Animal’s Reformation Read online

  “Are you coming? I’m in the bedroom.”

  “Baby … yeah … ohhh … fuck …”

  Yep, it’s porn. All of a sudden Olivia had a throbbing headache, and she massaged her temples and looked longingly at the cold fireplace as she passed through the family room.

  “Ahh …” Kory groaned.

  She sighed, knowing that he’d be raring to go the minute she opened the bedroom door. Standing before it, she sucked in a deep breath then slowly exhaled. “Here we go,” she mumbled and opened the door, her eyes landing on the blank TV screen.

  “Yeah … uh-huh … baby …!”

  Her gaze darted to the bed and she stood there blinking as she tried to process what she was seeing—a woman with washed-out blue hair, pendulous breasts, and a wide ass straddled her boyfriend.

  “Oh … yeah … baby. Uh-huh …”

  It seemed like the skank who was riding her boyfriend had a limited vocabulary.

  Kory turned his head and looked at her, his face red and contorted. “Hey, babe,” he grunted between pants. “I’ve been waiting for you. Take off your clothes and come join us.”

  Olivia stood rooted to the spot, watching Kory’s fingers dig into the bucking bronco’s hips. “Are you fucking serious?” she asked.

  “Come on. Champagne’s real good at this. She’ll make you feel comfortable.”

  Champagne? Is this for real?

  The woman glanced over at her. “I know this is your first time, but don’t be shy,” she said as she continued to bounce on Kory’s dick.

  “Get the fuck over here,” he ordered, gyrating his hips.

  The blue-haired woman threw her head back and moaned. “Fuck, baby. Oh … yeah.”

  “It’ll be fun, honey,” Kory said, a crease starting to form over his forehead. “Don’t ruin this, okay?”

  “Ruin your fucking session? I wouldn’t dream of it,” Olivia replied.

  “I tried to wait for you to come home, but we kinda got carried away. Remember I told you I was planning a surprise for you?” He thrust upward as the wild bronco squealed in glee. “Well, this is it. It’s gonna be so hot. You’ll love it.”

  “Stupid me … I thought the surprise was going to be a romantic dinner at Greystone’s.”

  “This is better. Get the hell over here … you’re breaking the mood.” Irritation laced his voice.

  “Yeah … you’re kind of a downer,” the woman added.

  “If you loved me, you’d already have joined in,” Kory said as he rolled Champagne off him, then sat up. “Do you want me to make out with you a bit to warm you up?” He pulled the sheet over his still erect dick.

  Why am I not a screaming lunatic about this? My boyfriend is fucking another woman and I’m still standing here calmly discussing the options with him. Olivia pursed her lips and ran her eyes over Kory, then over Champagne, who lay flat on her back holding her phone over her face. “I think that’s the problem, Kory … I don’t love you.” From the way Kory’s head hit the back of the headboard, she knew her words had stunned him, and they’d surprised her too. Don’t I? I thought I was in love with him. But if she were, wouldn’t she be feeling awful and more devastated than she was?

  “You’re just being mean because you’re mad I started before you got home. I’ll make it up to you, baby. Come on over here.” He held his hand out.

  She went to the closet and pulled out her suitcase then started filling it with enough clothes that would get her through the weekend and part of next week.

  “Don’t be this way, baby.” Kory started to get up, but the death stare she shot at him must’ve worked because he slumped back and watched as she gathered her clothes and toiletries.

  “So I guess she’s not gonna join in?” Champagne said, her eyes still fixed on her phone.

  “Why’re you being so bitchy about this?” Kory asked as if she’d caught him leaving the toilet seat up again instead of fucking a woman with faded butterflies tattooed on her butt cheeks.

  Rage bit at the back of her throat, and she kept the urge to throw something at him in check. He didn’t deserve any indication that he’d hurt and humiliated her. He didn’t deserve any attention from her.

  Olivia zipped up her suitcase and wheeled it toward the door. “I’ll be back for the rest of my things next week.”

  “Olivia … Don’t be this way. You’re overreacting.” Kory threw off the sheet and swung his feet off the edge of the mattress. His dick was still straight as an arrow. “I love you, honey.”

