Author: Teresa Mummert

“H-how long h-have you been here?” I asked, hoping that this boy would be of some help.

“As long as I can remember.” He sighed as his hands began working again. “Because my mother was a whore. She slept around, found Jesus. Not at the same time.” His sarcastic remark while saying something so sad had caught me off guard.

“You believe that? That she was…a whore?”

His angry blue eyes met mine. “Have you even read the Bible?”

I tucked my dirty blond hair behind my ear and looked down at the wooden floor. “Some.”

“How’d you meet Taylor?” He stood up, stretching his back as he groaned, and I tried not to stare at the crisscross pattern of raised pink scars that covered his flesh from his shoulder blades to the edge of his pants.

“Mom met Taylor at that church soup kitchen on Fowler Street.”

He nodded. “Homeless.”

“N-no. We volunteered on the weekends.” I took a deep breath, trying to slow my thoughts so I could stop stuttering. It was a horrible nervous habit that was exacerbated by fear.

He turned to face me, his eyebrows drawn together as he took in my appearance. “This is a first.”

“He told us we could volunteer here and help others get on their feet.”

“I believe he meant get you on your back.” He rolled his neck against his shoulders and let out a guttural groan.

“What? What is that supposed to mean?”

He looked over at me, emptiness in his eyes. “You’ll find out soon enough.”

I pulled down the zipper on the back of my skirt, shoving it over my hips and stepping out of it as it puddled on the floor. I walked into my expansive closet, and my eyes danced over the racks of clothing all organized by color.

I grabbed a pair of black shorts and a matching tank top to lounge around the house in. It usually took me a few hours to get out of the mental funk church put me in. Ice cream and a good movie usually did the trick.

I pulled on my clothes and walked out of my closet to find Colin lying on my bed, his shoes on my brand-new comforter.

“You could at least take your shoes off. You’re going to get dirt on my bed.” He raised an eyebrow at me.

“Little Orphan Annie.” He shook his head as he pushed from my bed with a smirk on his face, his charcoal suit pants and white button-down wrinkled. He had the cuffs unbuttoned and rolled up to his elbows, revealing the expansive cross tattoo down his inner right forearm.

“What movie are we watching?” he asked as he stopped in my doorway and grabbed the frame over his head.

“You’re going to grace me with your presence? Surely you have some child to steal lunch money from or perhaps a puppy to kick around.”

He winked and sauntered off into his room as he laughed. I shook my head and ran my hand over my comforter to make sure there were no dirt marks left behind from his shoes.

Colin always knew how to get under my skin. He got some sick sense of enjoyment from it because he knew he was the only person who could hurt my feelings. I’d learned to overcome, adapt, and adjust to anything thrown at me…except for him.

I made my way down to the first floor. I walked through the hallway by the dining room and was turning right at the kitchen when Colin’s voice rang out from behind me.

“Buttered or unbuttered?” he asked, and I turned to see him shirtless, still wearing his suit pants, but the button was undone, and they rode low on his hips, revealing the V of muscles that disappeared below the fabric.

“What?”

“For the movie.” He held up a bag of popcorn as he leaned back casually against the counter, a knowing smirk on his lips.

“Yeah, whatever.” I spun around and headed into the media room. I looked over the bookshelves lined with movies, my eyes dancing over the spines as I read the titles under my breath. We had a collection of thousands. I stood on my toes as my fingers slid over the cases. Long fingers wrapped over my hipbone, causing me to jump back against Colin’s bare chest.

“You scared me,” I huffed.

“If I had a dollar for every time I elicited that response from a woman.” He put a tumbler glass to his lips and drank back a thick amber liquid. I nudged my elbow into his stomach to make him take a step back.

“Not something to be proud of. How many of those have you had?” I asked as I looked up at him over my shoulder.

“Not nearly enough.” He tipped it to his lips again and drained the last of it from his glass before setting it on a side table without a coaster. I tried not to cringe at the watermark it was going to leave on a table that probably cost a small fortune.

“Let’s watch”—his long fingers slid over the movie cases—“this one.” He pulled out the case for Flowers in the Attic.

“Seriously? No.” I took the movie and shoved it back in its spot as my entire body felt hot. Why was he acting like this?

“What’s wrong with a little brotherly love?” he joked as he leaned closer to my neck, his breath tickling my skin as his mouth ghosted over the sensitive flesh. I closed my eyes, breathing in the smell of his No. 1 cologne.

“You are not my brother.” I sidestepped away from him as I focused on finding something to watch. I normally chose something romantic, but I knew that wouldn’t fly with Colin around. I still had to try.

“How about this?” I pulled out Sweet Home Alabama, and he looked like he was going to be physically ill. He grabbed another case and pulled it out as he raised an eyebrow, challenging me.

“The Borgias?” I sighed dramatically as I stuck my movie back on the shelf. “I’ll just go read a book or something.” I started to walk away, but he grabbed my wrist, stopping me. I froze, slowly looking over my shoulder behind me as he pulled me back to him, the playful smirk now gone.

