Bent not Broken (260 page)

He put down his drink on top of the table and unhooked the single button on his navy blue suit jacket. I stared at him in awe: one of the side effects of my fourth or was it fifth Cosmo? Whatever, but the Cosmo must have had me feeling this way; he was so hot! I wanted to run my hands through his hair and suck on those lips.
What the hell am I thinking?
I shook the thought immediately away. He was staring at me suspiciously. Did he suspect my thoughts? It was beginning to feel extremely warm in there. Fanning my face with my hand to cool off didn’t work. My face burned, and I was uncomfortable from the heat.

“Are you Sullivan? Mia Sullivan?” he asked, folding his hands on-top of the table.

Biting my lip, I chanced a quick glance at him again. “Yes, how did you know?”

“Oh, ah, Jeremy mentioned you a few times. Also I texted him earlier to see if he knew you. I’ve heard a lot about the highly recommended, first-year law student, Mia Sullivan.” He playfully smiled. It was adorable.

I took a deep breath. “Yes, that’s me. I … I didn’t apply. Professor Johnson decided to apply on my behalf. He handed me the acceptance letter for the interview this morning actually.” His eyebrows creased. He grabbed his drink, and before taking a sip, he nodded his head, indicating the “
I see”
look. I’m not sure if it was a positive or negative response, but it made me wonder if I shouldn’t have mentioned that Professor Johnson submitted the application. What if he thinks I don’t want the position, or what if he doesn’t take me seriously?

“Hey, there you are! I see you met Mia!” Jeremy interrupted my thoughts. His white shirt was damp, and his face was glistening with sweat. At least I wasn’t the only one who felt warm. “Yes, we met.” DeLuca’s smile was replaced with a serious expression. I wondered, “Oh
shit
, did I screw up my only opportunity for this externship?” I felt queasy. “So Marc, sorry I can’t hang, but I kind of have this chick that wants to hook up.” Jeremy pointed his thumb to the brunette standing beside the bar. Marcus glanced over his shoulder then back at Jeremy expressionless.

Jeremy’s smile faded when he turned his head in my direction. “Mia, I know you had too many drinks tonight, will you be okay getting home? I’m going to take a cab back to this chick’s place. Also David and Michelle left like ten minutes ago. Are you going to be okay taking a cab home? I can wait for one with you if you like.” He was mumbling.

I narrowed my eyes. What the
hell
makes him think I’ll be okay on my own
?
You’re my friend,
Jeremy.
You’re supposed to make sure I get home okay. I wanted to yell at him and I would’ve, if Gorgeous DeLuca weren’t sitting next to me. “I’ll drive her,” Marcus replied nonchalantly. I glanced at his drink. He must have read my mind after he followed my gaze. “This is the only drink I’ve had all night. I’m fine. I can drive her home. Go ahead, Jae; get out of here.” Jeremy’s excitement was pathetic. He practically ran out with the brunette after thanking DeLuca and placing a quick kiss on my cheek.
Oh
! I’ll get him tomorrow! I plan on it.

Gulping down the rest of my last Cosmo, I grabbed my clutch and slid over the sofa. I felt fine until I stood up and all the blood rushed to my head. I instantly felt dizzy, and the room seemed to spin. I felt unbalanced with my heels, but DeLuca placed his hand on my elbow, which allowed me to keep steady. I looked at him, and his face was still serious.
Great
, he must have been angry, having to babysit a drunken law student.

“Hey, you don’t have to take me home. I’m fine with taking a cab. Thanks anyway,” I said, slowly removing my arm from his grasp.

He tightened his grip. “No, I’m taking you home. What kind of man would I be if I let you go home completely drunk in a vehicle where a cab driver could possibly take advantage of you?” Looking over his shoulder, he quickly eyed me up and down. “Especially in that dress,” he hissed while dragging me through the crowd.

My stubbornness instantly kicked in. Who the
hell
does he think he’s talking to me in that tone? And what’s wrong with my dress?! I yanked my arm from his rough grip. “And what? Shall I get in the car with you, a
stranger
! What if
you
take advantage of me?” I yelled over the loud beat of Beyoncé’s voice singing
Single Ladies
.

