Deviant (6 page)

“So you’re both aware of one another then?”

“Yes, but I think I am more aware of her then she is of me.”

Grabbing another one of his Twiglets, I shook my head. “You can never say that for sure. She could be just as tongue-tied as you.”

Jeremy shrugged again. “I suppose I will never know.”

I reared back again. “Don’t say that. You never know what life will bring you, Jeremy.”

He chuckled a little. “I know, I know. Maybe I need someone like you around. You’re apparent love of life is rather infectious. You even welcome strange men into your home. You probably occasionally even feed him.” He laughed loudly at his own joke, but then he saw I wasn’t laughing. “Holy shit. You
are
feeding him, aren’t you?”

Waving my hands in front of me, I told him to shush. “Stop it, Jeremy. I only feed him cookies sometimes.”

He was laughing harder now. “Cookies? That’s classic. He sounds like your pet.”

Now it was my turn to shrug. “He likes cookies.”

Jeremy slapped the bed. “Stop, stop. I think I may pass out from laughing so hard.”

“You can’t tell anyone,” I whispered to him.

Jeremy stopped laughing and placed a hand on his heart. “I swear I will not tell anyone.”

I winked back. “I know you won’t.”

*****

I actually stayed until I was exhausted. I was having so much fun, time just seemed to run away with me. I left Jeremy, letting him know that he had me as a friend for life and I was coming to visit him often, whether he like it or not. Jeremy just smiled at me and said he would like that. I was glad he gave into me in the end. I was half-expecting a fight from him, but the promise of Twiglets every time I visited won him over in the end.

I raced back to my flat as quickly as possible so I could prepare dinner. Ian wasn’t due for another hour, but I didn’t like to feel rushed. I liked everything planned out and ready in advance. I know Ian would approve of my last minute dashing. He always worked better under pressure and I hated him for it.

It was a little after seven-thirty when there was a knock on the door. I rushed over, glass of red wine in hand, and took a sneaky sip before opening the door. “Ian,” I sang.

“For me?” he asked, grabbing the wine glass and drinking it down in one gulp.

“Ian! You’re so fucking rude.”

Coming in for a quick kiss on the cheek, he lingered. “Do you know how hard you make me when you talk with that filthy mouth of yours?”

Pushing him away, I scowled. “Funny enough, it only seems to be
you
that brings out my filthy mouth.”

Placing his hand on his heart, he smiled. “I am honoured.” I giggled, but then he was looking in the direction of the kitchen. With a big inhale, he looked back at me. “Spaghetti Bolognaise?”

I nodded. “Yes, and no sneaking bits when I’m not looking.” He looked back at me, shocked. “Don’t give me that look, Ian. You know full well what I’m talking about. I’ve seen you.”

Ian waved his hand in front of him. “Oh well, what can I say? You make a mean Spag Bol, and because you’ve made it tonight, I think I may let you get lucky.” Ian winked at me, but I just rolled my eyes.

Ian and I had been in a position several times where we could have gone all the way…so many parties and so much fooling around. I think Ian was the only man who had seen all of me without it going further than a bit of playful banter. We had been friends for so long, we knew our boundaries. We knew when to stop. I knew that whenever Ian joked about us sleeping together, it was just that. He would never take it further than the odd grope when he got drunk. And it always seemed to stem from parties when we were
both
drunk. It was like the running joke that whenever we were out together, it would end up with us snogging or feeling each other up. It was a strange friendship, to say the least, but it worked. We didn’t want more than what we had because we didn’t want to spoil it. We loved each other, but not in the sense that we would get married and have babies anytime soon. Although Ian had joked that if we hit thirty and neither of us had found anyone, we would get hitched. I kind of agreed because I was drunk at the time and thought it was funny. There seemed to be a running pattern.

“So, what have you been up to the last couple of days? How did your night go last night? Did you get lucky?”

Walking towards the kitchen, I shook my head, smiling. “I did meet someone, but it didn’t go past second base.” I poured us another glass, handing Ian his.

“Do you know how boring that is?”

I gasped. “Ian, who is making you dinner here?”

He shook his head and pouted. “I’m sorry. I would just love to hear you talk about having sex with another man.”

“Pervert!” I scolded.

“I try my best,” he smiled cheekily.

“So you met someone last night and you never went past second base?” I shook my head. “What about Louisa?”

Come to think of it, she never mentioned it in her email. I think she was too excited about this party next Saturday.

“She didn’t mention it when she emailed earlier. She was too busy screaming that she had finally gotten an invite for her and a guest to attend the mansion next Saturday.”

