Page 33 of Sour Lollipops and Sweet Nightmares (The Society #1)

“Can you respect my desire not to have sex with you?”

“I can respect that you think you don’t want me… But,” he sat back and shot me a wink, “You’ll come around.”

“Has anyone ever told you, you’re too confident?”

“Maybe I have a reason to be confident.” He placed a paper cup on the table and slid it my way. “Chia latte with three pumps of vanilla.”

How did he know that? “That’s right.”

As much as I wanted to refuse the drink, I was thirsty as it was dry in here. And I might be awkward, but I wasn’t rude.

I eyed him suspiciously and carefully took a sip.

It was perfect. There was not a single thing I could complain about. Damnit.

“Did I get it right?”

“It’s okay,” I muttered, while taking another sip.

Honestly, I didn’t know what to make of Kash.

I both admired and despised his confidence.

He was cocky and arrogant, but not in a rude way.

Actually, he was kind of nice, which made me trust him less.

Then there was how he looked at me. It made my palms sweaty, and not in the nervous way I was used to.

“I’m mad at you, you know.”

He was?

“What did I do?” Shifting, I covertly wiped my palms on my jeans.

Kash leaned in close enough that I could smell the spicy scent of his cologne, and murmured, “You didn’t call me Monday.”

“I didn’t agree to your sex appointment.” Did he think I had?

“You still could’ve called.”

No, I couldn’t. “The only phone calls I schedule for weekdays are to my mother.”

That and I didn’t have his number.

Kash’s brow rose. “You schedule your phone calls?”

“Yes,” I said. “People spend too much time on the phone.”

People thought my schedule was unnecessary, but I was always on time, never handed a project in late, and I had eight hours of sleep every night. Chaos brought stress, and I had enough of that in my life already.

Kash’s voice dropped an octave as he murmured, “That is so fucking hot. What else do you schedule?”

“Everything.”

“Meals?”

“Yes.”

He groaned and bit down on his bottom lip. “Down time?”

“Of course,” I said while leaning away from him.

Something lit up in his eyes. “What about bathroom trips?”

“Yes, when I have class.” Either I was misreading the situation or was Kash getting off on my organizational skills?

“I will give you fifty grand to let me fuck you behind that bookshelf.”

My palm cracked off his cheek. “I am not a prostitute.” I’d never been more insulted in my life.

Kash took my slap, sucked in a breath and sat back. “I deserved that.”

Yes, he did.

“Would a hundred grand change your mind?”

“No.” But my textbook cracking off the side of his head might knock some manners into him. “You can’t buy people.”

“Yeah,” he shook his head. “That’s not my experience.”

That was actually kind of sad. “Well, I’m sorry, but I have too much integrity to sell myself.”

“That’s okay. I’ll forgive you.”

That wasn’t a real apology. Could he not tell that? Did I not say it sarcastically enough? Whatever, I didn’t have the patience for this conversation.

“Well, if you don’t mind…” Attempting to ignore Kash, I went back to reading my textbook.

“Sorry,” Rachel apologized as if I was doing something wrong by studying. “Georgia’s all about grades.”

Shouldn’t everyone at Renfrew be all about their grades? That was the entire point of college.

“There’s nothing wrong with that.” Kash waved dismissively at her. “My brother would be ecstatic if I had half the drive she does.”

That caught my attention. “You have a brother?”

Was there another Murphy walking around campus, making appointments that I had to worry about?

“I have four brothers.”

There were five Murphy men? That was a terrifying thought. “Do they go here too?”

“No,” He shook his head. “Keaton, Karson, and Killian already graduated, and Kael’s still in high school.”

Wow, that was a lot of Ks. “I hope you guys don’t look alike. That would make things really confusing.”

Mortification rolled through me as I slapped my hands over my mouth. I did not mean to make fun of his family. Thankfully, Kash chuckled at my blurted-out comment.

“We have similarities, sure, but I’m the better-looking brother. I also have more skills than my brothers.” He shot me a wink. “You’ll see.”