  Unbelievable. She glanced at Champagne—God, that name is beyond ridiculous—and shook her head. “He’s all yours. Just to cue you in, though—he doesn’t have a clue how to give a woman an orgasm.” Kory’s face fell and he opened his mouth but nothing came out. “That’s right, baby, all of it was just good acting and faking on my part. You’re not the stud you think you are.”

  Olivia walked out of the room and closed the door against Kory’s angry retorts. Grabbing her briefcase from the kitchen table, she went into the garage, threw her suitcase in the back seat of her car, and took off.

  “All I wanted was a damn grilled cheese sandwich,” she said out loud as she thrummed her fingers on the steering wheel while waiting for the light to change to green. The snow fell at a quick pace, and the back and forth motion of the windshield wipers mesmerized her. A horn blared from behind, making her jump, then the driver swerved around her, throwing glares before speeding away.

  For the fifth time since she’d left the house, Kory called and Olivia ignored it. He was the last person she wanted to speak to … ever. “You sure know how to pick them,” she muttered, turning onto Willow Lane Drive. She pulled in front of a three-story apartment building, switched off the ignition, and rested her forehead on the steering wheel. Olivia couldn’t believe she was back at her old apartment. She’d really thought that Kory would be the one to give her a sense of security and keep her grounded, but she was so wrong, again.

  Olivia slid out of the car and wheeled her suitcase into the vestibule of the building then pressed the button for 3C. Harper buzzed her in, and with a resigned sigh, Olivia pulled open the glass doors and headed to the elevator.

  “A glass of white wine is already on the coffee table.” Harper stood in the hallway as Olivia walked over to her. “Alice just got here.”

  Warmth spread all over Olivia—her friends always came through for her. Even though she’d only moved to Pinewood Springs the year before, Olivia liked Harper and Alice immediately after she’d met them on her first day at Slavens Elementary School. Harper was a third grade teacher, and Alice and Olivia were teaching assistants. Olivia was assigned to Harper’s classroom as well as Kennedy’s, another teacher at the school.

  Alice and Harper had an apartment together, and when they’d found out Olivia was looking for a roommate, they had suggested she move in with them, which pleased her immensely. The three of them got along so well, and Olivia couldn’t believe her good luck in meeting such great friends. After running away from her native San Diego, she felt like a fish out of water when she’d arrived in Denver to stay with an old school friend. But once she decided to accept the teaching job in Pinewood Springs, things seemed to be falling into place in her life, well, except in the man department. That was still a disaster just like it had been back home. I guess some things never change.

  “Let me take your suitcase.” Harper wheeled it into Olivia’s old room, came back to the family room, and sank down on the couch. “What the hell happened?” she asked while picking up her wineglass.

  Olivia kicked off her boots, tucked her stockinged feet under her legs, and shook her head slightly before she leaned over and curled her fingers around the wineglass. “Remember I told you about the surprise Kory promised me?”

  “Wait … I want to hear,” Alice said padding into the kitchen. “Let me get a vodka cooler first.” She walked into the family room and sank down in the chair across from the couch. “We all thought the surprise was going
to be either some sexy lingerie, which would really have been for him, or a steak dinner at Greystone’s.” Alice twisted the top off the bottle and brought it to her plum-glossed lips.

  “I said it’d be lingerie, but from what you’ve mentioned about his sexual likes, I’m starting to suspect he bought you a butt plug or a St. Andrew’s cross or something.” Harper took a sip of wine.

  “A butt plug would definitely be up his alley but not a St. Andrew’s cross. From what you told us, Kory didn’t seem to be that extreme,” Alice said.

  “We were all wrong,” Olivia said as her finger ran around the rim of the glass.

  “A romantic weekend getaway?” Harper offered.

  “It couldn’t have been that, otherwise Olivia wouldn’t be here with a packed suitcase. What did the jerk give you?” Alice asked.

  “My boyfriend brought a woman home for us to have a threesome, only he started before I walked in the door.”

  “No!” Harper’s eyes widened.

  “That’s despicable, even for him.” Alice leaned forward and extended her hand. “I’m so sorry. I knew you thought he could’ve been the one.”