Ian gaped at me, mouth wide open. “You are shitting me!” I shook my head. “Louisa got an invite to the mansion?” I nodded. “And she can bring a guest?” I nodded again. “Shit, what’s her number again? I want to go with her.”

I sipped my wine and smiled. To be honest, I wasn’t really bothered about going myself. It seemed everyone else was fighting over an invite. If it were my choice, I would let him go, but I knew Louisa would have none of it.

“I’m sorry, Ian. Louisa’s plus one is already taken.” I smiled cheekily at him.

“Bitch!”

Slapping him across the arm, I growled, “Hey, I can’t help it if she prefers me to you.”

Ian bit his fingernails as I stirred the Bolognaise. “Maybe I should offer her oral sex. Do you think she would take me then?”

I rolled my eyes at him and sipped my wine again. “I can’t see her going for that, to be honest.”

“Damn!”

“Don’t worry about it too much. I promise to tell you all about it.” I smiled.

“You’d better. I’m dying to find out what it looks like inside and what goes on. I heard orgies go on in there.”

I suddenly felt myself panic. “Where did you hear that?”

“John.”

My panic subsided. “John is just as sick and perverted as you are, Ian. Of course he would say something like that. He would want to twist it into something sordid.”

Turning, I reached into the cupboard and pulled out a couple of plates. Out of the corner of my eye, I spied Ian sneaking a spoonful of my sauce. “Hey, I saw that!” I scowled at him.

“Sorry,” Ian replied, not looking sorry at all. “I just can’t help myself when you cook so well.”

Shaking my head, I placed the plates down. “Go take a seat. It’s almost ready.” To my amazement, he did as he was asked.

*****

After dinner, Ian stayed for a while, laughing and joking. I told him all about my night out, and meeting Jeremy today. We watched a couple of episodes of
Suits
and generally “pissed about”, as he called it.

When I could feel my eyes drooping, Ian stood up. “I can tell when I’m boring someone. I get the hint. I’m going.”

I yawned. “I’m sorry, Ian. It’s been quite a hectic day.”

Ian wrapped me in a hug and whispered in my ear. “We could go into the bedroom, you know. I promise I would wake you back up again.”

Slapping him across the arm, I pushed at him back. “Ian, you better go before I kick your ass.”

He laughed. “I’d like to see you try.”

I took that as a challenge and raced to ram my foot up his backside. He soon moved out of the way. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I take that back.”

“You better.”

Picking me up, Ian gave me a genuine hug this time. “Thank you for dinner. It was fucking brilliant, as always.”

Rubbing his arm, I smiled. “Don’t mention it. I’ll see you on Monday.”

Ian opened the door and waved his hand. “You betcha.”

After shutting the door, I walked towards my bedroom. I didn’t even want to think about dishes right now. I’d do those in the morning. All I wanted right now was my bed.

When I switched on the bedside lamp on, I gasped. Sitting neatly in the middle of my bed was a flower. I didn’t know what it was, but it looked familiar. My stranger was bringing me flowers now? That was new. What was he going to do next?

Chapter 6

Dean

Revenge may be wicked,

But it’s natural.

William Makepeace Thackeray

I was sure things were going just the way I planned, what with the cookies and that fucking chump thinking he could come into my territory and take what was mine. I couldn’t let anyone spoil what Tyler and I had going at the moment.

And that’s precisely why I had to up my game. I needed to act as soon as fucking possible. So I set the wheels in motion. I felt calmer now after what happened Friday night. I wanted to murder someone, preferably Brad…the fucking numpty. Funny, really, because I was going to use Brad in my little game on Saturday. After all this, he was going to end up being my little pawn. It made me laugh a little thinking about how much he was going to look forward to this. Anybody who gets an invite looks forward to my parties.

And I was planning on making it the most memorable night of Tyler’s life.

Chapter 7

   Tyler

Buckinghamshire, 1994

“Dean, that’s so funny,” I giggled.

Running into the field, we were all panting after Dean’s dare. He had just buzzed on Mrs. Baxter’s door—something we seemed to do on a regular basis lately. It was her screaming after us that did it. She sounded like a cat.

Calming down, Ian turned to me when he saw I was staring at Dean. “Okay,” he said, trying to break our trance. “What you got for me?”

Pulling away from our gaze, Dean looked up to his other best friend. “I dare you to put on a blindfold for five minutes without moving.”

That was a strange one. Even Ian was looking perplexed. “Okay, easy peasy. What can I use?”

