Crush (6 page)

“What are you doing, Rose?” I asked, folding my arms. Shit, all I wanted to do was go to bed.

She pouted again, although this time it was more of an annoyed pout. “I texted you. I said I was coming over. I’m horny, and I wanna…”

“I didn’t read it, and I’m tired as fuck. You gotta go,” I said, cutting her off. I picked up her dress and jacket from the floor and tossed them over to her.

She jumped off the bed and came over to me, pushing her tits right out as she bit her lower lip and gazed up at me through her eyelashes.

“Come on, Brad,” she purred. “I know you miss me.”

Ugh. I hadn’t had sex in a few weeks, and I certainly did miss the feel of a tight pussy, but Rose wasn’t worth the drama. Neither was Amanda, or that other girl downstairs who’d hit on me earlier…Shana or whatever her name was. Most other guys would be happy to have been propositioned by so many girls in one night, but I wasn’t interested.

I told myself that it was because I was exhausted from work, but deep down, I knew that wasn’t true. It was because I had Mia on my mind. Every night when I jerked off, I thought of her and her big brown eyes, luscious lips, curvy figure and perfectly-rounded ass. Christ, she was amazing. Totally perfect.

I could’ve easily said yes to any of these other girls sleazing onto me, but I honestly wasn’t sure if I’d even be able to get it up for any of them. My dick had a mind of its own, and all it seemed to be able to think of was Mia.

“Out,” I said stiffly, pointing to the door.

Rose glared at me and made a point of dressing extremely slowly, as if that might change my mind, but I remained steadfast, not moving an inch until she’d stalked out the door.

As tempting as her offer had been, along with the offer of the other girl downstairs, I just couldn’t go for it. I’d rather go to bed alone and dream of Mia’s naked body and pussy massaging my cock, instead of going to bed with a partner and having a real body pressed up against me.

For a young, red-blooded guy, did that make me batshit crazy? Probably.

Did I give a shit?
Nope.

CHAPTER SIX

MIA

“Thanks for the birthday breakfast, Karen,” I said before spearing another pancake with my fork.

It had been seven weeks since the surprise wedding, and I was back at the family home in McComb for my birthday. It was the first time in years that it hadn’t just been me and Dad at the breakfast table, and Karen smiled at me.

“No problem, hon. Your Dad told me you love pancakes and bacon, so I might have gone a little overboard.”

That may have been an understatement. The table was filled with plates of blueberry pancakes, regular pancakes, bacon, eggs, hash browns, and even a few waffles. On top of that, there was coffee, tea, two different types of juice, and syrup for the food. It was a nice change from the simplistic meals I usually ate at college, and it reminded me of my early childhood, when my parents would cook up huge breakfasts for us to enjoy together on weekends.

Brad was here for the weekend as well, and so far, he hadn’t said much to me. As I chewed on another mouthful of syrupy goodness, he leaned over to me.

“You sure eat a lot.”

I rolled my eyes. “Are you calling me fat?”

He scoffed. “No. Don’t be so sensitive. It’s a good thing. I like a girl who can eat.”

“Good for you,” I mumbled, my cheeks heating up.

His eyes twinkled with amusement, and he returned to his breakfast. I turned my gaze away from him, afraid that he’d see something in my expression; something that would let him know beyond a shadow of doubt that I still thought he was the hottest guy on Earth.

Dad peered at me from the head of the table a moment later.

“Mia, I know we usually go to Vee Burger Bar for your birthday dinner, but this time I’ve made a reservation for the four of us at Café Amuse.”

“What? Why?” I asked.

We’d been going to Vee for my birthday dinner since I was a kid. They made the best burgers and desserts in town, and it had evolved into a little family tradition. Even after Mom had died, we’d still kept going there every year, and we’d always light an extra candle on my birthday cake in memory of her.

“Well, Karen’s doctor has put her on a gluten free diet for the time being. That’s why she’s only eating bacon and eggs this morning. Anyway, I checked out the menu online, and Vee doesn’t have any gluten free meals at all.”

“Oh,” I said in a small voice. “Okay.”

I wasn’t sure if I was really okay with it, but I guess I had to deal with it. Still, the thought of ending our tradition made my stomach feel hollow despite all the food I’d just eaten.

