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That Monday signaled the second week of November, and now that midterms were out of the way, she could finally find time to catch up with Izzy. She’d been trying to pin a certain time to meet up at the coffee shop, but one or both of them were always too busy.
After classes ended, Carrie quickly made her way to the student center and was waiting at a table when Izzy came through. Once she got her drink of choice, she took the seat available across from Carrie.
“How did your first set of midterms go?” Carrie asked her.
“Good,” she said, but when her cheeks flushed bright pink, Carrie’s eyebrows came together in confusion.
“What’s going on?” She thought of all the reasons an 18-year-old girl would blush, and had to hold back a smile. Looks like Izzy may have found herself a boyfriend. Carrie wondered if it was the guy she had mentioned before, Luca.
“Promise not to tell my brother?”
“Of course.”
Izzy took a deep breath. “I’ve met someone.”
“Who is it? Where did you meet?” Carrie loved a good meet-cute.
“He’s in one of my study groups. Carrie, he’s seriously so sweet and kind. It’s like every fantasy of mine was created to make him.” She sighed, dreamily. “He’s perfect.”
“I’m happy for you.” She took a sip of her drink. “Why don’t you want Jace to know?” Was there something that Izzy wasn’t telling her? Something that Jace wouldn’t approve of? Or was he just protective like John was?
“He tends to be a little overbearing when it comes to guys. I haven’t always been the most receptive with the male gender ever since my dad walked out on us, but I’m really trying, and Richard really helps me.”
Carrie practically spit out her drink. “Richard?” There’s no way she meant the same guy that had attacked Carrie at the beginning of the year. Could she?
“Yeah.” She nodded eagerly.
“How old is he?” She was praying that she was wrong.
“He’s a senior.”
Carrie froze with her drink halfway to her mouth. No...this couldn’t be happening. What was she supposed to do?
“Does he have black hair and dark eyes? About six inches or so taller than us?” Carrie would never forget him. He’d starred in enough of her nightmares to be ingrained in her memory.
Izzy’s eyes lit up. “He is. Have you met him?”
“You could say that,” Carrie hedged carefully. “Um, at one of the parties earlier in the semester, Lex and I were hanging out with him and a friend.” She debated whether or not to continue, but she knew if she was in Izzy’s shoes that she would want to know. She didn’t want anything to happen to Izzy that she could’ve prevented. “He got... handsy.”
“Handsy?” Izzy’s joy seemed to dim a little at the word.
“When we were dancing, his hands kept wandering. I left him when I started to feel uncomfortable and went to spend time with Asher so I wouldn’t be alone. When I went to the bathroom later, he barged in and tried to... rape... me.” The word was so hard to let out that it came out as more of a whisper. She didn’t think she’d ever realized how close she’d been that night to losing an important part of herself. “I fought back and escaped. David had to come and pick me up after that.”
Izzy was silent as she seemed to think over what Carrie was telling her.
“Are you sure it’s him?”
Carrie sighed. “I hope I’m wrong. Do you have a picture or something?”
Izzy took her phone out and tapped the screen a few times before turning it around. Carrie inadvertently gasped when she met the eyes of her nightmare.
“That’s him,” she whispered.
Izzy was speechless as she stared at the photo of her boyfriend. “But he’s so sweet...”
Carrie shrugged. “Maybe, but David told me about how he’d known Richard to have done the same thing to other women. They weren’t as lucky as me, though.”
Izzy stared at the photo for a few more seconds before slamming it to the table in anger. “Of course, the one time I start getting my hopes up that all guys aren’t scum, I fall for this.”
“Hey,” Carrie said gently as she placed her hand softly on Izzy’s. “Not all men are like this. That guy is in the minority. Just look at your brother; he’s a great guy. So are Simon, John... David. There’s always going to be bad apples, but that shouldn’t put you off of the entire male population.”
Izzy sighed and took a large sip of her drink. “I just can’t believe that I fell for his act. I should’ve known better.” Carrie could tell that she wasn’t pleased with herself.
Carrie put her hand out to squeeze hers. “Hey, it’s not your fault. This guy is probably great at faking his emotions. You’re not the first girl to fall for his tricks and, sadly enough, you won’t be the last.”
Izzy shook her head. “I should’ve known that something was wrong with him. I knew that men would always disappoint me since I was a little girl. Jace was the only one that I trusted.”
“What happened to make you think that?” Carrie immediately shook her head. “I shouldn’t pry; you don’t have to answer that.”
Izzy ran her hands through her hair. “My dad left before I was born. I saw what that did to my brother and mom. I never wanted to give men the opportunity to hurt me like that, so I didn’t let them get close. I told myself that this year would be different; I would try to let others in, and the first guy to get past my walls is nothing but a liar and an abuser.”
“What about Luca? Didn’t you say he was a really good guy?”
Izzy slowly nodded her head. “He is, but what if I’m wrong about him too?”
“Just because Richard turned out to be a jerk, doesn’t mean that you should give up hope on every single man you meet.”
