Page 22 of Veil of Lies

I watched as she ran off, sobbing. She really had ruined my buzz. I wasn’t normally so fucking awful to girls that annoyed me, but she’d wound me up by throwing shade at Stella, who had done nothing to deserve it.

“Thanks for that,” Stella said in a dry voice. “Now I have a giant target on my back.”

“Nah, Cassie won’t say anything. She wouldn’t fucking dare.”

“Hmm.”

“I’m not a complete bastard. I did try being nice to her but she refused to listen.” I wasn’t sure why I felt the need to justify my behavior, but for some reason, I didn’t want Stella to think badly of me.

“Hey, no need to explain. I’m just grateful I’m not the one being reamed out in public.”

My lips curved up in a smile. “Always happy to ream you, sweetheart.”

To my great enjoyment, Stella flushed bright red as she belatedly realized the double meaning of what she’d said. It took me at least ten minutes to stop laughing.

“Bastard!” she hissed, but I could tell from the way her pupils dilated, she’d be thinking about me fucking her ass all day. I couldn’t fucking wait.

Chapter 20

Stella

It was late and I should have been asleep, but once again, insomnia was riding my ass hard. I’d tried all my usual tricks, such as chamomile tea, meditating, and listening to rain noises on my phone. But nothing was working. Instead, here I was, wide awake, and to my irritation, horny as hell.

Harley was mostly to blame. Ever since we’d kissed, my hormones had been running riot. I had no clue why. Before I came to this stupid college, my libido was in the background, mostly happy to nap unless given a reason to do otherwise.

Now, it was as if someone had plugged me into the mains and pressed “on”. Sex was on my brain almost all the time. It was all I thought about: in bed, in class, even walking around campus. Of course, being stalked by the two of the hottest boys on campus wasn’t helping. Harley and Brax popped up more than could be attributed to random coincidences. I hadn’t seen much of Quinn, but when I did, there was definitely an attraction there too.

What the fuck was wrong with me? If this was a fiction novel, I’d be well on my way to building a reverse harem, which was kind of hot if I thought about it. Ugh. Not what I needed to think about.

Maybe if I got myself off, that might ease the incessant itch?

I closed my eyes and thought about kissing Harley. I hadn’t kissed many boys, but none of them had lit my fuse quite like Harley. The feel of his mouth on mine, the way he’d ground his hips into me, showing me exactly what he had to offer.

Spoiler alert: it was a lot.

My nipples pebbled beneath the cotton slip I wore. I pictured Harley in bed with me. Would he be a dominant alpha, ordering me around? I suspected he would. I also suspected I’d enjoy it. I was wet, aching for someone to touch me. My clit throbbed between my thighs. How I wished I’d invested in a fucking vibrator. I needed something thick and hard to satisfy my need for fullness.

I knew Harley would satisfy me. Cassie had screamed the place down for hours; it was obvious Harley was an accomplished lover. Fuck, I wished he was here now, playing with my tits, pressing his hot mouth against my clit, fucking me raw with his huge—”

My little fantasy burst when my phone pinged with an email alert. I struggled to refocus my brain enough to grab my phone. Maybe it was important. It could be Michael, although unlikely this late.

Nope, it was an email from Brax. Ugh. Hey gorgeous, if you’re free Tuesday evening, how about we meet up to talk about the project?

I should have ignored it. He probably assumed I was asleep right now, like a normal person. But no, before I had a chance to think too hard about what the fuck I was doing, I replied.

Stella: Hey. Sure. Library? Time?

Brax: You’re up late? Can’t sleep? Library, 7 PM.

Stella: OK. Yeah, I have sleep issues.

Brax: What keeps you awake?

I hesitated. It wasn’t like I could tell him about Dad and all the other shit, but I felt like I wanted to build some kind of connection. Even a small one. Being alone was so fucking lonely at times.

Stella: Family shit mostly, but I’ve always struggled with sleep. How come you’re awake?

Brax: Same reason. Lost my dad not long ago. Still processing, I guess.

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