Was this another attempt at a sex appointment? This guy didn’t quit. At least he wasn’t forceful. “I have no interest in seeing your skills.”

The spark in Kash’s eyes lit up, making them look like liquid amber. “Still playing hard to get?”

“I’m not playing anything.” I genuinely didn’t want to get got. Was I relaying this in a wrong way? “I?—”

“Don’t mind Georgia,” Rachel interrupted, lifted her hand to her mouth, and whispered, “I don’t think she has much experience with guys.”

Okay, first off, how was that any of Kash’s business, and second, why was she answering for me? “That’s?—”

“Shhh,” Kash pressed his finger to my lips. “Don’t worry, little firecracker, I’ll teach you everything you need to know.”

I was so confused that it took my mind a second to register the fact that someone was touching me. When it did, I slapped his hand away from me.

Kash then did something that I had no idea how to respond to. He lifted his hand and licked the tiny spot of my spit off his finger.

After which he lowly groaned and said, “You taste just as sweet as I thought you would.”

There were no words. I was speechless, and not because I was thinking of the proper decorum.

My mind was literally blank. This man just licked my drool and groaned as if it were the most desirable thing on the planet.

I could barely process what happened, let alone how to react to it. Nor did I have time to think about it.

The hand that slammed down on our table, brought an entirely new problem—a large angry problem who was staring at Kash with murder in his turquoise eyes.

“What the fuck do you think you’re doing, Murphy?”

Issac Kratz on a good day was scary. Right now, he was terrifying. If I could’ve made my limbs move, I would’ve run as fast as my legs would carry me. Rachel was also not comfortable with the situation.

Kash, on the other hand, wasn’t bothered in the least.

He sat back and smiled up at Issac, as if the anger openly displayed on his face was the funniest thing he’d ever seen. “What’s wrong, Kratz? You look like someone just stuck their hand in your cookie jar.”

I could hear Issac’s teeth grinding, and I was pretty sure I was about to witness a murder.

When he got into a fight with Ravi, he looked calmer than he did now.

But Issac didn’t lunge across the table.

He didn’t swing a fist or anything else violent, despite the fact that he wanted to.

I could tell that by the way his jaw clenched.

Was Issac afraid of Kash? No, it was something else.

“Stay the fuck away from her,” Issac growled. “She’s mine.”

Who was his?

“Really?” Kash snickered. “I don’t see your name on her.”

Why did he look at me when he said that?

Issac leaned in closer to Kash and growled, “Oh, I’ll put my fucking name on her.”

That didn’t sound good. I wished I knew who they were talking about so I could forewarn her, but I didn’t see any girls close by.

Kash smiled back at him and sang, “Not if I put mine on her first.”

My eyes swung from Kash—who was still seated, yet somehow appeared bigger—over to Issac, whose looming presence was extra oppressive. Being stuck between these two growly men, arguing over some poor girl, was not a place I wanted to be. I was uncomfortable before Issac showed up.

“Fucking try it,” Issac growled in a tone so deep that I could feel it in my bones.

I definitely needed to get out of here. Maybe I could sneak away without them noticing? And where was Mrs. Gatch? She’d stared at me for two hours the other day because I coughed in the quiet section. These guys were one wrong word away from throwing fists, and she was nowhere to be seen.

Rachel and I exchanged a glance. She dropped her eyes down, indicating that I should go under the table, which was exactly what I did. Rachel followed a second later. Issac and Kash were too involved in their argument to notice, giving us a chance to crawl away.

I was getting ready to climb out the other end of the table and run for the door when Issac snarled, “Georgia is mine.”

What?

I froze half out from under the table, and looked back as Kash snickered, “I guess we’ll see who gets there first.”

Chaos erupted. Issac lunged, Kash flipped the table, and everyone else ran for the door. Rachel grabbed my hand and pulled me into the crowd heading for the exit. Not that I was paying attention. My mind was stuck on the last thing Issac said.

Georgia is mine.

The girl they were arguing about was me .