Love me to death

SIX

Brad Prenter glanced at his watch. Tanya was late.

He didn’t like that. She’d already pissed him off with her indecisiveness. He had a very busy life and he always arrived on time-why couldn’t his date reciprocate? Strike one.

He glanced around the busy club, anger gnawing in his gut. All these kids, mostly college students, laughing, yakking it up. Flaunting their freedom. He used to be one of them.

When had his life gone to shit? It was that bitch, Sara Tyson. Accusing him of rape. Like he needed to rape a woman to get laid. Women wanted him. Always had, always would. He came from a wealthy family; he always paid for dinner, drinks, even concerts and the theater-and not the cheap seats, either. He was attractive, with a good body, and he was great in bed. The women he screwed always told him how good he did them. Even Sara, but then she’d gone and had a mental breakdown when her roommate walked in on them doing it doggy-style. Went all psycho and said the alcohol made her do it. Bull-fucking-shit. If her roommate wasn’t such a fucking interfering prude, he could have talked Sara out of charging him with rape.

It was Sara’s word against his. Everyone had seen her hanging all over him at the club. The cops hadn’t even been able to prove he’d been the one to put the Liquid X in her drink. His attorney said he’d get off, that there was no way the judge would even let it go to trial.

But that damn text message Sara sent to her roommate did him in, and then Maggie came forward and said he’d done the same to her and the old fart of a judge caved.

Lying bitch.

Two years and four months. In prison. He couldn’t finish his last semester and now was back in college to get his degree even though he was twenty-five and should be working for his dad’s brokerage house and making his own money, rather than living off his meager trust. All because little hot Sara thing didn’t want her friends to know she was a slut.

Brad glanced at his watch again. Eight-fifteen. “Shit, where is she?” If she’d gotten cold feet, he’d be livid. She’d already changed the place on him at the last minute, and because he sensed she was a flake, he’d checked his email right before he came and she hadn’t contacted him again to cancel or say she was running late.

Bitch.

The bartender approached and gestured toward his empty beer mug. Brad nodded and said, “And a shot of JD.” He needed it after being stood up.

“Bad news?”

“The hot chick I’m supposed to meet is late,” Brad complained.

The bartender poured the shot. “The one you met online?”

Brad had forgotten he’d talked to the guy earlier, when he’d been excited about Tanya-so excited he’d arrived early. “You should have read the messages she sent me. And the photos-if she’s half as horny in person, it’s going to be a wild night.”

Tanya hadn’t sent him photos, except the one head shot. And she wasn’t explicit in her messages, but Brad could read between the lines. Why else would she meet him if she didn’t want to get laid? That’s how these online games were played. Dance around it, but when the girl agreed to meet face-to-face, that meant getting down-and-dirty.

“Hope she makes it, dude.”

She’d better.

Brad looked around the room. Lots of couples and groups. Groups of guys, groups of girls. He’d just have to wait. The time would come.

He reached into his pocket and fingered the plastic vial with his special homemade Liquid X. Just to loosen her up. Girls liked to play this coy game. Two dates, three dates, leading him on, jerking him around. Get hot and heavy, then say no when he slipped his hand down her pants. They always said yes by the third date, but why should he have to wait that long? He was so tired of it, and after prison he was through with playing stupid games.

Brad drained the shot of JD, savoring the burn as the whiskey slid down his throat. He watched the crowd. A couple was bickering near the door. As he watched, the guy yelled at his date-Brad couldn’t make out what they were saying-then left. The girl-a blonde, possibly twenty-one or she had a fake ID-stared after her boyfriend in shock. As Brad watched, she drained the drink in her hand, turned on her glittery heels, and strode purposefully over to the bar, standing next to Brad. She smiled at the bartender and put the glass down. “Another, pretty please?”

Brad might not even need the Liquid X to loosed up this babe. “Hey,” he said.

She glanced at him in blatant appraisal, but acted nonchalant. “Hi.” She scanned the crowd and sighed.

“Your boyfriend leave?”

“He’s not my boyfriend. Not anymore.”

“His loss.”

“Exactly.” She nodded her head to emphasize the point.

Her name was Ashley; she went to GWU, majoring in public administration. Boring. They chatted a bit, and Brad sensed immediately she wanted to fuck him. He saw it in her dark eyes, the way her tongue licked her lips, the way her nipples felt when he brushed against her thin black sweater.

Someone bumped Ashley from behind and she pressed her full body against Brad. She smiled, a bit nervous. Brad was experienced enough to know that she’d have to be real drunk to come home with him without a little urging. College girls thought they appeared less slutty if they had to be talked into spreading their legs. I never do this. I never sleep with a guy on the first date. I never …

It was all bullshit.

