Twisted Love (Blinded Love Series Book 3) Read online

  “Hey!” Hunter shouted from the grill, jerking my head to him. “Perfection takes time, Holloway. I take barbeque seriously.”

  “While we all starve to death.” She ambled back to him, slapping him on the ass, grinning up to him. “Good thing you’re so pretty.”

  A mischievous grin hooked the side of his mouth, kissing her. “And really good in bed.”

  A blush colored her cheeks, her grin widening. “Think you’ll have to remind me again.” She went on her toes, her mouth brushing his.

  “Uhhhhh. I need a drink,” I grumbled, moving for the ice chest.

  “Yeah. They sent me to drinking too.” A voice came from the other side of the table, generating a squeak from my lungs.

  “Shit. You scared me.” I grasped my chest, feeling a tornado buzz through my stomach.

  Deep in the shadows, sitting in a folding chair, Chris guzzled a beer, wearing an outfit similar to the day before but with flip-flops. Circles under his eyes and messy hair worked on him, while it made me look homeless.

  He stared off, downing the liquor as if he were on a mission, slumped back in the chair with his legs spread wide. His body language screamed stay away. I could see from here he had a chip on his shoulder, ready to fight. I should have walked away, known better than to engage. But like an idiot, my feet traveled closer.

  I wanted to shake him, demand he tell me what was wrong. Was this all about supercross? Was it more? He was acting just like those boys I crushed on through school, angry at the world, usually for nothing but felt life owed them something. That their existence was deeper and worth more than others. That no one “got” them nor did they fit in with the world. When in reality, they were the most typical teenagers ever which was what they hated the most. Being average and ordinary.

  But Chris was different. He strived to be “typical and ordinary.” He was anything but. I had always sensed a darkness in him, similar to my own. Like mine, his demons appeared to have grown stronger.

  Drawn to the wounded, fucked-up ass, I moved around the picnic table and sat down. I popped off the cap of my beer, sipping, both of us staying quiet.

  Which lasted ten seconds.

  “Who forced you here?” I rolled the bottle between my palms.

  Chris huffed, his eyebrows flicking up in amusement. “Who do you think?” He took another huge swallow, chucking the empty bottle in the recycle bin near us, his gaze glancing to Jayme and Hunter.

  “Ohhh, did Whiskey use her puppy-dog pout on you?”

  “I only agreed if I drove myself.” He shook his head. “But damn, that girl could be used as a weapon.”

  “I know, right?” I exclaimed in agreement. “She gets me every time. But if you think she’s good at it, you should see the mini-version do it. Reece is already a master.”

  “I have no doubt. Poor guys.” He leaned forward, grabbing another beer, his arm brushing my leg causing a zap of electricity.

  “Or girls.” Trying to be funny, but my voice came out breathy and low. He sucked in, jerking his arm away, sitting back in the chair. He ripped off the top and downed half the bottle.

  “Is there a drinking contest tonight?”

  “You’re gonna get on my ass too?” His lids narrowed, ire flicking over his face. “Like you of all people can judge me.”

  “I’m not judging.” My mouth dropped into a scowl. See, you knew better, but still you fell into it. Couldn’t stay away. “And when did I get on the asshole express?”

  “Feel free to leave at any time.” He waved. “No one is keeping you here.”

  “Right, because I thought we could be mature and act civil to each other.”

  “Mature?” He howled, brushing his hand over his head. He was getting close to being an angry drunk. “Did you actually use that word? Do you know what it even means?”

  “Fuck. You.”

  “Been there before. Already did that.”

  I bolted up to my feet, glaring at him. “Whatever happened to the other guy? Because I liked him. This version is an epic douchebag.”

  “I guess if you had been mature enough…” He snarled, staring at the back fence. “You would have stuck around and found out.”

  Swiping up my barely touched beer, I marched away from him, anger billowing off me as if Hunter had put my ass on the grill. Fuck it. I didn’t deserve to be treated like that, no matter what he was going through.

