Bleed Like Me by C. Desir Read Free Book Online

movie?”
    â€œOkay, but I’m not seeing one of your crappy horror movies again. That last one gave me nightmares for a week. I mean, Jesus, Pet Sematary ? I still have to cross the street every time I see the neighbor’s cat.”
    I laughed. “Classic.”
    â€œCan’t you get into something else like romantic comedies or something?”
    â€œGod, no. Anyways, horror movies rule. I don’t judge you on your choices.”
    She grinned at me. “That’s because all of my choices are good ones. If you recall, I was the one to suggest your hair color.”
    I nodded. “You are a paragon of good taste.” I eyed her striped tights and plaid skirt.
    â€œShut up. My clothes are perfect. You’re just prickly because you’re too short to wear any of them.”
    I looked at Ali’s long legs and shrugged. Short legs were sort of the least of my problems.
    â€œOkay,” she said. “I have an idea. Let’s go buy a bunch of GQ s and cut all the heads off the male models. You’ve been crabby all week and I know that makes you feel better.”
    I grinned. “Yeah. It does. Okay. I’ll buy.”
    She clapped her hands and then reached out to squeeze my shoulder. I pulled back after a second, not wanting Ali to know how much one little squeeze meant to me. Her face broke into a smile, and it occurred to me maybe she knew anyway.
    â€¢Â Â â€¢Â Â â€¢
    I heard Brooks before I saw him when he showed up at Standard on Friday afternoon. His heavy boots and loud voice carried through the alley.
    â€œYou ignoring me?” he said, leaning against the side of the garage.
    â€œYou had things to take care of.” I flipped the power switch on the circular saw and drowned out his next few words. He strode across the garage and yanked the cord from the wall.
    â€œWhat the hell?” I snapped. “Plug that back in.”
    He pulled me up and pressed in to me. His nipple ring rubbed against my chest and his eyes bored through me. “That’s not how we play.”
    I pushed him off. “Oh really? How do we play? With you telling me we’ll be good together and then disappearing? I don’t think so. I don’t need that shit. I’m invisible enough, thank you very much.”
    I bit the inside of my cheek. Why had I said that? His face softened for a second and I hated his pity so much I kicked him.
    â€œKnock it off,” he said through his teeth, stepping so close I smelled his cigarettes and soap mixed together. “Now.” His hands clapped along the side of my face. “Let’s get this straight: You’re not invisible to me. We will be good together. I had some shit to take care of, but I’m not pulling you into the crap salad that’s my life if I don’t have to. Got me?”
    I swallowed and searched his face, looking for the trick. The lie. The evidence that he didn’t care. But I found only truth in his words, so I finally nodded.
    â€œAnd next time I text you, you better frickin’ text me back, because I know I’m not invisible to you either.”
    His mouth dove onto mine so fast I couldn’t take a breath. His hands held me too hard and I clawed at him. He scratched me back and I moaned as I banged into the side of the garage wall. Brooks dragged his mouth away from mine and gave me a cocky smile.
    â€œWhat the hell was that?” I said, breathing hard.
    â€œI missed you.”
    â€œFunny way of showing it.”
    His hands slid down my back. “You liked it.”
    My breath hitched when he pinched the skin along my spine.
    He chuckled. “Yeah. You liked it. Like I said, we’ll be good together.”
    â€¢Â Â â€¢Â Â â€¢
    The movie theater in my town does “Creature Features” every Saturday night. It’s how I first got into horror movies. I rarely missed one. I used to be able to talk Ali into going with me, but now