Beer Goggles Anthology Read online

  “You don’t remember do you?” she asked.

  “Remember what?” I was afraid to hear her answer but I knew it would fuck with my head if I didn’t know.

  “That jokester over there is my roommate, Marcus.” She nudged her head toward the doorway but I didn’t look. My stomach was still rolling and I could already sense he was still giving me that look of his.

  The weird one.

  I didn’t want to see it again, like ever.

  “It was just me and you, Romeo,” she clarified and I felt my body instantly relax.

  I closed my eyes and let reality sink in.

  I hooked up with her alone; relief.

  “Is that a tramp stamp?” The guy from the doorway spoke again, causing me to open my eyes.

  I thought he was pointing to the girl but they were both examining me instead.

  “A what?” I asked, trying to look behind me to see what they seen. Forget the fact that I was on their bathroom floor, nude, after just puking. That had long since been forgotten.

  “A tattoo across your lower back,” the guy added, leaning in closer. “It looks like a chain of cocks.”

  I hung my head, knowing full well where, or should I say who, was responsible for my new found ink. I just prayed the shit would wash off eventually.

  The guy I knew as Marcus chuckled, only causing the girl to laugh. I looked up and her eyes locked on mine.

  And suddenly I regretted not remembering my night with her.

  There was something in her eyes. A sweetness about her, unlike other girls I’d been with. She wasn’t prissy, or overly confident. Just real.

  When she noticed I was staring her cheeks reddened and she looked away quickly.

  I liked that.

  And then I remembered my other new addition to body art.

  Lifting my hand, I ran it over my new piercings, regaining her attention.

  “And these?” I asked.

  “What, you didn’t have those before last night either?” She smiled as she and her roommate exchanged another look of surprise. “Well when you came back here you had both, so I’m not sure when you got those either.”

  I already knew who was responsible. This had Red written all over it.

  I just found myself wondering how in the hell I didn’t feel the pain from the needle or whatever the asshole used to shove through my nipples. Or where in the hell the rings came from to begin with.

  How the hell did one sleep through such a thing?

  Chapter Twelve

  Morgan

  I sat on the edge of my bed, now dressed, listening to the water running in the shower.

  I thought after the shock of Xavier’s morning I could at least offer him a shower.

  I found my mind kept wandering back to last night, or should I say, early this morning.

  It was amazing, for me at least.

  The way he moved, you’d never guess he was so trashed he’d been unaware. I wished he remembered, but maybe it was best he didn’t.

  I had never felt that alive. Never felt that much pleasure wrapped up in only a few hours. Xavier was unbelievable and giving.

  I jumped when I heard the sound of his voice from the doorway.

  “Do you happen to know where my things are?”

  There he stood, with a towel held secure around his waist. Hanging very low. Beaded water still glistening on his chest.

  And those nipple rings. He may not have had them long, but I liked them. They looked good on him.

  “I, um…” I cleared my throat and looked away from him. “I laid what I could find over there.”

  I pointed toward the chair in the corner and watched him move that direction.

  He began sifting through and I tried not to laugh when he held up a shirt that was missing a sleeve. Well it wasn’t completely missing, just hanging halfway off. And his boxers—I was puzzled myself how the whole side of them got ripped out.

  He looked over at me with a boyish grin and I couldn’t keep a straight face. “You have claws or something?” he asked with a chuckle.

  “I guess you’ll never know,” I said and then wished I hadn’t.

  “Listen, I was wasted, and I’m sorry that I…” he began to explain but I waved it off.

  “I knew what I was getting into when I asked you to come home with me. I expected nothing more than last night. I think we both just needed a free night.” I stood up and moved toward the dresser to grab my keys.

  “If you want to meet me in the kitchen I’ll give you a ride home,” I added then moved toward the door. “I could only find one of your shoes, but I’m thinking maybe the other is in the car.”

  I tried not to laugh when he looked down at the single shoe that sat on the floor by the chair. He just shook his head as if he were confused and ran his hand through his hair.

  Poor guy was really lost.

  “I’ll see you in a few minutes,” I told him as I opened the door and found Marcus just on the other side. He looked over my shoulder and grinned wide at Xavier.

  I pushed against him, placing my hands on his chest and moving him out of the way.

  “Will you please just leave him alone?” I said as I closed the door behind me and walked toward the kitchen. Marcus was hot on my heels.

  “You like him, don’t you?” he asked.

  “No, I feel awful that he can’t remember a damn thing,” I said in correction. Marcus didn’t need to know that I wished he could.

  “Okay, Morgan, if you say so.” Marcus proceeded to pour both him and me a cup of coffee, placing a third on the countertop next to mine.

  I was just about to argue with him and tell him he was being ridiculous, but jumped in surprise when a strong hand pressed against the small of my back.

  “Is this for me?” Xavier asked as he reached around me with the other arm and picked up the coffee cup.

  I watched with a little too much concentration as he brought it to his lips and took a sip. His throat bobbed as he swallowed and his eyes closed as if it was the best thing ever.

  “All I’ve tasted since I woke up is pineapple,” he added as he slowly opened his eyes and locked on mine.