  I stormed over to the opposite side, finding a seat by one of Doug’s neighbors. Jayme was quick to follow me, her eyes wide.

  “What the hell happened?”

  “Don’t ask.” I gritted my teeth, my hand aching as I strangled the bottle. “Think it’s better to keep me and Ape-boy faaarrr away from each other.”

  “It’s not just you.” She plopped down next to me, watching Chris toss another bottle into the bin and grab another. “Hunter has about hit his limit with him. It’s so sad to see years of friendship ruined. He keeps saying he’s fine, but it’s as if an alien really has taken over him. His entire personality is different. All I see is this angry, cruel guy now.”

  I didn’t admit I had recently seen moments of the old Chris, the one who once had me wrapped around his finger. Shit, I was so stupid then. I jumped in with both feet, trying to play it cool, when I had been anything but.

  He let me see slices of himself I know he didn’t show anyone else. Glimpses of the carefree, fun-loving Aussie who had secrets of his own.

  The late morning sun shone through his curtains burning my tired eyes. “Morning…why?” I groaned, rolling my naked body into his, burying my head away from the light.

  “It’s almost afternoon.” Chris chuckled, rubbing his face.

  “It is technically my morning because you didn’t let me sleep until the sun was rising.”

  “I didn’t let you?” He poked at my side, forcing me to wiggle at the ticklish touch. “That’s not how I remember it.”

  It had been completely me the last time, which turned into one of our longest, loudest, and most intense nights together.

  “In the morning, it will always be your fault.” I grumbled, my fingers drifting up and down his ribs, tracing the tattoo that ran all the way down his side.

  “Oh.” He grinned, nuzzling into my hair. “Is that how it’s going to be?”

  “Yep. Get used to it.” I pressed my lips together the moment the words sprouted off my tongue, feeling chagrin heat them.

  His hand gripped my hip, pulling me into him, my body instantly responding to his touch. “I think I can handle it.”

  My nails trailed over his tattoos, examining each one. I had explored his body so many times, I knew the deep scars were there, but I had never felt the need to ask. Usually that was five steps past where I ever got with people. In and out, literally and figuratively speaking.

  But something felt different this morning; the intensity of last night hadn’t scared me like I thought. I wanted to know more about him.

  “Did the tattoos come before these?” I rubbed at one of the puckered marks. “Or after?”

  He went still, sucking in a breath. My gaze went up to his, feeling his tension.

  “After.” Anguish slipped into his eyes before he jerked his head up at the ceiling.

  “Sorry, you don’t have to tell me. I know we’re not like that.”

  “No.” He cleared his throat. “It’s just not something I want to talk about with anyone.”

  I didn’t move or speak, sensing he was going to anyway.

  “Most of them are from my dad.” His arm around me tightened. Chris never talked about his father. Only about his mom, and still that was minimal. “He liked to use me as an ashtray.”

  “What?” I sat up, staring down at him, gaping. “He put his cigarette out on you?”

  “On a good day.”

  “Are you serious?” I knew he was, but I couldn’t imagine someone doing that, especially on their own child. My relationship with my father was so opposite. I had been his world. “How old
were you?”

  “It started around five, I think.” He shrugged like it was no big deal. “Mum married the prick because he knocked her up at seventeen. He was almost thirty and a complete controlling bastard. He beat her and when I was old enough, turned his rage on me. I would pick a fight so he’d leave her alone.”

  “Shit.” I couldn’t stop the blunt response. “That is so fucked up.”

  “I was seven when he sent me into intensive care. She finally left him and we moved to the States, lived with her cousin in hiding for a while until he stopped threatening he’d come find us and drag her back.”

  I stared down at him, everything I thought I knew about him turned on its head. He was so easygoing, you’d think he grew up with the most loving, carefree, pampered life.

  “Do you ever speak to him?”

  “He tried only a few times. When he learned I was doing supercross, I had to block his calls. Think he imagined I was getting paid well or something. Even being a sub-rider.”

  “You don’t want to see him?”

