Page 39 of Salacious Park Avenue Prince

“Why do you do this to yourself?” I whispered, studying the sharp angles of his face.

I didn’t expect any kind of answer, he was off in la-la-alcohol-land, so when he muttered, “You were with Jen,” my hand froze.

What did that mean?He got drunk because I was on a date? No. That didn’t make sense. Or maybe he meant he got drunk because I wasn’t there to stop him. Yeah, well, he could try to blame me all that he wanted. But when he woke up tomorrow, I was going to hand him his ass.

He needed to stop doing this to himself before he really got hurt. He was so much better than this. Better than the stringof one-night stands he was working his way through. I just wished he could see it.

As the taxi took the final turn onto Park Avenue, I stroked his hair one last time, then leaned down by his ear and whispered, “We’re home, Trav. It’s time to wake up.”

I BLINKED AND stared down at where my fingers were tangled in ink-black hair and froze.

Where the hell had that come from? I hadn’t thought about that night in forever. Now here I was, a little over a week of living with Travis and stroking his damn hair.

He was such a menace to my mind, and even now, passed out on the couch, he was controlling my every thought.

I gently removed my hand, careful not to wake him, and as I slowly backed away I took a final look at the man who was still running around and living life like the sixteen-year-old I’d once known.

ELEVEN

travis

“I THINK I’M tapped out.” I waved my hands as East tried to hand me another shot. I didn’t know how he was still upright after everything we’d consumed, but I was definitely more affected than he was. Maybe those rattlesnake shots were stronger than I thought.

“I thought we left all the pussies at home.” He dangled the small glass in front of my face. “You know. With Caleb.”

“Shut up.”

“Why? You want to forget him, don’t you? That’s why we’re here.”

He wasn’t wrong. I could’ve asked any of the guys to leave the party, but I’d chosen East, who was now determined to get me to the fuck-me-up level I’d requested.

Now that was a friend.

Before he could say another word, I reached for the shot and swallowed it back in one fiery gulp…

“FUUUCK ME.” I groaned, but the sound was muffled from my face being half smashed into the couch cushion. Jesus, had I not been able to make it to my bed last night?

I tried to remember how I’d gotten home, but everything after that last shot was fuzzy as hell, and the throbbing in my head wasn’t helping.

Every time I swore off a night with East, I went back for more, though this was the first time I’d ended up passed out on the couch. Hell, at least it wasmineand not some random’s. That was something.

I didn’t have the energy to keep my eyes open as I did a mental check of my body. Head: attached but currently being attacked by a hammer, check. Stomach: slightly queasy but not at level head-in-a-toilet, check. Arms: would probably have feeling in both if I wasn’t lying on top of the left one, check.

All in all, not one of the worst hangovers I’d ever had, and nothing a few more hours of sleep wouldn’t fix.

As I shifted sides to give my arm a break, the blanket covering me slid onto the floor. I grabbed it and threw it back over me, snuggling down into its warmth.

Two seconds later, my eyes flew open.

Something about that wasn’t right. East had practically shoved me inside my condo before leaving—I remembered that now. I’d felt a wave of dizziness on the way to my room and had gone to sit on the couch and then just decided to lie down. I hadn’t even been able to kick off my shoes, much less get a blanket from somewhere, so where had it come from?

Through the battering ram smashing my head, I heard cabinet doors open and close, then the sound of running water, followed by heavy footsteps headed in my direction. I kept my eyes closed, hoping Caleb would ignore me and keep on moving, but then he slammed something down on the coffee table that rattled, and I jolted awake.

“Rise and shine.”

The bottle of pain reliever and a water mocked me, and I hitched the blanket up to cover my face. “Go away.”

“We’re gonna be late to school. Get your ass up.”

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