Tyed

The scotch glass slips through my fingers. He doesn’t even acknowledge my clumsiness. I pick up the glass and dab at the spilled scotch with a napkin from the sushi tray while he just continues to glare.

A part of me wants to knock the rest of the bottle of scotch down my throat, then jump on his body and tear every single item of clothing off of his unbelievably muscular physique. A different part of me wants to slap him hard for being so rude. A third part of me wants to hug him for making my heart swell inside my chest, telling me what I wanted to hear ever since I laid eyes on him.

Bottom line? Every single part of me wants to touch Ty Wilder. Bad.

“You're rude."

"I'm direct." His eyes wander to my lips, and something shifts in the atmosphere, making the room incredibly hot all of a sudden. I look away quickly.

I have to change the subject.

"My turn to cross-examine you. So who is Nicole, and how many Nicoles are there? I overheard her talking about you the other night at Ned’s, and let’s just say your female fan base will be thinning out pretty quickly if you keep fucking it up. Literally.”

He looks impressed by my assertiveness, but his jaw tenses. "Any chance we can change the subject back to you being a vegetarian?"

"No chance in hell," I retort.

He sighs. "You're not going to like it."

I take a big gulp. What happened to Mr. Fuck-Your-Brains-Out? "Try me."

He shrugs and runs a hand over his head, an it's-your-funeral look plastered on his face. “There are countless Nicoles. I’m not even sure who the Nicole you’re referring to is. It's all just a bunch of sloppy one-night stands. Though sometimes they stretch into a few weeks of fuck-buddy-ism."

“So these women just have sex with you and want nothing more?” I snort my condemnation. I shouldn’t be judging. Sleeping with a guy without emotional attachment doesn’t make you a whore. It can even make you a feminist.

Ty gets into my face, gathers my hair into a ponytail and grazes his five o’clock stubble near the sensitive area at the back of my neck. “Jealous, Barbie?"

I snort my amusement. “Please. It's just that I heard Nicole saying that you were with three girls at once. Is it true?” I not try to choke on my words, to look indifferent.

Please deny this. Please say it isn’t true. Pretty, pretty please.

I mean, really? A foursome? A threesome is a stretch. A foursome is a Bourne Ultimatum mission.

Ty drops his hands from my face and bites his inner cheek, looking away. "This is not a good first date topic," he says evenly.

I have my answer.

I choke back my anger. “So what’s all this crap?” I motion around us with my hands.

“You’re different,” he replies.

“Bet you never used that one before.” My legs push me upward. School assignment or not, this dude just told me in the middle of our first date that he’s hooking up with a shitload of girls, sometimes four at a time, and Brain has had enough. It’s getting ballsy.

“Sit down,” Ty orders calmly.

“Take me home.”

“You’re mad because I told you I sleep with other girls?” He is mumbling to himself, almost as if it’s the first time he’s met a girl who isn’t okay with this.

“Wow. You worked that out quickly. Are you sure you want to stay in the XWL and deprive the world of science of your incredible brain?”

I grab the scotch bottle by its neck and zigzag my way toward the door.

What the hell was I thinking? He is a famous, probably semi-rich, athlete. His whole reputation rests on the premise of his alpha maleness.

I push the door open and stride for the trees. I have no idea where I’m going, but I have to get away. Everywhere he touched me stings like fire, his skin infected with so many past girls who dirtied him up for me.

The black night swallows me, and the wooden cabin disappears from my sight. But worry is for calculated, levelheaded people. My head’s a giant mess right now. I’m expecting him to storm out, to stop me, to explain himself. But with every step I take, I realize that this may not happen and that I'm ultimately screwed.

My chucks smack the ground, the decaying leaves, my body and face whacked with branches and mist. Brain shuts down, Hormones are gone, and Heart is pouting in the corner. Legs are the only ones who seem to work, and I have no freaking clue where they’re taking me.

I stop dead when the earth curves into a hill, surrounded by nothing but blackness and chirping crickets.

My fingers wobble as I tug my cell out of my jacket pocket. The screen lights up before my eyes, but there’s no service, seeing as I’m in the middle of nowhere. Worry converts to panic. I turn on the phone’s flashlight and explore my surroundings.