  “Yeah … well, he’s definitely not the one. The skank had a really bad dye job—her blue hair was all faded with a couple of inches of dark roots.”

  “Sounds awful.” Harper patted Olivia’s knee.

  “And when I walked into the room all I saw were dull butterfly tattoos flying across her ass as she rode him. It was horrifying.” Olivia shuddered at the memory.

  “Who puts butterfly tattoos on their ass?” Alice asked.

  “That’s not really the point of the story, is it?” Harper threw a stern look at her.

  Olivia busted out laughing. “Alice is right—who the fuck does that? And if you’re gonna ink a swarm of them all over your butt then at least keep them touched up, you know? Her fuzzy, blurred ones just looked like shit.” Thoughts of the flowered vine curling down her spine swirled around in her head, but she’d made sure to touch it up over the years.

  “Okay, but what the hell did you do when you saw them together? What did Kory say?” Harper sometimes ran their conversations like she did her classroom—always cutting through the fluff and wanting to get to the point.

  “He asked me to join them.” Olivia leaned back against the cushion, the recitation of his words still stinging her.

  “What an asshole!” Alice covered her mouth.

  “Did he really mean it?” Harper asked.

  “Oh, yeah. He thought I’d like to have a threesome. I guess he thought our sex life needed spicing up. I don’t know. I can’t believe I even slept with that sonofabitch.” Olivia poured more wine into her glass.

  “I tried to warn you,” Harper whispered.

  “I know.” Olivia took a big gulp. “When am I going to break the loser streak I seem to have going on since I started dating?” She sank her fist into the cushion.

  “We’ve all had bad boyfriends,” Alice said soothingly.

  “True, but you at least found a good one. Jonathan adores you, and you feel the same about him. My problem is, I never get a fucking break,” Olivia replied.

  “You’ll find the right one. I never thought I would and then Jonathan just came into my life. It’ll happen.”

  “I’m just tired of waiting. I mean, I took the advice you both had given me and accepted a date with Nathan a few months ago, even though I’m not really into cops. I thought maybe if I go out with someone I wouldn’t normally dream of dating, it might work out. Total disaster. He wound up going crazy possessive on me after we’d dated for only a few weeks, and now he’s stalking me. Then Kory enters my life, and he was so different from Nathan that I thought he was what I was looking for … until he goes and does this crap tonight. That’s what I’m saying—I’ve got shitty luck with guys.”

  “My problem is that I keep having crushes on guys that I find out are already taken. Take Jim Farley. He’s so handsome and sexy, and I thought that maybe we could’ve had something, but then I find out he’s married and has two kids. Why can’t I find a decent single guy?” Harper said.

  “Farley’s a jerk,” Olivia said. “He’s always looking to get laid.” On her first day of work at the elementary school, she’d bumped into the seventh and eighth grade science teacher. Jim Farley was more than friendly and even suggested that they go out for a drink that night. With his clean-cut good looks, he wasn’t really her type—she tended to go for the rugged, bad boy look—so she declined the invitation. When she’d later found out he was married, it pissed Olivia off and she stayed away from him. She knew Harper had a major crush on Jim, but her friend would never date an attached man.

  “I’ve decided to try online dating. A lot of people I know are doing it, and several of them have found the right person. You never know.” Harper glanced over at Olivia. “You should try it. I put up my dating profile a few days ago, and I already have a few guys wanting to chat with me. Who knows?”

  “Isn’t that dangerous as hell? I mean … you don’t know if the person, or what he’s telling you, is even real. It’s so easy to lie online. A lot of people get catfished.” Olivia poured more wine in both her and Harper’s glasses. “Anyway, I’m too busy with working at school, my part-time receptionist job, and taking two online classes to go through messages and decide who’s legit or not. After what happened tonight, I’m done with men. I want to concentrate on finishing my degree so I can be a school counselor. Men and I don’t do well together, so I’m placing a moratorium on dating and relationships and men.” She lifted her glass up in a mock toast and then took a sip.

  “We’ll see how long that lasts,” Alice said.

