BROKEN AND SCREWED(Broken_Part One)(33)

“What romantic dance? I was coming anyway. The dance happened to be the same weekend Hunt was coming, so I told her sure. She knew this wasn’t anything more than a hook up.” He rolled his eyes and then patted the bimbo’s rear. “Come on, Ariella.” As they walked past, he saluted me. “See you later, Princess.”
When they got into a car and drove off, it was then that I felt the cold air for the first time. I shivered under my coat and hurried to the door. Then I really thought about what I was doing there. I didn’t know if Jesse was actually there. And this was a stranger’s house. This was Jeremy Benson’s house. He was a criminal.
I wanted to throw my hands in the air from frustration, but then I pushed away all the nerves and pressed the doorbell.
It wasn’t long before it was thrown open. Some guy in only jeans stood there with a dazed smirk on his face. His hair fell over his eyes and he yelled over his shoulder, “It’s a girl!”
A smatter of laughter sounded from inside. Someone yelled back, “Is she hot?”
He looked me up and down. “Yep!”
“Then bring her in!”
More faces peered around the corner and one of them scrunched up in shock. “Holy hell! That’s Ethan Connor’s sister.”
The guy straightened abruptly. His cocky demeanor vanished. “Oh, hi. I’m Nick. I didn’t know who you were.” Then he gestured inside. “You can come in, if you want.”
I stepped inside. He flattened himself against the wall so there were a few feet between us and closed the door behind me. “Uh, so do you want something to drink?”
“She ain’t twenty one, Jr.”
“Oh, yeah.” He grinned at me, flustered at the same time. “I think we got soda. Jer!”
“What?”            
“We got anything that ain’t alcoholic?”
“You want to mix something?” The voice sounded from down a hallway. It was growing closer. “Otherwise why would you want something that ain’t alcoholic?”
I turned.
Jeremy Benson stood in front of me. His jeans were ripped and unbuttoned. As I glanced around the living room and kitchen, there were a bunch of guys who weren’t wearing shirts. Most of them were lean and tanned. A few were built like body builders, but all of them had a beer in hand. The handful of girls I counted dressed similar to the bimbo from outside. Revealing shirts and revealing pants, if they wore pants at all.
“Hey.” Nick lifted his chest up and pointed at me. “This is Ethan Connor’s sister.”
“So?” Jeremy skimmed me over with a sneer. He was tall and still had an athletic physique, but he had a military style hair cut. “I’m not surprised Connor’s sister grew up to be hot. You sure you don’t want something good to drink? We’ve got beer, darling, but I’ve got some good old fashioned whiskey too. That’s what Barbie drinks.”
“Barbie?”
He pointed into the kitchen and a girl with smoky eyes and dirty blonde hair lifted a hand. “Hi, there.” Her voice was hoarse and she grimaced. “I’m a little hungover. Any friend or relative of Connors is welcomed around here.”
“Why?”
She frowned, but looked over my shoulder.
Jeremy belched out a laugh. He scratched idly at his chest. “What do you mean why?”
“I don’t remember any of you being friends with Ethan.”
Then a wide smile spread over his face and he burst out laughing. Nick laughed with him, along with Barbie and a few others. He shook his head and coughed to clear his throat as his continued to laugh. “Man, I haven’t had a good one like that.”