Hell Bent by Emma Fawkes Read Free Book Online Page A

to bed after he left. He wasn’t there for more than a few minutes.”
    Milly’s head is shaking. She isn’t buying the story, but I really can’t make it any more glamorous than that.
    “He didn’t…stay?”
    “Nope. I invited him but he stood up and left. That’s it, I swear.”
    Milly looks over her shoulder as if thinking someone must be listening and that’s why I am candy-coating my story.
    “Milly…” I say, enunciating my words carefully. “That is all that happened. Get it?”
    “I cannot believe you will not tell me—your best friend—what happened.” There is a hurt look on her face.
    “Okay, Milly…he walked into my living room, threw me on the sofa, parted my legs, and fucked me until the alarm went off and I had to shower and come to work. That better?” I look her straight in the eye.
    “Did he really?” She is so gullible, she is actually buying my story. A hopeful smile spreads across her face.
    “Hell, no!” I say, exasperated.
    “Shhhhh…” she cautions, holding a finger to her lips. “You will get into trouble with language like that.”
    “Then leave me alone, will you?” I am growing impatient with her interrogation, and there really is no way I can tell her exactly the truth because I have no clue what it is.
    She looks hurt. “Okay, be that way,” she pouts and leaves.
    I watch her form, trailing down the hallway, and click my tongue in disgust.
    “Hey!” I shout-whisper. “Meet me in the cafeteria in fifteen minutes.”
    Milly turns, a delighted, naughty look on her pale face, and nods in agreement.
    I shake my head, turn back to my work, and lock up before I head down to the cafeteria at the appointed time. There are few people here this time of the morning, and I can smell the luncheon special being ladled into the warming pans along the cafeteria-style line. It smells like some sort of stir-fry, which generally means they didn’t sell all the pork steaks from the day before and have given them a make-over. I make a mental note to eat salad today, but in the meantime, I grab a cranberry drink and see Milly waiting for me at a table on the patio.
    I push open the door and join her. Twisting the lid off the bottle, I take a deep, refreshing drink, and then firmly snap it down onto the table’s surface.
    “Well?” she prompts me, anxious to hear the details.
    “Milly. I swear there is nothing more to report. He showed up, unannounced and un-welcomed, asked for a drink, I gave him a soda, he took two sips and left. It sounds spooky, I know, but I will not make things up just to satisfy your salacious need for gossip. Not going to happen. My life is private.”
    “Of course it is,” she nods and leans in. “I just don’t buy what you’re saying. I guess Cam will have to get it out of Bryce himself,” she says in what she truly believes is a threatening voice.
    “Go ahead. He will tell you the same thing,” I reinforce the story and let her know I am not intimidated.
    She slams her dainty hand upon the wrought iron of the patio table in frustration. “Does he like you?”
    I take another slurp and shrug. “How should I know?”
    “Well, did he ask you out?”
    “Nope.”
    “Did he ask about the wedding?”
    “Nope.”
    “Well, what did he ask about?”
    “He just stood there and said almost nothing.”
    “Okay, be that way.”
    I shrug again, and she is tiring of the game. “I have to go,” she says.
    “Okay, see you later.”
    “Susie, I will find out what happened last night, and if I find out that you kept things from me…well…well…”
    “Well, what? You will hate me until your dying day?” As soon as the words are out of my mouth, I want to cut off my tongue. How can I be so stupid? The look on her face says it all.
    “Maybe even longer,” she says softly, tears in her eyes as she stands up and walks through the patio door to disappear down the hallway.
    I hate myself.

    I t’s not as if Bryce wants to ask me out or anything. In