I gasped loudly. My clutch fell from my hands and crashed to the floor as I rounded the hall and came face to face with Ky Crawford. Not only did he wear scruff better than most men, but the same could be said for the sweatpants that were hanging loosely on his hips. I knew who Ky Crawford was. Everyone knew who Ky Crawford was. He was the key witness against Jeremy Davis, who was charged and later convicted of attacking and raping Eden Rivers. He was also the guy who had been destroying himself ever since.
His head jerked up at the sound of my clutch colliding with the floor tiles, and shock covered his face as his eyes ran over me.
“I’m sorry, I was just leaving,” I said in a rush, crouching down to salvage my things while humiliation took over.
He crouched down beside me, and I cringed as he started to help pick up my lip gloss and loose change. “You stayed here?”
“Um, yes. With Josh,” I stammered, then jammed the last of my things into my clutch and rose to my feet.
“Well, fuck me,” he said, amusement hitting his words as he joined me on his feet.
The small talk was making me flustered. Two attractive Crawfords in one day was too much for any girl to endure. “Sorry to bother you. I was just leaving.”
“I’ve seen you around campus. You’re in some of Josh’s classes.” Ky stepped away and headed to the kitchen. He moved straight to the coffee maker, switched it on, then pulled two mugs from the overhead cupboard. My eyes trained on him, and when he poured two steaming-hot, freshly-brewed coffees for him and Josh, I knew I had to get out of there. To say I was shocked beyond comprehension when he handed me a mug was an understatement.
Well, this was completely weird and unexpected. I lifted the coffee to my lips and sighed as the hot liquid flooded my veins and helped push aside the exhaustion that was quickly gripping my still-humming body.
I looked at him over the top of the mug before I asked, “Do you provide coffee to all the girls your brother brings home?”
His smile replaced the confused look I saw earlier. “He never brings girls back. Consider this a celebratory coffee. I think little Josh Crawford may be growing up.”
Nervous laughter left my body as I tried to cover my shock. Josh never bought girls home, but here I was. I stammered as I said, “It’s just a one-night thing. He’ll probably never see me again.”
“You can’t be missed. I’ve seen you around campus. I’m pretty certain every man with a functioning cock has seen you.”
I choked on my coffee at his blatant disregard of subtlety. “You Crawford boys aren’t afraid to say what you really think, are you?”
“Over the past six months, I’ve learned that you just have to say what you think. Screw the consequences, because you don’t know if you’ll ever get the chance again.”
I watched as his eyes lost the sparkle and darted away from mine. Suddenly, the urge to offer this stranger comfort took over, and I decided to provide a little humor to get the sparkle back, so I took Ky’s advice and laid it out for him. “Last night your brother rocked my world and bought me pizza and beer. And now you’ve made me the best coffee I’ve ever had. I might just get used to the Crawford brothers.”
He clinked his mug against mine and smiled. “My brother would be an idiot not to keep hold of you.”
“Well, yeah, I’m clearly a catch.”
And that was the first time I thought of Josh like that.
Present day.
I SWIRLED THE GLASS of whiskey around as I sat at the bar of Delights with Duke, my high school best friend, and the guy who liked to call himself my wingman. An unnerving feeling sat in the pit of my stomach, and even the scantily-clad women around me weren’t grabbing my attention like they usually would. However, I knew I wouldn’t end the night unsatisfied.
This was our regular Friday night jaunt. We would meet up for a late dinner, and then head to Delights where we’d either stay and drink stupid amounts of Whiskey, or leave with the women each of us picked up for the night. Random pussy and high-priced liquor were my usual extra-curricular activities on the weekend, and it seemed tonight would be no different.
The moment I stepped into the bar, a petite little redhead sauntered up to me, and I knew I’d be sinking into her by the end of the night. I didn’t know what it was about women in gentlemen clubs, but for some reason they lost all of their inhibitions and started flaunting the fuck out of themselves to get your attention. It may sound like an asshole statement, but I was guaranteed to get laid.
“Man, where’s your head at?” Duke asked from beside me.
Ten days was a long time to be separated from someone you spoke to every day. Ten days of no contact from Ashlyn made me anxious. Ashlyn’s phone was always with her. She was always texting or emailing, so the fact that I hadn’t heard from her wasn’t normal.
I was not going to start divulging my thoughts about Ashlyn to someone like Duke while we were sitting at a bar surrounded by tits and pussy. Fuck that. So I did what he was expecting, I started talking about my plans for the night.
“What else would I be thinking about, asshole? I’m thinking about what I’m going to do to that redhead. Fuck, I thought she was one of the girls, but apparently she’s a bridesmaid.”
Duke diverted his gaze from mine and looked at the redhead across the bar. “Jesus Christ, you’re a lucky prick.”
I smirked into my whiskey, pleased that I seemed to distract him for now.
Call me a womanizer. Call me a male slut. Call me a man whore. I’ve heard them all before, and I know I’ll hear them again. Mom had all but given up on the idea of me settling down, and my older brother Ky liked to put shit on me about my revolving door of women.
Did I have my reasons for not wanting a relationship? Hell yes, I did. Were they common knowledge? Nope. My plan was simple: keep doing what I do. It was straight and to the point, plus my cock received regular action. What could be better?
Duke muttered something about seeing a woman who’d gotten his attention, before disappearing into the crowd, and I knew I wouldn’t see him again. I flipped my phone over in my hand as my mind headed straight back to Ashlyn. I threw back the rest of my whiskey, then swiped open my phone and clicked onto the Facebook icon. She wasn’t texting, she wasn’t calling, but there was no way Miss Facebook herself wasn’t updating her status from Australia.
I typed her name in the search bar and smiled as her overly-excited face appeared on the screen. Fuck, she was stunning to look at, with long blond hair—the type of blond that lightened in the sun—cascading down her back, eyes that were the lightest of green and twinkled every time she smiled, and her lips—fuck her lips—that were pouty, pink, and enticing. I tore my eyes from her profile picture and looked at her latest status.
Officially on vacation and ready for an adventure. #Downunder #EdenWaterMyPlants
Her page was devoid of any recent updates, and the last status was from two weeks ago, which happened to be the day before she left for Sydney. Frustration roared through me. It would seem that Miss Facebook had officially disappeared.
Even when she wasn’t in the country, she was taking up my thoughts. I had a redhead giving me yes-you-are-going-to-fuck-me eyes from across the bar, yet Ashlyn fucking Hart had decided to wiggle her way into my thoughts and make herself known.
We had our night; one that connected us, embedded her into my life, and vice versa. I took her virginity, and she was the only girl I could say that about. She gave me her innocence, something no one else would ever own, and for that I felt more connected to her than I had to anyone else. Our night was definitely one of firsts. She slept in my bed. A bed I had never shared with another woman, and I wrapped her delicious curves in my arms all night, refusing to let go. When I awoke the morning after to an empty bed, I thought that was it. I thought I’d never see her again, that it was just a one-night stand, and she had gotten what she wanted. I’ll never forget the feeling of regret that hit me at the thought of not getting her number or organizing to see her again. She was the first girl that had made me consider something so unlike me. I wanted to see her again, I was desperate to delve into that gorgeous pussy again, but the universe fucked me over. That morning was the beginning of the intense friendship Ky and Ashlyn would share. It was the morning I saw the brother I thought I’d never see again. He was laughing for the first time in a long fucking time, and it was all because of the gorgeous blond whose scent still lingered on my skin. It was then that I made a decision that has haunted me continually for the past four years.