Total pages in book: 26
Estimated words: 24405 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 122(@200wpm)___ 98(@250wpm)___ 81(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 24405 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 122(@200wpm)___ 98(@250wpm)___ 81(@300wpm)
“What was all that about?” Shelby asks.
Still fired up, I round on her, my eyes narrowed to slits. “Next time I tell you I’m not interested in somebody, don’t you ever call them and tell them I want to go out with them. Never again. Got it?”
Shelby recoils like I slapped her. “I’m sorry, Brynn. I didn’t mean to—”
“Forget it,” I say, then sigh.
I’m still so pissed that if this were a cartoon, steam would be coming out of my ears; I turn around and push through the swinging doors that lead to the back of the shop, wanting nothing more than to be alone right now.
When my shift is over, I storm out of the coffee shop without saying goodbye. All I want is to take a hot shower, get into some comfy clothes, put on Netflix and forget this day ever happened. The sun has already gone down, and the air carries a slight chill. Because the coffee shop is located on a main street, we are forced to park in a lot a block away. Pulling my sweater around me a little tighter, I duck my head and walk, more annoyed by this inconvenience than normal. Everything is annoying me right now.
I come around the corner and pull up short. “What the hell?”
As if sensing my presence, Cole, who is leaning against my car, looks up from his phone, and a toothy smile spreads across his face. I sigh and pull my keys out of my pocket.
“What are you doing?” I ask.
“I thought I’d give you one more shot.”
“What part of not … um, not interested in going out with you, are you having trouble understanding?” I snap.
“Come on, now, sweetie,” he purrs. “Let’s just go have a drink—”
“Seriously, fuck off. I’m not going anywhere with you!”
He sighs, as if pained, his lips forming a taut line across his face. There’s something in his eyes, a faint glimmer, that makes the back of my neck prickle. My heart lurches, and fear-fueled adrenaline rushes through my veins.
Something’s not right.
“Is that your final answer, Brynn?” he asks.
“Please,” I say. “Just get away from my car and let me leave.”
“Is that a ‘no’?”
“I don’t want to go out with you.”
“I was afraid you might say that.”
My stomach drops when I hear the scuff of a shoe on the concrete behind me. Before I can turn around, though, a hand, almost as large as my head, is clamped around my mouth. My unseen attacker is large and pulls me against a body that dwarfs mine. I try to scream, but my voice is muffled. I struggle, but his arms are so large and muscular, I can’t move. I’m trapped.
Standing in front of me, Cole grins. “It didn’t have to be this way, sweetheart. All you had to do was go along with me, and this would not hurt you as much as it’s going to.”
He reaches into his inside jacket pocket and withdraws a small case. My eyes widen as I watch him pull out a syringe. He pulls the cap off and tucks it into his pocket, the tip of the needle glinting coldly in the dim street lighting. I struggle and thrash as he approaches, trying to scream through the hand covering my mouth. The man’s grip on me loosens slightly, but then he strongly snaps me back against his body. His hands feel like iron vices. My feet lift from the pavement, and I try to kick. Just air.
“Hold her, still” Cole sneers.
“I’m tryin’.”
Cole’s lips curl back, and he slaps me hard across the face, rocking my head to the side. Then again, harder this time. My cheek blooms with pain, and the inside of my mouth suddenly tastes like old pennies. I’m stunned. Dazed. In pain. And feel the fight ebb out of me as he steps forward. He reaches out and grips my throat. He squeezes and my mouth pops open. A gargled sound emerges. I cannot breath and I feel my pulse throbbing in my head. I am terrified. From the corner of my eye, I sight a silver needle rise up, heading straight towards me. I wince as the needle bites into my neck. His thumb depresses the plunger, and I feel warmth spread instantly through my veins. What the—my thoughts blur.
He quickly recaps the needle, puts it back in the case, then tucks it away in his jacket again. My vision wavers, and my limbs weaken. Cole leans close. Very close to my face.
“You’re going to learn to do as I fuckin’ tell you, you fuckin’ slutty piece of chicken-shit.” He spits the words, and his saliva spatters across my skin with each angry syllable. “And, if I can make a suggestion, you should learn to do it very fuckin’ fast,” he says, then turns away.