Loch (The Powers That Be Book 3)(15)

“And Triple C was my idea?”

Now she laughed. “Touché. All right, I’ll talk to you tomorrow, okay?”

“Gotcha. Have fun!”

We hung up and I left the toilet having made my mind up that I was going to tell Loch who I really was and I’d just have to deal with the consequences.

And if that meant he wanted me gone, so be it.





Confession Number Five



As I made my way back through the crowd I could see the top of Loch’s head since he stood so tall, probably around six-two or so, and when I got closer, I saw that he wasn’t alone and he was having what looked like a very heated discussion with a pretty blond girl and she was crying. Oh no. I stopped and stood-slash-hid behind a humongous guy who was downing the contents of a beer bong and waited for the girl to leave not wanting to intrude (although I was definitely spying but whatever).

“Like I’ve told you for the past month, Kinzie, no fuckin’ way. I’m done with you. Now leave me the fuck alone,” I heard Loch hiss then I saw the girl turn with a sob and run away.

Well, crap! He really was still a jerk. I felt the walls I’d just let down move back in place as I stepped out from behind Gigantor and went to where Loch was.

“Everything okay?” I asked.

His head shot around and for just a moment he looked at me like I’d just caught him with his hand in the cookie jar. Then he put his hands on my hips. “Yeah. It’s good. Dated her couple months ago, but she’s a fuckin’ liar. Tried acting like she was someone she wasn’t and I found out. Hate that shit. I ended it but she’s still holdin’ on.”

I felt all the blood leave my face as I looked at him. Fruckity fruckin’ fruck! The only way the evening could end now was with Loch hating me because I was exactly the girl he’d just described. Damn it!

Suddenly his eyes got intense on mine and he looked a bit like Ryker for a second which was kind of scary. “Come on,” he said, grabbing my hand and pulling me behind him through the crowd and out toward the field.

When we got there, I saw that there weren’t just swimming pools set up everywhere but there was a giant plastic tarp put down and it was being used as a mammoth Slip and Slide. I watched as a group of clearly drunk guys, maybe seven of them, did a countdown then they all ran up to the thing and flinging themselves down on it, slid nearly thirty yards before either coming to a gradual stop or careening off the side into the grass for a nice turf burn. Good grief.

And we were headed that way. Oh, heck no.

“Uh, we’re not doing that, are we?” I squeaked out.

Loch’s hand gripped mine harder when I tried pulling mine from his but when we passed right by the tarp of torture and kept going I can’t even explain the relief I felt. As we rounded what looked like some kind of fieldhouse, I wondered what we were doing until he pressed me against the wall with his body flush against mine then our lips collided when he bent to give me a bruising kiss.

Oh my word.

As the kiss grew hotter, Loch got really aggressive then, sticking his knee between my legs to where his thigh rubbed against my center, or maybe I was the one doing the rubbing, who knew at this point, then his hand slid down and under my cover-up where he clutched my bottom jerking me closer to him. And, Jesus Christ on ice, I knew I should’ve called it off but then amazingly, the kiss got even deeper. Frick! But damn it, I was all in, totally understanding his urgency right then because we definitely had crazy chemistry going on between us, which I’d already unabashedly exhibited on my porch earlier.

When one of his hands moved to my breast cupping it, his thumb gliding over my straining nipple, I moaned right into his mouth, loud and needy and all I want you and I don’t care if you stomped all over my heart before and even if you’re still a jerk, just do me, do me now! Then things got even wilder, if you can believe it, which was when he grabbed my leg, hitching it over his hip and began grinding against me.

And God help me but I wanted him. Wanted him right there! When my hands went to the front of his board shorts searching for a way to get them off, that’s when I finally got it together.

Tearing my mouth from his and pushing him back, I stood looking up at him as my breaths came fast. He was breathing just as heavily and his dark eyes on mine told me he wanted me just as badly as I did him but this was crazy and had to stop! We didn’t even know each other! I mean, I knew who he was, knew he was probably still a jerk, but this was going way too fast (not to mention the fact that I’d almost pantsed him in public).

“Loch,” I whispered.

“Celeste,” he whispered back and at that moment, I really hated that Triple C was going on because I’d really have loved to hear him say my first name in that raspy voice of his right then.