A Good Girl’s Guide To Bad Boys

The music seemed to be getting louder as time went on so I went outside for some fresh air. Everyone’s sweaty bodies and the smell of alcohol was making me feel a bit dizzy.

The garden was even bigger than the house. A vast lawn was separated by a large outside pool and garden shed. Sitting down on the bench, I put my drink down and breathed in the evening air. Parties tended to go a bit overboard and you ended up with no breathing space or wiggle room, so the break was welcome.

‘So, you’re Andy.’ I glanced over to my left to see Zoe standing by the door. I inwardly groaned and rolled my eyes, dealing with her was the last thing that I wanted to do.

‘Yep,’ I answered, looking back towards the pool. I heard her heels click on the patio floor and she was soon sitting down on the bench next to me.

‘And you live with Hunter,’ she muttered.

‘Yep.’ She sighed, not saying a word as I tapped my fingers against my bare thigh, listening to the music thumping from inside the building.

‘Does he talk about me?’ she asked, looking at me.

I shrugged. ‘We don’t really talk, if I’m honest,’ I mumbled and she grunted.

‘Well, keep your hands off, okay?’

That set my temper off. ‘Look, I don’t like being told what to do and I’m not interested in Hunter.’ My answer couldn’t have pleased her too much as she flipped her hair over her shoulder and got up.

‘We have a history, okay? Don’t ruin it.’ I rolled my eyes, not even bothering to answer. When she realised that she couldn’t bait me into reacting, she sauntered back inside.

Grunting under my breath, I brought my drink to my lips before hearing someone else come outside.

‘Hello, gorgeous,’ a voice slurred. Suddenly, the idea of staying with Zoe didn’t seem so bad. I looked over to see a guy undressing me with his eyes. My brain screamed at me to get up and get out of this situation, so I swallowed my gulp and got to my feet. I could feel my heart skip a beat when he grabbed my wrist, preventing me from going inside.

‘Not so fast, baby,’ he cooed, pushing me back and away from the door. I stumbled over my heels and was about to call out loud but he put his hand over my mouth.

‘Shut up,’ he ordered. There was no hesitation in him shoving me back against the wall. My heart started to hammer and every hair on my skin stood on edge. I tried to squirm and attack him but he pressed the length of his body against me. When I attempted to bring my knee up, he harshly gripped my leg, shoving it back down. Scratching at his arms, I tried to yell against his hand but barely any sound escaped. He just chuckled, taking his hand away to kiss me with his wet sloppy lips. His breath was vile and his tongue was pushing at me lips. I refused to open my mouth and thrashed my head to the side. I swore when he groped my chest, and a single tear fell down my cheek.

‘Get off,’ I cried, trying to push his weight away from me. He narrowed his eyes and swore at me, running his hand down my body and unzipping his jeans. Panic flooded through my veins, I had to get out. More tears started to fall when I heard the zip pull down. My hands rushed to hit his chest but he just laughed, pushing the bottom of my dress up. My feeble attempts at pushing it back down soon failed when he slammed his pelvis against mine, keeping me against the wall.

‘Please, don’t,’ I whispered, not being able to speak through my panicked gasps of breath. My eyes darted around behind him, trying to find some way of getting out and my legs felt like they were about to cave.

‘This isn’t going to hurt, baby, just enjoy the ride,’ he slurred. The alcohol from his breath surrounded me as I tried to bat him away. When he started to push the top of his jeans down, I thrashed, desperate to get out of his grip.

Suddenly, the heaviness of his body was gone and a sense of relief washed over me,

‘Touch her again and you won’t live to see tomorrow.’

Chapter 7 (#ulink_8d766a56-e260-5b9d-a024-c5a0858d74da)

Kyle hadn’t left my side since the incident, neither had Kenzi. Hunter, on the other hand, had beaten the guy to a pulp and I hadn’t seen him since. I put the frozen pack of peas that were wrapped in a tea towel to my side, wincing as I did so.