  “Fuck no.” His nose wrinkled, head shaking. “He’s still an abusive drunk. I want nothing to do with him or his new family. The bitch he married is as awful as him, been in jail for conning people out of their money. I just feel bad for the two girls they have and wonder if they have any hope of not turning out like them.”

  My head spun with the new information. I’d never suspected this piece of Chris or the pain and horror he went through as a child. The depth of character. The shallow, no-worries Chris was an act, a façade he put on to hide the truth. Probably until he believed it.

  “Chris…”

  His head jolted, his eyes meeting mine. Slowly a small smile edged his mouth, his hands sliding through my hair, cupping my face.

  “I love when you say my name,” he rumbled, pulling me down into a heated kiss. “Let’s see if I can get you screaming it.”

  I put my hand on his chest, pushing back. I knew what he was doing, I would do the same if I felt vulnerable and exposed. Sex was our go-to and used as a defense. But it felt strange when he told me something so deep and personal.

  “Does anyone else know?” I asked.

  “Hunter knows a little, but not all. It was something we both understood.” Hunter’s father had been abusive mentally and physically to both boys, but especially Hunter. “That’s all. It’s in the past. I want it to stay there. That part of my family doesn’t exist to me, nor are they part of my life.” He leaned up, his mouth covering mine, his fingers sliding down my neck to my breasts.

  I was shocked he told me. Let me in on something so profound.

  “What is important to me right now is getting you to cry out my name over and over.” His mouth moved down to my chest, licking and nipping, forcing me to suck in a gulp of air. Lust spread over my skin as if I stepped into a hot bath, consuming every thought and feeling.

  “Oh, I’ll scream your name all right.” I smirked, moving over him, straddling his hips. “So loud the neighbors hear me.”

  And I did.

  Tarzan.

  I would not have been surprised if the people next door moved.

  “Stevie? Hello?” A hand waved in front of my face, jolting me back to the real world.

  Shit, did I totally space out there?

  “Where did you go?” Jayme nudged my shoulder with a smile, like she knew exactly where it went. “Or should I ask. Must have been good.”

  “I was just getting to the good part,” I grumbled, taking a sip of beer. Why pretend? I could feel my cheeks burning with the memory of how the rest of the day went. It had been one of those times I ended up never leaving, and we never made it to a movie either.

  “Chicken is ready.” Hunter clicked his prongs together with pride. Men and grills! The proud I-am-man-pounding-of-the-chest seemed universal.

  “Come on, I’m starving.” Jayme jumped up, holding out her hand for me. The weirdness between us was better, but it was still there, ready to flare again.

  “Come on, Singer. I think you need some food.” Doug bounded over to Chris with the delicacy of a hyper hundred-pound dog who thought himself a puppy. He slapped Chris on the back with a laugh, trying to get him out of the chair. “We’re all tired of you being such a mopey little bitch.”

  Ah. Doug.

  “Doug!” Jones put his head in his hands. Megan and he still sat next to each other. She dipped her head on Jones’s shoulder trying to fight a laugh.

  Whatever had gone on between Chris and Megan had ended. There was no acknowledgment of their hookup. No leaking resentment or feelings between them. At all. It was strange, as though it never happened.

  “What?” Doug looked around with wide innocent eyes. “We are, right? You’ve all been saying it.”

  Jones groaned but didn’t comment.

  “Yeah.” Chris tried to stand up, but stumbled to the side, grabbing on to the table. “Like ish a biggg fuckinnnn’ secret.” He slurred over some of his words, his expression tight with anger. “Great friendzz I have. Talkkk behind myyy back.” Chris roughly shoved Doug away from him.

  Shit. How much did he drink before I got here?

  “Hey,” Hunter barked, stepping into Chris. They were the same height, but the weight Chris had lost made him look slightly smaller. “We are your friends and we care about you. That’s why we’re wondering what the hell is going on with you.”

  “Fuuuck off, Hunter.” Chris snarled, pushing at his friend. “Take your self-righteous, perfect life and shove it up your ass.”

  Hunter grabbed his shirt, tugging Chris, making him stagger to the side.

