Fate, page 4
Had I ever had a true friend?
Only once, it seemed. Sage Peterson had moved the summer after sophomore year of high school, and we lost touch.
Maybe Ennis Ainsley could be my second friend.
“I’m not comfortable going to your room, but we could go to mine. My roommate isn’t back yet, but she’ll be home in a while.”
“Works for me. Lead the way.”
“Okay.”
“Let’s replenish first.”
He grabbed my cup, which, oddly, I’d drained just standing there talking to him. I felt at ease with Ennis. Was it the drink or him?
A little of both, probably. I loved his accent, and he’d been nothing but friendly and gentlemanly.
He was handsome, too. Light-brown hair and blue eyes. Tall. I liked tall, since I was tall. He wasn’t quite as tall as Brad Steel, but he was tall enough. I didn’t feel a spark, though. Not like I’d felt the first time I’d locked eyes with Brad.
We walked back to my room, and I unlocked the door.
“Come on in. We haven’t really gotten settled yet.”
“None of us have.”
“We can sit on my bed, I guess. Patty has the top bunk. Or the desk chairs.”
“Bed’s fine. A little more comfortable, I’d say.”
“Okay.” I sat and patted the spot next to me.
He sat as well. “So where are you from, Daphne?”
“Westminster.”
“You don’t have the accent.” He smiled.
“Westminster, Colorado, silly. It’s a suburb of Denver.”
“Ah. Didn’t know that.”
“Well, now you do.”
Okay, now what to say? I came up with nothing, so I took a big gulp of my drink. It seemed to get sweeter the more I drank.
“What are you here to study?” he asked.
“I don’t really know yet. You?”
“Literature, I think. It’s my first love. I’d like to write and to teach.”
“Cool.”
Cool. Great, Daphne. Now what?
“I seem to be empty again.” Ennis pointed to his cup. “You want another?”
“I’m not sure.”
“Okay. I’ll be right back.” He stood.
I impulsively handed him my cup. “Yeah. Another, please.”
“Will do.”
I waited on my bed for Ennis to return. My mind was a little muddled, but I was okay. I actually liked the feeling. It made me forget…things. I stood to make sure I wasn’t drinking too much. I walked across the room to my desk in a straight line without stumbling, though it took some work.
“Knock knock,” Ennis said, entering. “Here you go.”
I took the red cup from him and swallowed a mouthful. Yeah, definitely getting sweeter.
“So why did you come to Colorado?” I asked.
The words sounded like they came from somewhere other than my mouth.
“Always wanted to see mountains. I’ve been to the US several times, but always the East Coast. Your country is so huge. I’m not sure I could see all of it in a lifetime.”
“I’m not sure anyone who actually lives here could,” I replied. “It’s so vig and bast.”
“Sorry?”
“It’s so big and vast.”
“Right. You first said vig and bast.”
A huge laugh erupted from my throat. “I did not.”
“You did, love.” He took my cup. “I think maybe that’s enough for you.”
“Give that back!” I grabbed it from him, spilling a few precious drops onto the floor. I was almost tempted to suck them out of the carpet. Instead, I brought the cup to my lips and poured the rest of the contents down my throat.
Then I hiccupped. “Oops,” I laughed.
Ennis took my cup and tossed it into the wastebasket by Patty’s desk. “Sozzled, Miss Daphne. I’m cutting you off.”
I stood…and the room moved. Sort of. “The hell you are.” I dug through the trash and grabbed my cup. “I’m going to get more.”
“You’re not.”
“Just watch me.” I pushed Ennis out of the way and stumbled down the hallway to the lounge.
Almost there. Almost there.
Until I fell in the hallway.
“I’ve got you, love.” Ennis pulled me into his arms.
Nausea. God, I’m going to—
I threw up on his chest.
“Fuck!” he said.
“I’m so sorr—”
Again. More pink puke that would surely stain his white cotton shirt.
“Come on. Bathroom for you.” He hauled me to the nearest bathroom door and got me into a stall.
“That’s it,” he said. “Get it all out.”
I heaved a few more times before I was done. I wasn’t crying, but tears rolled down my cheeks.
I turned to Ennis, who was still holding my head. “I’m okay now. I think.”
“It’s my fault. I shouldn’t have given you that last cup.”
“I’m eighteen years old, Ennis. I should know what I’m doing. I’m really sorry about…” I looked at his shirt.
“This old thing? Not a worry. I was going to throw it out tomorrow.”
“Bull. It looks brand-new.”
“It’s trash.”
“Yeah,” I agreed. “It is now, anyway.”
He smiled at me then. A friendly smile.
I’d ruined his shirt, but I’d found something amazing.
A friend.
Chapter Eight
Brad
“Let’s go, baby,” Wendy said, feigning a struggle against the bindings. “I’m so ready.”
I walked to the head of the bed and detached the binding on her right hand. “This isn’t going to happen.”
“Bullshit,” she said. “This always happens.”
“Not tonight.” I walked around the bed and released her other wrist. “And not ever again.”
“You’ve said that before, Brad.”
She was right. I had. More than once, for sure. This time was different, though.
“I mean it this time.”
“You’ve said that before too.”
