Revive Me (19 page)

“You have no fucking idea how damn happy I am that you actually showed up. I promise you we’re going to have a good time tonight. Just you and me,” he said, kissing my forehead and dragging me into him.

“Just you and me,” I whispered, smiling back at him.

Suddenly, his lips were on mine, and he was grabbing my waist to lift me up on the counter behind me. My head spun as he slid his tongue into my mouth and kissed me roughly. I ran my tongue against his piercing, and his hand shot up to my hair, clasping it as he groaned wildly. I spread my legs open, allowing him to slide in between them, and press his growing erection against my heat.

I moaned at the sensation of him grinding against me, and he took that as an opportunity to go farther. His hands went for the hem of my sweater and pulled it over my head. He threw it on the floor and immediately unhooked my bra. A cold shiver crawled over my skin, and I shuddered. Reese didn’t notice, instead, he continued to grind against me. He suddenly pulled away and before I had a chance to ask what was wrong, he leaned down and pulled a nipple into his mouth.

My head smacked into a cabinet as my head flew back. “Oh my God, that actually feels good,” I groaned, enjoying the sudden tingling sensations swirling through my stomach. I wasn’t sure if it was the alcohol but I’d never felt something so intimate before. He groaned in response, and I got lost in his touch.

He dug his hand into my hips before making a move for my leggings. My head went into overdrive, immediately picking up what was happening, I froze. “Wait,” I said, stopping his hands.

He pulled away and took a step back. When I finally had the nerve to look at his face, he shook his head at me. “Are you attracted to me at all?” he asked, causing my back to go straight against the hard wood.

“What?” I asked crossing my arms against my bare chest.

He gave me a blank look before sighing dramatically. “It’s just every time I try to show you affection, you pull away from me. Why? Do you not like me like that? Am I not your type?”

Alcohol swirled through my stomach, and my head as I tried to think of the best way to explain myself. “I told you I’m not that experienced.”

“Are you planning on joining a convent or some shit?” he asked, raising a brow.

“Uh, no,” I answered, confused.

“Then what’s holding you back? Everyone starts out inexperienced, babe. You’ll never know what it’s like or what you like if you don’t try it. Trust me, it’s easy, and it feels fucking amazing. It feels even better when you have feelings for the person, like I do you.” He stepped closer, and settled himself back in between my legs. “I want you. God, I want you so bad. I want to feel closer to you.” He ran his hands up my leggings. “Everyday, I think about how great it would feel if you gave yourself to me. I’d know you truly cared about me.” His hands traveled back up and in between my legs. He continued to rub, his finger moving in circles, and I started to feel dizzy. “I’m not trying to push you, love. I’ve just been waiting so long.” He pulled his piercing into his mouth, scraping his teeth against it, while he kept his hand at work. My vision grew hazy and this time when he went to pull off my leggings, I didn’t stop him.

Tessa

“H
ey, it’s me,” I said into the speaker of my phone. I adjusted myself against the chilly pillows in my bed and sunk down into comfort of my sheets. “I’ve tried calling you a few times, but you’re not picking up, obviously. Please, just please, call me back,” I pleaded to his voicemail. With every missed call, I was struggling harder to keep my cool. Why was he ignoring me? Did I do something wrong? Fear sunk into the bottom of my stomach as a headache grinded through my skull. This couldn’t be happening.

“Screw it,” I whispered into the quiet of my bedroom and slid out of my bed. There was no way I’d be able to sleep until I talked to him. I couldn’t lose him. I slammed my eyes shut, and sobbed silently. Why did everyone leave me?

I pulled on a pair of sweat pants from the floor and threw on a jacket. I snatched all my hair up in one hand, pulled it into a loose ponytail, and walked down stairs and out the front door.

The party was in full swing when I walked in. I knew he’d be there. He’d mentioned it to me the other night, and he never missed a party. That’s all he did. I nudged a few people with my shoulder, dodging them left and right, and spotted a large group of people standing in the living room. I immediately spotted him standing in the middle of the crowd. I blinked a few times, counted to ten, and tried to calm myself down.

“I’m dreaming,” I whispered to myself. “Please be dreaming.”

I opened them back up and my stomach clenched. Nope, I definitely wasn’t dreaming. His hands were wrapped around a tall, busty blonde attached to his side as he talked to the people around him. He was holding her like he’d held me. His hand was wrapped firmly around her waist like he owned her. A chill hit my spine. Everything we’d done and everything he’d said meant nothing. They were all lies. Stupid bullshit lies. And I’d been suckered into falling for every one of them.

“Hey Tessa,” Maya shouted, noticing me and breaking out of Bobby’s arms. I looked up to see her skipping my way before pulling me in for a tight hug. I hugged her back, but kept my eyes on him. His entire body stilled at the mention of my name, and his head jerked up to look directly at me. He saw me. He acted like he didn’t, but he did.

“Hey,” I muttered, pulling away from her.

“Let’s go get a drink, girlfriend,” she said, grabbing my hand to drag me away. I pulled back from her in suspicion. Was she trying to help me by not letting me see Reese or was she trying to protect him?

“I’ll be right back,” I said.

“Shit,” she spat out under her breath, answering my question.

I stomped over to him. He wasn’t going to get away with this. “Are you kidding me?” I shouted. There were so many thoughts running through my head, and I couldn’t keep up. I’d never felt so angry, betrayed, and hurt before. I’d officially become one of those girls who created a scene in public over a guy.

