Credence

“He won’t do it again,” Noah tells me, turning around to face me with an amused smile. “He didn’t know who you were, Tiernan. Sorry.”

He lingers for a moment longer and then turns to leave, following his brother.

And I stand in the garage, staring at the slivers in the hood of the car where I scratched the paint just a few minutes ago. For several minutes, I’m lost in thought about where that would’ve gone if Noah hadn’t come in. If I hadn’t forced myself to push his brother away.

And how much of it might not have been Kaleb’s fault.

Tiernan

The next morning, giggles pierce the air, and I open my eyes, blinking away the sleep.

That was a girl.

Propping myself up on my elbows, I train my ears, hearing the steady rocking of something coming from Noah’s bedroom, and then a moan followed by something banging into the wall.

I roll my eyes and fall back to the bed. They really are living their best life, aren’t they? Must be nice to have your bed buddies come to you. At the crack of dawn every morning.

Doors open and close in the house, and I check my phone, seeing it’s just after five-thirty. Turning my head, I see my unpacked suitcase still laying open on the floor next to the pile of clean laundry I’d brought up last night.

I hadn’t finished packing. And I hadn’t changed my clothes. I was still wearing the shredded T-shirt Kaleb found me in last night.

Memories rush through my mind, and my chest starts rising and falling faster as everything that happened in the garage floods me again.

Who knew I’d fold so easily? I was so ready to wrap my legs around anyone who showed me the least bit of attention.

I close my eyes, still feeling it. The need for him to go lower. My hand finds my stomach under the covers, and for a moment, I pretend it’s his hand. Did I feel good to him?

But I blink, shaking my head. No.

No.

I throw off the covers and sit up. His behavior was ridiculous. What’s even more ridiculous is he wouldn’t have tried to get it on with a complete stranger if it hadn’t worked for him in the past. He didn’t like what he felt. He was horny, and I could’ve been anyone.

Standing up, I pull off my shirt, noticing a few red spots around the hem, and it only takes a moment before it hits me.

Blood.

The deer’s blood.

Ugh. He still had some on him when he was…on top of me. I growl under my breath and throw the shirt over to the waste basket, half of it catching on the rim and hanging over the side.

Pulling on a new one, I grab my toothbrush and toothpaste, opening my bedroom door and heading for the bathroom. Moans, cries, and “Wow” by Post Malone carry out from Noah’s room into the hallway, so I rush and swing open the door to the bathroom, seeing my uncle standing there at the sink, a towel wrapped around his waist.

I stop, his wet torso and hair glistening in the dim light, and I quickly look away. This is a big house. It would’ve been prudent to add a second bathroom.

I open my mouth to apologize at barging in, but the door is equipped with a lock. It’s not my fault he didn’t use it.

The other door to the bathroom, the one that comes from his bedroom, opens, and I see the same woman appear that was here the other day. She wears a tight, red, halter-top dress, her long brown hair pulled up into a ponytail, and black heels. She kisses him on the cheek, lingering long enough to nibble at his jaw a moment, and then walks out, squeezing past me with barely a look. I watch her walk down the stairs, disappearing, and then turn my head back around, instinctively glancing at the darkened stairwell leading up to Kaleb’s room.

“Shower?” Jake finally asks.

I turn around, meeting his eyes in the mirror as he wipes the toothpaste off his mouth. A drop of water spills down his back.

“No, I… just wanted to brush my teeth.” I turn to leave. “I’ll wait.”

“Four people and one shower,” he calls out, stopping me. “Don’t be shy.”

“Would you be shy if I were walking around in a towel?” I shoot back.