Izzy took another long sip of her drink before changing the subject. “I need to think about something else. What’s going on with you and David?” When Carrie sent her a curious look, she gave her a sad smile. “You’ve mentioned him quite a few times since we sat down. Are you two together?”
After popping Izzy’s happiness bubble, she really didn’t want to rub her relationship in her face.
“We are.” She was quick to talk about something else. “How are your classes? What’s your favorite one?”
They spent the rest of their time talking about school and classes, not once going near the subject of guys. When they both stood up to leave, Carrie pulled Izzy closer and gave her a consoling hug.
“Please keep me updated about everything, okay? If you ever need a place to hide out or need someone to kick his butt then call me.” She gave her an imploring look to show that she was being serious. She didn’t take her hands off of her shoulders until Izzy nodded and agreed. If Carrie got even a whiff that something was up with Izzy, then she would for sure message Rory and make sure that Jace was aware.
~~~
DAVID WAS BEGINNING to grow to hate the weekdays. He never could find time to see Carrie or his other friends. His life consisted of work, sleep, eat, and more work. He had to remind himself that things would get better. He was just a paralegal right now, so he did a lot of the grunt work for the lawyer above him. Once he was a full lawyer, it would be his turn to give some of his responsibility away.
Tonight was one of those nights where he wondered why he was doing this. Mr. Mitchell had left at six, but told him and the one other paralegal that was on the floor, Ashley, that he wanted all of the paperwork properly filed before they came back the next morning. That meant that David would have to handle another late night with Ashley and his own thoughts for company.
He had nothing against Ashley, but she tended to be a bit superficial, and at times, David wondered what she was doing there in the first place. He didn’t particularly feel proud of those thoughts, so he never brought up his suspicions. Every time they were alone, however, she tended to bring her A-game and try to get him to fuck her. Now that he had Carrie, the last thing he wanted was to put his dick in another girl. No, thank you.
He had planned to call Carrie after he got off work, but now that he was set to be at the office for the remainder of the night, he made sure to send her a message so she wouldn’t think he forgot.
David: I’ll be at the office later than I thought. I’ll have to take a raincheck on that call :(
Before he could even put his phone down, Carrie replied.
Carrie: That sucks...I miss you :(
David: Miss you
He couldn’t help but think that if finding time to spend with Carrie was hard now, he didn’t think he wanted to know what it would be like when he went to law school.
Wherever that would be.
“Do you have a hot date tonight?” Ashley asked him as she walked up to his desk. He quickly set his phone aside and picked up the paperwork that he was supposed to be working on.
“Why do you ask?”
She laughed like he’d said something funny and walked around his desk. When she perched herself on the top, he pushed his chair farther from her without making it too obvious. He didn’t want to have to hurt her feelings, but she sometimes made it really difficult.
“I just saw you smiling at your phone. I wondered if, maybe, you have a girlfriend at home.” Her fingers trailed around his desk as if she didn’t care about his answer, but he’d been around enough girls in his life to know that she was listening carefully to his response.
“Yes, I have a girlfriend.” He gestured with his pen at the picture of him and Carrie that he’d taken a few weeks ago. He’d thought the way his arms were around her explained their relationship, but he guessed that he was wrong.
“Oh.” She laughed loudly. “I thought that was your sister. She’s just so young.” She wrinkled her nose like she’d smelled something awful.
“Nope. That’s my girlfriend,” he repeated.
He was hoping that she would take the hint that he wasn’t interested, but she just double downed.
“Is it serious between you two?”
He narrowed his eyes. “Yes.”
Her lips came together in a thin line before she sighed and gave him a fake-as-hell smile. Without another word, she hopped off his desk and went back to hers. He rolled his eyes before getting back to the task at hand. Maybe if he got it done early enough, he could still call Carrie before she fell asleep.
~~~
THIRTY MINUTES LATER, David had barely made a dent in the paperwork. He decided to take a small break and found himself in the small break room a few minutes later. He had just put a pod in the coffee maker, placed his mug under it, and started to watch the hot liquid fill his cup when he heard a noise behind him.
He turned to find Ashley standing just a few feet from him.
“What’s up?” he asked, tiredly. He tried to keep any animosity out of his voice. She could have been a very nice girl, but he was getting really sick of her blatant flirting.
She slowly stepped closer until she was just a few inches away from him.
She spoke slowly. “David, I want you.” His eyes widened, and he hastily took a few steps back from her, but she followed until he was against the counter. “That little girlfriend of yours can’t really be enough for someone like you.” Her voice got quiet. “I would let you do anything to me, baby.”
“Not interest—”
She pushed her mouth against his. He immediately began to struggle against her; he knew that he had one hundred pounds on her, but he didn’t want to resort to using all of his strength against her. She tried to invade his mouth with her tongue, and that was when he finally pushed her away.
He could feel his anger growing as he looked down at this clueless woman, but before he could so much as open his mouth to scream at her or turn her down again, he heard a small noise come from the doorway.