He shook his head and laughed then grabbed my arm again. This time it was tighter than before, and he practically dragged me to a side door with a sign that read EMPLOYEE’S ONLY written in white bold letters. The loud pounding sound of the music was drawn out, and the bright light from the hallway made me squint. We walked down an endless hallway. I was stumbling along, trying to keep my balance.

“You can’t even stand up straight on your own, and you want to get in a cab?
Have
you not heard about those four females in Boston within the last year? All four were too drunk and were driven in a cab alone…but never found again!”

Trying to pull on his grip was useless. “Yes, I heard! And I can’t stand straight because my heels are too high, thank you very much!” I rolled my eyes. I quickly made my judgment on DeLuca: he was an asshole, and that was that!
Ugh
, I didn’t even know if I wanted to work for this guy.

He shook his head, “I don’t understand why women put themselves through that torture.” Looking over his shoulder, his eyes seductively traced my entire body, then he fixed his gaze back in front of him, “and you’d look just as good in that dress in flats.” He mumbled as he continued down the hallway. I wasn’t sure whether to take that as a compliment or not.

When we finally reached the end, there were two very tall, overly built men standing by a metal door. The one dressed in black pants and a navy blue muscle tee reached in his pocket and pulled out a set of keys. “Hey Boss, you want me to pull the car up?” the guy asked as he looked at me.

“No, we can walk to the car. Finish the job. Meet me back at the house when it’s done and with the details.” Muscle tee nodded and handed the keys over to DeLuca. The other man wearing a button down light blue shirt opened the door and looked out into the private parking lot. “Good to go,” he said as he held the door open for us.

We walked out to a breezy night, but the cool air felt good against my warm skin. I breathed in the night air as he continued to lead me across the parking lot. We were finally in front of a black, shiny, tinted Mercedes,
of
course
. He unlocked the door and helped me into the passenger seat. I was drunk, but I managed to remember to strap on my seatbelt. He closed the door and walked around to the driver’s side. He got in and pressed a button for the ignition. It was so quiet that if it weren’t for the dashboard lights, I wouldn’t have known the car was on.

He looked at me, “So where to?”

I was suddenly exhausted and nauseated. “You don’t know where I live?” I mumbled.

“Why would I?”

Rolling my head along the headrest, I turned to look at him. “Do you know where Jeremy lives?”

Gorgeous brown eyes stared back into mine. “Yeah,”

Yawning, I was super tired. “We’re roommates.”

With furrowed brows, he said, “Oh, he didn’t mention that.”

“I can tell.” He reversed the car and pulled out of the driveway.

Chapter Three

Bang, Bang, Bang.
“Mia, open up! Miaaaa!”
Bang, Bang, Bang.
I was awakened by a loud noise. The rude interruption startled me. I looked around and realized I was home in my room on my own bed. Thank God. My heart slowly returned to a normal pace. I was in my panties and bra with last night’s dress lying beside me. Managing to sit up, I felt dizzy. Uh, it felt like I was hit with a hundred-pound-weight ball.

“Mia, open up!” Jeremy’s voice trailed from out front. Jumping out of bed, I quickly threw on a t-shirt then headed for the living room. When I opened the door, I was greeted with a relieved grin. Jeremy said nothing as he walked by and headed straight for the guest bathroom leaving the door wide open as he undid his fly and peed. “Ahhh,” he moaned. I slammed the front door and walked towards him. He shook
Thor
twice, then zipped back up, and headed for the couch.

I rolled my eyes as I entered the bathroom. I had to flush the toilet because he always forgets to do that small task! Sitting down, I released all of the alcohol I’d consumed the day before. Feeling queasy as I stood to flush the toilet, I hesitated before washing my hands. Once the urge to throw up passed, I joined him on the couch. Jeremy’s eyes were shut with his head slumped back onto the sofa’s armrest. “So, where are your keys?” I asked suspiciously, but I knew the answer already.

Slightly lifting his head, he opened one eye. “I don’t know. I lost them somewhere. I searched everywhere possible.” He mumbled.

Both eyes were open, and he sat up at my glare.

