Page 28 of Pretty Poisoned

"Ah, fuck," I whimper quietly. I look up and realize that I hadn't shut the door all the way; either that or it doesn't latch well. I wonder how long it's been like that. I move my eyes to the small mirror and spot a familiar set of green eyes watching me.

Luca.

Good. Go ahead and watch—even better. I roll my hips a little more against the steady stream, drop my head, and, gripping the handle and the bar tightly, let myself come, biting my lip hard to keep quiet as it rolls through me.

When I finally stop coming and look up again, the eyes in the mirror are gone.

I turn off the water and dry myself with a small hand towel—a drawback of being on a tour bus, I guess. Then, I step back into the main cabin and spot those same red silk panties I wore earlier right before I step on them.

I distinctly remember putting them in the outside pocket of my bag. And I did. Because when I pick them up, I quickly realize they're filled with cum.

I'm reminded that I'm not exactly normal when the corners of my mouth twist into a smile.

This is why you shouldn't be here, Teagan. Because what are you doing, really?

But I know what I'm doing. I'm in complete control.

I force the intrusive thought out of my head, open my bag, and dig around for something to wear. I'm running very low on options, and that's going to be a problem, especially considering the climate I'm heading to is much different than what I'm used to in Orange County.

It shouldn't be that much of a problem, though, right? Not unless I end up wandering the woods alone for days, lost and unable to communicate like Heidi.

Yeah. Then I'm going to wish I had a jacket.

I step into a pair of underwear, put on a bra, and pull on the same Metallica t-shirt I wore to bed, pairing it with a leather mini-skirt. Then, I slip into my boots, shake out my hair, and put on a little bit of makeup before stepping out into main living space with everyone else.

"There she is," Brady says. "The queen of horror herself."

My heart drops into my stomach. I try to play it off like I'm not sure what he's talking about. "Who? Are you talking about me?"

"We've been learning all about you. Declan showed us your TikTok."

Declan leans against the far wall with his arms crossed over his chest, smirking. He looks me over with cold eyes, this time through a pair of dark-framed glasses. My cheeks flush red.

I turn back to Brady. "So? I like reading," I tell him. "It's a book blog. You don't have hobbies?"

"Yeah, I have plenty. I just don't do them naked online."

"I'm not naked," I say, sitting down next to River.

"Don't shame her," River says. "She's not doing anything wrong."

"Thank you."

"I think it's really cool," she says.

"I wasn't trying to shame her," Brady says. "It's just…I think I'm starting to see how you ended up here with us, on the rolling island of misfit toys. You don't exactly fit in either, do you?"

You have no idea.

"I'm sorry…on thewhat?"Hazel asks.

The girls and Rhett laugh, but Declan doesn't. He's watching me instead, waiting for a reaction, but I refuse to give him one. He brought up my TikTok and showed it to everyone?

Why would he do that? What's he playing?

"What about you?" I ask. "How did you end up here? What makes the rest of you misfit toys?"

The laughter quickly dies down. I follow Brady's eyes as they move to River. She looks back and forth between the two of us, then to Hazel, before she says, "I guess if you stick around long enough, you'll figure it out."

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