Carrie.
~~~
WHEN DAVID HAD SENT her the message that he was working late and wouldn’t be able to call her, she’d felt disappointed, but the longer she thought about it, the more she thought of this being a great opportunity. He’d told her before where he worked, so she knew the building and floor he would be on. She wanted to surprise him by showing up—just for a few minutes—just so she could see him at least once this week, but instead, the joke was on her.
She’d never thought that when she came to see him that she would see him kissing another woman. When she’d walked into the break room and saw the two of them together, she’d almost fallen down in shock. No, there was no way that her David would do this. He wouldn’t.
That was when she’d taken a few seconds to look at what was in front of her. She’d been on the receiving end of many of David’s kisses; she knew exactly what he did when he was lost in her kiss. The way his arms pushed at the unknown woman showed her that he was unwilling. The moment he finally shoved her away from him, Carrie gasped in anger when she saw the look of lust that was on the woman’s face. How dare she attack her man and then look like the cat that caught the canary?
David heard her then and turned to stare at her. She could see that he was going to immediately defend himself, but she raised her arm in the air to stop him. She didn’t need to hear any apologies from him; there would only be one person apologizing in this room.
She moved so she was standing to the side of the two of them, but made sure her stare was glued to the woman.
Her eyes twinkled as she looked back at Carrie. “I’m sorry that you had to find out this way. I’m just able to give David here some things that you can’t.” She spoke as if Carrie was a child, and that angered her almost as much as the kissing did.
“That isn’t—” David tried to say, but she raised her hand again to cut him off.
She stepped closer to the woman, close enough that their shoes were touching. She didn’t say anything before she brought her hand up and slapped her across the face. Her palm stung, but she took pleasure at the look of pure and utter shock that filled her face.
“What the hell? You’re insane.” She finally dropped her hand from her cheek and tried to look intimidating, but the bright red mark on her cheek diminished the force of her anger. “You’re a crazy bitch, you know that?”
“Oh, am I? Well, this crazy bitch just saw you lay your grubby hands on my unwilling boyfriend. You’re lucky you’re still standing.”
She gasped like she was offended. “You’re insane. I’m calling the cops and having you arrested for assault.” She even took her phone out of her pocket like she was actually going to go through with it.
“Do it. Then I’ll have David tell them about how you sexually assaulted him.” She narrowed her eyes like she was in deep thought. “I think they’re going to be a lot more interested in that story than in whatever you have to say.”
The woman’s jaw clenched in anger, but Carrie could tell that she knew she couldn’t win. After a few seconds, she unclenched her teeth and threw her hands up in the air before walking back to the door.
“Both of you are insane. You’re perfect for each other,” she said nastily before she stormed out of the room. Carrie heard the ding of the elevator a few moments later, signaling that she was gone.
Only then did she turn to David.
“Baby,” he started to apologize, “I don’t know how much of that you saw, but that was all her. I tried to push—”
She interrupted him with a kiss—just a short one to show that she wasn’t mad at him.
“It’s okay,” she told him when she pulled away. “When I first saw you two, I was so mad and hurt, but when I took a longer look, I saw you pushing her away. You have nothing to apologize for.”
A large grin spread across his face. “How did I get lucky enough to have you in my life?”
She shrugged her shoulders with a small, sheepish smile. “I think you have that a little backwards.”
He shook his head before pulling her closer and brushing his lips over hers. “Take away her taste, baby. I only ever want your lips on mine.”
She didn’t need to be told twice. She ran her hands up his arms and twirled them in the hair on the nape of his neck and tugged gently. He laughed into her mouth before spinning her around so she was the one leaning against the counter.
They quickly got lost in each other. When his hands started to roam under her shirt, she tensed up for a moment. “Are we the only ones here?”
He nodded his head. “Do you really think I would want anyone to see you like this? You’re mine, baby. All mine.”
She smiled widely. “And you're mine.”
Words weren’t needed after that. He lifted her on top of the counter and pulled her yoga pants down along with her underwear before doing the same to his dress pants. He thrust inside her and swallowed her gasp with his tongue. She quickly forgot all about the woman and just focused on the way that David made her feel.
Which was pretty damn amazing.
~~~
CARRIE STAYED FOR A few hours after their little tryst in the break room. She kept him company while he worked on the paperwork. They weren’t even talking, but he still appreciated her staying there with him; not once did she even look bored. She read on her phone until he finally stood up and told her he was finished.
He held her hand while he led her to the elevator and then out to her car. As much as he wanted her to spend the night at his place, he knew that it wasn’t the smartest thing to do during the week. This weekend, she wouldn’t leave his sight once, but he would have to last the remaining few days till then with just the memory of having her in the break room (which he had to admit was a pretty damn good memory).
He kissed her goodbye and watched her drive away knowing that he had found the most perfect woman. His woman.
If this was how it felt to be in love, he finally understood why his friends were smiling all the time.