16. Brandy

16

Brandy

Seven years ago

“ D id you hear Bea made the cheerleading squad?” Madison asked before taking another swig of her beer.

We weren’t supposed to be drinking—none of us were—we were all underage. But some guy’s brother brought alcohol to the party, and it only got out of hand from there. I didn’t give a shit, though. I wanted to drown in the buzz, not the thoughts that’d stuck around all day.

My father had been just as mad at my mother as when I left this morning, so the moment I walked through the door after coming back from the ranch, I snuck right back out. For all they knew, I was sleeping in my room like the perfect daughter he wanted me to be. My mother didn’t care what I did so long as I was safe—and I was. Drinking at seventeen wasn’t the worst I could do. Kids at school did it all the time, so what was one night for me? Aside from the few times I’d snuck some liquor with Lettie, of course. Those occurrences didn’t count.

“Yeah, and did you hear Stacia was trying to make out with Wyatt behind the bleachers while his brother watched Bea make the tryouts?” Lindsey asked.

The two had been gossiping back and forth all fucking night, and I was growing beyond bored. The only reason I was tolerating it was because it beat sitting at home listening to my parents argue.

“ Trying ?” Madison repeated.

Lindsey nodded like it was the sweetest fucking conversation to be had all night. “Yep. Guess Wyatt rejected her.”

“Wyatt’s been single for, like, ever,” Madison commented.

“I know. I wonder what his type is. What do you think, Brandy?” Lindsey asked. The two of them turned their attention on me.

I blinked, trying to remember what she asked as my focus was on everyone around us chanting over keg stands and shouting over beer pong. “What?”

Lindsey paused with her cup at her lips, like she wasn’t expecting to repeat it. “What do you think Wyatt’s type is?”

My brows pulled together. “Um. I’m not sure?”

Madison laughed. “Well, whoever it is, it’s not Stacia.”

“He’s here, you know,” I told them.

Their gazes searched the room, trying to find Wyatt.

“Probably not the brightest idea to talk shit about the two of them while they’re in the same room.”

Lindsey rolled her eyes, trying to be discreet but failing miserably, as Madison turned back to the two of us.

I downed the rest of my beer as Lindsey pointed Stacia out in the corner with another group of girls. “Takes guts showing up here after that .”

“Not really,” I said blandly.

Both girls snapped their eyes to me.

I set my empty cup on the end table beside me, already wanting another. “It’s just a rejected kiss. Not a big deal.”

Lindsey pressed her lips into a thin line as Madison cleared her throat, then took a sip of her drink.

“Right,” Madison mumbled.

“Well, I’m gonna get another drink,” I said, not offering them a refill as I turned for the kitchen. I didn’t think I wanted to come back to them anyway.

I grabbed an empty cup off the island and turned the handle on the tap of one of the kegs lying around. Once the plastic cup was filled to the brim, I twisted the knob to stop the flow. Right as the edge hit my lips, someone was calling my name. I took my sip, finding the guy who called for me.

“Come play,” the guy shouted, waving his arm in the direction of the group he was sitting with. They sat in a circle on the living room floor, a bottle lying in the center of the six of them.

I guessed playing spin the bottle with a couple of teenagers was better than hearing Lindsey and Madison gossip for the rest of the night. I wanted to let loose and have fun, not sit around listening to petty high school drama.

Crossing the kitchen, I joined them in the living room. The guy made space, scooting closer to Derek on his right. I knew him from school, but not the one who called me over. Lettie and I liked to stick to ourselves, but being in the classes I was in, I knew a lot of the obnoxious, popular people. Lettie never cared to hear their drama, so she kept quiet in the halls, finding me in the library on our breaks. It was quite the opposite compared to her personality outside of school.

The guy held his hand out to me after I sat criss-cross next to him. “I’m Matt. Derek here told me your name.”

I slipped my hand in his, shaking it. “Couldn’t ask me yourself?”

Matt smiled. “Sassy, huh?”

“Just honest,” I replied, dropping his hand.

I took a sip of my beer as Matt gestured to the glass bottle. “Wanna try your hand at luck?”

“Luck in spin the bottle?” I questioned.

He laughed, the others around him smiling. “Nah. Seven minutes in heaven.”

“A kiss not do it for you, Matt?” I teased, feeling bold with the alcohol flowing through my system.

“From you? Nah.” He leaned closer, looking over my shoulder as he murmured in my ear, “I think I’d like a taste of something else.”

I felt my cheeks heat as he turned back to the game, acting as if he hadn’t just whispered dirty things to me.

