Page 55 of Deadly Sacrifice

Annie smiles, draping her arms around me in a tired hug. “Thanks for hanging around me all night,” she mumbles, giving me a quick squeeze before backing away.

“Hey, I’m happy to drunk-bake with you anytime,” I tell her. I mean it, too. She’s a lot of fun when Mark isn’t holding her back. I check my phone for the time, rolling my eyes. Already late to my first class. Looking back up at Annie, I cock my head to the side and say, “Do you have a morning class to get to?”

She chews on her lip, and then winces. “None that I plan on attending with this headache,” she admits sheepishly. “Is that awful of me?”

“What? To skip class?” I ask, and she nods. Shaking my head, I loop my arm over her shoulders and start to head back to our room. “You’re in college. Everyone skips a class or two. It’s like a rite of passage.”

She looks at me with raised brows and a teasing smile. “Pretty sure you’ve skipped more than one or two,“ she sasses.

I pop my mouth open in mock outrage, dropping my arm from around her shoulders and opening our bedroom door. “So rude of you to point out,” I joke back as I walk inside. “I was just about to ask you to join me for breakfast, too.”

She flashes me a big grin. “Count me in. Just give me a minute to brush my teeth.”

***

I take a bite out of my egg, ham, and cheese croissant, listening intently while Annie rambles on about her home life. It’s like she’s kept all this inside and now that she has a friend, it’s just bursting out of her.

“My dad was abusive,” she says with a mouthful of food. “Not to me, but to my mom. She left him when I was really little, and we moved in with her mom, my nana. But she’s kind of batshit, you know? Super religious, super strict. A lot of fun, too, but man, get her on a bad day, and everyone would be in tears.”

She pauses to sip her orange juice, takes another bite of her breakfast burrito, and then continues. “Anyway, I was really close with both of them. But then my mom met this guy at the bank she worked at and they hit it off right away. Fast forward a couple of years and they got married. I was so happy for my mom, right? Except that the new husband absolutely hates my nana, like only tolerates her for my mom’s sake. Nana isn’t allowed inside the house if he’s home, that’s how bad it is. So whenever I wanted to see her, before I could drive myself, she’d park outside and call me to tell me she was there, and I’d rush outside so she didn’t wait too long.”

“Geez,” I mumble. “Poor Nana.”

Annie rolls her dark eyes, taking another bite and tilting her head to the side as she chews and swallows. “I mean, he’s a great guy otherwise. And believe me, my nana can be a lot. She doesn’t like men in general, so she’s hard on him, too.” She shrugs with a frown. “I don’t even know what went down between the two of them that started their feud. But anyway, I grew up in the middle of all that. Never saw a truly healthy, happy relationship, which, I guess, explains my dumbass falling for a guy like Mark.”

“Go easy on yourself,” I tell her, setting my food down and leaning back in my seat. “We all have to go through the shitty ones before we find the right guy.”

Annie smiles, some of the tension draining from her posture. “Got any exes that might make me feel better about mine?” she asks.

I laugh, shaking my head. “Nope. Just the assholes here at B.U. that have tried their shot with me,” I answer, trying not to think about Creed right now. It’ll spoil my appetite, and this shit is too good to waste.

Her eyes widen, and she leans forward on her elbows. “Holy shit, that’s right. You said you’ve never dated before… So, does that mean you’re a virgin?” she teases, swirling a finger in the air at me.

I press my lips together, nodding. “And it doesn’t look like I’ll be losing the V card anytime soon, either.”

“Oh my god!” She slams her palm on the table, barely missing her plate. “Seriously? I was joking! You’ve really never had sex?”

A few of the students at nearby tables perk up, looking right over at us. I feel my blush the second it spreads, and I glare at her. “Yes, seriously. And now the entire school will know,” I whisper.

She grimaces and sinks down in her chair. “Sorry. It’s just… Wow. Good for you, girl. No sloppy high school stories to regret.”

“Yeah, I guess,” I agree, thinking about all the boys I liked back then. Probably a good thing my life was far too hectic for me to act on those teenage urges.

Annie smiles, digging back into her food. “Just wait for the perfect guy. Someone sweet who’ll take his time and make sure you’re comfortable and that you actually enjoy it. You can have sex all your life, but no matter what, you’ll always remember the very first time,” she tells me between bites, looking a bit bitter like she wishes she could undo her first time.

Despite myself, Griffin’s face flashes in my mind and I have to clear my throat so I don’t choke on the bite I just took. I’m not risking our growing friendship, though. Besides, I’m here for one thing, and getting screwed by that sexy giant of a sweetheart doesn’t fit anywhere into my plans.

Doesn’t mean I can’t fantasize about it at night, though.

29

Griffin

I wake up to a ding from my phone. Rolling over in bed, my eyelids still heavy with sleep, I blindly reach for it on my nightstand.

Mom: We are coming to see you today. Be ready in fifteen minutes.

Fuck. Shit.

---