“Not enough to be happy to see you,” I replied heatedly, though it may have come out a little slurred. Whoops. Maybe I wasn’t quite sober enough for this encounter. Damn it.
Tye threw his arm across my shoulders as Melody had a while ago, replacing the safe, comfortable feeling she had given me with a slew of red flags. His friends smiled and laughed at us, and I narrowed my eyes at them. Something about this encounter was making my skin crawl, even more than the average creep would. But my mind was so fuzzy, I couldn’t tell what was so off. Maybe it was our history, but even drunk, I didn’t trust him as far as I could throw him. I tried to shrug him off, but he held firm.
“So, I’ve been thinking about us for a while now,” he started, leaning in close enough to smell the sour stench of beer on his breath. “About, you know, all the mistakes we made when we were kids.”
Mistakes? The fuck? I glared at him, but he ignored it. The prickly feeling on the back of my neck was starting to alarm me and a little bile rose in my throat. “You were the only mistake I made, and I don’t care to repeat it. Please let me go.”
“See,” he continued, tightening his grip further. “You were my mistake, too. You were the one I let get away from me because of some lame bet. I think we should try again, make amends and all that. I think you’ll appreciate how much I’ve grown since then.” His buddies burst out laughing and jeered at me.
With the alcohol numbing my senses, it took me a second too long to realize he’d just forced my hand onto his stiffening crotch. I jerked it away and quickly slid off the stool and out of his grip, mumbling something about the restroom as I headed unsteadily in that direction as fast as I could. Thank goodness I hadn’t worn heels. I never would’ve made it. The sounds of his friends’ laughter followed me down the narrow hallway and through the door.
In the relative quiet of the bathroom, I leaned my hands against the sink and hung my head, taking deep breaths. Despite the heat of the bar, my arms were covered in goose flesh. My stomach swirled nauseously. I didn’t think it was the alcohol, but I couldn’t quite pin it down. It was like my whole body was trying to give me some kind of warning, though if it was about Tye, our past was warning enough. I knew what a creep he was. He was a moron to think he was getting another shot after what he put me through.
I flipped on the tap and splashed cool water on my face, dabbing it dry with the cheap paper towels they always had at these places. Seriously, couldn’t they afford something just a little softer? These things were borderline torture devices. One of the stalls behind me flushed and a girl walked out, making eye contact with me in the mirror. I looked away, pretending to straighten my hair. My green eyes were abnormally bright and my face a little too pale, but I chalked it up to the alcohol.
“Sorry, it’s none of my business, but are you okay?” the girl asked as she washed her hands, glancing over cautiously.
I started, not expecting her to speak to me. “Hm? Oh, yeah, just needed a break.”
The girl grabbed a handful of paper towels and eyed me. “Okay, if you say so.”
As soon as she left, I took another deep breath and shook my hands out. They still felt tingly, but I pushed past it, trying to will myself sober again as I walked out the door and smacked into a firm chest. Tye blocked my path, an unnerving grin on his face, and the goose flesh erupted down my arms again. I tried to move around him, but he stepped with me.
“Hey, hold on a second,” he said, catching my arms lightly. “I was just trying to talk to you, and you ran off.”
“I’m here with people,” I pointed out, trying to step away and go around again. “Let me past. I need to find my sister.”
He laughed, blocking my way again. “I’m sure she’s a big girl who can take care of herself. Now let me take care of you.”
Grabbing my face, he leaned in, but I just barely dodged the kiss and shoved pathetically at his chest. Normally I had no problem taking care of myself, but I was drunk, and my reactions were poor at best. I watched with growing trepidation as his arrogant face morphed into rage. Panic hitched in my chest as he pushed me against the wall and snagged my arm in a vice-like grip, one I was sure was going to leave a bruise.
“No, stop!” I yelled, hoping someone was close enough to hear. Maybe that girl who cared enough to ask about me in the bathroom was still close by. “Let go of me!” Damn it, why hadn’t I walked out with her?
“You don’t get to say no to me after what we’ve done,” he purred menacingly, licking his lips and leaning in again, pressing his body flush to mine. I closed my eyes and turned my head, trying to use the wall as leverage to buck him off, but that just seemed to urge him on.
Suddenly, the pressure of Tye’s body was gone, replaced by cool air, and a roaring sound filled the hallway around us. I peeked my eyes open to see Tye pinned at the throat against the other wall by Rico’s brawny forearm. My heart danced at the sight of his dark brown hair and the hazel eyes that glanced back at me with concern. Or at least that’s what I told myself, trying not to overthink things again, especially in my disoriented state. The look he leveled at Tye, though, promised pain.
“Do