“Use this.” Dean pulled out a bandana from his pocket and handed it to Ian. Once he had it firmly in place, Dean motioned for me to come with him.

Holding out his hand, he tugged me up and off we went, running towards some trees. Crouching low, we giggled for a few seconds before calming.

“Why did you do that, Dean?”

Dean looked at me with his bright blue eyes. He was eleven now and I was only nine. I loved him, though. I loved him with all my heart.

“I just wanted to be alone with you for a few minutes.” Dean smiled, making my heart thump loudly in my ears.

Picking my hand up, he stroked it with his fingers. “You always have soft hands. I love touching them.”

Blushing, I turned my face away, but it was hard ignoring his touch. It felt really good.

“That’s what I wanted to see,” Dean said, startling me.

“What?” I asked, turning back around to face him.

Raising his hand to my cheek, he smiled. “My Rosey.”

*****

I couldn’t believe Louisa managed to rope me into this dinner function tonight. I was about to sleep in some stranger’s house, but it seemed everyone was vying for this invite. I didn’t know what went on behind closed doors, but the journalist in me was intrigued. I was also vaguely aware that I had yet to dust the cobwebs off a certain part of my anatomy. Maybe this night would be my night. Now that I wasn’t at home, my stranger couldn’t get in the way of any nookie I may feel needs to take place. My goodness, I
needed
the nookie.

Driving into what I can only describe as an entrance to a mansion, Louisa and I parked and couldn’t help but gawk at the place.

“Fucking hell, Louisa. What on earth kind of place is this? Who owns it?”

She shook her head. “I don’t know. It’s a total mystery. I’ve been trying for months to get an invite to this place. Then, all of a sudden, one turns up saying I could bring a friend. Of course, I had to choose you.” She smiled brightly, winking at me.

“Does
anybody
know who owns the place?”

She shook her head again. “I’ve been trying to find out. No one knows whether the owner is actually here when people show up. They say he is a recluse who only comes out at night.”

I frowned. “Is he related to the Great Gatsby or something?”

Louisa chuckled. “I suppose anything’s possible. I just can’t wait to get in there and have a snoop. I’m sure the journalist in you can’t wait, either.”

I was a little apprehensive about this, but smiled nonetheless. I was intrigued. Very intrigued. “Okay, then. Now that we are here, let’s go and snoop.”

Opening the car door, Louisa smiled. “Oh hell, yeah!”

Once outside the car, Louisa and I retrieved our bags from the boot, then walked up the grand staircase to the house. I wasn’t sure what it was, but this house was rather opposing. The weather was dull, which only made the house look even freakier. It looked old and grey, but grand at the same time. I was starting to wonder whether the Addams family might answer the door.

I certainly wasn’t prepared for what it looked like on the inside. After we rang the bell, we were met by a rather attractive older man sporting a rather interesting-looking moustache. He had greying hair and wore a black suit and bow tie. He smiled politely and asked if he could see our invitation and I.D. Once that was all over, we walked into the most modern hall I had ever seen. This was far from anything I expected. I thought it would look as old and imposing on the inside as it did on the outside.

Louisa gasped. “Shit. Of all the things I thought, I didn’t expect this.”

I nodded. “I thought we were going to walk in and find Lurch answering the door, and a bunch of suits of armour standing on either side of the walls.” I shuddered at the thought.

Louisa laughed, but then we were interrupted by the man who answered the door. “If you walk through this door, this is where all the guests are waiting. I shall take your bags to your rooms. Please take your keys. Miss Temple, you will be in room twenty. Miss O’Shea, you will be in room twenty-one.”

We both nodded and took the keys. “Thank you. Can you tell me if the owner will be here this evening?”

The man smiled at me. “No, I’m sorry, but I can’t. I have never met him so I cannot say.”

I highly doubted he was telling the truth, but nodded anyway.

Louisa and I stood and watched as he walked off. We were left feeling a little nervous about what we would find once that door was open.

Taking a deep breath, Louisa shrugged. “Here goes nothing, girlfriend.”

She grabbed the handle and pushed. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but it wasn’t just a bunch of random people sitting around drinking and chatting. Most of the guests were men, but there were a couple of other girls sitting in chairs, eyeing us as we walked in. It made me wonder if they were another Tyler and Louisa…out of their freaking minds!

Of course, once we opened the door, all went silent and every set of eyes immediately snapped in our direction.

Like us, they were all dressed smart, but casual. At least I could breathe a sigh of relief that I had managed to wear something that could be pulled off for any occasion. For me, you could never go wrong with a little black dress. And don’t forget the high heels.

