t look at me like that. I’ve never been with him. I’ve listened to him, watched him and his grandiose self, enough to know only a man who is lacking has to make up for his less than stellar size. Sure, he’s great on the eyes, but if you’ve been around him as long as I have, you’d know he uses big words, enticing even, but it’s all a façade. So what happened after he booted you?”

“Well, after I quickly dressed and got the hell out of there, he caught up to me in the elevator. No words were exchanged, but when we exited the elevator, he unlocked the door leading to Muze, followed me out, and keyed the deadbolt. Later that night, I saw him dancing and flirting with another girl and he dragged her off the floor and lead her upstairs. Every time we go to Muze, I watch the exit that leads upstairs and there is a lot traffic coming and going through that door. And it has only ever been Kappa Alpha Omega men escorting girls in and out of there.”

Kappa Alpha Omega men. The words sound like a beacon, a loud alarm going off in my head. Jax is one of them. Is he involved?
Escorting
women to the second floor? He has ample time during the week since we spend most of our time together on weekends.

“This is him, girls.”

“What? You’re kidding. Stop kidding.” Another girl huffs. “Tell them, Jax. You were with me!”

“Ah, fuck,” Jax hisses. “I’m not with any of you; never promised anything. Yeah, we had fun, but that’s all it was. Not my fault y’all are friends. Never promised anything, especially exclusivity. And it’s not like I was with any of you at the same time.”

“You bastard!” one of the girls shouts. “You’re a user and a fucking pig.”

I glance at the door, then back at the girls, who are all watching me, and I know they know what I’m silently questioning. Darcy’s somber face answers my query.

“Fuck!” I shove off the couch. “Who wants to go to Muze tonight?”

The girls all look at me. Then they push up and begin cheering as we all primp ourselves.

We head to Muze. A little part of my heart seizes. I hope to hell I don’t see Jax. I mean, I want to see him, just not at Muze… with some other chick.

Darcy leads the way and we find a table close to… well, the secret door, I guess. And shitballs! “Oh my god,” slips from my mouth when I see little Nicky boy pausing in front of the door, keying it and then slipping inside, with a girl, and then closes it.

We all watch, dumbfounded by my brother’s fraternity and whatever shit they have going on behind said door. So far, we’ve seen Kolby, Nick, and some guy come in and out of that door with different girls each time. I sigh heavily and the girls all turn to look at me.

“What? Can’t I breathe when I feel relief, knowing Jax isn’t doing…” I point to the door, “what they’re all doing?”

“Girl, this is one night out of the week. I don’t mean to be harsh, but even I know Jax has a reputation,” Sandy says and shakes her head.

“Well, I don’t think I’ve ever seen Jax go through that door,” Darcy says and pats my hand.

But Sandy’s comment kind of pisses me off. I let it slide. Sort of. “My brother has a reputation too, Sandy. Do you still find him attractive?” I ask.

“Yeah, I do. Would I date him? Probably. Here’s the thing, I’m not looking for Mr. Fucking Perfect, just some hot piece of ass, and damn. Your brother definitely has a nice one. I’d let him take me upstairs as long as he has something to offer, unlike Nick,” Sandy says as she turns toward Darcy. We all bust out laughing and then we call it a night since we all have a full day of school tomorrow.

I ONLY HAD
a few classes today and since it’s sunny and warm, I decide to drive to Maritn Luther King Jr. Civic Center Park to study for an upcoming test.

I grab a small blanket from my trunk, snag my book bag, and head toward a tree close to the water. After tossing out the blanket, I smooth it down and stretch my legs out, and lean against the tree.
There are people scattered here and there around the park, some jogging, some tossing a Frisbee, others walking dogs, and students, like me, studying.

I begin working on a history project for a good hour before I begin to feel tired. I slip on my sunglasses, slide down on the blanket, and prop my head on my book bag. And doze off.