“So have you.”
We’d had knock-down-drag-outs about never seeing each other again, about ending it once and for all, but neither of us ever held up that bargain.
“You know I never mean it, baby,” she said. “I love you. It will always be you. There will never be anyone else for me.”
Again, words I’d heard many times before. Words I’d stopped saying in return about a year ago. Had she noticed I didn’t say “I love you” anymore? She certainly didn’t act like she had.
“I need you to leave,” I said.
“My clothes are in the living room.”
Fuck. Murph and Patty had walked right into—
Fuck it all. Patty had seen women’s clothes. Women’s clothes that were not her roommate’s.
“Damn it all to hell.” I raced out of my bedroom to the living room.
“Hey, Steel.” Murph held up Wendy’s push-up bra. “Looks like you’re having a good time in there.”
“Not what it looks like.” I gathered up the rest of Wendy’s clothes and yanked the bra from Murph’s hand.
“You’ve got a naked woman in your room, bro.”
“Yeah, and you’ll notice I’m still fully clothed.”
“Hey, you don’t owe me any explanations.”
He was right. I didn’t. I didn’t owe him or Patty anything. Or even Daphne Wade.
I couldn’t explain it, but I didn’t want Patty running home and telling Daphne I’d been with another woman. Even though I hadn’t actually been with her.
All this time, Patty didn’t speak. Should I say something to her? Beg her not to tell Daphne? Tell her nothing had happened between Wendy and me? Other than a few slaps and tickles, but that was nothing.
Nothing. Best not to say anything.
“Fuck you!” Wendy’s voice carried from the bedroom. “You can just fuck off, Bradford Steel. I don’t care if I never see you again!”
“Yup,” Murph said, “that’s Wendy.”
“Who’s Wendy?” Patty finally asked.
“Steel’s girlfriend.”
“Not my girlfriend,” I said adamantly.
“Okay, his on-again, off-again girlfriend.”
“We are permanently off-again,” I said. “Excuse me.”
I went back into my bedroom and threw Wendy’s clothes on the bed. “Get dressed.”
“You’re a cocksucker, Brad. A prick. A fucking prick.”
Words. Just words. I’d heard them all before.
Wendy had an amazing mind, and I’d realized recently that with genius came crazy, at least for Wendy. Not just a little cuckoo as I’d always known, but big crazy. Big out-of-her-mind crazy.
I couldn’t fix Wendy Madigan, and I was done trying.
She’d be out of my life for good now.
“You got nothing to say to that? Not going to call me a crazy-assed bitch like you usually do?”
“Not this time,” I said quietly. “This time, I’m done with all that. You’re toxic, Wendy, and we’re toxic together. It’s over.”
“Fuck you. I’ll decide when it’s over.”
“Get dressed,” I said again.
She stalked toward me, pulled my head to hers, and kissed me. Hard.
I kept my lips sealed shut and pushed her away. “It’s over. Over and done, and I don’t want to see you again. Ever.”
She stepped into her panties. “We’ll see about that.”
Yeah, she wouldn’t go quietly. I’d always known the final breakup with Wendy would be long and painful.
But I was ready now. Finally.
Ready to say goodbye forever.
And hello to a new life with someone else.
A normal life with a normal woman.
Man, wouldn’t that be something?
“Fuck you, Brad. You think you can erase me from your life? It’ll never happen. We’re connected, Brad. We’re connected, and we always will be.”
“You’re wrong. I don’t love you, Wendy.”
“You just wait. You won’t be able to exist without me. You’ll return to me again and again just like you always have.” She finished dressing and grabbed my chin, drawing me down to meet her fiery blue gaze. “You’ll never be rid of me, Bradford Steel. Never.”
She walked out of my bedroom.
I stayed for about five minutes until I heard the front door slam.
Murph and Patty must have left. Who could blame them? Or they went to Murph’s room, though Patty Watson, Iowa pig farm girl, hardly seemed the type to put out on the first date, especially after Murph had been kind of douchy at dinner.
Then again, I could be wrong.
Distinct moaning wafted from Murph’s bedroom. I smiled. At least he was getting some.
My erection had subsided during the battle with Wendy. I could get it back, but did I want to?
I scanned my watch. After midnight. Would Daphne Wade still be up? The partying never stopped during orientation week, so she might be.
It was worth a try.
Chapter Nine
Daphne
A judge was pounding his gavel inside my head.
“You need a shower, love?” Ennis asked.
“Yeah. But first I need to brush my teeth.” I stood, still pretty wobbly.
“I’ll get your stuff,” he said. “Just tell me where it is in your room.”
Had I even unpacked my toothbrush? I couldn’t remember. “I have no idea.”
“All right. Stay here. I’ll get some toothpaste and gargle. That’ll freshen you up.”
“My clothes…”
“You got a robe?”
“Yeah, yeah. I know I hung that in the closet. It’s burgundy terry cloth.”
“I’ll get it for you. Get in the shower, and I’ll bring a towel from my room and get your robe.”
“But the toothpaste…”
“Get your shower. Then we’ll clean your teeth.”
“Thank you, Ennis. Thanks for taking care of me.”
