Chapter 213: Douchebag

David’s POV

The movie was playing, some forgettable kiss in the rain, but all I could feel was Holly pressed against my side, her body warm and soft and infuriatingly close. The blanket barely covered us both.

It was dark now…the only source of bright light was from the projector.

Her head rested just below my shoulder, her hair tickling my neck every time she breathed. For thirty minutes I let myself pretend this was normal. That she hadn’t made me kneel in that fucking diner like a dog while half the customers and employees watched. That she hadn’t laughed when I did it.

My pride still tasted like blood.

She actually thinks I asked her to come into the mat because I care?

Hell no.

I wanted her close for one reason only: to teach her a lesson. Nothing more.

I dipped my head so my mouth grazed the shell of her ear.

“Tell me something, Holly,” I said, voice low and lazy, “do you enjoy sharing a mat with your boss? Or is this just another one of your little games?”

She didn’t even hesitate.

“Honestly?” She turned her face up to mine, eyes sparkling with that dangerous mischief. “I’ve shared smaller mats with worse men. At least you smell expensive.”

A couple of people around us snorted, then tried to pretend they hadn’t heard. The laughter died fast, though…the whole backyard went unnaturally quiet, like everyone suddenly remembered how to eavesdrop.

I let my hand drift down her arm, slow, deliberate. Goosebumps rose under my fingertips. She shivered, but instead of pulling away she burrowed closer, tucking herself tighter against my chest like she belonged there.

My palm kept moving, sliding over the curve of her waist, lower, until my fingers brushed the bare strip of skin between her jeans and her cropped sweater. She sucked in a tiny breath.

I leaned in again, lips barely touching her ear.

“Open,” I whispered.

She froze for half a heartbeat…then parted her thighs just enough for my hand to slip between them.

I smiled against her hair.

Then I raised my voice, clear and cruel, loud enough for the entire back row…hell, probably the front row too to hear.

“Wow, Holly. You open your legs that fast just because I asked? Weren’t you taught not to trust men?” I let out a soft, mocking laugh. “I thought you were Justin’s perfect little girlfriend tonight. Everyone keeps saying it. So why are you practically begging for my hand between your thighs right now?”

Dead silence.

The kind of silence that sucks the air out of a room.

Holly went rigid against me. I felt the exact second her heart started hammering, felt the tremor that ran through her whole body.

A ripple went through the crowd. Heads turned. Someone coughed. Someone else whispered, “Jesus…”

Holly’s face went white under the projector light. She pushed up on her elbows, mouth parted like she was going to fire back, but nothing came out. Her eyes…those big, infuriating hazel eyes…were already glassy.

I smiled, slow and cruel. “Or is tonight the night you finally admit you’re just bored? That you’ll spread your legs for whoever gives you the most attention?”

A woman close to us gasped. A guy muttered, “Dude, what the hell.”

Holly blinked once. Twice. Then the tears slipped free, silent, tracking down her cheeks like she didn’t even have the energy to wipe them away. She just stared at me, anger and hurt and something worse burning in her gaze.

Something twisted in my chest…sharp, ugly. Regret, maybe. But no. This was Holly. Fucking Holly who’d played me like a toy since the day she rolled into this town.

The murmurs were loud enough for her to hear, but still, she didn’t pull away.

That was the part that gutted me later.

She let me humiliate her…and for one frozen second, she let me hold her while I did it.

Justin was on his feet before I could blink. “What the fuck is wrong with you?” He shoved between us, shielding her like I was some stranger who’d grabbed her off the street. “Why are you talking to her like that?”

Holly never looked away from me. Not once. Even as Justin pulled her up, even as she stood there shaking, her eyes stayed locked on mine…disappointment so raw it felt like a slap.

Then she did the worst thing she could’ve done.

She didn’t scream. Didn’t cry louder. She just brushed the grass off her jeans, slow and deliberate, like she was dusting me off her life. Turned and walked away.

