Take (Need #2)(14)

I hit play with the remote and reach in for some fruity, crunchy goodness when the doorbell chimes. I contemplate ignoring it, but instead hit pause and go to find out who’s here.

The moment I have the door open I want to shut it again. I want to slam it hard in his face.

“What do you want, Austin?” I cross my arms over my chest.

He looks nervous, which he should be. “Can we talk?”

I turn from him and walk into the living room.

“What?”

“I want to talk about what happened last weekend,” he says. I can hear him step forward. “Kira, please look at me.”

With a huff I swivel around and glare up at him. “I don’t want to hear about how good of a f*ck Jennifer is.”

He shakes his head. “I made a mistake, a huge one. I like you, and—”

I push against Austin’s chest. “All you motherf*ckers are the same!”

“Kira—”

“No. I don’t want your lame ass excuse. Every time a guy tells me he wants to be with me, the next second he’s f*cking that slut. Why?”

He stares at me, fear in his eyes. “I was drunk and . . . Fuck . . .”

“Drunk? That’s your excuse for sticking your dick in that clap trap?”

His lips form a thin line and his expression hardens. “Yeah, an excuse, but I know you don’t want to hear the reason.”

“Try me.”

His jaw twitches again and he looks away, then back. “I saw it.”

“Saw what?” I ask with a huff.

“The way you looked at him. The way he looked at you.”

I shake my head. “What are you talking about?”

“Brayden.”

My eyes widen and I stare at him as my once boiling blood turns to ice.

No. Brayden is not a subject I want to talk about.

“When you told him to leave . . . That wasn’t the way you act with a brother or a even a friend. It felt like I was the one intruding on some intimate scene between lovers.”

I take a step back and shake my head. “It’s not like that.”

“Then tell me what it’s like.” He steps forward, staying in my personal space, suffocating me with his interrogation.

“It’s complicated.”

He lets out a strained laugh and lifts my chin, forcing me to look up at him. “Complicated? Screw complicated, then. I want you. I’ve wanted you for years, but him and your brother were always there, blocking everyone. Then I finally get the chance to be close.” His jaw ticks and he looks around. “I’m laying myself out here—I like you, a lot. I want you to be my girl. Do you feel anything for me?”

The blood in my veins heats up again to a raging boil. “Really? You’re asking me out after having sex with her?” I can’t even say Jennifer’s name. I want to rip her hair out, slam her face into the ground, and kick the shit out of her.

He shakes his head, but I don’t know if it’s at me or at himself. “I’m sorry.”

No. Not that. “Fuck your sorry! I’m f*cking tired of that word!”

His head hangs. “Please, Kira, I’ll do anything for a chance with you.”

“Another thing I’m tired of hearing,” I hiss. “I thought about it, you and me. I really did. I wanted to give you a chance, to see if we could be something.” He looks up, eyes meeting mine, a mixed look of happiness and horror. “Then you stuck your dick back in that slut. So tell me, what the f*ck is so great about her * that it always seems to win out over feelings for me? Why am I not enough to win out over an easy, well-worn *?”

His expression morphs, eyes narrow on me. “You seem to think I’ve been with sleeping with Jenn this entire time. The last time we were together was years ago, Kira. Years ago.”

I blink back at him, my hands shaking. Oh, no.

How could I be so stupid?

He steps forward, making me back up. “And you’re really worked up about it. Now I’m left wondering . . . or more like realizing, that all your anger is about Brayden. Is that what happened between you two?”

I gasp and look away. “I don’t . . . It doesn’t matter anymore.”

“Yes, it obviously does. Brayden used to be my friend. Used to be.” He stresses the last bit, and it dawns on me how much their relationship has changed. “The second I showed interest in you, I lost my friend.” The sorry, feeble Austin is gone, replaced with a strong, angry version. “And I didn’t f*cking care. Do you want to know why?”

He steps closer, but this time I don’t back up. His body almost presses to mine and I’m forced to lean back to look up at him. There’s a spark in his blue eyes that were so dull moments ago, and an energy radiating off him. Part of me wants to reach out and calm him, but another part is afraid.

I’m stuck, captivated by him, by the curiosity.

His hand rests on my hip, but I can’t seem to slap it away. “Because all I want is you.”

The words snap me back to focus on how close he is, and I press my hands against his chest as I glare up at him. “Then, again, why sleep with her?”

“Because all you want is him, and I couldn’t take it and got shitfaced. All I can tell you is I’m sorry that I did and that it was with Jenn, who you clearly hate.”