Courtney raised her eyebrow and looked at me like I was a five-year-old lying to her mother.

I rolled my eyes and started walking again. “Ugh. I’m going home. I’m tired, I drank too much, and I hadn’t even wanted to go out in the first place.”

We walked up to the traffic light, and Layton’s truck pulled up. He rolled down the window and gave me a weak smile.

“Why don’t you let me drive y’all home?” he said with that stupid sexy accent of his.

I looked in the truck and didn’t see Misty in the front seat.

Is she in the backseat? In another car? What in the hell?

Oh my God, my head. How much did I have to drink?

I began walking across the street, and Courtney followed.

“No, thanks. We don’t have far to go, and I need the fresh air. Go on and enjoy the rest of your night,” I called over my shoulder.

I was so pissed that I felt my whole body shaking.

I hate him! I hate him so much that I just want to scream. I can’t believe I ever let anyone treat me the way he did.

“Whitley, I’m just trying to be nice. Don’t be such a bitch,” he said.

I stopped in the middle of the street and balled up my fists. I instantly heard Roger saying the same thing to me—Don’t be such a bitch, Squeak.

“Ah…Layton, maybe you better just head on home.” Courtney walked up and stood in front of me. “Whit, babe, I think you had a bit too much to drink, and—”

“How can you call me a bitch, you a**hole? You don’t even know me! You know what? You’re a jerk, so just leave me alone.”

I turned and started walking again. I could hear Courtney talking to Layton, and I didn’t even care what she was saying. I wanted to get out of these stupid new boots I’d bought and crawl into a hot bath. I wanted to forget about seeing him kissing her and touching her and how it had driven me to act like this insane person I was being right now. I just wanted to forget everything.

I heard Courtney coming up behind me. As I made my way up to the front door of our house, I felt tears burning my eyes. I unlocked the door and started for the stairs.

“Whitley.”

It only took the sound of Court’s voice for me to break down. I sat down on the stairs and began crying.

“Oh God…” I couldn’t get any other words out of my mouth. I just cried hysterically.

Courtney sat down next me and just held me in her arms as I sobbed.

“He took the best of me, Court. He took everything from me.”

She moved her hand up and down my back. “Shh…I know, baby. I know.”

“He broke me down so much that I don’t even know who I am anymore,” I said in between sobs.

“I know, honey, but he no longer has any power over you,” Court said.

“That’s just it. He does. He holds so much power in my world. It’s unreal. It’s like every little thing that happens triggers something. He’s always in the back of my head. I find myself looking over my shoulder, Courtney, waiting…waiting for him to find me and get pissed-off and teach me another one of his damn lessons. What if he’s just like that, too?”

Courtney pulled back and looked at me, confused. “What if who’s just like that?”

I didn’t even realize I had said that. “Nobody.”

“Whit, were you referring to Layton?”

I pulled slightly away from her. “I don’t like him, Court.”

Oh God. What in the hell is going on with me? I’m so confused.

Courtney got up and knelt down in front of me. “Look at me, Whit. Not all guys are like Roger. Whitley…you don’t have to be afraid to fall in love with someone, baby.”

I shook my head. “No…I can’t…I can’t open my heart up like that ever again.” My whole body began to tremble.

They’re all the same—all of them.

“Whit—”

I stood and started to cry again. “You don’t understand, Courtney. If I wore the wrong outfit, he’d hit me. If I told him to f**k off, he’d push me on the ground and kick me until I told him I was sorry. If I talked to another man, he’d drag me around the house by my hair.”

I watched as Courtney put her hands up to her mouth as she began crying.

“Don’t you see? Layton is just another man who uses women. They’re all the same.” I turned and walked up the stairs. I just needed to sit in a hot bath.

“Whitley…” Courtney ran up the stairs after me.

Right before I got to my room, she grabbed my arm.

“I’m sorry.” Tears were rolling down her face. “If I had any idea of what he was doing to you, I-I would have…”

I pulled her into my arms. “Oh, Lollipop, please don’t do that to yourself. How would you know when I pushed everyone away from me?” I stepped back and wiped the tears from her face. “Hey. What about that book that was going to have me reaching for my vibrator? And by the way, I don’t even own one.”

Courtney slowly smiled. “Um…you do now. I bought one for you before we left New York. I was saving it for your birthday, but I think this is more important.”

I smiled and shook my head. “Court…you bought me a f**king vibrator? Oh. My. God. I don’t know whether to kiss you or slap the shit out of you!”

She jumped up and down and turned to run to her bedroom. “Wait—don’t go in the bath yet! Give me a second,” she called over her shoulder.

I took a deep breath and leaned against the wall. I closed my eyes, and all I could see was Layton and his drop-dead smile.