‘You know, I think that I’d have preferred it if he roofied me,’ I said under my breath and Kyle smiled, leaning against the kitchen counter.

‘He’d have actually gotten away with it then,’ he pointed out. I decided against commenting and leaned back against the wall. The panic had subsided a while after the attack but my hands were still shaky.

Kyle had cleared out the kitchen and allowed me to sort myself out in there. Everyone had gathered to help me out, even Zoe, although I was sure that she was just there to see Hunter.

‘This uni experience isn’t exactly going as planned,’ I murmured and Kenzi offered me a small smile.

‘You said your lecture was good and we’ve got a dance troop again?’ she offered and I sighed.

‘True, but I live with a psycho and I’ve been attacked on my first day,’ I replied.

A scuffling sound came from the door, followed by Hunter’s wry chuckle.

‘I’m hurt, I really am,’ he drawled and put his hand to his chest in mock hurt. ‘But you’re welcome,’ he said. I nodded in thanks and he gave me a small, one-sided smile in response.

‘You could’ve sorted it without getting blood all over my patio,’ Kyle intervened, giving my roommate an uneven look.

Hunter shrugged. ‘Sorted him out, didn’t it?’ he asked, his voice just as neutral.

Before Kyle could say anything else, Zoe stepped forward and grabbed his arm. ‘Let’s go, babe,’ she said, loud enough for us all to hear. Hunter didn’t look down at her; he kept his eyes on me, staying put.

‘I’ll see you out there in a few minutes,’ he replied, leaning down and gently kissing her cheek. His eyes didn’t move from mine so I grunted and breathed out deeply. Zoe let out a satisfied sound before leaving the room, not sparing any of us a glance.

‘She can be a bit... full on,’ Kyle said with a sigh and I rolled my eyes.

‘You’re telling me,’ I mumbled and Kenzi smirked, leaning on the counter next to me.

‘Who was the guy?’ Hunter asked, speaking to us all for the first time since the incident.

‘I don’t know, you tell me. You knocked all his teeth out,’ Kyle responded hotly. I frowned, gently placing my hand on his forearm to calm him down.

‘You’re welcome for saving your little girlfriend’s ass,’ Hunter growled and I cleared my throat, jumping down from the counter. My legs were still jelly-like but I held myself up and managed to keep my feet from slipping in my heels.

‘Thank you, all of you. And I’m not his girlfriend,’ I replied, looking straight at Hunter. As much as I hated the guy, he did me a huge favour. Scoffing at my thoughts, I shoved them to the back of my head in time to see Hunter offer me a smile. A real smile. Before disappearing back through the door for his nightly entertainment.

‘Are you coming?’ Kyle asked Kenzi, gesturing towards the door. I frowned and Kenzi chewed on her lip, shaking her head.

‘Coming where?’ I asked Kyle, was leaning on the doorframe, watching Kenzi hold my elbow, keeping me balanced on the slippery tiles. He glanced out of the door.

‘Well, the troop and a couple others are going to be playing a game of spin the bottle upstairs,’ he explained, heading towards the door. I frowned and looked at Kenzi who shook her head at Kyle again.

‘After what’s happened, I don’t think that’s the best idea,’ she replied and Kyle looked at me, his eyes widening.

‘Shit, sorry,’ he paused, scratching his head with a pained expression. ‘I didn’t think,” he added. I offered him a small smile.

‘Don’t worry about it, I just really don’t think I’m up for playing. You guys can go, though,’ I said, moving my arm from Kenzi’s sweaty palm to rest against the kitchen counter.

‘I’ll stay here, we need to get hold of the police and we should probably get you home,’ Kenzi said. Someone cleared their throat to our right and Hunter raised an eyebrow.

‘Kyle, you going?’ he asked, watching Kenzi and I the whole time. Kyle glanced at us one more time before nodding and patting Hunter’s back on his way through into the crowd.

***

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