  “It’s time to finally break the fucking cycle, and the only way I can do it is to stay far away from men.” Olivia guzzled the rest of her drink and leaned back, suddenly feeling lightheaded.

  “Maybe it is a good idea to take a break from dating. I did, and then I met Jonathan.” The corners of Alice’s mouth twitched.

  “I just want to get married and have a family. How can it be so hard to find someone?” Harper ran her fingers through her hair.

  As if on cue Olivia’s phone buzzed; she glanced down, then groaned. “Does he really think I want to talk to him? How could I have gone out with such an idiot? And … he wasn’t even my type, at least not in the looks department.” Exasperated, she clicked off her phone.

  “I wondered about that. You like the scary-looking guys—the ones who ride big Harleys, wear leather jackets, and have a lot of chains dangling from their pockets.” Alice laughed.

  “That I do.” Olivia closed her eyes and images of her dad and his friends decked out in leather floated through her mind. Her dad was a member of East Bay Dogs—a motorcycle club in San Diego county. The club wore their one-percenter patches with pride. Her dad’s club, his brothers, his motorcycle, and even the club whores meant more to him than his own family. They always had. Her lids fluttered open. “But I’m not into bikers.”

  “I hope not,” Harper said. “You don’t want someone like that. When those Insurgents walk down the street, they scare the hell out of everyone. They act so cocky, yet they’re nothing but criminals. Haven’t you seen them around?”

  “Not close up.” I’ve avoided them. I’m done with that life. “Anyway, there’re good and bad people in every walk of life.” Leo was a good person who Dad sucked into his club. Mom begged him to leave Leo alone, but he didn’t give a shit. I guess I’m lucky to be a girl, otherwise I’d be a member of the East Bay Dogs.

  “Kennedy’s taken an interest in going to their parties with a few of her other friends,” Alice said.

  “I didn’t know she was doing that. She’s asking for trouble. The parties can get pretty wild, and not all bikers play nice,” Olivia said. Kennedy was a mutual friend of theirs and she taught sixth grade at the school. She had a real wild side and a reckless disregard for danger—a lethal combination.

  “She’s nuts.” Harper shook her h
ead. “She’s traveling on a very rocky road.”

  Alice rose to her feet. “Don’t tell Kennedy that I mentioned about her going to biker parties. I probably shouldn’t have said anything.” She glanced at her phone and smiled. “Jonathan wants us to watch a movie and order a pizza.” She looked over at Olivia. “Are you okay? I know we were joking about what happened and all, but it’s got to hurt.”

  Olivia looked down at her hands in her lap and gave a half-shrug. “I wasn’t in love with him.”

  “Even so …” Harper said.

  “I guess I’m more mad at myself for wasting the time and energy … and emotions with the relationship. Live and learn, right?” But it does hurt like hell. I just want to go to bed and cry it out.

  “I’m here if you need me,” Alice said.

  “We both are.” Harper placed her hand on top of Olivia’s and squeezed it lightly.

  “I know. Thanks. I guess I’ll be staying here until I buy a house.” Olivia had been saving toward that for the past nine months.

  “Or until I get married,” Harper answered.

  Olivia nodded, smiling. “I hope you find your prince charming. You deserve it.”

  “Well, I gotta run. I’ll see you guys tomorrow.” Alice slipped on her coat.

  After the door closed, Harper went into the kitchen and returned with two bowls and a half-gallon of ice cream. “I keep this around for emergencies, and I’d say what jerk-face did to you is double-chocolate chip worthy.”

  Olivia grinned and hugged her friend. “You’re the best. Let me change into my pajamas, then we can attack that ice cream.”

  “Romantic comedy or a slasher film?” Harper asked as she picked up the remote control.

  “Slasher for sure.”

  “How about a Jack the Ripper horror film? I thought I saw one lurking on On Demand.”

  “Sounds perfect. I’ll be right back.”

  That night she’d stuff her face, cover her eyes, and forget all about what an asswipe Kory turned out to be. This was the beginning of a new chapter in Olivia’s life and the title of it was “No Men.” It was about time she focused on herself after years of giving her attention to men. It was her own mother who had taught her to fawn over men and make them the center of a woman’s universe, but not anymore.