He nodded and left the bathroom. I stumbled to a shower stall and peeled off my clothes. My first instinct was to burn them, but I’d been wearing them when I met Brad Steel. For some reason, that was significant to me. I didn’t have shampoo, but someone had left a well-used bar of soap in the stall, so I could at least get clean. I brought my blouse into the shower with me to rinse off the puke before the pink from the drink could stain it.
My hair was falling out of its braid, and I tugged the rest out of the band and unwound it, letting the water run over it and plaster it to my shoulders and back. I grabbed the soap, lathered my whole body, and rinsed, feeling not exactly clean but better.
I washed my blouse as best I could, though a light-pink tinge still remained. I sighed. This was one of my favorite blouses, and I couldn’t ask my parents for money for another. They were struggling as it was, with all my doctor’s bills and now additional expenses associated with my college.
My first day at college…and here I was, drunk and alone in a shower stall, having ruined my favorite blouse.
Nice job, Daphne. Nice job.
I exited the stall and found a towel and my burgundy robe sitting by one of the sinks. Thank God for Ennis Ainsley. I dried off and put the robe on, wishing I had a brush to run through the tangled mess of my hair.
But I didn’t, so I left the bathroom.
Ennis stood outside. “Feeling better, love?”
I smiled…or at least tried to. “A little.”
“Here.” He handed me a toothbrush and toothpaste. “I found it in your room. Get the taste out of your mouth.”
I nodded, walked back into the bathroom, and brushed the heck out of my teeth.
Ennis was still in the hallway when I returned. “I’m sorry. I tried to warn you to go slowly with that drink.”
“You did. It’s my own fault.”
Take responsibility for your actions, Dr. Payne always said. No one controls you but you.
“You’ll be fine by morning. There’s a big day planned with orientation festivities.”
“Ugh,” I said. “The thought of orientation festivities makes me want to get sick all over again.”
“It’ll be fun. You’ll see.”
We stopped at the door to my room.
“Get to bed, now. A good night of sleep is all you need.”
“My head hurts.”
“Do you have anything for a headache?”
“In one of my boxes somewhere.”
“I’ve got some in my room. Go ahead in. I’ll bring it to you with a large glass of water. You’ll be good as new come morning.”
I nodded and let myself into my room. Thank God for the bottom bunk. I couldn’t handle climbing at the moment.
A few minutes later, a knock sounded on the door. I hoped it was Ennis, because I was too exhausted to get up and look.
“Come in,” I said.
The door opened.
But it wasn’t Ennis.
“Hi, Daphne,” came the deep voice of Brad Steel.
Oh, God. I knew I looked like hell. My long hair was tangled and plastered to my neck and chest. I wore nothing but the burgundy robe.
“Shit, are you all right?” he asked, walking in.
No, I was so not all right. I was embarrassed beyond all get-out. The most amazing guy I’d ever met, who’d given me such a tender kiss earlier tonight, was seeing me at my worst.
“What happened?” he asked again.
“Nothing. I’m fine.”
“You’re not fine. You’ve been drinking.”
“So? You and Sean drank at dinner.”
“Sean and I are used to alcohol. What were you drinking?”
“I don’t know. Some pinkish punch someone made.”
“Most likely Everclear. That shit’s a hundred and twenty proof at minimum.”
“What’s that mean?”
“It means you were drinking sixty percent alcohol. It’s banned in some states.”
“But not here?”
“Nope. Oh, man. Who gave you that stuff? I’m going to kick the shit out of him.”
“Ennis.”
“Who’s Ennis?”
“My friend Ennis.”
“Did I hear my name?” Ennis walked in the door, carrying the promised glass of water.
“You Ennis?” Brad asked.
“Yeah, who are you?”
Brad didn’t answer.
Instead, he punched Ennis in the jaw.
Chapter Ten
Brad
The glass of water the guy carried fell from his hand and shattered on the tile floor of the hallway when he toppled against the wall. I raised my fists, ready to pounce—
“Brad, no!”
I turned.
Daphne stood right outside her door, her robe falling precariously and baring one milky shoulder.
“Please,” she said. “It’s not his fault. I drank it.”
“He gave it to you.”
“He simply brought me a drink,” she said, her eyes glistening.
God, please don’t cry. Please don’t cry.
Daphne didn’t cry.
The guy stood, rubbing his jaw. “Mate, I didn’t do anything to her.”
British, apparently. Great. I should apologize. That was what a gentleman would do. But the words didn’t come.
“Did she get sick?” I asked him.
“She did. I took care of her. I was bringing her some aspirin and water.”
I regarded Daphne Wade, and an overwhelming desire to protect her from every evil in the world surged through me. Maybe she reminded me of my mother. Her coloring was similar. I hadn’t been able to protect my mother from everything. But I sure as hell wanted to protect this woman in front of me—this woman I hardly knew, but who had the softest lips I’d ever kissed.
“You owe Ennis an apology,” Daphne said softly.
I did, but he wasn’t going to get one. My old man had taught me never to apologize. It was weak.
Of course my old man was a Grade A asshole, too.
“Not necessary,” Ennis said.
Good. I was off the hook, until Daphne’s eyes darkened with anger.