“Fuck me,” Reese breathed out, dropping his arm away from the girl at his side, and pushing her back behind him in a protective gesture. Was he trying to protect her from me? His hands ran over his face, and he shook his head a couple times. Was this what it meant to have your heart broken? I was realizing every warning I’d been given was right. I listened to his lies and lost people I loved. I lost people who cared about me by choosing him. I’d been blind. Every word, every promise, and every touch meant nothing to him, but everything to me.

“Who the hell is she?” the girl behind him screeched, looking over his shoulder and pointing at me. The crowd had parted, allowing me to walk straight to him, and create the scene they were anticipating.

“She’s a friend,” he answered, biting his piercing roughly as his words seared through my heart. I was a friend? He threw his head back and cursed a few times before looking directly at me. “Look Tess, we need to talk.”

“I’ve been trying to call you all day.”

He patted his pockets like he was searching for his phone. “Fuck, sorry, I forgot my phone at home.” My ribs squeezed when I eyed the bulge in his right pocket that was strangely the size of his cell.

“Okay,” I drew, looking around at the curious looks around us. Alexa was standing in the corner of the room, her attention on us as she shook her head, and looked at me with what looked like pity. I spotted Dawson in the kitchen, oblivious to what was going on, playing a drinking game with his friends and a few girls. I watched him help a girl get the perfect aim for her beer pong ball, cheering when she hit the opponent’s cup. He’d moved on. I couldn’t be mad at him for it. I’d practically shoved him out of my life and handed him to her.

“This probably isn’t the best place to have this conversation,” Reese said, gritting his teeth, and I looked away from Dawson as he jerked his head to the gawking crowd. “Call me tomorrow, stop by, and we’ll talk.”

The girl behind him scoffed and pushed into his back. “What the hell do you need to talk to her about? Is this your girlfriend? You told me you were single.”

“Chill out, babe. She’s not my girlfriend,” he fired back, grabbing her angry hands and settling them to his side.

She’s not my girlfriend.
I’d been so naïve. He’d made me feel like I was the most important person in the world to him. I thought we were in a relationship. I was falling in love with him. I hated love. I wanted to rip love into shreds, shove it down his throat, and let him choke on the emotions until it made him feel as sick as I did.

“You can go fuck yourself,” I seethed, taking a few steps forward. My hand whipped back, and I felt the sting of my palm connecting with his face before he had the chance to stop it. The girl behind him shrieked as he fell back into her chest, and she was shoved against the wall. Tears burned at my eyelids, begging to be released, but I refused to let him see me cry. I wasn’t giving him, or anyone else, that satisfaction. He stared at me in shock as I shoved a finger into his chest. “You’re an asshole, and I hate you!” I pushed him again, causing another shriek, and he finally shoved me away from him.

Fire burned his eyes when he pushed me again. “You need to fucking leave, Tessa,” he spat.

Bobby instantly appeared and grabbed his arm to pull him away. “Dude, chill out. Let’s go smoke,” he said. “Don’t do anything fucking stupid.”

“He’s already done something stupid!” I yelled. “You’re a coward, and you’re worthless.”

“Fuck you, you crazy bitch. Don’t get mad at me because I don’t want you!”

I charged at him, but was suddenly pushed back. “Tessa, calm the fuck down,” the familiar voice said in to my ear as another pair of hands helped him keep me still. Rage ate at me. I wanted to hurt him. I couldn’t hurt Reese emotionally like he’d done me, but I could physically. At least I thought I could. I was pulled into a chair and hated myself when the tears began their course down my cheeks. Dawson leaned down in front of me, placing his palms on my kneecaps, and swiped spirals of hair that had fallen loose from my hair-tie.

“Listen to me, baby, you need to calm down,” he said gently, moving his hands from my hair to my eyes, wiping away the evidence of my hurt. “I’m here for you, you know that. I’ll always be here. Forget about him, and let’s go home.”

“You said you were done with me,” I sobbed, choking the words out. He’d left me, too. He’d said he was done with me. He’d left me just like everyone else. His chest was the next one I pushed back. “You lost your best friend and now you’re looking for someone to fill that void. I get it, Dawson, oh trust me, I get it. That’s what I’d done with that stupid jackass.” Every word that spewed out of my mouth shocked him and me. Who was this girl? I’d become a monster. “But it’s not real, so stop! I’m not going to let you, or anyone else, use me again! I’m done.”

“Jesus Christ,” he hissed, the intensity of his blue eyes peering down at me. “Use you? Are you even listening to the bullshit you’re spewing? That guy over there.” He pointed to Reese standing with his hands clenched as Bobby tried to calm him down. “The guy you’re crying over, that’s what using someone looks like. He used you, not me, I’ve done nothing but try to help you!”

“Fuck you!” Reese shouted, leaving Bobby before he had the chance to pull him back, and charging our way. “I didn’t fucking use her. You don’t know shit about what happened between us.”

Dawson pushed him away before he got any closer to me. “Oh, so you didn’t fuck her for the fun of it and then bail when you got what you wanted?”

“Dawson!” I shouted, humiliated at his accusation.

A menacing smile crossed Reese’s lips. “I don’t know what you’re talking about, pretty boy,” he taunted, and Dawson stumbled into my chair as Reese’s palms smacked into his chest. He rubbed his chin a few times and looked down at me. “You know why I bailed? You want me to tell all of these people why I freaked out?”

“Don’t you dare talk to her,” Dawson said, pulling himself up and pushing Reese away from me again. Spit flew from his mouth, and he looked at Reese like he was ready for murder.