Authors: Melanie J. Cole
They both bop their heads up and down. “Fuck yeah!” Dusty says, slamming his
empty shot glass down onto the table.
I shake my head at them. “I’ll be right back.” I give Karma a kiss, on the cheek, and head over to the bar.
CHAPTER 55
KARMA
I keep looking around, but I don’t see Sherry
, anywhere.
Dusty pushes up from the table, bringing my focus onto him. “Where are you going?”
“I’m going to dance. Do you want to come?”
I
shake my head. “Not right now. Maybe later.”
Anna jumps up. “I’ll dance with you.”
I watch them as they push their way through the crowd.
“Hey, you made it!” I look up as Sherry sits down next to me.
I lean over so that she can hear me. “Yeah, where have you been? I didn’t see you.”
She motions to the dance floor. “I was dancing. I saw you come in.” Her expression turns all serious, as she looks over at the bar. “Was that Trent Evers that you came in with?” Her brows are creased as she studies me.
I nod my head at her. “Yeah, why?”
“Are you dating him?” She asks incredulously.
“Yeah,” I glance over towards the bar. Trent is talking to some guy.
“Oh,” she has this solemn expression on her face. “No offense Karma, but why are you dating
him
?”
I press my brows together. I don’t like where this seems to be going. “How do you know, Trent?”
She keeps throwing wary glances his way. “I don’t really know him. I’ve just heard of him. Half of the girls in my dorm have gone out with him.”
I bite down o
n my bottom lip, and begin drumming my fingers against my shot glass. “What did they say about him?”
She shakes
her head, and her eyes land on me. “Um…just…” She throws her arms up in the air. “It’s nothing. This really isn’t any of my business. You can date whoever you want.”
I narrow my eyes towards Tr
ent. He’s still talking to the same guy. “No, I want to know. What did the girls say about him?”
Sherry runs her fingers through her short hair, looking all ner
vous. “They said he was a great lay.”
I feel like someone his ripped my chest open, and is squeezing my heart in their hands. I knew Trent was a bad boy, but actually, hearing it from someone – it makes me sick to my stomach.
She starts to stand up. “I really shouldn’t have said anything.”
I grab her arm and stop he
r. “No. I want you to tell me everything you know about him.”
She chews on her bottom lip for several seconds,
looking all perplexed. “Trent doesn’t do relationships, Karma. That’s why I was so shocked, when I seen you with him. You don’t seem like the type of girl he usually goes for. Hell, as far as I know - as soon as he beds them - he’s out of there.”
I swallow the massive lump in my throat. I think
, I’m going to be sick. I look back towards Trent, and now there’s a woman standing next to him. She has blonde hair, and huge boobs. My mouth falls open, when I see her grab his ass. What the fuck?
Sherry follows my eyes, and places her hand over mine.
“I’m sorry, Karma. That girl he’s talking to lives across the hall from me. I don’t know how long you’ve been dating him, but I saw him leaving her room, the other day.”
The other day? I’ve been seeing Trent, for several weeks, now. I feel numb, as I keep watching the blonde. She’s leaned up against Trent - trailing her fingers up and down his back - as she whispers something into his ear. His back is to me, and there are several people crowded around him – mostly women. It looks like he’s nodding his head. “I think I’m going to be sick.” I say, around the huge lump, that’s lodged itself in my throat.
“
I’m sorry, Karma. Do you want me to take you home?” Sherry asks, patting my hand.
I turn around
, and see Dusty and Anna dancing. They look like they’re having a really good time. I don’t want to ruin their fun, but I sure as hell, don’t want to keep watching Trent, being groped, either. Why hasn’t he tried to stop her? Probably, because he’s making plans to screw her. I feel like a complete idiot.
I stand up and stumble slightly. Sherry quickly grabs hold of my arm, and steadies me. “Come on. I’ll drive you home.”
I nod numbly, and follow her through the club.
I can feel the tears rolling down my cheeks, as Sherry pulls us onto the interstate. “What’s your address?”
I tell her, and she punches it into her GPS.
The drive home is excruciating. I keep picturing Trent with tons of girls. I press my head against the window. I should have known better
, than to let myself fall for him. What was I thinking? I feel like a fool. The way that I was giving Anna dating advice earlier – what a joke. Apparently, I don’t know a damn thing when it comes to guys. Boy, I can sure pick them.
“Is this it?” Sherry asks, dragging me out of my thoughts.
I look up at the house. “Yeah, this is it. Thanks for the ride.” I open my door, and climb out.
Sherry leans across the seat. “Do you want me to come in with you?”
I shake my head. “No, I’m good.” No, I’m not, but I want to be alone. It’s embarrassing crying in front of people.
I slam the door behind me, not even bothering to lock it, and walk into my bedroom. I toss my phone and keys onto my night stand.
“You can run, but you can’t hide.”
His gravelly voice vibrates through my chest, causing my blood to run cold.
Waves of nausea crash over me, as I slowly turn around. I’m praying the entire time, that my mind is playing tricks on me. Surely, it won’t be him. I feel like my lungs have collapsed, when my eyes meet his.
Aaron’s standing in my doorway
, with his arms folded across his chest.
Holy shit!
This isn’t good!
CHAPTER 56
TRENT
I’m waiting for the bartender to stop flirting with the woman across the bar, when I hear my name.
“Trent, what’s up man?” Dave claps me on the shoulder. Ah hell!