“Good evening,” one of the men said as we entered. “My name’s John, this is Jose, and the gentleman next to him is Pete. May I ask your names?”

“I’m Tyler,” I replied, offering him my hand. “And this is Louisa.”

I took a moment to regard John as he shook our hands. Every guy in here was handsome in their own right. The women were also pretty. I kind of felt a little exposed. I wasn’t sure whether this was on a list of criteria or not. What if I failed miserably in the owner’s eyes? I wasn’t sure why I even cared.

The other noticeable thing was that every one of them were either in their late twenties or early thirties. All looked like they had varying degrees of money, but none of them looked poor.

John was tall and well-built. He had dark, slicked back hair and blue eyes. He wore a white shirt with tanned chinos, and had a dimple of his left cheek when he smiled. Jose looked Mediterranean, with soft olive skin, light brown eyes, and wavy brown hair. Very nice. Pete was your average blonde, not so tall, but had a rather cheeky smile.

“It’s nice to meet you all,” I finally managed to say as I broke free from John’s grip.

“The pleasure is certainly mine.” John trailed his eyes over both Louisa and I, making us blush.

“I believe I’m missing out on the introductions.”

Everyone turned their attention to the voice behind us, and what I found nearly had me on the floor. Both Louisa and I gasped. “Brad?”

Brad smiled cautiously as he approached. I wasn’t sure whether he was still mad at me after the incident a few nights ago. “Tyler, nice to see you again. And this is Louisa, right?” Brad leaned in for a kiss on the cheek.

“That’s right. You remembered.” Louisa flicked her auburn hair, and I couldn’t help but notice Pete taking a breath at her sight. It certainly looked like she had an admirer already.

“It’s kind of my job to be as observant as I can. I don’t think that was a night I could easily forget.” Brad looked my way and I cringed a little.

“Don’t embarrass the poor girl, Brad. For fuck’s sake.” John glared at him.

Brad just shrugged and came in closer. “So, have you managed to figure out what kind of relationship you and this guy have?”

With Brad side-lining me like that, Louisa took it as her cue to carry on talking with John and the others. I did notice that Pete went muscling in there straight away. I think he wanted to stake his claim, and quickly.

“I’m not in a relationship, Brad. It’s really hard to explain, but I can tell you I’m not taken.”

Brad looked confused and I couldn’t blame him. “Are you being stalked or something? You know that’s against the law, right?”

I couldn’t help the laughter that escaped me. Brad seemed to see what it was before I could even wrap my head around it myself. I wanted to tell him, but I felt some sort of morbid loyalty to my stranger.

“It’s nothing I can’t handle.”

Brad looked at me sternly. “Tyler, if someone is breaking into your house and leaving notes like that, you need to report it to the police.”

I felt a sudden panic rise out of nowhere. “It’s fine, honestly. I’m taking care of it.” I smiled at Brad, but I didn’t think he was buying it.

Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out a card. “I want you to take this and promise me you’ll call me if something like that ever happens again. Day or night, you can reach me. Okay?”

Taking the card, I nodded my head, but felt a little tingle at his concern for me. Suddenly, Brad looked even more irresistible than when we first met.

“I really appreciate you looking out for me. Thank you.”

Brad smiled and caressed my cheek. “I’m sorry I never stuck around long enough to hear you out. To be honest with you, I’ve been wondering for days what you meant.”

Before I could answer, I felt a tap on my shoulder. “Here you go, Tyler. A nice glass of bubbly, courtesy of the Great Gatsby.” Louisa winked and handed me the glass.

“The Great Gatsby?” Brad asked with a raised eyebrow.

“Tyler thought it up because we don’t have a clue who owns this place.”

“Who
does
own this place?” I looked at Brad, hoping he would be able to shed some light.

“I have no clue. I’m friends with John and he invited me. He said he’s been wanting to come for months, then an invitation turns up at his house.”

Louisa gasped. “Exactly the same as me.”

The only thing I could do was frown. “This seems weird. We’re not in a
Saw
movie where someone will pop out in a mask, asking everyone to hack each other’s legs off, are we?”

Both Louisa and Brad laughed. “It does sound a little strange,” he replied. “I suppose we’ll soon find out.”

Just as he said this, the sound of the door opening interrupted our conversation. Two men walked in. Again, both looked handsome, one more than the other, but I guess that was just my taste. The more appealing one had dark, spiky hair and sparkling blue eyes. He was extremely tall and muscular, with the most impressive five o’clock shadow I had ever seen. The instant I saw him, I gasped, thinking for a moment that my Dean was finally here to whisk me away.