She’s biting her lip, fear evident on her face.
“As bad as things might get, no drugs.” I’m asking her to stay away from something that is impossible to drop cold turkey, but she’s got to try.
“I only do drugs on weekends. It’s no issue, Adam.”
I lift a brow, wanting to remind her she was strung out in my dorm room and that was a weekday. But I don’t want to argue. “I want to be your drug. That sounds corny, I know. If you feel the need to use, come to me, and I don’t mean for drugs.” I grin in the hopes I can break through to her. That she’ll let me take care of her.
She smiles, wiggling her hips as she sashays over to me. Her gaze roams my bare chest. “I think I might like you being my addiction.” She lifts up on her toes and kisses me.
And just like that, nothing matters but her and me.
14
Emily
When Monday morning rolls around, I peer at my reflection in the mirror, reminding myself I can do this. I’ve been on edge since Sam sent the anonymous email to Wes threatening to expose the recording he found. So far, there’s been no response, but it hasn’t even been twenty-four hours yet.
I know Wes won’t take this lying down. I know he’ll find some way of attacking. And I know I’ll be caught in the crossfire.
But I’m done being the victim.
And I’m done denying the truth.
I’m spiraling down the rabbit hole, and I alone have the power to claw my way back to the top. It’s easy to blame my parents, blame what happened when I was fifteen, for the mess I’ve made of my life, when the reality is I am responsible for my own actions.
In a weird, sick way, Wes did me a favor.
What happened Saturday night—whatcould’vehappened that night—was the wake-up call I needed. I walked over there like a lamb to the slaughter. Believing I had no choice.And how fucked up is that? To willingly walk into a gang rape?To think it would resolve things when it clearly would’ve only made things worse.
I’m disgusted with myself for being so weak. For going on a bender all week and being incapable of making any sound decisions. I’m smarter than that. And it’s about time I started acting like it.
A smile slips over my mouth as I grab my book bag and leave the house. That I can even smile after the weekend I’ve endured speaks volumes. But I find myself smiling every time I think of Adam. His handsome face flashes before me, and I almost trip on the sidewalk.
Everything about him draws me in.
His gorgeous face and drool-worthy body.
His deep, sultry voice that kick-starts my hormones every time I’m around him.
How protected I feel in his big, bulky arms.
The tender look in his eyes when he promises he’ll keep me safe.
The way my body tingles all over when he touches me, warming me from the inside out.
And that’s before I’ve considered how hot it is that he’s so devoted to his mom and sister.
It’s clear money is an issue, but real wealth resides in the strength of that all-important family bond.
When it comes down to it, Adam is the wealthy one in our partnership because he has something I’ve never had—a true family unit.
Something about Adam gives me hope.
Hope for something I’ve never dared to dream for—a guy who makes me the center of his world. A love that exists before now only in the romance novels I read. A love so encompassing that my shitty family situation doesn’t matter. A prospect of something real that gives me the strength to kick my dependence on drugs and find a new high to live my life by.
Maybe I’m delusional, because I don’t even know him all that well. And being with him is complicated. But Adam has instilled a new fire inside me, and I’m going to embrace that with both hands.
* * *