  I felt my face heat and immediately looked down toward my hands.

  I’d received that stuff as a gag gift, but Xavier insisted we give it a try. And I went for it, along with a few other things that I’d never tried.

  But I figured if I was going for this one night-of-the-best-sex thing, I may as well go all out.

  I could still feel the ache in all the places he’d explored. And it felt exquisite.

  “Xavier,” Marcus said gaining his attention and my own. “I found your shoe in the hallway when I went out this morning to get donuts.”

  He solved the missing shoe puzzle.

  “But I hate to tell you that it didn’t survive Rosco,” Marcus added and I immediately covered my mouth with my hand.

  “Rosco?” Xavier asked, his eyebrows crinkled in confusion.

  “Yeah.” Marcus took a seat on the opposite side of the snack bar. “Rosco is our neighbor’s pit bull. And it would appear he quite enjoys himself a Nike.”

  Laughter fell from my lips, because I could no longer contain it.

  This poor guy had been through hell in one night, and he couldn’t even remember any of it.

  The drive back to his place was a bit awkward. He tried to carry on a conversation and I could tell he felt bad about not remembering much. I honestly just wanted it all to be over with.

  He thought he owed me an explanation.

  I didn’t want one.

  It was, like I said, awkward.

  I was thankful when I pulled up in front of his house and he opened the passenger door to get out.

  “Listen.” He turned back to look at me. “Maybe we can hang out sometime. Catch a movie, or even dinner.”

  A distraction—he could be a great one. One that I’d doubt I would tire of. And that was dangerous.

  So making a clean break now w
as a definite necessity.

  “I had a lot of fun last night, regardless of your inability to remember much.” His shoulders sagged a little. “Honestly, I haven’t had that much fun in a long time. I needed a night like that. But, Xavier, you don’t owe me a thing. And I don’t have time for a relationship or dating.”

  He nodded but I could tell he wanted to say something in return.

  “I work a lot and though I’m a college student, I don’t live that typical college life. It wouldn’t work out,” I told him and he just looked at me for a moment before he leaned in and pressed a kiss to my cheek.

  He paused, his lips lightly skimming over my jaw line. “I may not remember everything from last night, but there is one sound that keeps running through my mind. A soft whimper, a needy moan.”

  I closed my eyes, trying to keep from making that very sound right then.

  “A light whisper of someone telling me not to stop,” he said, kissing my jaw. “It keeps playing on repeat in my head. I’d give anything to hear those sounds again.”

  He pulled back and without saying another word he crawled out of my car and left me staring after him as he jogged across his front lawn.

  And in that moment I realized forgetting about the guy who gave me one hell of a ride would be much harder than I thought.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Xavier

  The minute I entered the house all eyes were on me.

  Corbin was sporting a bruise under his right eye I knew he didn’t have yesterday. And Jay sat on the couch, with his head hung looking like he was paying dearly for his shit from last night.

  Isaac had marks on his face, a faint resemblance of ink faded. But redness outweighed the marks, as if he’d been scrubbing his face heavily.

  I still had not spotted Red.

  “How was your night?” I looked up just as Calvert entered the living room. “Because that blonde dragging you out of here looked like she was hungry as fuck.”

  I narrowed my eyes at him in warning.

  He chuckled and walked off toward the couch to join the others.

  “Nice eye, Corb,” I said and he flipped me off.

  A couple of guys walked into the house holding their phones in their hands, laughing at whatever it was they were watching.

  “What are you watching?” Isaac asked and stepped up to their side.

  “Hey Jay,” he hollered out, chuckling. “You’re famous, man.”

  Jay jumped up from the couch moving in their direction and looked horrified when he saw whatever it was they were watching.

  He walked backward, his back bumping against the wall just before he slid down it and sat on the floor.

  “You even have a hashtag, man,” Brent, another brother, said as he joined the crowd watching the phone held out for all to view.

  “A hashtag?” Jay asked, still covering his face.

  “Yeah,” Brent said as he looked around the group. And as if it were planned each one of them took position and began swiveling their hips. And all together they began to sing “dick’s a swinging,” waving their hands in the air.

  Jay groaned out and curled over on his side, holding his head.

  I turned around intending to head up stairs but stopped in my tracks. I was face to face with Red.

  “Hey buddy,” he said with a smirk. “How was your night?”

  “How the hell did you get into my room anyway?” I asked, skipping right to the point.

  Elijah watched me for a moment before a sly grin spread out over his lips. Then ever so slowly he held up a keyring with a number of keys on it and shook them, making them jingle. “I have a key that fits every one of you fuckers’s rooms. You all need to keep that shit in mind. Ya know, for future reference.”

  He walked off laughing, leaving us staring after him knowing full well he’d been playing us all along.

  “Oh, Tequila,” I mumbled as I walked up the stairs.

  And even though I felt like hell, I found myself still hearing that sweet moan in my head.

  Morgan could pretend she didn’t want a repeat but I’d break her down. One way or the other I would get another chance.

