“I thought you didn’t like touching?” I uttered, hating that I liked the soft touch of his fingers dancing eloquently through my hair, so freaking much.
“I don’t like being touched. No one said anything about me touching you.”
12
“And that taught me you can't have anything, you can't have anything at all. Because desire just cheats you. It's like a sunbeam skipping here and there about a room. It stops and gilds some inconsequential object, and we poor fools try to grasp it - but when we do the sunbeam moves on to something else, and you've got the inconsequential part, but the glitter that made you want it is gone.” ― F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Beautiful and Damned
Kyler
Her hair was beautiful, just like every other part of her. The way it cascaded down her back, how the light made the dark auburn in it shimmer, it was mesmerizing. I loved how my touch made her react with that cute blush, the pink crawling over her smooth, creamy skin. I wanted to follow the path it took with my fingers, maybe even my tongue, and then I hated myself for the thought instantly.
She started rubbing her hands on her arms, and I noticed the goosebumps on her skin. I wasn’t sure if it was from my touch or if she was cold. Her tank top barely left anything to the imagination. Usually I was used to her being covered to the hilt, but right now she didn’t look like a schoolmarm. Tonight she looked like a sexy, sultry vixen. I cursed myself for not having my leather jacket, both to cover her and warm her up.
“Am I making you nervous?” I asked, tucking her hair behind her ear. She turned her gaze at me and her eyes were like a sucker punch, intoxicating. This girl in a short time seemed to have embedded herself under my skin like barbed wire, in ways I didn’t even understand.
“You always make me nervous.”
“Sinclair family?” A doctor came into the waiting room, interrupting us. I stood, leaving Madison in the chairs.
“Yes, I'm Kyler Sinclair. Tamlin is my sister. How is she doing? Can we see her?”
“Your sister is stable; she needs to be held overnight for monitoring. She’s asking for you. You can go in to see her now.” The doctor finished and I waved Madison to come with me.
“One person at a time. Please.” The doctor halted Madison right in her spot.
“I’ll be right back. Stay here,” I half-instructed, my tone pleading though.
She only nodded.
“I need a ride to my bike anyway,” I added, as if to offer some explanation why I needed her to stay, before following the doctor to Tammy’s room. When we reached the door, I took a deep breath. I really wasn’t sure what I wanted to say to my sister, all I really wanted to do was yell and demand to know who had left her in that room alone. However, that wasn’t what Tammy needed right now, so instead, I was going to play the role of a supportive and loving brother. Well...as loving as a guy like me could be.
Seeing my sister in that hospital bed was unnerving. She was laying there, her skin a sickening shade of alabaster, an IV lodged in her arm. She didn’t look like the vibrant, sassy girl I knew; she looked broken and defeated.
I wasn’t fucking equipped to deal with this shit. Another reason to be pissed at my parents. I’d tried calling multiple times, I’d left a barrage of messages, and yet they still weren’t here.
“Hey, Tams,” I said, holding her hand in both of my own. She looked up at me, forcing a small smile through her dry lips.
“I really stepped in it this time, didn’t I, Ky?”
“I wouldn’t worry about it; you have a big brother that is an utter disappointment. This is nothing,” I joked.
“Is Maddy ok?” she asked, her voice strained and low, almost a whisper. My thinly held rage at her condition was rising, making me feel like the frustrated and helpless monster inside was about to explode.
“What happened, Tammy?” I asked, my voice straining to control the volume.
“I was drinking, a lot. Then I went into a room to lay down and the next thing I knew I woke up here. I didn’t drink that much though, Kyler, I swear. No more than I usually do. I really don’t know what happened.”
“Miss Sinclair?” the doctor said, walking into the room. “Hello, I’m Dr. Abbott; I just wanted to talk to you about what happened tonight. Your blood work came back and it looks like there were traces of Rohypnol in your system. Do you know how that could have happened?”
My vision bled red. Some fucker was trying to rape my sister. I was going to go back to that party and beat the living fuck out of every single guy I saw until I had the truth.
“Mother fuckers.” I paced the room. Pacing was something I could do, it was something I had control of when everything else around me felt like it was on its axis, tilting and on the verge of losing complete control.
“I was drinking, talking to a few football players… It was a party. I could swear I had my drink with me the whole time. I have no idea how anyone would have the opportunity.”
“I gotta go,” I spat.
“Kyler, don’t. Don’t do anything stupid,” Tammy called after me, but I’d already decided what needed to happen. I headed back to the waiting room. I was an asshole but not so big an asshole that I would leave Maddy waiting on me for God knows how long.
“I have to go back to the house.” I popped my head into the waiting room and then walked on purposeful strides towards