Justin shot me one last venomous look and went after her.

The yard went dead quiet except for the movie still playing…like some idiot romantic comedy had any place here now. Every pair of eyes slid to me.

I forced a laugh. “What? Let the party continue. Why the hell are you all staring at me like I just murdered someone?”

A guy near the cooler…Mark, I think…cleared his throat. “Yeah, man. Let’s… let’s just watch the movie.”

The noise picked back up, awkward and forced. Someone turned the volume higher. People shifted blankets, pretended they hadn’t just watched me torch everything.

I couldn’t sit still. My skin felt too tight.

Lauren slid over the second the lights dimmed again, perfume thick, hand already on my thigh. She leaned in, lips brushing my ear. “Forget her,” she whispered. “I can make you feel better. I’m wet just thinking about you bending me over that cooler…”

Her fingers traced down my chest, slipped under my waistband, wrapped around me…squeezed.

Nothing. Not even a twitch.

Holly’s face was burned behind my eyes. The way the tears had fallen without a sound. The way she’d looked at me like I was small.

I stood up so fast Lauren nearly fell. “I need air.”

I was halfway across the yard before I admitted it to myself… I was going after her.

I hated her. I hated the way she twisted me up, hated the games, hated that she’d made me kneel in that diner like a joke. But saying those things… doing it in front of everyone… that wasn’t revenge. That was just me being the asshole she already thought I was.

I looked around the living room but she was neither there nor in the kitchen. Just as I was about to check the rooms, an engine turned on…probably Holly’s car.

She was already pulling away by the time I ran outside.

Justin stood on the sidewalk, arms crossed, looking at me like he wanted to put me in the ground.

“You fucking ruined it,” he spat. “All she wanted was to have a nice little company, and you humiliated her. Happy now?”

He didn’t wait for an answer. Just turned and walked back into the house.

I stood there feeling like the worst kind of trash.

My phone was in my hand before I could think. I scrolled to Lauren’s name…hit call.

She answered on the second ring. “Miss me already?”

“Meet me in my car. Now.”

She was there in under a minute, dress riding up her thighs, mouth hungry on mine the second the door slammed. I kissed her hard, shoved her against the backseat, grabbed her breast through the fabric…rough, angry.

She moaned as she fumbled with my belt, grinding against me greedily.

I couldn’t even get hard.

The image of Holly’s tears kept flashing. The way she’d dusted off her jeans like she was brushing me out of her life for good.

“Fuck!” I slammed my fist into the seat. “Fuck, fuck, fuck!”

Lauren blinked, lipstick smeared. “Did I do something wrong?”

“Go back inside,” I snapped. “Just—go.”

She stared for a second, then climbed out, slamming the door hard enough to rattle the windows.

I sat there in the dark, breathing like I’d run ten miles.

The only person who ever made the self-loathing shut up was Candy. Not Lauren. Not any of them. Candy didn’t ask questions. Didn’t make me feel like a monster whenever we’re at it.

I scrolled to the brothel’s number and dialed the Madame’s private line. She picked up sounding pissed.

“Candy,” I said before she could speak. “Tell her it’s David. I’ll pay triple for tonight.”

A long pause. “Candy quit, sweetheart. Three hours ago. She’s not here anymore.”

“What the fuck do you mean she quit? You told me few hours ago that she was free all night—”

“Then she changed her mind. Girls do that sometimes when they decide they’re worth more than being some stern boy’s distraction.” A cruel laugh. “Find another hole to stuff your dick in, darling.”

“Wait—” I gripped the phone tighter. “I need to know her real name. Anything. I’ll make it worth your while.”

Click. Dead line.

I hurled the phone into the passenger seat and exhaled in frustration.

For the first time since the whole Ava mess went down, I genuinely felt like a piece of shit.

And I was damn sure every single person still inside that yard felt the exact same thing about me right then.

And the worst part?

I deserved it.