  “Perfect? Yeah, Chris, that’s my life,” Hunter sardonically huffed. “We are all trying so hard to be nice, but you are determined to ruin that too.”

  “Too?” Chris gritted his teeth. “Oh, are you slyly talkin’ about supercrossss? Donn’t beee shy. Juzt say it.”

  “You fucking asshole! You act as if they no longer wanted you. Poor Chris is no longer on the circuit. But it was all you. You fucked it up.” Hunter shoved at him, fury and sorrow riding his shoulders. “Do you know what I would give to have the opportunity again? I HAD to give up the one thing I loved, my dream, because I physically could no longer do it. But you had it in your hands, contracts ready to sign, and you walked away. So get the fuck over yourself!” Hunter boomed, his past painfully written on his face. The two huge accidents had shattered his body so badly he could no longer ride professionally again. “We’ve tried to be patient. Tried to be your friend… but you can’t even meet us halfway. Treating us like we’re your enemy. Then get the fuck out. I’m done.”

  “Shit,” Jayme muttered under her breath, her hand going to her chest like her heart ached.

  “Fine,” Chris spat, shoving Hunter’s chest. “It’s about time.” He sneered, moving around Hunter to the house. He stopped at the door. “And you have no idea what the fuck you’re talking about. You’re not the only one who had to walk away from their dream.” He stepped through, slamming the screen. Five seconds later the echo of the front door banged shut.

  There were a few moments of awkward silence before Jayme spoke up. “Hunter, he can’t drive like that.” She motioned after Chris.

  Hunter winced. “Fuck.” He started for the door.

  “I got it.” I stepped in front of Hunter, responding without thinking. I did that a lot when it came to Tarzan. “I think you two need to cool off.”

  I didn’t wait for anyone to respond before I slipped through the door and ran out of the house. I searched the darkness for him, trying to spot his car.

  “Fuck.” I heard Chris swear in the dark. The sound of keys hitting the pavement steered me to the right.

  “Hey!” I yelled when I spotted him, stumbling around in the dark. His orange car was down the street. “Where the hell do you think you’re going?”

  “Away from here,” he spat back.

  “You’re not driving.” I stood in front of him, stopping his path to the car. �
�You are a shithead. But you’re not stupid enough to drive drunk, right?” I danced around, blocking each step he took. “When you almost lost two of your best friends that way.”

  “Best friends.” He sneered.

  “Be mad, I don’t care, but yes, those two people love you and are your best friends, even if you don’t deserve it right now. And to lose you the way they lost Colton? You’re selfish, but you can’t possibly be that much of a bastard.” I held out my hands. “Give me your keys. Now.”

  “Bossy.”

  “Now, Chris,” I demanded.

  His body twitched, but his eyes landed solidly on me, as though I was his anchor. His gaze rolled over me like he wanted to say something, but instead he grunted, dropping the keys in my hand.

  “Thank you.” I slid into the driver’s seat with a thrill of driving his car again. He had only let me drive it twice. I guess that was sort of a compliment, since Hunter said Chris didn’t let anyone else touch it. The power of revving it, the vibration of the engine, stirred my blood with electricity.

  “Don’t grind the gears like you did last time.” He swung the door open and slumped into the passenger side.

  “I never ground the gears.” I adjusted the seat, belting in. I loved the feel of the leather on my bare skin.

  Hello, old friend.

  The engine came to life as I put it in drive, the car lurching with force, the gears crunching as I slipped it into drive.

  He rubbed at his head.

  “Relax.” I reversed the car out of the spot, pulling onto the road. Damn, I loved the power and feel of this car, my foot heavier than normal, causing the engine to growl.

  “Just so you know,” Chris rolled down the window, leaning his head back in the seat, closing his eyes, “I wasn’t going to drive. I was gonna pass out in the back.”

  I pressed my lips together, an ache in my chest pulsed I couldn’t explain.

  The drive home was silent, as Chris slept through most of it. It felt familiar, which made me tense. I was all too aware of how natural this did feel.