Craving You (TBX #2) (3 page)

I knew when Brealynn asked me to move with her into her boyfriend’s house, the same house Parker lives in, that it was a bad idea. Not just for me but for her. You can’t tell anything to someone with love covering their eyes. They believe in it. I don’t. I also knew moving in here and withholding it from Parker would blow up in my face. However, my vagina received the majority of the effects.

Righting myself, I make my way into the bedroom I now have all to myself. I haven’t had my own room since freshman year in high school. Don’t get me wrong, I loved living with Brea, but there is something about having your own space. If I want to cry, I can. If I want to masturbate, I can. The possibilities are endless. The wood door clicks open … so much for privacy.

“How’s it going? I heard some … commotion,” my best friend, Brealynn, questions as she steps into the room.

“Aren’t you supposed to be consummating?” I defer her question with a question and start to unpack a box by pulling out a picture of my mother and an eight-year-old me. Those times seemed much less complicated than they were; I’d give anything to go back to my ‘
ignorance is bliss’
years.

“We have.” Brealynn glows with the love she feels for Colt. I don’t have the heart to tell her it won’t last. It never does—once he tires of her then what?

“Thank you for not putting me in a room next to you guys! I’ve heard enough and seen enough to last me a lifetime.”

“So what was that loud noise we heard? Is Parker in here?” Craning her neck, she searches the room before walking to my closet door. “Maybe … in here!” she says with a dramatic flare as she throws open the door to an empty closet. I try to give her my best, ‘Have you lost your mind’ face.

“Umm, no. I assume he’s in his room.”

“How’d you even know he was home?” A blonde eyebrow is raised in my direction.

“Lucky guess?” I avoid her gaze by digging through the box on my bed. It’s insane the amount of stuff I brought with me to college. Of course, I brought my most treasured signed books. Yes. I’m a book nerd and proud of it.

“You lyin’ bitch! Did you hook up again?” I swear I hear hope wavering in her voice. Plugging my Kindle into the outlet, I turn toward her.

“No! I told you. I’m done with him, tossed him out like old trash.” It’s at that moment I notice my door is still open. It’s also then that I see Parker with his fist raised to knock on said door, but he stops himself at my statement. The look on his face freezes me in place, and the pain I see in his eyes almost paralyzes me. Why do I even care?! Feeling like a fish out of water, I can’t catch my breath while I stare at him.

Brealynn clears her throat. “I think I hear Colt calling me.” She scurries out of the room bypassing Parker. His hands are now both in his jean pockets, his stare unwavering.

“If that’s how you want to play this. Then game
on
.” Finally an expression, and it's then and only then that I breathe a deep breath of relief as my eyes close. When I open them, he’s gone. That’s exactly how I want to ‘
play this.’
Wait a second—I’m not playing any games with his crazy ass. There is nothing to play for, no prize at the end of this ‘
game
.’ So from here on out we are not speaking the
‘p’
word. Not penis, you perv.
Parker
. I don’t want to think about him, talk to him, or do anything sexual with him.

I am also fully aware that I’m lying to myself, but we won’t talk about that right now either.

Parker

“I have some news,” my brother, Colt, declares as he walks up to the box. We built an area with ramps and jumps a few years ago where we can practice in peace. You’d be surprised the number of people into BMX and the fans who follow us.

“Lay it on me,” I say as I ease my TBX custom-made green and white bike on the ramp floor.

Colt steps onto the worn wood. “Turns out you’re going to be doing the
Ride or Run
shoot with me!”

He won the
Ride or Run
cover slot on his own. It makes no sense that now they’d want me as well.
Ride or Run
is as big as it gets, and my big brother has made it several years in a row. I’m beyond proud of him.

“How’s that?” I don’t mean for my question to sound rude and unappreciative, but it does.

“Well, after the last family dinner we had, I got to thinkin’. You’ve really been doing great on the ramps. You came so close! I figured, why not get two Taylor boys for the price of one, and they bought it!”

His excitement causes a grin to break across my face. “Holy shit.” The reality of what he’s saying settles in.

“Yeah!” Colt chuckles.

“The shoot is next month. They’re going to do a whole piece on TBX too.” TBX is the company our father started a few years back, which stands for Taylor Bicycle Cross.

“Dad will love that.”

“We’re not going to do it for Dad. We’re going to do it for us. That company will be ours soon enough.”

Once we graduate, TBX transfers to our names. We’ve been counting down the days. Of course, our father would stay in the company, but it would finally be
ours
. The way it should always have been. We worked our asses off for this fame, not our father. I’m blown away by the fact that Colt actually talked to the people at
Ride or Run
about adding me to the cover. Brealynn, the love of his life, has really worked her magic on him.

“Exactly,” I reply, grabbing my bike.

Colt puts his hand on the handlebars to pause my movement. “Can we talk a sec?”