A rustling sound…

A loud bark…

A man yelling…

I jolt straight up, startled by the sounds. Slipping my shades off, I see several offenders a few feet away—a black jogging suit, a four-legged animal fleeing, and one soccer ball in the lead. It’s rather… comical. And I believe the dog agrees. It yaps, flits in a circle, wags its tail, hunches down on its front legs, and when the man is almost within petting distance, the dog flips around and bats the ball forward with its nose and keeps on going.

The man stops, lies on the ground, and stares at the sky. I can’t help it. I laugh. I laugh harder when the dog realizes his challenge gave up and flips the ball in the direction of said challenge. My laughter gains the man’s attention and he snaps his eyes in my direction. My breath hitches when I recognize who it is.

He sits up, cocks his head to the side and a slow, sexy smile spreads across his lips. He stands and slowly walks toward me. Sitting down next to me, he extends his legs out and leans in close to me. I can’t help but grin. Jax is here, at the same park I chose to relax and study… and well, take a nap.

“So,” Jax says sarcastically. “You think that dog is pretty hilarious stealing my ball, eh?”

“Absolutely. And by the looks of it, I’d say the pooch won. Jax, the soccer star, lost his game to a… dog.” I laugh again. He sidles up closer to me, so close his sweaty body is rubbing off on me. “Ewe. You’re all sweaty!” I attempt to push him away but he presses into me harder.

“Still think it’s funny, Cinderella?” His lips are so close, his eyes hint humor and desire.

“Yes,” I whisper.

“Yeah,” he whispers back as he reaches a hand behind my neck, pulls me closer, and flicks his tongue along my lips. He pulls back slightly, grins, leans further into me, then drags his tongue lightly down my throat. I shiver. Slowly, he crawls on top of me and drags me down so I’m lying flat on my back, Jax now on top of me. In a public place.

Reaching his hands underneath me, he slides them up under my head and stares heatedly down at me. His lips find my ear and his breathing picks up as he grinds his hips against mine. I wrap my arms around him, tangle my fingers in his hair, and raise my hips slightly. He groans and kisses my neck. Then, he moves his lips down over my breast and shockingly, bites my nipple through the thin fabric of my form-fitting tee. I gasp.

Coming back up, Jax brings his lips near mine but doesn’t quite touch me. “I want you so damn bad,” he says and presses between my thighs roughly. He stays there, swaying his hips suggestively and I can feel just how much he wants me.

I pull his mouth closer, trying to bring his lips to mine, but he pulls back. I try again, and again, he pulls back. I release him and he looks at me, heat in his eyes and then he drops his head against my shoulder. He proceeds to press his hips into me harder and then abruptly pulls himself up. “But not here. Not… yet.” He looks up at the sky, rubs a hand over his jaw, then looks down at me. Staring, like he’s in deep thought, he lets out a sigh and offers me his hand. I take it, wondering what he’s thinking.

Jax continues to hold my hands, me standing in front of him, his eyes never leaving mine. Is he… I swallow hard, worry flickering through me. Is he hiding something… does he have another… god, I can’t even go there. If there’s another girl, or girls, and I’m nothing more than—no, he wouldn’t use me, would he?

“Stop it,” he says, interrupting my thoughts.

“What?” I ask, wondering what exactly I’m supposed to stop.

“Biting your lip. Worrying. Whatever’s in that pretty little head of yours causing you stress, you need not to worry. I…,” he wraps his arms around my waist and brings me into him. “… was trying to figure out my schedule, and I do believe I have no games this weekend. I want to spend it with you. All of it, with
only
you. No friends, no parties, no interruptions.” He snakes his hand up my side, over my shoulder and behind my neck. Dragging me closer, he licks my lips. I open instantly and his wet mouth, the sweetness of his tongue, the depth at which he’s pressing it in, stroking my tongue, has my already sensitive skin tingling. I groan into his mouth, take him zealously. He deepens the kiss, angling my head whichever way he chooses, his tongue rolling hard, perfect and passionately with my own.