Leaning over him as I stood by the end of the couch, I raised my hand to chastise him. “Jeremy, this is the
third
time we’ve changed the locks due to your irresponsible behavior. You lose your keys, and I get stuck with making the phone calls and waiting all day for the maintenance man to replace the lock!” With both hands on my hips, I waited for his explanation. He had none.

He rubbed his head, disgusted with himself
or
with my attitude. “I
know
, I
know
, I’ll make the phone call. I promise.” With his right hand against his chest and his left palm in the air, he pledged this time he would.

I scowled at him. “We both know that it will take months before you call.
Ugh
, I’ll just do it later.” I decided there was no point in continuing to argue, so I headed back to my bedroom and searched for my sweats. He followed me and jumped on my bed. Before I could even remember it, he was holding my vibrator up with a crooked smile.

“
So
I take it you didn’t get laid last night.”

Embarrassed I jumped over the bed and snatched my toy that was swinging in his hand. After I secured it in my drawer, I made a mental note to clean it later. I refused to clean my toys in front of him. It would have just given him something to tease me about for the next few weeks, and I had no idea where his hands had been. I didn’t remember using it either!

He laughed out loud but instantly snapped out of it when he met my evil glare. By the time I found my sweats and put them on, Jeremy was comfortable on my bed with the back of his head leaning against my pillow. I scooted beside him and shifted under the covers. "So, how was your night?" I asked, trying to focus on anything other than the memory of Jeremy swinging my toy in the air with a wicked grin.

His hands covered his entire face, and he mumbled underneath his palms. “It was terrible! I followed this chick all the way to her place, but when we got there, she fell asleep! I was too tired and drunk to hop back in a cab, so I just crashed there. I left this morning before she awoke.”

I burst into laughter, and he peeked at me through his spread fingers. He wasn’t amused, which made me laugh harder. "Oh, Jeremy, Jeremy, Jeremy, so I take it
Thor
didn’t get any action either?” I teased, and I could tell he didn’t appreciate my sarcasm by his narrow eyes. I slapped his arm, “Oh don’t be so lame.”

Turning on my side to face him, I held my head up with my hand. He spread his arms over his head to stretch then brought his hands behind his head. I wasn’t uncomfortable with Jeremy beside me in bed. Jeremy spent many nights here, not just for sex. Before our relationship became more than just friends, he would lay beside me in bed to comfort me.

On days when I thought I would cry alone the entire night, he was there. He was a really good friend. Our relationship may have seemed awkward to an outsider, but he was
my
Jeremy. I didn’t see us going any further than we had. We were just comfortable with one another. I knew more about him than any female, and he knew more about me than…well more than anyone.

“So how was your night last night? I mean with being driven home by Marcus and all.” He yawned and closed his eyes.

Shit
! I snapped back to reality. I’d totally forgotten DeLuca drove me home. I began to gather my thoughts of the night. I remembered bits and pieces: getting into his car … his waking me up when we were in front of the building. What
else
, oh yeah I knew he came in and guided me to my bedroom. Then I undressed.
Oh no
! I could feel the blood drain from my face. I undressed in front of
him
.
What the hell!

What else happened? What else happened! My head hurt from straining to remember. I remembered being mad, but for what reason?
Ugh
, I walked over to my drawer and pulled out my vibrator. OH MY GOD! Did I pull out my vibrator in front of him? I think I’m going to be sick! I don’t know what happened next!
Wait
, I think I was too upset and tossed it. I didn’t use it, but did he see it? The blood rushed back to my head, and I quickly felt nauseated.

“So are you going to tell me, or am I going to have to ask him myself?” Jeremy teased with his eyes still closed. Good, he couldn’t see the red-faced, nauseous expression I was wearing.

“Uh, nothing happened: he drove me home, led me to the door, and then he left. I locked the door and went to bed.” Hopefully that would keep him from asking any questions about what I did or did not do with DeLuca. He nodded, and before I finally came up with another topic to discuss, he was fast asleep snoring.

I adjusted my pillow and shifted to lay on my right side, giving Jeremy my back. My stomach was in knots trying to recollect last night’s events. How could I have been so stupid and childish? The one thing I didn’t want to happen had happened! I made a complete fool of myself in front of not only a striking man but in front of a powerful, intelligent and
way
-out-of-my-league man.