Never Enough: A New Adult Romance (5 page)

I slapped my hand over the bruise and rubbed it absently. “Yeah.”

“Hey, I’m not judging. I think it’s good you’re moving on.”

“Shut up,” I muttered. “I’m not moving on.”

“Yeah, right. The way you looked like you were about to punch me anytime I even looked her way…” He chuckled before becoming serious once more. “I think you should, even if you don’t want to. How long has it been since you last got laid?”

I rubbed the back of my neck and peered over at my best friend. “None of your business.”

He ignored me. “I mean it has to have been what…two years?”

I didn’t meet his gaze. He was totally right. It had been two years since I’d been with someone, which was probably why I had been so out of control with Temperance
last night. I was losing the battle to keep the promise I’d made to Jonathan’s sister. I was just that fucking weak and pathetic.

“I think it’s good. Like I said,
it’s time to move on, man.” Jonathan’s words had my neck snapping back in shock.

“She was your sister.”

“Yeah, my twin sister, but I know as well as you do that this promise you made to Sophia was fucking stupid.”

I clenched my teeth. “Shut up.”

“It was. It was dumb. You made it when she was dying and you were losing your fucking mind. She didn’t want that and she wouldn’t want you to be miserable.”

I knew he was right, but it was too much to admit. The promise I had made was what had kept me going for such a long time. It was my mantra, but instead of being a loud driving force like it used to be, it was turning out to be a mere whisper. Sometimes I couldn’t even hear it.
Which was why I had gotten it tattooed on my back.

“I’m losing her,
” I nearly whispered.

“You already lost her, bro. She’s gone. Temperance is here.
And with how dark that hickey is, I’d say she wants you.”

I closed my eyes. I knew he was right, but I just wasn’t ready. Kissing Temperance in my truck
had been a mistake. A mistake I wanted to repeat over and over again until I got her out of my system, but I knew if I did, I’d regret it in the end. The problem was at this point in my life I think I would be okay with living with that kind of regret.

“You coming to band practice later tonight?”

I nodded. “Yeah. I’ll be there.“

A loud rumble
cut through our conversation and had Jonathan and I turning around. A large dually truck drove up our driveway before stopping beside Jonathan’s Mustang. Temperance’s brother, Jed jumped out of the driver’s side and an unfamiliar guy slid out of the passenger side.

I had met Jed a few times when
he had come over or come to the coffee shop and I’d liked him. He was friendly, even though he had very little to say. He just seemed down to earth in a rugged kind of way. The guy next to him however, I immediately disliked.

His dark brown hair was styled to perfection and his olive skin offset his golden eyes. He was too pretty for his own good and when Temperance came running out of the house a few minutes later and jumped on top of him, I wanted to break his perfect little nose.

“Nikolai!” She was squealing and kissing his cheeks. “You’re home!”

Nikolai. What kind of name was that? He was probably the guy she had a crush on since she was a little girl. He didn’t seem to be as indifferent to her as I thought he’d be either.
His grabby hands immediately went for her hips. When she hugged him, he merely laughed, exposing his perfect white teeth to everyone in the front yard like a goddamn model.

“Who’s that?” Jonathan asked me.

“That’s her brother,” I said, indicating Jed. “And I think that’s Jed’s best friend,” I said lowly.

Jonathan whistled as Temperance wrapped her arms around his neck.
“Looks like she likes him…a lot.”

“Fuck that,” I murmured.

Jonathan turned his eyes on me, a smile playing at the edge of his lips. “Competition?”

“There’s no competition. She’s not mine.”

“So she’s up for grabs?”

I knew he was messing with me, but the idea still had me clenching my teeth so tightly my jaw popped.

“Thought so,” Jonathan said smugly and I forced my gaze to remain in front of me. I was tired of him reading my mind.

After a lengthy hello, Nik
olai finally put Temperance down and nodded toward us. “Who’s that?” he asked. His voice had a subtle accent to it and I had a feeling he used it to get a lot of girls. He looked like the kind of shithead who’d do something sleazy like that.

“Oh,” she said, glancing back to where Jonathan and I were standing. “I’ll introduce you.”

I shoved my hands in my pant’s pockets as Jed, Nikolai and Temperance approached. When they finally stopped in front of us, I turned my gaze to Nikolai, doing my best to scare the shit out of him.

