Total pages in book: 63
Estimated words: 57476 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 287(@200wpm)___ 230(@250wpm)___ 192(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 57476 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 287(@200wpm)___ 230(@250wpm)___ 192(@300wpm)
Alex gagged. “You asshole.” Nausea slammed into him, but Racer was laughing as he shut the door and left Alex alone with his sour stomach and miserable attitude. But all he could think about was the food Racer talked about, and he was up and off the bed and hauling ass to the bathroom seconds later.
He threw open the toilet lid and started dry-heaving. Well, shit, he couldn’t remember the last time he threw up after partying too hard. He knew his limit, and stuck with it, but he’d been such a prick to Mary. She hadn’t deserved any of what he’d thrown her way.
Another five minutes of dry-heaving and only throwing up bile, he flushed the toilet and stood, bracing his hands on the edge of the sink and looking in the mirror. Fuck, he was a wreck.
He sported circles under his eyes, his dark hair stood up every which way, and he wore a five o’clock shadow from hell. His mouth tasted stale, and now that he was up and moving around, every part of his body ached.
“God damn it, man,” he groaned. “You fucked up so bad with her.” No amount of telling himself that what he’d done and said to Mary had been for the best made him feel any better.
He hadn’t ever wanted to hurt her, which is why he’d done what he’d done, right? But at the end of the day, he’d still broken something in her, and all he wanted to do was grovel and beg her to forgive him.
Because I don’t want to let her go.
15
Mary knew this was a bad idea as soon as she made up her mind, and that feeling of dread continued to grow when she got in her car, drove to Alex’s house, and now stood in front of his door.
She didn’t feel that uneasiness because she didn’t want Alex to go with her.
It’s because I’m afraid he’ll say no.
She brought her knuckles down on the door and took a step back. Her heart was thundering, annoyance that she wasn’t stronger, maybe because she didn’t respect herself enough—in a sense—mixing with her arousal for him. Which was still so strong she couldn’t breathe right now.
A second later the front door opened, and she was struck speechless when she saw Alex standing just inside wearing nothing but a pair of loose, low hanging gray sweats. Oh good God. No man should look that well in a pair of lounge pants. No guy’s chest should be that ripped and defined.
His hair was damp, a towel draped over his broad shoulder, and his arms… Lord have mercy, but his arms were so thickly corded with muscle, so vein-roped, that she felt another rush of arousal move through her so hard that the flush stole over her chest and face.
But as she looked at his face, she took note of the dark circles under his eyes, the pallor of his complexion.
Alex looked like he probably felt like shit run over twice, and she rolled her shoulders back and straightened her spine as she felt… good that he felt like shit. Serves him right after the shit he pulled last night.
There was also surprise on his face as they stared at each other, as the silence stretched out between them.
“Mary,” he said in a gravel-laced voice, and lifted his hand to run it over the back of his head, his bicep flexing in a very distracting way. “Wh—” he cleared his throat. “What are you doing here?” The way his jaw clenched and the very anguished, uncomfortable look on his face had a little of the steam leaving her.
That little voice in her head kept reminding her this might be a really bad idea, the stupidest maybe. But she wouldn’t be a coward now. She came here for a reason and she’d damn well do it. The worst thing he could say was no.
When she didn’t say anything, he leaned a thick, wide shoulder against the doorframe and crossed his arms over his chest. Again, really damn distracting. Don’t get caught up by the pretty things, Mary.
So, taking a deep breath, she just spit it out. “I’m going to be perfectly honest, Alex, on why I’m here. I’m just gonna cut to the chase.” He stayed silent, his focus trained on her, but there was no impatience or judgment in his expression. “I want to keep our deal.” The surprise covered his face once more but he schooled it pretty fast. “I still need you to go with me to my sister’s wedding. You need me to help you pass your class so you can play football again. That hasn’t changed.” She notched her chin up and stared in his eyes. “You were an asshole last night, Alex.”
He straightened and looked uncomfortable.
Good.
“I was. A total fucking douchebag.” He lifted his head and their gazes locked. “But I am a piece of shit, Mary. You do deserve better, and if you were smart, you would have stayed away because I’ll only bring you down, dirty you up.”