Page 7 of Drunk Dialing My Enemy

I shut my mouth before I embarrass myself.

I could list all of the things I like about Darren for days but what would be the point? Why am I handing ammunition over tomy enemy? Admitting I still feel anything for him is like handing him my heart.Here you go, Darren. Break it again.

“So you thought I just wanted to kiss you because you were a hot football player?” I ask him.

“Maybe.”

“Like I was objectifying you?”

He grins.

“Probably. I don’t know. You were sixteen and full of hormones.”

“And you were seventeen.”

“No, I was eighteen.”

“Barely. Our birthdays are only a few days apart, remember? You act like the gap in our age was so significant but it wasn’t.”

“It wasn’t about the number of years between us,” he replies. “It was about the fact that you were Dot’s best friend. That’s an automatic barrier. If you hadn’t been her friend already, if I’d just met you in the cafeteria at school…”

He drifts off and it’s maddening. I desperately want to hear the end of this sentence, so much that I’m literally holding my breath.

“Let’s just say that when we kissed, it was the beginning of losing all control.”

CHAPTER 4

DARREN

I won’t touchKatie until she’s sober. I let her go once because of foolishness; I won’t lose her again because of impatience.

I can wait for her. For as long as she needs. But I know now that I have to have her. Eventually, whether it’s tomorrow or next year or ten years from now, Katie will be mine.

When we get to my place, Katie is fading fast. She’s reached peak drunkenness — at least, hopefully it’s the peak — and is also sleepy.

This combination creates a very affectionate, very clumsy version of the woman I’ve known for two decades.

“Ouch! Why is your sidewalk so hard?”

I rush around my truck to help her.

“I told you to let me help you get out,” I scold, pulling her off the sidewalk and back into my arms. I can’t ignore the way my cock is brought to life every time we touch. It’s instant and urgent, and I know once we’re settled in for the night, I’m going to need a long, hot shower to take care of this erection.

“Oooh, are we growling again? Fun!” Katie says happily, her hair tickling my chin. “My turn –My name is Darren. Grrr. Ilike to make out with girls and then pretend they’re invisible the next day.”

I ignore her, too focused on getting her into my house without falling down. But she continues.

“I hate Katie so much, I bought a whole damn building out of spite!”

“I didn’t buy it to spite you.”

“Coulda fooled me. It’s not enough that you had to buy it – you had to tear down my princess bridge too.”

“That thing was a goddamn hazard.”

“You’re just saying that because you hit your head on it! For those of us below six feet tall, it was fine.”

“It wasn’t just that,” I reply. “There were rusted nails sticking out all over. And the wood was rotted. I had nightmares thinking about you walking on that thing every day. It was a matter of time before you or one of the other women got hurt on it.”

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