Those beautiful blue eyes—what would it be like to make love to him and look into those eyes?

I snapped my eyes open and tried to shake the image from my head.

What in the hell, Whitley? Snap the hell out of it. You. Do. Not. Like. Him.

Courtney came running down the hallway and skidded to a stop. The smile on her face caused me to laugh.

God, I love this girl.

“Okay, now, this is my Kindle. You know how much I love my Kindle, Whit.”

I nodded and winked at her. “Yep, I know Court. You’ve already given me the warning about your Kindle.”

She slowly started to hand me the Kindle. When I reached for it, she pulled it back.

“Wait—I can’t let you take it into the bathroom. I’ll put it on your bed. I’ll open it up to the book you need to read.”

I laughed as I rolled my eyes.

I used her Kindle once to read a book while we had been on vacation. Sitting by the pool, I had been bored out of my mind. She’d just finished reading some fifty shades of more f**ked-up men.

“Okay, Lollipop, just put it on my bed.” I turned to walk into the bathroom. “Wait—what is it called, and what is it about?”

Courtney turned around and gave me her evil little smile. “The name of the book is Knight and Play. And you’re gonna have to read it to see what it’s about.”

I just looked at her. “Bitch.”

She laughed as she walked into my room. “You know you love me. I have fresh new batteries in your B.O.B!” She winked as she spun around and headed back down the hallway before stopping and turning to me again. “Hey, Whitley?” she asked with a serious face.

“Yeah?”

“Give Layton a chance. I know what he was doing tonight with that girl seems like a f**ked-up thing, but…just don’t put him in the same category as Roger. Okay?”

I smiled and nodded.

“Enjoy your bath.”

I walked into the bathroom, and I closed the door. Leaning against it, I put my head back on it and sighed. I closed my eyes, and all I could see was Layton and his amazing eyes…and body…and smile.

Fuck it. I’m taking a shower and getting to that damn book!

Chapter Eight: Layton

I couldn’t get what Whitley had said out of my mind. I sat on the side of the road in my truck, dreading going home to an empty house. My phone started to ring—again.

Misty.

“Fuck!” I said as I let the call go to voice mail.

I’d never seen anyone so pissed-off as she had been when I’d told her I was going home alone. She’d called me every name in the book.

There was no way I was taking Misty home to f**k after what Whitley had said. A part of me was upset that Whitley even knew about Misty and me. I was going to find out which f**king friend of mine had spilled the beans.

My phone went off again. This time, I answered it.

“Layton! What in the fuck? I thought there was something between us. Who was that bitch who talked shit to me outside of Joe’s? What did she say to you to make you change your mind?”

I took a deep breath. “Listen, Misty, I was going to talk to you anyway. Honey, it was fun, but I’m not looking to get involved with anyone, and it’s really not very fair of me to string you along like I was. I just needed—”

I heard her laugh over the phone.

“You just needed, what, Layton? A good fuck?”

Ah, shit—if she only knew she wasn’t even a good fuck. She was just someone to erase the memories for a bit.

“Something like that, Misty.”

“You know what, Layton? I thought you were a nice guy. I didn’t think you were like all the other guys out there, only looking for a piece of ass. I really liked you.”

I put my head on the back of my seat and closed my eyes. I hated doing what I was about to do, but it was the only thing I could think of to get her to walk away from me.

“Well, Misty, it looks like you had me all wrong. It was fun, but I’m just not interested.”

“Wow. That’s what I get after a few great nights together, Layton?”

I sighed as I looked behind me to the deserted country road before pulling out. “We f**ked on a pool table twice, Misty. It wasn’t earth-shattering, and I’m pretty damn sure I wasn’t the first guy you f**ked there.”

I heard her suck in a breath of air.

“Fuck you, Layton Morris. You’re nothing but a prick. Don’t ever call me again.”

I threw my cell phone down on the passenger side seat and slammed the steering wheel.

Fuck! Fuck! Fuck! Why did you leave me, Mike? It f**ked everything up.

On the way home, all I could think about was why Whitley had been so pissed-off at me.

Was she jealous because I was leaving with Misty?

No way.

She’d acted like she couldn’t stand to be around me. One minute, I’d thought she was pretty cool, and then the next, she had been a total bitch.

Yeah, I don’t need any more of that shit in my life. I’m done with women. They’re all f**ked-up, and they don’t know what in the hell they want.

By the time I got home and in my house, I was exhausted. I started to walk toward my bedroom when I heard someone. I stopped and stood there, listening.

Snoring? Is someone snoring? Who in the hell is in my house?

I walked into the living room and turned on the light. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing.

“Kevin?” I walked up and saw Kevin passed out on my sofa and then noticed Reed passed out in my recliner. “Reed?”