Forging Day (Crucible of Change Book 1) Read Free Page B

okay?” She came in the rest of the way and plopped down on my bed. “Do we need to kill him for you?”
    “No, no killing. I don’t want to visit you in jail. I got drunk and he wouldn’t use a rubber but he didn’t really hurt me—not really. He got arrested because I told Officer Curtis about his parking ticket. Turns out he had quite a few. And a bench warrant. And a girlfriend!”
    “Oh, honey. I’m so sorry.” She pulled me into a hug, stroking my hair. “Are you sure I can’t kill him?” I wish I could tell if she was serious. “He didn’t deserve you,” she murmured into my ear, and then kissed me softly on the lips.
    I froze, and she pulled back. “I don’t know why I did that. Bygones?”
    She’s my best friend. What else could I say? “Bygones.” But my head was spinning.
    “Tell me what happened next,” she said, as she looked down and busied herself with petting the dog.
    The tears I’d been holding back were rolling down my cheeks. Stupid tears. “I think he probably wants to kill me about now. The feeling is mutual. He said something rude about the Sylvan Faire, and ‘no piece of ass is worth this much trouble’, and he didn’t want to explain a camping trip to his girlfriend. That’s when I mentioned his ticket to Officer Curtis and gave her his name and license plate number. I didn’t know there was a warrant out for him. Another cop arrested him and I had to convince Sharon I wasn’t hurt before she’d let me come home. He threatened me. And then I told him to go fuck himself.”
    “…and the horse he rode in on,” Kat finished for me.
    “Yeah.”
    She still looked pretty upset. “Why don’t we call your doctor? I bet they’d fit you in. I know the guys wouldn’t mind waiting.”
    “No. I hate going to the doctor. I just want to get out of here. You know what’s funny, except it’s not? He has a girlfriend, so he probably gets himself checked. How else would he explain if he gave her something? No wonder he asked whether I was on the pill, and the last time I was with anyone—and told me he didn’t like to share.”
    She hugged me again and tried to paste a smile on her face—but it didn’t quite reach her eyes. “In that case, the weekend is looking up. I don’t have to pretend to like Colby, and I can work on hooking you up with someone worth your time. Win-win.”
    “If I don’t finish packing, I won’t be going anywhere—and I don’t want to hook up with anyone. With my luck, I’d fall for a nice serial killer or someone equally wholesome.”
    “He wasn’t a serial killer, Olivia. As far as we know, anyway. He was just an asshole with a big dick.” She gave me a penetrating look. “You look like you need a minute, sweetie. Why don’t you take a quick shower? It might make you feel better.”
    I was doing my best not to cry in front of her. “You’re right. A shower is exactly what I need.” I ran into the bathroom and closed the door. The shower at Colby’s house had been disgusting, and thinking about him made me feel dirty all over. I scrubbed and scrubbed, wanting every trace of him off of my body, and still couldn’t stop tasting him, no matter how many times I scrubbed at my mouth. I couldn’t imagine anyone wanting to be with me. He was right. I was a slut, and I drank too much. What was wrong with me?
    And then Kat’s kiss popped back into my mind. We’ve been friends for so long. Sure, she’d flirted with me from time to time, but she flirted with everyone. I’d never thought about her that way, except that now I was. The only time I’d ever willingly kissed a girl was one drunken night in college with my roommate’s cousin…but from what hazy memories I had, we’d done a lot more than kiss.
    I loved Kat. She was my best friend. I was not going to do anything to screw up my friendship with Kat over this. I couldn’t bear it. As the water ran over me, I thought, at least when you cry in the shower, no one can see your tears