“This is my roommate Damien and this is his friend Jon
athan,” she said, looping her arm around Nikolai’s.

Nikolai extended his
free hand and Jonathan shook it before he nudged me in my side, forcing me to do the same. I would have been just fine with letting Nikolai’s hand hang in space for a while.

“Nice to meet you. I’m Nikolai, but you can call me Nik.”

I didn’t even bother to say the obligatory greeting. I merely looked away, pretending interest in the tree to my right. I could feel Temperance’s eyes on me, but I made no effort to be more polite. Her little crush could bite me.

“This is my brother Jed,” she told Jonathan and I could see them shaking hands from the corner of my eye. Jed glanced away and Nik stepped in, charming his way into my best friend’s heart.

“Nice to meet you. That your car?” Nik asked Jonathan. Jonathan nodded and the two of them began t
o talk about Jonathan’s Mustang. I made a mental note to remind Jonathan about loyalty later. Sweet talker or not, Nik was the enemy.

“You here to change my tire?” Temperance asked Jed, turning her attention away from Nik and Jonathan’s conversation.

“Gotta take care of my little sis,” Jed said, wrapping his arm around her shoulder. “Want to make sure you’re safe.” Something unfamiliar swelled in my chest at their obvious display of affection. I had a sister, but I’d never felt protective of her or cared for her much at all. I wondered for a moment what it would have been like to have that kind of relationship with Deidre before pushing it away. She wasn’t worth my time. Not after what she did.

“Well, Damien and M
aggie have been giving me lifts,” Temperance said before adding, “Maggie says hi by the way. She’s going to kill me that she’s not here to watch you change my tire.”

Jed
merely shook his head before turning his gaze to me. “Thanks for looking out for her.”

Temperance huffed. “Jed,
he’s not looking out for me. He’s given me a ride a few times.”

“Yeah
, but in either case you’re still my little sis. I’ve gotta look out for you and so does this guy.”

That just seemed to make Temperance frown. She peeked over at me and I met her gaze. I wanted to tell her I didn’t mind helping her out, but Nik interrupted.
“I want to see your new flat, Tempie.”

Flat, who the hell said that? And he called her by her nickname! Even I didn’t do that. I curled my fists and shoved them into my sweatshirt pockets.

“You going to show me around?” Nik asked Temperance who merely nodded in excitement. She looked way too giddy and an all too familiar feeling began to seep up within me.

“Yeah. It’s not much to see, but if Jed doesn’t mind…”

Jed merely shook his head. “I’ll get more done if he’s not around blabbing.”

Nik merely chuckled and wrapped his arm around Temperance’s waist. The
two of them began to walk toward the house and I nearly chased after them when I heard her say that she wanted to show him her new tattoo. The prick looked way too interested in her, but no one else seemed to notice but me. Jed was ambling back toward his truck to grab a few tools and Jonathan was texting someone on his phone.

“
Look, if we’re done here I’m going to go inside,” I said, not wanting to leave her alone with that vulture.

Jonathan glanced over at me and shrugged. “You do that. Keep your eye on her, but don’t do anything else. We wouldn’t want that would we?” His tone was dry and sarcastic and before I could get really angry he added, “Because if how he’s looking at her is any indication, they’ll be together by the end of the month.”

I inhaled sharply and clenched my teeth. Jonathan could be a right fucker when he wanted to be. “Whatever. I have shit to do inside. I’ll see you tonight.”

Jonathan gave me a knowing look before slapping me on the back, right where my new tattoo was. I hissed at the sharp pain that shot through me and Jonathan merely
smiled.

“Just keeping you on your toes,” he said before
stopping me. “Also before you go off and sulk, Beth’s been texting me. She doesn’t have your new number…”

“Don’t give it to her,”
I said, not wanting to deal with my past at the moment.

“Whatever, dude. It’s up to you. But she says she has something she needs to give you.”

I just shrugged.

“Fine. I’ll just keep her out of your hair as long as possible, but I can’t promise she won’t seek you out.”

I didn’t care about Beth at the moment. All I could focus on was Temperance and the fact that she was in the house with another guy.

“Alright,” Jonathan said when I refused to respond. “See you around.”

