Page 64 of Inevitable

Epiphanies are a funny thing. You would think they'd slam into you like a freight train, hitting you with intense insight in a blinding second of clarity. Turns out it's more subtle than that. It's like a dense fog lifting gradually as you fight to find your way through. Your brain grapples with the information, twisting and turning to make sense of it all until finally you arrive at a truth that could knock you on your ass. My epiphany crept up on me and all the blood in my veins froze.

“How did you know about Kit and Micah being at that party together?” I asked, but I was pretty damn sure I knew what the answer was. Ainsley's breathing stuttered for a beat before she tried to cover it up.

“What do you mean? I saw them there. I put two and two together because I'm not a fucking idiot like you think I am,” she sneered. That would have been a convincing explanation…if not for the glint of apprehension in her bright blue eyes.

“Micah told me they ended up at that party because Kit's cousin told him about it. Yet it doesn't really make sense for a grown man who already graduated to want to hit up a college frat party. Any idea why Kit would choose that place out of all the places he could've taken Micah, least of all to his house, if he wanted to fuck him?”

Her eyes turned bitterly cold and the temperature in the room seemed to drop. “Kit was supposed to make Micah fall for him. At the very least, he should have banged him so good that he forgot about you and we could've gotten on with our lives.”

I just stared at her in shock, rage slowly filtering in as the implications of what she was confessing to ran through my head. “How exactly did Kit meet Micah? That wasn't a fucking coincidence, wasit?” She rolled her eyes at me like I was wasting her time with my inquisition.

“Of course not, asshole. I told Kit about you and Micah the day after I met him. I knew in my gut that Micah had a thing for you, and I had a feeling he would sink his teeth into you if given half the chance. Kit and I spent all our childhood together, I tell him everything. He offered to…show Micah the error of his ways. I thought it was a little over the top, but the day he planned to tail Micah and “accidentally” meet him, he overheard him at a coffee shop with that nerdy friend of his talking about the concert. He thought that was a much better way to get his attention. Guess he was right,” she smirked evilly. “It would have worked better had he been able to pop that ass cherry of his, but Kit says your boy toy's about as sexual as a potato. Have fun with that.”

I grinned widely at her, not being able to resist the barb. “Trust me, Ains, he rocks my world better than you could on your best fucking day. And according to your side piece, you couldn't satisfy him even if you had beer-flavored nipples, so let's not throw stones, shall we?”

The loathing and indignation that was rolling off her in waves would have made me jump for joy if I wasn't in such a hurry to finish this shit and get back to my love, back to Micah.

“Accept this for what it is, Ainsley. You breathe a single word to my father about me, Micah, or us breaking up and I will make sure you are the talk of campus for months on end. That's if your parents don't lock you in a convent to keep you on a leash after they see and read all you've been up to,” I said, making sure my voice was clear and confident. “Do we understand each other?” I locked my eyes on her and willed her to see the truth hidden there. For that single heartbeat, I made myself believe that I would ruin her if I had no choice. She needed to see it on my face.

She huffed out a breath and clenched her teeth so hard that her jaw shook. “Fine. Now get out,” she snapped.

My fucking pleasure.

CHAPTER 23

Micah

It was done. Ainsley was gone, no longer a stain on our lives or a shadow above our heads.Ding dong, the bitch is dead!

I didn't get a chance to ask how the whole ordeal went since Bash attacked me when he swung by my place afterwards and sucked my brain out through my dick. I even intended to get the story after I managed to form sentences again, but then I dropped to my knees for him and eagerly returned the favor. After we were both sated and wrung dry, Bash finally gave me the rundown on the entire fucked up conversation he had with Ainsley, including the interesting little tidbit about her mysterious cousin.

Upon seeing how worked up I got after learning of Kit's deceit, Bash was instantly grateful he had told me after his blowjob. In that state, I was likely to bite his junk off in an accidental rage, and that would have put a serious damper on our relationship. Once I had calmed down, I knew it was pointless to be pissed. Kit might have orchestrated our whole relationship with his twisted cousin, but I still chose him. If it wasn't him, it would have been someone else. I had tried so hard to avoid my feelings for Bash that I would have picked the next willing man if Kit hadn't been there.

After that, I decided the details shouldn't matter to us anymore. We were free of their drama and I could now devote precious attention to my gorgeous boyfriend and his equally gorgeous piece of pelvic hardware. I had years of pent up sexual frustration where Bash was concerned, and I planned to put it to good use.

We slept in Saturday morning, exhausted from another round of frantic blowjobs in the middle of the night. Even after two weeks of living together and sleeping in the same bed, I still woke up some mornings in a panic, expecting to find the bed cold and empty. Whenever my mind registered the warm, solid body next to me, it soothed my racing heart and the realization hit me all over again that Bash was truly mine. He was really there next to me, and he wouldn't be going away this time.

Honestly, he was lucky I let him out of the apartment at all. Having him to myself after all these years had latent obsessive tendencies popping up, and I frequently fantasized about handcuffing him to the bed to keep him with me always. Of course, part of my brain still functioned normally so Bash was safe from my disturbed fantasies.Just so we're clear, chaining him up to my bed would be a bad move, right? I mean, there's no wiggle room there? You know what? Nevermind! Handcuffs = bad. Got it.

Bash groaned and stretched lightly next to me before nuzzling my neck from behind. He was a big fan of spooning and I was happy to take full advantage. “Morning, baby,” he rumbled, voice scratchy from sleep. It had heat rushing south and perking up my morning wood.

I smiled to myself, loving the feel of him pressed to my back. “Good morning to you. What do you want to do today?” I snuggled back into his chest more, feeling him hum as it radiated through my bones.

“I actually want to take you somewhere. You up for a surprise?” Bash said and I could hear the excitement creeping into his sleepy tone. Needless to say, I was intrigued. He knew I couldn't resist surprises, damn him.

“Ooo, any hints? Is it somewhere fancy or funky?” I asked, knowing he wouldn't tell me anything even if I begged. His penchant for edging extended beyond our bedroom activities.

Bash chuckled low behind me. “You know me better than that, M&M. I won't give you any hints about our date, but I will tell you that we have to get there no later than 5:31pm.”

Ignoring the oddly specific time, I focused on the only word imprinted on my brain from his comment. “Date? This is a date?” my voice betraying how much that single word affected me. I didn't have to see it to know that Bash was smiling. It was a force of nature I could always sense from him, like smelling a coming rain in the air.

“Yeah M, a date. I want to show you something special,” Bash murmured in my ear, his breath ghosting over my flesh and making goosebumps ripple across my skin.

I twisted in his grip to face him, and fuck me if he wasn't the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen. His golden hair was mussed from sleep, he had marks in his cheek from the pillow, his skin had a light red flush to it, and his stunning green eyes glittered in the light. He was messy and disheveled and absolutely perfect. I wanted nothing more in my life than to wake up to his face each and every morning. Even though I knew it was healthy to spend some time at my own place, some days I severely regretted not making the move to his apartment permanently.

As I drank him in, mesmerized by his stupid good looks, an overwhelming mix of feelings swept over me. It was equal parts relief, surprise, and gratitude that we at last had each other, but more than anything I felt happiness. I was steeped in joy, my entire being encased in it like impenetrable armor. Tears glazed my eyes as I fought to contain the immense flood of emotion. Bash's brows creased in the middle as he noticed the watery sheen in my gaze.

“Baby, what's wrong?” Concern etched into his face and tone. I smiled and kissed him soundly on the lips, pulling back before he could deepen it.

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