Page 54 of Collision
I look around and run a hand through my hair, overwhelmed with anxiety.
Damn it, this can’t be happening! The little voice in my head suggests that there is only one thing to do: run away. What could I have been thinking? All of this happened because I wanted it to happen. But damn, did I ever take it too far. One-night stands are not for me. And a one-night stand with Thomas Collins is especially not for me. It’s much better for my dignity if I leave before he wakes up, otherwise he’ll have to kick me out himself. And that would be too humiliating to bear.
Cautiously, I slide the muscular arm off my belly and stand up. In doing so, I feel some very annoying twinges in my lower abdomen. They must be the result of Thomas taking me with such wild abandon last night. I touch my belly and I can almost hear the echo of my ecstatic gasps.
I tiptoe around the room looking for something to wear, but I find only Thomas’s boxers and his black T-shirt on the floor. I’m not sure where in the house to look for my clothes. On the other hand, I do find my bag with my phone inside. Thank goodness. At least I can call Tiffany and ask her to bring me a clean change of clothes.
I try to turn it on but it shows no signs of life. The battery is dead. I can’t believe this. And I also have to get out of here in a hurry if I want to get to campus in time for my reading group! According to the alarm clock on the nightstand, it’s already after eight o’clock. I stick my phone back inside my bag and, unintentionally, I knock a penholder off the desk. The clamor wakes Thomas.
“What…what are you doing?” he mumbles in a voice thick with sleep.
“Where are my clothes?” In one sudden movement, I pick up his black shirt and slip it on, hiding my naked body.
“You going somewhere?” He sits up and rubs his eyes. My gaze drops to his tensed abdominals, the triangle of his pelvic area barely covered by the sheet, above which I glimpse a slim trail of hair. I swallow and bite my lip, trying to ignore the strange sensations that this vision triggers in me.
“To campus,” I reply, trying to play it cool. “I have my first book club meeting in forty-five minutes, and I’m stuck here, with no clothes and no memories!” What did he think? That I was going to stay here with him and let him take me for another ride? Take me for a ride? What the hell am I talking about?
“Your clothes are in the wash. After the strip poker, they were in bad shape.”
Strip…strip poker? The little voice in my head suggests I not ask any follow-up questions, because I will regret it.
“So how do I get out of here? I can’t go to campus dressed like this.” I look down at his shirt.
“Why not? It’s a lot better than those faux-innocent clothes you usually wear,” he taunts me.
“I am not faux-innocent!” I retort acidly.
“Oh, but you are. I got proof of that last night, when you got brutally fucked by yours truly and absolutely loved it.” He gives me a satisfied grin and another image rises out of my memory: Thomas taking me from behind, with my hair clenched in his fist, spanking my ass as I begged him to continue. “I suspected that behind that angel facadeof yours there was a hidden kinky side. And the idea that you brought it out just for me”—he pauses, full of mischief—“it gets me so fucking hot.” He lets his hand trail between his legs without the slightest hint of shame. Meanwhile, my cheeks are on fire.
“Y-you’re delusional. I don’t have a kinky side. I was just drunk and depressed.” I pull down the hem of his shirt, trying to cover as much of my legs as possible.
“You didn’t seem very depressed when you came while screaming my name.” He chuckles. “I still have scratches from your nails on my back.”
I take a deep breath, pinching the bridge of my nose. I try to shake off the devouring sense of shame. Enough. It’s time to put an end to this drama.
“What happened last night must never happen again. More importantly, it needs to stay inside these four walls, forever,” I threaten. It was a mistake. It was all just a terrible mistake. I mean, it’s Thomas Collins we are talking about here. I have no desire to be one of his conquests. The alcohol must have removed all my inhibitions because nothing I did last night with him is me.
“We fucked, Vanessa. Don’t make a big deal out of it. You’ll have forgotten it by tomorrow.” He heaves an exhausted sigh before taking a pack of Marlboros out of the nightstand drawer. He sets an ashtray on one thigh and brings a cigarette to his lips before lighting it.
“Well, I’m glad we agree,” I say, clearing my throat and forcing myself to change the subject. “Anyway…I didn’t know you belonged to this fraternity.” I look around skeptically.
“I’m a man of many surprises.” He smiles wryly.
“I don’t understand. I thought you were living in the dorms.”
“Not much to understand. I’m part of Sigma Beta, but I don’t have to live here. I prefer to stay at the dorms during the week because it’s quieter.”
“But isn’t a frat brother supposed to live with the others? I mean, aren’t there meetings, services to be rendered, tests to pass, and all that crap?” I sit at the foot of the bed.
“The only obligation I have toward this fraternity is to attend the parties,” he explains, exhaling a plume of smoke.
“How come?”
Thomas sighs, annoyed by my chatter. “Because, somehow, my presence at a party guarantees the participation of certain students who matter.”
“I still don’t understand. Why do you spend the weekend here?”
“Because, I can have fun here however I want,” he says cheekily.
