Page 3 of Forbid Me
“I don’t know why I let Ryder come between us,” she admits, the lightness dimming from her eyes. “I’m so sorry I let him.”
I reach out and cup her cheek. “No more apologies, Charlie, there’s no need. And I let him come between us too.”
“It’s nice to have you back,” she tells me as she squeezes my hand and I answer her with a smile.
“Wanna watch a film, like old times?” I ask her, and she nods her head.
“What do you wanna watch?”
“You pick.”
“Like old times?” she says as I get comfy against the headboard.
“Like old times,” I confirm, and she picks out a chick flick and smiles as she gets situated beside me. She always used to make me watch these, and even though they’re not my first choice, I’ll do it for her, because that’s what you do when you love someone—you make them fucking happy.
“Babes,” Melanie says as her hand slides onto my shoulder. It takes everything in me not to pull away, because fuck does she make my skin crawl. I won’t be able to put on this act of wanting her much longer, doing it for the last couple of days has been hard enough… actually, for the last few months. I don’t even know why I bothered to stay attached to her, to be honest. The quick fuck here and there was not worth it, and I’m regretting my choices when it comes to her immensely.
“Where were you last night?” she whines, her lips pouting at me.
“Asleep.”
“At half past nine?” she questions, removing her hand from my shoulder—thank fuck—and crossing her arms over her chest.
“Yes, Melanie, because I was tired,” I grit out, not in the mood for her bullshit.
“Good job I found a way to entertain myself then,” she comments, and I have to stop myself from following up with ‘on the end of Ryder’s dick’, because that is exactly where she was, her location on her phone giving her away. I guess she thinks I don’t check that shit, and usually, I don’t, but that’s how I found out about them three nights ago. And then the last two nights as well. There would be no other reason for her to be going to his house, and Charlie’s admission that she also knew about them was the confirmation I needed. I made out I knew with certainty, which was the way to go, because I don’t know if Charlie would have told me if I’d come across unsure.
Charlie… God, last night with her, watching a shitty chick flick, was the best night I’ve had in a long time. And I can’t wait to finally make her mine and show her how a woman should be treated. I’m only eighteen myself, but I know how to treat a woman, how to make them feel, how to make them scream… at least, I will do, when Charlie is finally mine. I barely fucking tried with Melanie, or any of the others, because they didn’t hold my interest—barely had it in the first place.
“Are you even listening to me?” Melanie screeches, the sound cutting through me like fingernails on a chalkboard.
“Not even a little bit,” I tell her, because my eyes are glued to the woman sat at the side of the football pitch. She’s scanning the field for me, and when she sees me stood at the end, she smiles briefly before sitting down on one of the benches, Suzie rocking up beside her a few seconds later.
“For fuck’s sake, Travis, what is wrong with you?” Melanie shouts, garnering a bit of attention from a few people a couple of feet away from us.
My patience and my idea to fuck with her before I end it snaps. “I suggest you keep your voice down,” I say as I finally turn my head to look at her with disgust. “Because you wouldn’t want the crowd to find out that you’ve been fucking Ryder behind my back.” I use my status as captain of the football team to my advantage. I’m not a fucking dickhead by any means, but to get her off my case, I’ll act like a dickhead for a moment. The pupils here love me as the captain, cheering us on during games and knowing I’m the top scorer for miles. I’m on course to play for a professional team, the signing of a contract coming imminently, once I graduate.
Her sureness falters for a few moments, her mouth hanging open in shock that I know. “That’s absurd,” she splutters, but her words aren’t convincing in the slightest.
“Is it?” I say, one eyebrow raised.
“You know I would never do that to you,” she protests, and I actually fucking laugh at her.
“What I know is that I couldn’t really give a shit who you’re fucking, because whatever we had is done, has been since the moment I first stuck my dick in you.” I am aware I’m being callous, but that is all Melanie understands, being callous herself. It doesn’t feel good, but I need shot of her pronto.
“Don’t be like that, baby,” she purrs and reaches for my arm, which I pull away. And then she stomps her foot on the ground—actually fucking stomps, like a child.
“Throwing a tantrum won’t work with me, so save yourself the bother,” I tell her, bored.
“How dare you,” she says through gritted teeth, and I roll my eyes.
“Play the victim card all you like, it won’t change the fact that you fucked my best mate behind my back.”
“And have you even bothered to ask him about whether this is true or not?” she questions, folding her arms over her chest.
I scoff. “No, because why would I trust the words that come from the mouth of a liar?” I throw back at her, and she purses her cherry-red lips.
“You’ll come crawling back soon enough, baby, because no one is as good as me,” she says, flipping her hair over her shoulder.