I stood in the driveway and watched him drive away before reaching back to gently rub the sting away. Deciding Nik and Temperance had been alone for far too long, I walked into the house and heard giggling coming from upstairs. A familiar pain began to work its way through my head and I pinched the bridge of my nose.

I had a feeling that my
perpetual case of blue balls was the reason for my constant headaches. I only seemed to get them whenever Temperance was around. No matter what I did, nothing seemed to ease the pain. As a matter of fact, since last night I had jacked off at least twice before I went to bed. It only helped to ease some of the frustration. I had a feeling only Temperance would offer me the relief I needed.

I trudged up the stairs, making sure my footsteps were audible and when I strode by her room, I couldn’t help but look inside.
I came to a complete standstill.

Temperance had her shirt
lifted up and Nik was bent close to her skin, admiring the outline of her tattoo.

“Looks hot,” Nik said, running a finger across a tattoo-free piece of skin. “I can’t wait to see it in its entirety.”

I bet he did, the creep.

He stood up and stretched, his eyes moving over her body.
“And I love your new look. What happened to the old, sweet Tempie?” Nik asked and Temperance turned around, her green eyes meeting his.

“She left. I’m finding myself. Finally.”

“I like this new girl,” he said much too softly. “She’s wild.”

“She is. And adventurous.”

“How adventurous?”

“Very,” she said with a smile.

Shit. It sounded like she was coming onto him and I couldn’t take it another minute. I stomped toward my room and slammed the door shut.

Cranking the volume on my computer speakers, I let angry music spill out.

Chapter Four

Temperance

I heard the angry metal music penetrating the walls and frowned. Damien had the worst taste in music and the worst timing when playing it. A few times his heavy metal had awoken me in the middle of the night, which was why I had my earphones readily positioned near my bed stand. But it was obvious he was mad about something and I had a feeling it was about Nik. He’d been an asshole to him outside and I didn’t appreciate it. Nik was my friend and Damien needed to at least be cordial. I wasn’t mean to his friends.

“Your roommate wasn’t happy to see me,” Nik said, lowering himself into my desk chair. I flopped down on the bed, trying to ignore the unfamiliar sting of my fresh tattoo.

I stared at the ceiling. “Yeah. He’s been in a bad mood for awhile now.”

Nik glanced around my tiny room.
There wasn’t much I could fit inside of it. Besides a dresser, my bed and a desk the only other things in my rooms were two posters on my wall. Anything else would have made the space unlivable. “You like living here?”

I shrugged.
“Yeah. It’s small, but the rent’s cheap and I’m out from underneath the thumb of my parents.”

“Jed told me about that. They cut you off, huh?”

“Yeah. No more credit cards or things like AAA which is why I needed Jed to come over and fix my flat for me.”

“Your roommate couldn’t do that?”

“No. I didn’t want to bother him with it.”

Nik watched me for a moment before leaning back in the chair, his long legs stretched out before him.
I loved looking at him. He was so handsome, so put together. I’d never seen a hair out of place on his head or a wrinkle in his clothes.

“So you ever going to move back home?”

I shook my head. “No. I’m done being controlled by my parents.”

“
What made you do it? What was the breaking point?”

“When they started to log how many hours I was practicing the cello. I felt like I was living in a prison. That’s when I asked my boss, Peter if he knew of any rooms for rent in the area and he told me he had an extra room in his rental.”

“I can’t imagine your parents were happy about that.”

“They threw a fit, but in the end I knew it was the right thing to do. I couldn’t live there a second more.”

“Well Tempie, I think it’s admirable.”

“Thanks,” I said blushing. I had always sought his approval and having it meant a lot.

“Did you know you’d have a roommate when you decided to move in?”

“No. Not really. I mean I knew Damien rented from Peter, I just didn’t realize it was the same house I’d be living in. It’s worked out fine though.”

Nik arched an eyebrow at me. “Fine? He looks like he breaks people’s legs for fun. I was scared out there. Did you notice how he was glowering at me? Almost shit my pants.”

I giggled and propped myself up on my elbows. “He’s not scary. Just intense.”

“That’s a good word for it,” he replied dryly. “I’ll make sure to steer clear of him. He didn’t seem to like me.”