Dad stood up to go to the kitchen, and my eyes fell to the white accent table pressed up against the wall a few feet behind his chair. I hadn’t noticed earlier, because his body had been blocking the view, but the wedding photo of my parents that had once sat on that table was gone. It had been replaced with a picture of Dad and Karen instead.

Suddenly all the emotions I’d been keeping buried over the last few weeks came to a head, and I abruptly stood up and glared at Karen.

“Why did you move my parent’s wedding photo?” I asked, one hand on my hip. “It’s always been there!”

I knew I was being a bitch, but I couldn’t help myself. Seeing the new photo made me feel like she was trying to replace my Mom more than ever, and my hands shook with anger as I waited for a response.

“I…uh…” she looked shocked, and her cheeks turned scarlet as she failed to form a proper sentence.

Dad returned from the kitchen with another jug of syrup, and his forehead crinkled as he saw what was going on.

“Mia? What’s wrong?”

“Karen got rid of the picture of Mom on the accent table!” I said. “And apparently, you’re okay with it. Is that what you’re going to do now? Pretend like she never existed?”

Dad’s eyes narrowed, and he put an arm on Karen’s shoulder. “Actually, she didn’t get rid of it,” he said, his voice stiff. “It’s on the mantelpiece in the lounge room. I was rearranging some things, and I thought it would look nicer there. Seeing as there was an empty space on the accent table, I thought I’d put the new photo there. Karen had nothing to do with it, and you are being unfathomably rude, young lady.”

My cheeks burned with pure shame. Karen looked like she was about to cry, and Brad stared at me with a hard look in his eyes. Great, now everyone hated me. I didn’t blame them. I was being awful, and this wasn’t like me at all. I’d never been the type to throw childish tantrums, but here I was acting like a three-year-old.

“Sorry,” I mumbled before slipping out of the dining room and racing upstairs. I knew ‘sorry’ wasn’t good enough, but I wasn’t in the right frame of mind to stay in that room. I was too ashamed.

I heard Dad come up the stairs after me, and he cornered me at the end of the hallway before I could go into my room.

“How dare you speak to Karen like that?” he said. His face was like thunder, and I averted my eyes. “This isn’t like you at all! She’s been nothing but nice to you, and you go and treat her like that and then storm out?”

“I didn’t storm out,” I said lamely, as if that changed anything.

He sighed. “Is that really the point? I didn’t raise you to behave like this, Mia.”

I tried and failed to fight back the tears that I knew were coming, and I sniffed and answered him.

“I’m sorry, Dad. It’s just…ever since I found out you were getting married again, all these old memories of Mom keep coming back, but at the same time I feel like she’s getting more distant. I can’t explain it. It doesn’t even make any sense to say out loud. I didn’t mean to yell at Karen. I’m so sorry.”

I was losing the plot now. Hot tears were spilling down my face, making a trail over my cheeks and leaking into my mouth. I could tell my mascara was running too, and I knew I looked like a complete and utter mess.

Dad sighed and put his arms around me. “I know it’s been really hard on you ever since your Mom died, sweetie. But you have to know, Karen isn’t trying to replace her. No one is. She’ll always be here in spirit. I thought you knew that.”

I nodded. “I do. I don’t know why I’ve been feeling like this,” I choked out. “I thought I’d been coping just fine for the last few years, but in the last couple of months I’ve been feeling awful again.”

“It’s my fault,” he said softly. “I shouldn’t have surprised you with the wedding like I did. I should’ve introduced you to Karen a long time ago and slowly eased you into the idea.”

“It’s not your fault, Dad,” I said, my voice partially muffled by his shoulder. “You knew I’d react badly. That’s why you didn’t tell me. You were scared.”

“Well, I’m a grown man,” he replied. “I should’ve manned up and told you earlier, regardless of the outcome.”

I broke away from his hug and wiped my face with the back of my sleeve. He tucked some of my wild curls behind my ear and looked down at me, his eyes filled with concern.

“Go and wash your face,” he said. “Calm down a little, and then I’d like you to come back downstairs and apologize to Karen.”

I nodded and sniffed again. “I will. I’m really sorry, Dad.”

“I know.”

