Never Get Enough (Enough #1) (24 page)

Chapter 25

Carter

I was dancing with the girls, and all the sudden I saw Tanner wave me over to him from the front room. I go to walk over to him, and he motions for me to follow him outside. This is kinda weird since Tanner and I are friends at school, but we don’t really mix at parties that much. He must want to say good bye. He is heading out to USC with a full scholarship in just a few weeks, and I know he never made any real friends around here other than me. He and Bray won the state championship by working together, but they never became friends. Bray was just too distrustful of him because he said he still seemed interested in me. I didn’t think so though. I just thought he didn’t have hardly anybody else he felt comfortable talking to. Bray argued that there were plenty of girls interested in a football star at our school, but Tanner was the one who wasn’t interested in anyone else.

We walked outside and over to his car for privacy
, I guess. Tanner seemed really nervous and I could tell his hair was soaked with sweat. Jace’s house was a little warm with all the people packed into it, but not so warm that someone swear like this. I wondered if he had something going on with him that he needed to talk about. His hands were shaking by his sides. “Tanner, is everything all right? You seem a little off? Do you need to talk about anything with me?” He tries to smile but I can tell that even that takes a huge effort. He just doesn’t seem like himself, at all. I start to realize how secluded we are by his car, and I start to inch more toward the house and where other people would be able to see us.

Tanner seems
to catch on to my unease, and he jumps in front of me to stop me from moving away, “Carter, please, wait this will only take just a minute, but I need to talk to you without anyone else around.” I nod and try to relax. I can tell something is really bothering him, and as his friend I want to help him and listen. “Tanner, I am here to listen to you, and I want to help if I can. I am your friend, but I have to be honest, you are making me a little nervous right now with how you are acting.” He looks frustrated and away from me for a second and then back. His eyes are shining with determination and something else, I don’t recognize.

“Carter, I want to tell you how I have felt since I
first saw you. I knew right from the first moment that I spotted you in that gym that you were made just for me. I know that you think Bray is the one for you. But I promise you, you have no idea what an asshole he is. He slept with so many other girls before you two were together and treated them like shit. How do you know that he won’t do the same thing to you when he gets tired of you. I would never get tired of you that way. I haven’t even looked at another girl since I met you. You are the only girl I could ever want. I know you thought I wanted to be friends, but I want to be so much more for you. You would be everything to me. I already think about you twenty four seven. I follow you wherever you go, and I would never have sex with you in a car parking lot where anybody could see.”

Oh shit, Tanner is the one that I have felt watching me all year. Bray was right about him being obsessed with me, but Bray tried to not give me a hard time about it. He wanted to show me
, he trusted my judgment, but I was wrong. It hurts a little that Tanner didn’t just want to be my friend. I start to slowly try to move closer to the house without Tanner realizing what I am doing, but he catches me shuffling and grabs my hand. “Carter, where do you think you are going? I need you to listen to everything I have to say. We need to spend some time together so that you can see how good I would treat you. Brayden is just a spoiled ass who hasn’t had to work for anything in his life. But I would appreciate you like nobody else. You’re everything to me, and I want us to be together.” I shake my head and try to remain as calm as possible. Tanner seems really on edge, and I don’t want to set him off. He is a lot bigger than me, and we are even farther than I originally thought from the house. When I make my move to run, I need to make sure I have a good enough opening.

“Carter, come with me now! I want to show you how you should really be treated. I would never take you to a party for a bunch of drunk guys to gawk at you. It puts you in danger, and B
rayden is just selfish to want to hang out with his friends.” I make my voice as strong and decisive as I can, “No, Tanner, you have it all wrong. I like to dance and hang out with everybody here. Brayden can take or leave the parties. He just wants to be with me and make me happy. He knows me better than anyone, and he always puts me first. No matter what!”

“You’re wrong, Carter. Where the hell is he now? If he cares so much, he would have come out long ago. He is not the nice guy you think he is. I will always treat you better, and I
will prove it to you. Just give me a chance!” I turn to run away, and he lunges for me. He covers a rag over my mouth, and I start to panic. But everything starts to fade away.

Brayden

             
I am frantically looking for Carter everywhere. I stood at every bathroom in the house until I confirmed she wasn’t in any of them. I have gone through every room at Jace’s and walked in on friends and strangers in really inappropriate position, but I still haven’t found her. I am now going out of my damn mind. I thought that she was safe here among all of our friends and teammates, but it just takes one shady shithead to slip something in her drink and take her somewhere. I am heading out when Lena jumps in front of me at the house’s entrance hall. “Move the fuck out of the way, Lena!” She just looks at me and smiles drunkenly. “Brayden, let me show you my tits. I know you used to love them.” She tries to rub up against me, and I carefully push her away as I make extra effort not to touch anything but her arms. “Please, baby, just let me suck your dick tonight. Carter, never has to know.” I get by her and don’t even give her a reply. She fucking disgusts me with her blatant come-ons and easy behavior. She hurt Carter and made her run from me. I will never even look at her again if I don’t have to. As I am walking out the door, she grabs my wrist and tries to pull me toward her. “What the fuck is wrong with you, Lena. You have stooped so low that you are harassing me. I am trying to find Carter. Leave me the fuck alone, right now.” Lena starts to laugh, almost hysterically at this point. At first I just chalk it up to her being wasted. Until she says, “Good luck finding Carter, Tanner was planning on her being occupied for a little while yet.”

