Page 22 of Unhinged Love

At least now I’m a liability who can breathe. “I’m okay now,” I whisper, trembling. “I’m fine.”

“You better go back upstairs.”

“That’s what I was trying to do,” I admit with a short, unhappy laugh. “I’ll go now.”

What a relief, being able to work my way through the crowd that seems to all be heading out to the backyard, anyway. It makes it easier to walk down the hall and round the bottom stair before climbing, holding onto the iron railing just in case Iget a little dizzy again—especially since there are people walking up and down the stairs at the same time. I guess this isn’t a downstairs-only party. I wish somebody had told me.

“Oh, the line for the bathroom was too long.”

I know that voice, and the familiar sound makes me turn my head. Tiana is strutting down the stairs with her friends behind her in various states of undress, and all of them are laughing.

“So we used yours instead,” Tiana explains with a giggle, her teeth flashing and her eyes shining like a predator going in for the kill. But all she does is continue down the stairs while her friends giggle. I guess I don’t look all that different, after all, if they recognized me right away. That’s what floats around in the back of my head as I walk down the hall, ready to get in the shower, thanks to the soda and vodka all over my feet.

And maybe I would… if it wasn’t for the horror show my bathroom is.

There’s wet toilet paper everywhere, including a bunch that got shoved down the toilet until it overflowed. Somebody raided my dresser—bras, panties. It all sits in the water that’s spilled onto the floor and soaked into the bathmat. Somebody took my shaving gel from the shower and covered the mirror with it, then sprayed it all over the sink and the toilet seat.

Why? Why can’t they just leave me alone? What did I ever do to deserve this? Any of it?

This time, my legs can’t hold me up, and I sink to the floor outside the bathroom door before putting my head in my hands and weeping while the sounds of so much fun and laughter go on under me.

NINE

Carter

“Why are you here all alone?”

With my back against the pool’s concrete wall and my arms spread to either side, I turn my head toward the girl who just swam over. I’m in the deep end, meaning she has to tread water before reaching me, draping her arms over my shoulders. Her tongue darts over her lips before she looks down between us, where my dick is on display. My clothes are somewhere on the patio—I wasn’t really paying attention when I stripped down and dove in, wanting to cool myself off.

The girl bats her eyes and scrapes her lip with her teeth. “You look like you could use a friend.” Pulling herself closer to me, she rubs her tits against my chest. Not a bad feeling.

But not one that’s doing anything for me right now.

All around me, people are getting deeper into party mode. Easton is in the middle of making out with two girls, both of whom are playing with his dick while he gropes their tits and asses. Kellan has a blonde in his lap. I think I saw Prestonwalking into the house, holding hands with a naked brunette. Everybody’s having a good time.

Except for me.

And it’s all Elliana’s fault.

I should be hard as steel, especially once the girl who has wrapped herself around me starts planting kisses against my jaw. “How about I suck that big cock for you?” she whispers in my ear while dragging her nails across the back of my neck. “Just scoot your ass up on the patio, and I’ll do it in front of everybody.”

Am I dead below the waist? Is that the problem? Because normally, I wouldn’t waste any time pushing myself up onto the edge of the pool and taking her by the back of the head so she could feast on me. Right now, though, the thought does nothing but turn me off.

And it’s all Elliana’s fault.I haven’t been able to get her out of my fucking head all night, especially since whatever the hell happened in the kitchen. She’s upstairs now, but she might as well be in front of me with that wounded look in her eyes.

I would never have guessed it’s possible to hate somebody the way I hate her. It’s a constant pulse running through my body, pure, white-hot energy that sears me inside. The water around me is cool, but it might as well be boiling.

I want to tell everybody to go home. I don’t want to see any of them. Fuck, I hate them all right now. I hate them for being able to let loose the way I wanted to tonight.

“I’m good,” I grunt, unwrapping the girl from around me and giving her a little shove. “But thanks.” She mutters something that tells me she’s insulted, but swims off, probably looking for the next swinging dick without a partner.

Pushing myself up out of the water, I stride across the patio and grab a towel from the stack on one of the chairs. All I do isa quick rubdown, including my feet—it took one experience with falling on my ass on the kitchen floor to make me more careful.

All through the house, people are dancing—dressed, naked, and everything in between. The music is deafening, pounding in my ears, making it tough to think as I work my way past groups of people. Girls reach out, grab at me, but I shake them off like they’re nothing more than pests. Because that’s what they are. And I am in no fucking mood.

She’s going to pay for this. Why couldn’t she do one simple fucking thing I asked her to do and stay upstairs? What do I have to do to get through to her? I take the stairs two at a time, my fury growing with every step. It doesn’t matter how much I drank. The alcohol only fuels the fire burning in me as I pound on Elliana’s bedroom door with the side of my fist.

“Open up!” I bark, pounding again before trying the knob. I shouldn’t be surprised when it turns. She’s not even smart enough to lock it. Can’t she do anything right?

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