“Everyone likes you. You could charm the socks off Satan.”

“Yeah, but that guy’s scarier than Satan and that hickey…whew…he must have one hell of a girlfriend to give him something that big.”

I flushed and turned away. “He doesn’t have a girlfriend.”

Nik eyed me. “Well, in any case, who parades shit around like that? Almost looks like he’s showing it off.”

I shrugged. “Who knows? It’s Damien. I don’t get him.”

Nik shuddered. “He’s one scary dude, Tempie. You’re a brave woman to live next door to him.”

I shook my head and smiled
, wanting to change the subject. “I’ve missed you. I thought you wouldn’t be home until Christmas.”

“Yeah
well, plans changed,” he replied solemnly.

I tilted my head and watched him. Something akin to pain flashed across his face before he grinned widely at me. “I’m glad I’m back though. I’ve missed you and Jed.”

I narrowed my eyes at him. “Why do I think you’re lying to me right now. What happened in New York?”

Nik’s eyes shut momentarily before they popped open. “
Shit. Am I that easy to read?”

“Like an open book.”

“Fine. I was living with someone and we broke it off a few weeks ago.”

I scrambled up into a seated position. “What? You were in a relationship?”

He nodded. “Fucked up, right? Me. Relationships. Doesn’t mesh.”

“No. I never said that. I meant that you were so adamant about never being with anyone like that. You were all about casual relationships. I’m just surprised
, is all.”

“Yeah
well, me too. It surprised me that I fell head over heels for some girl who didn’t want me in the end.”

The pain in his voice had me pushing off the bed and walking over to him. I lowered myself into his lap and wrapped my arms around his neck. A few months ago being this close to Nik would have been my dream come true.
Damien had ruined that for me in the course of one hot evening in his truck. And if the pain in Nik’s voice were real, being near him like this wouldn’t mean anything to him anyways.

“I’m
so sorry, Nik. What was her name?”

“Elsie,” he said softly.

“What happened?”

Our eyes met and what I saw inside made my eyes
almost fill with tears. “She broke it off when she realized I wasn’t what she wanted. She didn’t have enough faith in me to keep us together.”

“So you came home?”

“Yeah. I couldn’t stand to be remotely close to her. I just needed to get away.”

“Nik, I’m so sorry. I’m glad you’re home, but not like this. I want you to be happy.”

He forced a smile on his face and brushed his fingers across my cheek. “I am happy. It’s nice to be around Jed and you again.”

“I mean like happy happy. Really happy. You’re not. I can see it in your eyes.”

He glanced away from me. “I will be. Just need some time.”

I looked
away, not being able to meet his sad gaze for one more second without crying and saw Damien frozen in my doorway. He looked murderous and I gulped nervously. I finally saw what Nik meant. It looked like he was going to rip someone’s head from their body. There was no reason for him to act so possessive. It was just Nik, and Damien and I had only kissed last night. It wasn’t like he was my boyfriend or anything.

I lifted myself from Nik’s lap and strode to the door, shutting it in Damien’s face before he had
a chance to deepen his scowl. I felt like Nik deserved an ounce of privacy.

“Sorry about that,” I told Nik who was glancing at the door nervously.

“Looked like he wanted to pummel me.”

“He always looks like that,” I replied before adding,
“You should come by my work sometime. I’ll give you a free drink.” I made sure to keep my voice low. I didn’t want Damien overhearing me. I had already gotten into trouble once for doing that, I didn’t want to get in trouble again. I needed my job.

“Just let me know when your roommate isn’t there and I’ll show up.”

“Will do,” I said with a smile. “So what’s your plan now? You going to go to school here or…”

“I don’t know yet. I’m crashing with Jed for the moment until I figure it all out. I just need a little time to think,” Nik said, standing up and glancing out the window.
I knew he was done sharing. He’d never been very open. “Well, Jed looks about done. Want to go out and keep him company?”

I had forgotten about my brother and shot off the bed. “Yeah. Let’s do that.”

When we left the room, Damien was nowhere in sight and I was thankful for that. He obviously made Nik uncomfortable and I didn’t know what he was going to say to me once I was alone again. I had a feeling he’d be asking me about Nik.

When we made it to my
Volkswagen Beetle, Jed was putting my hubcap back on.