Brad would simply speed up the inevitable. He’d paid a hooker the day after he got out of prison, but he wasn’t doing that again. He’d been counting on Tanya to show, and he would have his turn with her soon. She’d regret standing him up.

He’d had a lot of experience slipping drugs into his dates’ drinks. It had become harder as some bartenders watched with eagle eyes, but in a bar this crowded he could manage, no problem.

She said something, and he pretended he couldn’t hear over the noise. She leaned closer. “Are you at GWU, too?”

He shook his head. “American U.”

“Grad school?”

He should be in grad school by now. All because of those lying bitches, he’d had two years of his life stolen. He lied and said, “Law school.”

She was impressed. “Wow. I’m only third year. Still don’t know what I want to do, but there are a lot of options in D.C. with a public admin degree, don’t you think?”

While she was talking, he brought his own drink to his lips, sipped, then as he brought it down he used a finger to squeeze the teeny vial of Liquid X that he’d pressed against the side of his glass. Several drops fell into her margarita, which she held at chest level. Even if she was watching his hand, she wouldn’t have been able to see anything. If she saw the drops hit her drink, she might assume it was condensation from his glass.

“You have plenty of time,” he said. “You should have fun. It’s college.”

She smiled and took a long swallow of margarita. “You’re absolutely right.”

“Do you want to go outside?”

“It’s freezing.”

“They have heaters on the back patio. It’s hot in here.”

“Sure,” she said and smiled brightly, sipping her drink.

“Want another?” Brad asked.

“I’m good-I don’t want to get too drunk!” she giggled.

Too late for that.

Brad led her out back, his hand rubbing her shoulder.

It was fucking cold outside, but the snow had stopped and the heat lamps took the chill off. Ashley slipped on her coat, however, and said, “Are you sure you’re not cold?”

“Naw,” he lied. He wasn’t planning on staying here long.

There were a few other people outside, but not many-mostly people coming out for a quick smoke before heading right back in. Brad watched the blonde finish her drink, hiding his smile. She staggered a bit, and he put his arm around her waist.

“Whoopsie,” she said and giggled.

He kissed her hard on the lips, and she froze. He didn’t let her first reaction stop him, because he knew women. They always played these fucking games. He reached up her shirt and squeezed her breast-dear God, it felt incredible. He wanted her, he wanted her now, but he’d get her back to his apartment. Or at least to his car. No, dammit, he had the Porsche tonight. She could give him a blow job, then he’d take her home for a good fuck.

His cock was already hard, but at the thought of her mouth on him he groaned and pressed his body firmly against Ashley’s so she’d know exactly what he had in mind. She could say no, right now, and he’d walk. He smirked as he bit her lip. She wouldn’t say no. He could practically feel the drugs coursing through her body. She was hot, she’d do anything. He was ready for anything.

“Let’s go,” he said.

She hesitated. “I don’t know-it’s so fast-”

“Come on. Just a blow job. I won’t do anything you don’t want me to do.”

She didn’t say anything, her face confused, and he took her hand and led her out the back gate of the club into the alley. He’d parked half a block from the rear exit, and in five minutes her tongue would be doing anything he wanted …

“Ashley!”

Brad hesitated, then kept walking. He didn’t want to get into a confrontation, but dammit, he wasn’t letting the bitch just go back to her boyfriend when she was all primed to be fucked.

“Ashley, dammit!”

“My boyfriend,” she said, slurring her words.

Fuck fuck fuck.

He stopped and turned around.

The prick who’d walked out on the blonde nearly an hour ago didn’t take his eyes off him, but said, “Ashley? What’s going on?”

“Go away,” she said.

Brad quickly assessed the boyfriend as harmless. He said, “You left; she wants to come with me.”

“Not anymore, buddy,” the prick said.

Brad’s jaw tightened, and he said to Ashley, “You want to go with him?”

“No.”

“I don’t want trouble,” Brad told the guy, “but the princess doesn’t want to go with you.”

“Ashley,” the guy said, his voice stern, “you come with me right now or I’ll tell your dad about your fake ID.”

“Excuse me?” Brad said.

“She’s seventeen.”

“No way.” He dropped his arm from around the girl and stared at her. No way she was seventeen. But … he wasn’t certain. He didn’t care how old she was-she was definitely old enough to screw-but now the situation was fucked. Her boyfriend could identify him.

“Ashley?” he questioned.

She pouted, but didn’t say anything.

Brad wanted to strangle her. “You can have her.” He pushed the bitch toward her boyfriend. “Fucking tease.”

“Jerk,” Ashley said, but Brad didn’t know if she was talking to him or her boyfriend, and he didn’t care. He wanted a warm body to screw, to do exactly what he told her to do, and he was going to have to find a hooker, because no way he was going to jerk off.

He barely heard Ashley arguing with her boyfriend as he walked down the alley toward his car. Damn fucking jailbait tease.