I sigh. “What’s on your mind?”

“I should’ve told you about them moving in. Brealynn asked me to keep it a secret. Apparently, Kelsey didn’t want you to know until she was here.”

Makes sense. She loves to get a rise out of me, after all, and it makes the sex that much better when I get her beneath me. I can see the game she is playing, can’t she?

“It’s all good.” Shrugging it off.

“Have y’all cleared the air? Everything good between you two? I didn’t hear any screaming yesterday.”
That’s funny; I remember her screaming.

“I’m not sure. We’ll handle it, though. How are things with you and Brealynn? Honeymoon over yet?” I joke.

“Hell, no. It never will be with her.” Yuck. Love looks disgusting on him, but I don’t burst his bubble. It’ll pop soon enough on its own. Love doesn’t last. I know this, he knows this. Love destroys people; it sucks the life right out of them until they are a shell of the person they used to be. Just like my dad did to my mom. I watched the life leave her eyes over the years of my youth until she took her own life. Now, the only protecting I do is of
my
heart. I love myself, and that’s how it’ll always be.

Colt and I say our good-byes, and I decide to head back to the house while he practices. Stepping into the living room, I see Kelsey curled up on the couch watching TV. Her golden brown hair is down, falling over her shoulders and veiling her face while she stares at the screen.
How in the hell am I going to live with this woman
? I approach the couch to take a seat next to her. Calmly, her head turns in my direction, and I swear I see a slight smile playing across her face as she assesses me. “What’re you watchin’?”

“
Gilmore Girls
. It’s one of my favorite shows.” She shrugs turning her attention back to the screen, and I relax more into the couch. Rubbing her socked feet together, I place my hand over her moving feet to try and warm them. She freezes her movements and she looks toward me with shock, but I still continue to warm her feet without looking at her. I can feel her stare boring into me, but I focus on the show in front of me. If I show any sign of weakness, she’ll pounce.

Kelsey

He looks so good I could fuck him, but I won’t.
Damn it!
Even though I totally want to because my body is humming with a strong need to jump him – right now. He’s warming my feet because he knows they’re always cold. It’s thawing my chilled heart little by little. I smile in his direction.
Shit,
I shouldn’t have looked at him again. He’s been riding, which itself is sexy as sin. But he’s wearing a gray TBX shirt and worn jeans with one leg still rolled up to the knee. I use to think it was some weird man capris thing, but later found out they do that to keep their jeans out of the bike chain. Now, well, now, I just find it sexy and totally fuck worthy.

“Something on your mind?” The rumble in his voice courses through me.

“Hmm-umm- Nope.” My stare immediately returns to the screen. There’s a lot on my mind. Mainly things that start with the letter ‘p,’ Parker, penis, panties off …

“Your face is flushed.”

“It’s hot,” I counter too quickly.

“Yes, you are.”
Cheesy
, but I still smile at his comment.

“Nice one. Why don’t you go call one of your girls if you want to get a quick, easy fuck?” I sass, jerking my feet from his grip. This is what I know how to do. Be a bitch.
This
I can handle. Not nice Parker, anything but nice Parker.

“Oh baby, you know you want to be that quick, easy fuck. Why send me elsewhere?” He’s moved in closer to me at this point. His right hand travels up my bare legs kneading my muscles.

“Actually, if you could not touch me again, that’d be great. Good night, Parker, and no, that’s not an invite to my room, just to clarify.” His stare lights my skin on fire with a need so strong, it’s hard to contain it. I can see the same want,
scratch that
, I feel it in my bones because I want him just as badly. I won’t allow it, though. This has to stop.

He stands to his feet and meets my gaze leaning into me. “When you masturbate tonight, which you will, make sure you imagine me doing that thing you like.” His hot breath waves across my skin before he walks off to his room, leaving me all fucking hot and bothered.

Fucking asshole!

Parker

“It’s been almost a month since summer break started and not one party has been thrown. What the fuck’s up?” Tim questions bursting through the front door. I’m currently saving the world via video game.
You’re welcome.

“Well, Colt got himself stuck in a relationship, for one,” I mumble before I shoot a target on my screen.

“That’s no excuse!” is shouted from the kitchen.

“Damn right! Where’s the other duo member?” Tim questions Brealynn, who’s in the kitchen fixing her lunch.

“She’s taking a shower.” Walking in with a sandwich, she sits down in a chair beside me and raises her blonde eyebrows at me in a challenge, “You know, making sure to shave in all the right places for her date tonight.”
She has a date tonight?

At that statement, my blood runs cold and I pause the game.
What the fuck
. A date? With who? Tim raises an eyebrow at my sudden stop, “I-uh-I’ll be back.”

Then I dart up the stairs as fast as my legs will carry me.

Entering my room, I take a deep, calming breath. I can totally handle her going out with someone else, so why am I trippin’?

Can’t I?