Page 14 of Dirty Girl

“She didn't hear anything, you know.”

I love him for trying to alleviate my worry, but I don't believe for one second she didn’t hear. Hell, the neighbors down the street probably heard my screams, let alone my best friend that was less than twenty feet away. “Jenson there's no way that she didn't hear that. I practically screamed the roof down.”

He smiles wide, flashing his perfect white teeth. “She walked away long before the finale.”

“Oh, thank you, baby Jesus.” Relief washes over me. I'm not ready to tell Jackie and if she found out like that… I'd never live it down. The look on Jenson’s face is a cup of ice water down my back. It completely ruins any comfort I found in the fact that we haven't been found out. I hate that it hurts him, but I’m terrified of the repercussions. I haven’t even come to terms with being in a relationship with Jenson—if you can call some hot sex and him growling about me belonging to him a relationship.

“Just because she didn’t hear you this time, doesn’t mean we aren’t telling her.” His tone is resolute and I know without a shadow of a doubt that he’s not going to back down. I should be happy about how sure he is, but the truth is I’m scared. Without the Johns family, I’m completely and utterly alone in the world. If things end badly between us, I’ll lose everything I have left.

My brain tells me it’s stupid, that the risk isn’t worth being alone in the world. My heart says to grab ahold of Jenson with both hands and don’t let go. Common sense says this is lust, but my naïve heart says it’s love.

It was only supposed to be a teenage dream. Unrequited and unexplored. The temptation of making it real—of giving in to everything Jenson’s promising with his smooth words and hard body—is impossible to ignore. I know I’m going to end up surrendering to whatever he requests, even if it breaks my heart.

“Dylan,” Jackie whines. “You have to come tonight.”

I reach into the fridge for a bottle of water, weighing my options. I absolutely do not want to end up at some kegger with a bunch of idiots getting drunk and hooking up. I spent the better part of my high school years avoiding those kinds of situations, but my normal excuse of having homework or needing to study no longer apply.

Jackie didn’t push me while we were in school. She knew how important it was for me to make good grades. My parents had high expectations for me. Success wasn’t optional, it was mandatory, which never bugged me. I’ve been a book nerd since birth and school came easily for me. When my parents died, I easily could have slacked off, but I kept up with my study habits. Silly as it sounds, it made me feel like they were still part of my life. If I followed their rules, then they were still involved.

My heart clenches in my chest. It’s been eight months since a drunk driver took them from me. The pain of losing them is still a physical ache. Some days it feels like it’s been forever, other days it feels like it was just yesterday.

Jackie’s fingers wiggle back and forth in front of my face. “Earth to Dylan.”

I swallow back the lump that forms in my throat every time I get caught up in thinking about my parents. “Sorry, what were you saying?”

“That’s it, you’re coming tonight. No arguments this time. You can’t just hole up in this house by yourself and wallow.” Jackie pulls me into a side hug, resting her head against mine. “I know it still hurts, but you’ve got to move on. They wouldn’t want you to be so unhappy.”

Am I unhappy? Yeah, I miss them like crazy, but I’ve not been wallowing… Have I?

“It’ll be fun!” Jackie practically bounces with energy as she tells me the big plans for the night.

“Uh, Jacks, I hate to be a party pooper, but I can’t dance.” She rolls her eyes so hard I think they might get stuck.

“No excuses, you’re going with us. End of.”

“Going where?” Jenson interrupts, his tone proprietary. He stalks across the room, coming to a stop ridiculously close to me. The heat from his body seeps into my back and his scent surrounds me. I can barely hold back a moan. My body instinctively wants to be touched by him. I mentally scold myself into keeping that small distance he left between us. I’d like nothing more than to lean into him right now, for him to hold me, but that’s the exact opposite of what needs to happen if I’m going to keep this thing with Jenson under wraps. At least for now.

Jackie glares at her big brother, probably thinking he’s going to poo-poo her plans. Not that she’d listen. “We’re going clubbing.”

Jenson sucks in a breath through his teeth. I dare a glance over my shoulder at him. His posture is rigid, but the look on his face is that same aloof expression he always wears in my presence. It warms my heart that he’s honoring my wish to keep whatever this is between us quiet. The only noticeable sign of his agitation is his ticking jaw. I’m not sure if Jackie picks up on his stance, or if she’s just defensive, but she continues telling him that there is nothing he can do about us going out. That we are grown ass adults—her words, not mine. Every word out of her mouth ratchets up Jenson’s level of tension, but the only perceivable change is that he’s added a raised eyebrow to match that jaw tick.

“You’re right,” Jenson interrupts.

“What!?” I half-yell, half-whine. I whip around to face him so fast, I almost lose my balance, but his steadying hands on my shoulders prevent a fall.

“Jackie’s right. You are, as she said, ‘grown ass adults.’ I can’t stop you from going out.” He shrugs his shoulders as if it’s not a big deal to him. Which I call bullshit on because the man is so wound up so tight, you can practically see the tension rolling off him in waves.

“But… but…” I stutter. I had been counting on him telling her there was no way we were going. That we were underage and he forbids it, but no, he’s completely on board. I’m still reeling from everything when Jackie squeals and pushes me out of the way to throw her arms around her brother.

“Thank you!” Jackie is positively vibrating with excitement as she runs out of the room. Before she disappears up the stairs, she turns and levels a glare my way. “Either you be ready by eight or I’ll dress you myself.” With that threat she turns and dances her way up the stairs to start her primping routine.

She’s barely out of eyesight when Jenson’s big arms are pulling me in close, surrounding me in their warmth.

“Dammit, Jenson. I don’t want to go clubbing,” I grouse, pulling away from him. Trying to extract myself from his embrace is proving useless because every time I pull against his hold, he tightens his grip. The bastard just chuckles at my efforts and starts running his lips across my jaw, nipping me with his teeth every so often. He keeps up the sensual torture until I’ve relaxed into his hold and am tipping my head to give him better access.

“I didn’t agree that you could go clubbing. In fact, the idea of you being anywhere near drunk men looking for an easy lay makes me want to go on a murderous rampage. I agreed that you deserve to have some fun, so I offered a night out to Pitch Black completely on me.” He kisses my lips almost chastely, but the hard length of his cock proves that he’s not immune to our closeness. “This way I can watch over you. Make sure no one touches what’s mine.”

I look up at him with lust glazed eyes. I should be upset that he manipulated the situation, but I’m not. I love that he’s jealous. It makes me think maybe this thing between us could be real. That maybe jumping in with both feet isn’t a complete mistake.

---