Page 22 of Last Boy

He kisses me rough and hard. And stupid me kisses him right back. The room spins, and my head feels dizzy as I feel his erection press into my stomach.

His lips move to my neck, and he kisses my neck before biting down on my flesh and making me cry out. A humiliating loud moan escapes my lips, and before I know it, his mouth catches mine again.

I’m so lost in the moment and lost in this man that I love and hate simultaneously. Suddenly, there’s a knock on the door, and I hear Jolene’s voice.

Shoving him away from me, I glare up at him. “Be right out,” I try to call out, breathless. “Just fixing my dress.”

“Oh, okay,” Jolene answers, sounding concerned before I hear her footsteps walk away.

I push past him, but his hand catches my wrist.

“Poppy,” he rasps, “don’t walk away from me.”

“I can’t do this right now,” I plead. “Not with you.”

“Well, what was this then?” he asks, signaling his hand between us. “Tell me that.”

I stare at him for a second, my heart still beating far too fast while also breaking inside my chest. It hurts so much to love someone so deeply that when you’re in moments like the one we just had…nothing else matters.

“This was a mistake. One that won’t happen again.”

Running my hands down my dress, I smooth it out before exiting the room. And leaving Walker James behind.

Every step is damn near impossible to take with the ache between my legs showing zero signs of subsiding. Damn him.

But mostly, damn me.

I’m supposed to be this bitchy, tough girl who intimidates people. But one touch from him, and I unravel like a pathetic ball of yarn.

Walker

With the rest of the team, I sit in the waiting room at the hospital. Hunter has barely spoken a word, just sitting with his face in his palms, looking down at the floor. It became pretty clear early on that he had a thing for his dance partner, Sutton. Despite their rough history, they seemed to find their way to each other. And now, she’s lying unconscious in a hospital bed, and he doesn’t know if she’s going to wake up or not.

The entire dance team is here—all except Poppy, who I’ve seen sitting outside on a bench by herself through the window.

She and Sutton might live together, but they aren’t friends. From the sounds of it, they are enemies. I know Poppy enough to know that she wouldn’t come in here and try to pretend they were something they weren’t. But she must care about Sutton a bit because she’s here. And that’s something.

I know today isn’t about Poppy. But she’s hurting, and I’m the last person she wants near her. So, walking over to Lana, who’s curled up next to Elias, I take the seat across from them.

“How are you doing?” I ask her, and she looks at me with her makeup-smudged eyes.

She doesn’t answer, but shrugs as her lip trembles and her eyes fill with tears.

“She’s going to be all right,” I whisper. “I know Poppy isn’t the easiest person to get along with. And I know she and Sutton weren’t best friends or anything—”

“Poppy treated her like shit,” she says, cutting me off. “Literal shit.”

Sighing, I pinch the bridge of my nose. The last thing I should be doing is blabbing Poppy’s business all over campus. She’s an extremely private, complex human being. And if she knew I was saying what I was about to, she’d probably cut my nuts off. But I’d rather her be pissed at me than be all alone outside. And the last thing she needs right now is me rushing out there, trying to save her.

I’m starting to learn that maybe she needs to save herself. Because maybe she doesn’t trust me enough to be her hero anymore.

“Poppy’s tough. Trust me, no one gets that more than I do. She’s hard. And she can be really fucking mean.” I nod slowly, looking at Lana. “But, shit, Lana, some of the stuff that girl has been through? It’s unimaginable to most people.” I cringe. “The way I see it, she does good just to get up every single morning and get through the day. Because some people? They would have given up on life a long time ago if they had been dealt the cards she was.”

She sniffles. “Why are you telling me this? I thought…I thought there was no happily ever after for you and her?”

I swallow. “There isn’t. But right now, she’s outside of this hospital, alone. Scared to come in here because she doesn’t want to upset anyone by showing her face. I know she cares about Sutton despite how she acted.” I reach across the aisle and pat her arm. “I can’t be the one to make this better. Right now…she just needs a friend.” A lump forms in my throat, and I swallow it down. “She really, really needs a fucking friend. And to know that you all don’t hate her.”

Looking from me to Elias, she gives a sad, tiny smile. Slowly, she pushes herself to stand and exhales. “I’ll go get her.”

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