Page 5 of Needed You

Katie gives me a hug in greeting. “Hi, Dare!” she says, smiling brightly. “What are you drinking?”

I look into the cup. “I just mixed a bunch of shit together,” I tell her, taking a sip that burns all the way down. I push Ryan’s shoulder. “What’s up, asshole?”

Ryan and I met shortly after Nate died in our sophomore year of high school, and he came into my life like a wrecking ball. I wouldn’t have it any other way. Ryan was there, the new kid in school, and we were drawn to each other. Our friendship started with our hatred of gym class, which we both had sixth period, and we’ve just gotten closer as the years have gone by. He knows pretty much everything about Nate and my parents and the night Nate died. He stuck with me through the worst of my grief, and I’ll never be able to make that up to him. I’m just glad our paths crossed and that skipping sixth-period gym more than we ever should have brought us to this point.

He laughs, and we hang out there talking until the kitchen starts to get too full for me.

“I’m going to go into the other room to get some air,” I say, and he gives me a nod, then asks Katie if she wants another drink. I turn and head out of the kitchen, wandering around the much-too-crowded house until I find a quieter room. It looks a bit like an office, and I sink down into an oversized leather chair in one corner. There are only a few people in the room, and the music isn’t as loud. I dig into my pocket for my joint and lighter, then I bring the joint to my lips and light it up, taking a deep inhale and letting the smoke fill my lungs. A few minutes later, I feel hands on my shoulders from behind, and the soft scent of floral perfume wafts around me.

“Hey, Dare,” a voice whispers in my ear. Hands trail around my chest as Katie’s best friend, Jenna, walks in front of me. “Will you share?” she asks, straddling my hips on the chair. I shift slightly to get us more comfortable, and she sits down on my thighs. Okay, so we’re doing this?

Katie has tried to set me up with Jenna a few times now, and it’s not that I’m opposed to it, but I’m also not overly interested. I’ve hooked up with her once or twice on a mutual understanding that it was for fun with no strings, but I never want it to feel like I’m using her for sex. I’ve had sex with both girls and guys to satisfy a need to get off, although I prefer men, if I’m being honest. I’m cool going either way, really; I just like being close to people. I like holding and touching and feeling other people’s body heat. And with Jenna, I’m okay letting her do what she wants for a little while. It’ll make me feel something, at least. But I won’t let it go further than that tonight.

“Hey, Jenna,” I greet her as she takes a puff of my joint and then puts it back between my lips.

She leans forward and kisses the side of my mouth. “I’m glad I saw you come in here.” Her hands move to my shoulders, and she grinds herself against me.

I sigh and lean my head back as she starts kissing my neck. I put my hands on her thighs and squeeze, and I let her suck and lick my neck. It feels good, and I fall into the sensation, rocking slightly up into her. I’m so fucking starving for touch that I’ll basically let her do anything to me right now. I don’t even really want it to be sexual. I just want to feel her body and hands on me. But she’s in it, and the more she kisses and grinds on me, the more it feels good. My dick is slowly waking up, and it’ll be disappointed when it realizes nothing’s going to happen.

Her hand reaches under my shirt, and her soft, warm palms rub up my torso. She moves her face to try to kiss my lips, but I turn my head away, and her lips make contact with my jaw instead. I don’t want to kiss her, and I really don’t want to mislead her and have this turn into more. When I feel her hand move down toward my belt, her teeth nipping my earlobe, I take her wrist in one hand and gently push her back with my other.

“Okay, okay,” I say. She groans and tries to come back to kiss me again, grinding her core against my groin. I give her a chaste peck on the lips. “Come on, Jenna . . . not . . .” I start to stand up, which forces her off of me. “I’m sorry, Jenna,” I apologize. “Not tonight.”

With a huff, she straightens out her shirt, then gives me a coy look. “Want to just smoke and snuggle? Maybe it’ll lead to something else?” She walks her fingers up my chest.

YES. “Nah, I’m good. Maybe another time. Just not in the mood tonight.”

She makes a pouty face and kisses me on the cheek before she turns to leave. “Maybe I’ll see you later,” she says over her shoulder.

I smile and give her a wave, sneaking a glance at her from behind as she walks out of the room. What the fuck is wrong with me? I run a hand down my face and decide it’s time for me to go, too. I’m not sure why I even stayed this long.

I can’t find Ryan and Katie anywhere, so I send Ryan a quick text and then head out. When I get home, I strip down to my boxers and crawl into bed, pulling the covers up over my head. I’d give anything right now to just have a big, warm, hard body against mine, but I fall into a fitful sleep, alone and frustrated.

Chapter 3

Levon

My new apartment in town is starting to feel more like home, but it still needs some work for me to really settle in. It’s small—just one bedroom, a bathroom that’s almost as big, a living area, and a kitchen with a bar and nook big enough for a little table—but it’s clean and modern and exactly what I need.

Lindsey’s here to help me put her touch on it. According to her, it needs something, and she doesn’t trust me to make decorating decisions. I told her she could do whatever she wanted, so she brought over some navy, gray, and white curtains and a matching navy-blue rug for the floor. I guess she thought I needed to do everything in navy blue. I’m not a huge fan of the curtains, but she claims block color is in, so I begrudgingly let her have the honors. And truthfully, I really don’t care enough to fight her on it.

As she’s hanging the curtains in my bedroom, standing on a chair so she can reach, she glances at me and chuckles. “You would think that—”

“Don’t say it,” I interrupt, knowing exactly where she’s going with her train of thought. She’s so predictable. She laughs again, but I double down. “You will not put me in a stereotype or assumed norm. When has that ever worked out for anyone?”

She jumps off the chair, still laughing. “I’m just saying that it would be nice if you had a little bit of David Bromstad in your blood. Besides, he’s nice to look at.” She winks and gives her shoulders a little shimmy.

I shake my head. “I mean, I’d be okay with a little of David Bromstad in me. And you know he’d be coming home with me.” I point a finger to my chest and wiggle my eyebrows, smiling at her the entire time.

She pushes her bottom lip out in a pout. “Ew,” she says, but then she giggles. “I know. It’s not fair. So many hotties, and you all like dick.”

“Watch your mouth! You like dick, too!” I retort, still grinning. Her mouth opens and closes like a fish. “Did I render my sister speechless?” I feign shock as I take the plastic packaging that was holding the curtains from her and head into the kitchen to throw it away. She follows me out of the bedroom, chuckling.

Together, we finish up with the curtains, and I break down the rest of the boxes, stacking them by the door to take to the trash later. I grab two bottles of water out of the fridge and hand her one. She takes a big drink as she sits down at the kitchen table.

“So, Katie Montgomery had a party on Friday night. Do you remember her?”

I search my brain for a face, but I can’t place her. “Nope,” I reply.