  About the Author

  C.A. Harms is like any other addicted reader. She enjoys happy endings and HEA love stories. She hasn’t always been a lover of Romance and had once been addicted to a good Mystery. Just recently she has taken on a new liking and now is a full blown Romance novel addict.

  She lives in Illinois and enjoys spending time with her husband of 14 years and two children. You will always find her with her kindle or paperback in hand as it is her favorite pass time.

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  https://www.facebook.com/pages/Author-CA-Harms/354791947956151

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  https://twitter.com/Charms0814

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  https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6895633.C_A_Harms

  Sex, Alcohol, and My Neighbor

  By Terri E. Laine

  Chapter One

  Staring into the flame, I wonder how I ended up on the road to divorce with a man who I thought was my best friend. Today, of all days, my lawyer informed me I’m officially and legally separated from my soon to be ex-husband.

  “Liv.” I gaze up into the faces of my sisters Amelia and Ella. “Aren’t you going to make a wish?”

  “It’s not exactly my birthday yet.” I muster a smile trying for humor.

  Ella, my younger sister, glances at her watch. “You have less than an hour until b-day, and I’m hoping we’re all drunk by then.”

  Amelia, my older sister, giggles. She’s already there. Then again, she doesn’t get out much. Married with three young kids, she’s a full-time mama. “Come on, Livvy. Make a wish. I bet you wish you could cut Corey’s balls off.”

  There had been many times I’d wished for just that.

  “Not anymore.” Soberly, I add, “He called me today.”

  “For what?” Ella sneers, and I know she means well.

  “He got the papers that officially separate us. I can legally date anyone I want now.”

  “You could yesterday with no regrets after what that bastard did to you,” Ella says.

  “I’m not even angry at him anymore.”

  The truth is such a relief. I close my eyes and blow out the candle on my birthday cupcake they’d so thoughtfully brought.

  Holding up my lemon drop shot, I say with the biggest smile I can manage, “Here’s to being thirty-five and single.”

  My sisters toast with me, and we down the drinks. My life isn’t quite what I’d planned for myself. But here it is.

  Amelia’s glazed eyes flit over to me before she speaks. “You say it like you’re dead. But you’re not. You’re hot, and you’ll find someone else.”

  I’m not even sure I want to date anyone else.

  Ella is much younger than Amelia and I are. You would think she’d be the fun one. But tonight she’s acting way more mature than Amelia.

  “Let me ask you a question.” Ella holds up both hands. “No, wait. New tradition. Truth or dare?”

  “Me first,” Amelia slurs.

  “No, the game is only for the birthday girl,” Ella chimes with a sly grin.

  “Fine.” Amelia turns to me, swaying some in her seat. “Truth or dare?” she animatedly asks me while pushing another of the shots they ordered in my direction.

  As drunk as my sister is, I go with the safe option. “Truth.”

  “Figures,” Ella says, looking disappointed in me.

  Amelia, undeterred, asks, “Do you want to get back with Corey?”

  When Ella’s smile ratchets up, Amelia and she high five each other before Ella blurts, “But remember, the birthday gods won’t answer your wish if you don’t answer truthfully.”

  Not that I believe her, but the question is one I’ve asked myself a million times. Corey’s not a bad guy. I think he really loves me, despite his mistake. And I’m thirty-five. Do I really want to start over now?

  �
�Truth?” I ask. They both nod like bobbleheads. I down a shot, and they reciprocate before I answer. “I don’t know.”

  Ella rolls her eyes. “If you’re going to go back to him, at least have sex with someone else first.”

  “Why?” I foolishly ask.

  “Because.” The word comes out of Ella’s mouth like she’s put out for having to even say it. “A little payback is in order.”

  “Don’t listen to her.” Amelia has always been a fan of Corey’s. “You don’t have to add to your number.”

  “That’s the point,” Ella chides. “Her number is one.”

  So had been his. As much as I’ve wondered, I’ve never asked Corey what his number is now.

  “Fine,” Amelia says.

  “Wait.” Ella cuts her off. “What’s your number, Miss High And Mighty?”

  Amelia proudly holds up her hand making the okay gesture.

  “Am I drunk, or did you mean okay or zero?” I ask.

  “Can’t be zero.” Ella laughs. “She’s got three kids. She means three.”

  Amelia nods while laughing at a joke Ella and I didn’t get. We trade a glance.

  “No more drinks for her.” I wave a hand in her direction.

  Amelia reaches out. “Hell no, you won’t stop me. I finally stopped breastfeeding. This is my first drink in over a year.”

  “A year?” Ella arches a brow.

  “Duh, nine months of hell, and then breastfeeding for more that I can add right now,” Amelia slurs, lifting a hand and staring at it like it’s the fifth wonder of the world.

  All the shots I’ve downed start to catch up to me. The noise of the lounge sounds louder than it had moments before. My nose perks up, and the scents all around me come into sharper focus.

  “You should screw your neighbor, Joel,” Amelia announces proudly. “Do him, and then go back to Corey. He wants you back, you know.”

  My jaw drops. “You’ve been talking to Corey?” As outraged as I want to be about that, I’m really deflecting her mention of my neighbor.