“You’re the best,” I said, watching as Jed righted himself.

“I know. You coming on Sunday?” Jed asked me.

I nodded. “Yeah, I don’t want to go, but I guess I need to.”

“You better show up. Don’t leave me alone with them.” The “them” he was referring to were my parents. Jed and I had always presented a united front when forced into spending time with them.

“Wouldn’t dream of it,” I replied as Nik pulled out his phone and began texting.

“Well, we better go,” Jed said, glancing over at Nik, concern for his friend obvious in his eyes.

“Okay. I’ll see you Sunday.”

He gave me a hug and a few minutes later both Nik and Jed were hopping into his truck and pulling out of the driveway. I watched them drive away and then strode inside, only to bump into Damien on my way to the kitchen.

“Watch it,” he said grumpily, causing me to frown.

“Sorry,” I said, taking a cautionary step away from him. “It wasn’t like I meant to run into you.”
He gave me a dirty look, but made no effort to step aside.

I placed my hands on my hips and said with as much attitude as I could muster, “What is wrong with you?”

“Nothing.”

“No, y
ou were acting like a total jerk to my friend. I want to know why.”

His lips turned down
at the corners and he glanced away. “He’s just a dick.”

“Funny because he said the same thing about you and if I have to be on anyone’s side
, it would be his. He was perfectly nice to you and you were nothing but rude to him.”

“Of course you would be on his side,” he muttered.

“Excuse me, but anyone raised with any kind of manners would agree with me. So what’s going on? Does it…” I gulped nervously, “Does it have to do with what happened in the truck the other day?”

He didn’t answer. Instead he tried to walk around me, but I was too quick. I blocked his path with my body and placed my hands on his
chest, pushing him backward.

“I don’t want to talk about it,” he said
, rubbing the spot where my hands had been.

“Well, I do. So spill. We need to act mature about it. It was a mistake.”

His eyes darkened and I swallowed nervously. “Was it?” he asked darkly.

“Yes, you said…”

“I never said. You said,” he said folding his arms across his chest and glowering at me.

“Well, I was sav
ing you from having to say it.”

I couldn’t meet his gaze a moment longer
, so I began to analyze the wood floors beneath my feet. Silence moved awkwardly between us and just when I thought we would be standing there all night, Damien spoke up.

“So you and Nik?”

“He’s my brother’s best friend.”

“Is he? He’s not more to you than that?”

“We’re friends.”

“Are you? Because the way he was looking at you seemed like more than
just friends to me.”

“Looking at me? That’s how Nik looks at every female. He could charm the pants off anyone.”

“Even you?”

My eyes rolled in frustration. “No. He has never charmed my pants off.”

“But you wouldn’t mind him trying?”

The truth was, a few weeks ago I would have said that yes, I’d want him to at least try, but Damien had ruined that for me. I couldn’t imagine myself pantless with anyone but him.

I arched an eyebrow at him and couldn’t believe I had the gall to ask, “Are you jealous?”

Damien’s cheeks darkened as he looked away. “No.”

“Well, you sound jealous. Is that why you were lurking around my door back there?”

“I wasn’t lurking,” he said, rubbing the back of his neck. “I was walking by.”

“You were lurking,” I said with a small smile. “You’re mad with jealousy.”

The thought was so absurd t
hat a giggle escaped my mouth and a moment later it turned into full-blown hysterical laughter. I doubled over and clutched my stomach as I wheezed. Tears dripped down my face and I struggled to breathe. I don’t know why I found it so funny, but I had a feeling it had to do with just seeing Nik. Even though he seemed pretty broken up over his ex, he always seemed to lighten my mood. The affect of seeing Nik had obviously carried over into my interactions with Damien. 

When I finally contained myself, I looked up and saw Damien pinching the bridge of his nose. His eyes were closed and his frown had deepened.
He looked incredibly annoyed.

“Sorry. Sorry,” I said grasping my sides. “I’m done now. I don’t know why that was so funny.”

“Me either,” he said glumly.

His gloomy disposition had me tilting my head in concern. “You okay?”

“Just my head,” he replied.

“You want some Advil?”

“No.”

“
Why? Are you one of those holistic types who don’t believe in medication?”