“Pick something.” His hand fell to his side, and he walked over to the large brown leather couch and sat down in the center next to his bowl of popcorn. I was getting whiplash from his rapidly changing moods.

I studied the titles, trying to find something I hadn’t seen before, but I knew no matter what I chose I’d be struggling to pay attention with him at my side.

“You should really put some clothes on.” His eyes ran slowly up the length of my legs.

I looked down over myself. I was perfectly covered, and it wasn’t like I was going to be leaving the house. “You should put some clothes on,” I replied dryly, and he chuckled softly as my eyes drifted over his chest and down his abs.

Chapter 4 - Colin

I watched Annie’s finger slide across the spines of the movies, and occasionally she would stretch up on to her toes, making her legs look miles long even though she was only about five foot five. The fact that I still didn’t know where she’d been going or who she’d been seeing weighed heavily on my mind, and I wasn’t above some harmless flirtation to get the information I needed from her. I could say I was worried about her safety, but jealousy was what fueled my inquisition. No one should be putting his hands on her.

She finally held up a case with her lower lip pulled between her teeth as she waited for my approval.

I nodded, not bothering to see what she chose, and she hurried to put the disc in the Bluray player before walking back toward the couch. I patted the cushion next to me, but she sat a foot away, her bare legs pulled up to her chest with her arms wrapped around them.

“What’s this about?” I asked as she put her cheek on top of her knees, her face toward me.

She shrugged and reached for the popcorn. I pulled the bowl away as she glared at me, reaching farther as she stretched over me before pulling her arm back.

“I asked you a question.”

Her eyes locked on mine, challenging me before she reached again.

“Fine. Take it.” I set the bowl on my lap, and she fell back into her seat and reached her hand into the bowl to grab a handful. I relaxed, stretching out my legs and tucking my hand behind my head. The movie began, and the warmth of the alcohol was settling deep in my stomach and spreading throughout my body, but it was doing nothing to numb the thoughts that crept to the forefront of my mind. They were always present, haunting.

“It’s about this psychic in a small town, and she starts getting visions about a girl who’s missing.”

I smirked; even as defiant as she was, she still always listened to me one way or another. My cock twitched in response to her obedience.

“Sounds boring. I may need to find other ways to entertain myself.” I felt her gaze cut to me. I sighed as the opening of the movie seemed to drag on, but Annie was absolutely entranced and lost in the unraveling mystery. I pulled out my cell phone and began to scroll through the contacts, stopping on Leslie. I clicked the call button and stared off at the television as it rang, waiting for her to answer.

“Hello?” she answered with a thick Southern drawl.

“It’s been a while. Have you forgotten about me?” I asked as I pictured her bent over my desk as I took her from behind, her long, honey-colored ponytail wrapped around my fist.

“Like that’s possible. I’m in Texas.”

“That’s a shame. I was looking for some company.”

Annie groaned and turned up the volume on the television as her eyes narrowed, but she didn’t look my way.

“I’ll be back early next week. I could drop by.” There was a hopeful eagerness in her voice. None of these girls gave me the thrill of the chase, but at least they didn’t mind when I got a little too rough.

“I’ll already have replaced you by then, sweetheart,” I joked, and Annie glared at me, causing me to laugh. I pushed up from the couch and walked into the hallway to get away from her.

“That’s not funny,” Leslie shot back as I paced the floor, running my hand over my hair. She began to ramble on about visiting family and how her uncle was ill and not expected to make it. I didn’t give a fuck about her problems, her hopes, or her dreams. She served a purpose, and when she didn’t satisfy that urge any longer, she would be gone.

There was only one constant in my life, and that was Annabel. Her appearance was similar, but she couldn’t be more different from those girls. Even as she tried to prove otherwise, she was still the innocent one.

I plopped down on the couch next to her, our sides grazing each other as I rolled my eyes and focused on the movie. She adjusted herself like she was going to move away, but she stayed by my side.

I tried to shelter her from it as much as I could, but after the shower incident, it was all I could think about, weaving its way through my subconscious.

She was still clutching her knees to her chest, and I reached to the end of the couch and grabbed the red woven throw and laid it over her. She gave me a sideways glance but pulled it over her as she put her legs down.

“You can be pretty nice sometimes when you want to be,” she said, and I laughed, running my hand over my hair.

“The problem is I don’t want to be.” I studied her profile as she reacted to my words, her pink lips parting slightly and her chest rising a little farther and faster. That brought my gaze lower, and I turned to look at the television, closing my eyes as I pushed the thoughts from my mind.

The fog that had taken up permanent residence in my conscience as a child was now back in place, blinding me from the consequences of my actions. We always had a choice in life. I chose to give in to the darker side of my soul. The side that gained satisfaction from control. The side that was on the brink of starvation, waiting, biding its time until I was able to feed it again. It craved the wrong.

I did it all for the greater good, but now I wasn’t sure what that was and if I could really justify it as anything other than pure evil.

“She isn’t like the others.” The muscles ticked over my jaw as I clenched and unclenched my fists.

“What do you mean? Of course she is.” Taylor glanced back at me over his shoulder before continuing to type away at his next sermon on his laptop.