“What the fuck do you want, Dave?” I don’t know what it is - but here lately - I can’t even scratch my ass, without Dave being there. He started trying to talk to me as soon as I got to the bar.
He presses his back up against the wall, and begins scanning the club. “I don’t want anything. I’m just trying to have a conversation. Fuck, I haven’t seen you in weeks. Are you here alone?”
“That’s none of your fucking business.” I’m careful to keep my back towards our table. I don’t want him seeing Karma.
“Hey, calm down.” He chuckles. “Are you on the rag, or something?”
I roll my eyes at him, and don’t bother to respond. He can go fuck himself.
He gives a sharp whistle, and motions to the bartender. “Can I have a beer?” The bartender gives him a brief nod.
“What can I get for you?” The bartender asks me, as he hands Dave a beer.
“I’ll have a water.” I say dryly.
Dave’s brows press together. “You’re not drinking?”
What a fucking idiot. He just heard my order. “Nope.”
Dave takes a long pull off of his beer. “Do you know someone by the name of Sandy Wilkinson? Everyone calls her ‘Sugar.’”
I shake my head. “No. Should I?” I wish he’d get to the fucking point. I don’t like leaving Karma this long. I’m afraid some guy will
try to touch her. That would not go over well.
Dave’s lips twist up into a big grin. “Well yeah, she’s been asking about you for awhile, now.” He leans towards me. “And she’s right behind you.”
That’s when I feel a hand rubbing my ass. Fuck me! I look over, and see the blonde from the garage, standing next to me.
She walks her fingers up my spine. “You were supposed to call me.” She purrs against my neck.
I clutch my hands into fists, to keep from pulling her hand off of me. I don’t want Dave to know I’m with anyone – especially Karma. He’d probably break his neck, running to tell Aaron.
Fuck me! My eyes begin scanning the club. “Is Aaron here, tonight?”
I do my best to sound casual.
“What in the hell, makes you think I know where Aaron is?” He takes another pull off of his beer. “We’re not friends. You know how Aaron is.”
Dave’s grinning like an idiot as he watches the blonde.
She’s roaming her hands all over me.
“Let’s you and I get out of here.” The blonde says, still running her fingers up and down my back. Fuck! I’m grinding my teeth so hard, that my jaw is aching. I really hope Karma isn’t seeing all of this.
“Go ahead.” Dave says, tipping his chin towards the blonde. “You know you want to. There’s nothing stopping you, is there?”
He’s fishing to see if I’m here with someone. He’s a sneaky son of a bitch! “How about you?
” I fire back at him. “Do you want to go with her?” I let my eyes scan the club, again. “I don’t see Sherry anywhere.”
He motions towards the dance floor. “She’s dancing.”
As I look across the club, my eyes briefly fall onto our table. It’s empty. Son of a bitch! I see Anna and Dusty dancing, but Karma isn’t with them. Where is she?
My eyes zone in on Dave. He has this knowing expression on his face. “What’s wrong, Trent? Are you missing something?”
Mother fucker! I grab him by his throat and slam him up against the bar. “Where is she?”
The blonde goes all wide eyed, jumping backwards, and slamming into several people. Several bottles and glasses crash against the floor.
I jerk my head towards her. “Are you in on this, too?” She shifts her gaze from side to side, before dropping it onto the floor. Mother Fucker! They set me up!
Dave holds his hands out. “Calm down. He just wants to talk to her.”
I squeeze his throat, until he starts gasping for air. “Who Dave? Who wants to talk to her?”
I know exactly, who wants to talk to Karma, but I want to hear him say it.
He grabs my wrist and tries to pry my hand off of his throat. That isn’t going to fucking happen!
“Aaron, he swore he wasn’t going hurt her.” He gasps.
I loosen my grip on him. “How did he know she was going to be here?” I yank him up
, so that his feet are once again on the floor.
“Sherry joined her psych class. She invited her here.” Fuck me! I’m an idiot. I was so worried about Aaron, I didn’t even think, he’d get someone else to do his dirty work for him.
Fuck! I don’t have time for anymore questions. I start shoving my way through the people. I ignore all of the: ‘Hey’s’ and ‘what’s your problem?’
I have to get to Karma – now!
CHAPTER 57
KARMA
I think I may be going into shock. My entire body feels numb, and I can hear my heart pounding in my ears.
Aaron’s eyes roam the length of me, and I can see the anger flash in his eyes. “You were fucking him the entire time, weren’t you?” His voice is a deadly calm.
I shake my head slowly, and try to remember some of the things I’ve learned in my self-defense classes. I need to distract him.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about, Aaron.” I take a tentative step backwards. I need to put as much distance between us as possible.
He runs both of his hands through his hair, and tugs on it roughly. “Don’t play stupid with me, whore. You know exactly who I’m talking about. Fucking, Trent Evers!” He slams his fist against the wall, putting a large hole in the drywall.
I practically jump out of my skin, and take another step away from him. “How did you find me?” My voice comes out on a whisper. I need to keep him talking, until I can figure out what to do.
The corners of his mouth twitch slightly. “You never were that bright. I’m shocked it took me this long.”
He closes my bedroom door, and the click from the lock, echoes inside of my head. Why is he locking the door!? “I have to give you credit, though.” He turns back towards me, slowly. “I definitely didn’t think you’d go to the lengths that you did, to get away from me. Moving off of campus, and rearranging your entire schedule.” He shakes his head from side to side. “I definitely didn’t see that one coming.”