“Who wants to start?” he announced.

“I’ll go,” Derek said, reaching for the bottle. With a hard spin, it eventually landed on Erin across the circle. With the cock of a brow, Derek was getting up with her and heading up the stairs to one of the rooms.

With five of us remaining, Matt went next. We watched as it spun, but right when it began to slow and it was clear it would land on someone across the circle, he grabbed it, aiming it at me.

“Looks like it’s our turn,” he said with a smirk.

I rolled my eyes, taking a long sip of my beer before getting to my feet. I wobbled slightly, blinking to clear my spinning vision before following him to the stairs. He held a hand out for me, and I took it, letting him lead me to the second story. I was thankful for hissteady presence as the alcohol hindered my balance on the way up.

“You ever play this before?” he asked.

“No,” I replied as we turned a corner. He opened the door, letting me go inside first.

“It’s fun. I promise.”

I turned in time to see him lock the door. He glanced over his shoulder, finding me watching. “For your privacy,” he explained.

I nodded, taking a couple steps back. The backs of my thighs hit the bed, and I stopped. “How old are you?”

“How old are you?” he questioned.

“I asked you first.”

He approached me, stopping mere inches from where I stood. He set his hands on my cheeks, brushing my hair behind my ears. My tongue felt dry in my mouth, my feet heavy. “I asked you second.”

I did my best to roll my eyes, but it only made me spin more. “Seventeen.”

“Seventeen,” he answered finally.

Okay, so at least he was my age.

His hands felt warm on my cheeks as his chest pressed into mine, and then I was lowering to the bed, my ass hitting the soft mattress.

His touch slid down my sides to the top of my jeans. “I’ll make you feel good, okay?”

I managed a nod, but all I could do was watch as his fingers undid the button, then glided the zipper down. His eyes caught on the black lace panties I wore. “Looks like you knew what you wanted coming here tonight.”

I didn’t tell him I had no intention of hooking up with anyone, but a little bit of alcohol and daddy issues might do that to a girl.

“Are you a virgin?” he asked.

I shook my head, but he didn’t bother looking up. I didn’t think he cared, really. He pulled my pants off, along with my sneakers and socks, then got on his knees before me.

“You can lay back,” he said, and when I didn’t, he looked up at me, waiting.

I did as he said, letting my elbows hit the mattress so that I was still propped at an angle and able to see him. Well, what seemed to be two of him now.

He set his hands on my thighs. “Why don’t you take that shirt off?”

I swallowed, my throat dry. “I’m okay like this.”

A small sigh escaped him, like he was growing annoyed or something, but I brushed it off. His hands slid to my knees, pushing them apart. Downstairs, someone yelled, causing me to jump. Matt gave me a scolding look, pulling my legs apart again. “Just a party, baby. Don’t be scared. I’ll take care of you.”

His smooth hands ran up the insides of my thighs, stopping at the hem of my underwear. Right before he began pulling them down, I sucked in a breath. “Wait.”

A burst of air exited his nose. “What?”

Outside the room, something crashed into a wall, causing me to jump again.

“I told you to keep your legs open,” he said, pulling them apart again. His fingers dug into my thighs.

I shoved up on my elbows, trying to sit straight but having to work for it through the spinning of my head. “Hold on. I—”

“Brandy!” a voice boomed from somewhere in the hall, and my gaze snapped to the door.

Matt shook his head. “Ignore them.”

“Brandy, where the fuck are you?” the same voice shouted. Something crashed again, and then the wall vibrated as a body presumably hit it. “Where is she?”

“In there, man. Calm the fuck down,” a guy said, his voice more high-pitched than the other.

Movement sounded on the other side of the door, and then the knob was wiggling. “Brandy, are you in there?”

My vision spun as I tried to focus on the door. “Reed?”

“He your boyfriend?” Matt asked.

I shook my head as I tried to figure out why he was here. “No.”

“Open the door,” Reed demanded from the other side.

I moved to stand, but Matt held me back with a hand on my stomach. “She’ll be out in five minutes,” he called out.

“Open this fucking door, Matt,” Reed said, his words nearly a growl as the handle jiggled again.

“Five minutes,” Matt repeated.

I grabbed his hand, shoving it away as I tried to stand again. “I want out.”

Matt moved his hand to my waist, gripping it to keep me in place. “We’re just playing a little game, Brandy. Come on. Don’t be a baby.”

“I’m not a baby. I want out,” I repeated.

“Just five minutes,” he said again.

But not a second later, the door was being ripped off its hinges as it flew into the room.