I turned away, and he put his hand on my shoulder. “Oh, and Mia? I hate to bring this up while you’re upset, but I just received a message from a friend of mine in the police force. You’re going to hear about it soon anyway.”

I turned back to him and wiped my eyes. “What is it?”

“There was another attack on an Overton student last night. They still don’t have any suspects. When you go back, I don’t want you going anywhere by yourself after dark. Even in the late afternoon…please make sure you’re always with someone.”

“I will, Dad,” I replied. God, another sexual assault. When the hell were they going to catch this guy?

“If they don’t catch him soon, I’d like to discuss other colleges with you at some point. Anyway, go wash your face. I’ll see you downstairs,” Dad said, squeezing my shoulder.

I went into the bathroom and stood in there for what felt like an eternity, splashing my face with cold water and staring at myself in the mirror. I still couldn’t believe how badly I’d snapped downstairs. Mom and Dad had always raised me to be polite and kind, and guilt over how I’d treated Karen tore at my insides, eating them up like a gutful of sharks.

Despite how awful I felt about what I’d done, I felt a little better about my Mom for some strange reason. Getting all my emotions out to Dad must have been helpful. Still, I could have gone about it in a much more mature way, and I knew I was going to regret what I’d said and done for a long time.

I splashed my face one more time and then looked back up in the mirror, and I saw Brad passing the bathroom in the reflection. He stopped for a second as he saw me. It looked like he was about to say something, but instead he pressed his lips firmly shut and continued on down the hall.

Pushing the thought of him aside, I headed downstairs and quietly padded into the kitchen, where I found Karen wiping down the counter.

“Hey, Karen,” I said. “I’m really sorry about that outburst. I was way out of line. It won’t happen again, I swear.”

She wiped her hands on a cloth and smiled hesitantly at me. “Oh, Mia, hon, it’s okay. Don’t beat yourself up. I understand. Things are really hard when you lose a parent at an early age, even when it’s been years since it happened. I know that because I lost my Mom as well, when I was only eleven.”

“Oh. I’m sorry.”

She put a hand on my arm. “If you ever want to talk about anything, I’m here, okay? I’m not trying to be your new mother or anything like that, but I do understand some of the things you’ve gone through, so I’m here if you need me.”

“Thanks, Karen,” I replied. I felt like I was about to well up with tears again. She was being far nicer than I deserved.

“Oh, and for your birthday dinner…I know you and your Dad have always gone to Vee, because that’s where you went with your Mom when she was still here. I told your father we could still go, and that I could just take my own food, and I’m still happy to do that if it would make you feel a little better.”

Wow, she was way too nice. I’d thrown a childish bitch tantrum at her not even fifteen minutes earlier, and she was being so kind and understanding. No wonder my Dad loved her so much. She was a beautiful person, inside and out. Unlike me. I was a total cow.

I shook my head. “No, then you’d be feeling left out while we all eat big burgers right in front of you. It’s fine. Café Amuse is nice, and Dad and I can always go to Vee another night.”

“Are you sure? I hate to ruin tradition.”

“Yeah, I’m sure. We can always make new family traditions on top of the older ones, seeing as you’re family now.”

Her smile grew warmer and wider. “Thanks for saying that. Your Dad was right about you. He said you’re very wise for your age.”

I laughed softly. “I’m not wise all the time, believe me. I think I proved that a few minutes ago.”

She didn’t know it, but I wasn’t only referring to the immature tantrum I’d just thrown. I was also referring to how stupid I felt about crushing on her son, and how dumb I still felt for almost hooking up with him the night before she married my Dad. God, how awkward would it have been if I’d actually gone through with it and had sex with him? I’d have had to try and sweep it all under the rug and ignore the fact that I’d slept with my frigging
stepbrother
.

See, this was exactly why hooking up with random guys was a bad idea most of the time. You never knew exactly who they’d turn out to be.

As for my little crush on Brad…well, unfortunately, it hadn’t dissipated over the last few weeks as I’d hoped it would. In fact, the minute I’d seen him when he arrived in McComb last night, I’d felt it even more. The feeling of wanting him was so strong that it was almost crushing my mind in its intensity.

Huh. I guess that’s why they call it a crush…