I watch her smirking at me and have never wanted to hit a woman so damn bad in my life, but my first priority is always Carter so with that I bust outside and look ar
ound for Tanner’s truck. It takes me a minute, but I find it. And spot him lifting Carter into the passenger seat. What the hell is happening? Why would she ever leave the party with that shady mother fucker. She knows I have warned her about being careful around him. As I run to the truck, I notice Carter is slumped over in the seat. With a roar, I ram Tanner in the side as he jumps down from his truck. He didn’t see me coming, and I take him hard all the way to the ground. I just start wailing on him cause I know he drugged my girl. Who the fuck does that shit? “What the hell is wrong with you, asshole?” I say in between punches. “You thought you could drug my girl and get away with it? I will kill you, mother fucker!”

I continue to punch him until I feel Jace, Gray, and Grant pull me off him. They shout stuff at me, but I am so focused on what happened I don’t even process what they are saying. I don’t even know how long it has been, but Tanner isn’t moving anymore. I don’t even stop to check if he is alive. Now I just jump in the truck to see if my girl is still breathing. She is, and I
send up a prayer of thanks to God. I look at her angel features and blond hair spilling around her and wonder how the hell Tanner could drug her. She seems to just be asleep right now, but I will have to take her to the hospital to see if the drugs have harmed her at all. Carefully, I try to pull down her dress so no one else can see too much of her tan legs. Really wish she could’ve worn something else to the party. Not looking forward to the doctors treating her with this outfit on.

I jump down from the truck and start dialing 911. Jace puts his hand on my shoulder, “Brayden, I already called 911. They are sending two ambulances right now. Man, I can’t imagine how you are feeling right now, but I didn’t want you facing manslaughter
charges so we stopped you. Most of the guys wanted to join in once they saw he did something to Carter. What kind of guy drugs a girl like that? You were right about him, Brayden. He’s a shady asshole.” I try to get myself together enough to answer, “Man, I am going out of my mind right now. I am glad she is still breathing, but what if she isn’t okay? Or doesn’t wake up? She’s my life, Jace. Carter is my fucking life.” I choke down tears on that last part and grab Carter out of the truck to hold her until the ambulance gets here. She still hasn’t woken up, and it is really starting to worry me.

I trace her face with my hands
and just look at all her features that I love, but without her eyes lit up with energy and joy, it make me feel sad and scared. I just rock her back and forth. I tell her how I felt when I first saw her. How sweet and beautiful she was. I tell her how much I love to just wake up beside her, especially when we know we have the whole day to spend together. She still doesn’t wake up. I listen to her heartbeat, and it sounds strong and steady to me. That gives me a little comfort.

Jace is standing a few feet away, and I ask him, “How much longer, man? I am about to go out of my head over here. I just want somebody to ch
eck her over and make sure she wasn’t harmed.” Just as Jace is about to answer, I hear the ambulance sirens. I squeeze Carter gently in my arms and tell her, “The ambulance is here, baby doll. They are going to make sure everything is okay, and then I will take you home and take care of you. I will stay with you the entire time, don’t worry, baby!” Just in case she can hear, I want her to know I am here with her.

The paramedics rush out and start asking me a bunch of questions. I answer them all to the best of my abilities, and they load Carter up in th
e ambulance and start pumping a fluid through an IV they put in her arm. I get in to without asking because I am going with her no matter what. They don’t fight me on it so I just climb beside her and try to stay out of the way.

After a few minutes of getting her settled
, the ambulance starts going, and I ask them, terrified for the answer, “Is she going to be okay?” The matronly forty something paramedic gives me a smile of encouragement and says, “It looks like it, hon. They have to do some more tests at the hospital to make sure she had no bad reactions to whatever made her pass out, but she just looks to just be knocked out at this time. We have found no other adverse effects. So try not to worry so much. Just hold her hand and try to breathe.” That’s exactly what I do.

                                                                             
 
 
Chapter 26

Carter

I was stuck in a dream where my life had no Bray or Kell. But I was able to remember and know that they were missing. I played volleyball and danced, but I felt so lonely and kept wondering where are they? I asked the people in my life if they knew where Bray or Kell was, and they had no idea who I was talking about. I finally figured out that this had to be a dream. Bray would never just leave me. He was always there for me no matter what. Why would he just not be there anymore? So I tried to make myself wake up. But no matter how hard I pushed my eyes open I couldn’t seem to completely leave the dream.

Finally
, I heard his voice calling me. He was telling me how much he loved me. How he always knew that I would be the single most important thing in his life. He was telling me that I needed to wake up. He needed to know that I was okay. So I tried with everything I had to force my eyes open, and I finally did. Everything was blurry at first, but I still could hear Bray’s voice encouraging me, “That’s it, baby. I just need to see those beautiful eyes and hear that precious voice.” He was talking so sweetly to me, and I just had to smile that this big masculine man always was so soft when it came to me. My vision started to come into focus, and my eyes quickly met his. He was giving me his intense gaze that normally gave me goose bumps and turned me on all at the same time. But right now I just wanted to give him comfort and show him I was okay. He looked more worried than I had ever seen him before.