Page 131 of Forbidden Lessons

A laugh bursts out of me so fast, I clap a hand over my mouth.

He narrows his eyes at me. “An EMP can disable anything with a circuit board. That includes my Tesla. If there’s a strike, I want to get the hell out of this state.” He claps a hand against theback of the Land Rover’s boxy frame. “Post apocalypse? It’ll be this guy, the cockroaches, and Keith Richards.”

“Who’s Keith Richards?”

“Jesus Christ.” He stares at me like I’ve lost my mind, and then goes to his Tesla, shaking his head the whole way. “Stop reminding me how old I am!” He pauses by his door to point a finger at me.

I point one right back at him. “Gotta keep you humble, Sir!”

He faces away, laughing as he climbs into his car.

I bounce the keys on my hand, then stare over at him as he reverses. When he sees me just standing there, he rolls down his window and sticks his head out of the car.

It’s a surreal moment. Another one of those snapshots, right on the cusp of something new.

Good? Bad? I don’t know yet.

He changed into a black t-shirt and dark wash jeans. I guess he was going for casual, but now the contrast between his pale skin and dark hair is that much starker.

That muchsexier.

He doesn’t seem to feel the chill in the early evening air. The clouds will start building up again soon. And then comes the rain. Days and days without end, until the Agony River floods and washes away all the bullshit that’s collected over the past year.

I used to wish it would wash me away, too. Shouldn’t even have been out of the house by myself at that age, definitely not that close to a speeding river, but even my young, tender mind had accepted the fact that no one gave a shit about me. I’d throw sticks into the river and watch them being swept away, giggling when they disappeared until the frothy waves.

Even put my foot in a few times, amazed at how hard the water tugged at my leg. All it would have taken was one misplaced step. One swell. And little Haven Lee would havewashed up on the shore a few days later, limp and blue-lipped, a broken doll no one had wanted to play with anymore.

But then I met Kai.

I never went back to those white-flecked waters.

He made me feel special. He made me feel wanted. Even though it sometimes hurt when he played with me.

Feeling something was better than feeling nothing.

“Are you coming?”

I kick a stone lying on the ground near my foot. “Could’ve let me drive the Tesla.”

He barks out a laugh, shaking his head. “We are definitely not there yet, sweet girl. Definitely not.”

Chapter 36

Kai

Ezra would pitch a fit if I got to the social committee meeting reeking of booze or weed, so I throw on enough cologne for it to soak into the sorority’s hardwood floors. Then I take a gulp from the bottle of Jäger on my nightstand and slip a freshly rolled joint in my pocket for the walk over.

It should only take five minutes, but I stretch it to ten. Awesome night for a stroll, anyway. There’s a hint of ozone in the air. Moisture and raw earth. Clouds skate over the stars, ghostly against the deep purple sky.

I had an epic day, despite my hangover.

Best part? Haven was nowhere to be found.

Bet she finally slunk home, tail between her legs.

Fucking skank.

Almost wish she’d challenged me for another round of ‘will he, won’t he.’ I lay in bed last night, trashed out of my mind, but still wide awake, my hand flexing at my side, then wrapping around my cock. Stroking it as forcefully as I’d held her onto throat.

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