Damaged and the Beast (Damaged #1)

As we neared the food truck, I worried I was weak. I worked hard and didn’t take the easy path. Did this make me strong? Maybe, but I wasn’t confident like Skye. I wasn’t even as confident as the bang and hang girls.

“You seem down to earth,” Skye announced, again just knowing what I was thinking. “I feel like you won’t stab me in the back by stealing my guy or talking shit about me. You’re solid and I need a solid friend in college. I visited here growing up, but I don’t have a gang of girls who will be there when I need to work off my freshman fifteen. You think those bang and hang girls would say no to a hot guy I wanted? Hell no. They’d jump him in a minute. You wouldn’t. You’ve got good character. I know about that stuff because of my mom. She’s sort of a stuck-up bitch, but she knows how to see through people and tell who has good character. Like, you’d look at my mom and think she’s a plastic ho who doesn’t care about anything except appearances and showing off. She acts like those Housewives bitches, but my mom is solid inside. Her friends are too, but she had to work to find good friends because sometimes the outside isn’t what’s on the inside. See, I might seem shallow because I’m so well put together, but I just dress nice for guys. I don’t do it so I can be better than you or those whores over there. I do it to attract my prey.”

At first, I didn’t understand Skye was kidding, but then she winked at me and I laughed.

“I like that you’re quiet because I need someone who won’t interrupt. I was an only child for most of my life and had two nannies at all times. Two. I’m used to being the center of the universe. I’m my daddy’s angel and the pride of my mom’s loins. I can’t have people interrupting me because I take it personally.”

Nodding, I looked over the menu, searching for the cheapest items.

“If you’re a good friend to me, Farah,” she said, suddenly serious, “I’ll be a good friend to you. I’m loyal. I’ve been tight with my best friend in Memphis since second grade. Even when she got fat then slutty then went klepto, I supported her. Eventually, she settled down and got skinny, only slept with guys who respected her, and stopped stealing everyone’s shit. She’s solid now, but she decided not to go to college because she needs to find herself first. I sure hope that doesn’t mean she’ll become a fat slutty klepto again.”

Like I said, Skye loved to talk. After she forced me to eat what she was eating, we sat at a picnic table. Skye then talked and talked even while stuffing her face. She never made a mess though. A lifetime of talking nonstop gave her mad skills.

Even though I barely spoke the whole time, I realized Skye was the perfect friend. She took all of the pressure off me. I didn’t have to keep the conversation going. I didn’t have to decide where we would eat or what I would order. I didn’t need to worry over cost because she liked spending her parents’ money. Skye claimed her parents expected her to waste their money and would be insulted if she didn’t.

By the time we split up to head to our separate afternoon classes, Skye decided she would chauffeur me to and from work. She didn’t like her new best friend taking busses at night. After all, what would people think? Besides, Skye hadn’t finished telling me her life story. Apparently, it was very long so she needed the extra time to get me up to speed.





Chapter Five


Skye proved to be a reliable chauffeur until Friday when something mysterious happened to her car. That was how she phrased it. Something mysterious. She couldn’t pick me up from work, so I would have to find another way home.

Cooper sat in the back booth, reading a book he clearly hated with a passion. Occasionally, he smacked the book onto the table then glared at it hatefully. Finally, he returned to reading. I had to admit he looked especially hot in the white tee clinging to his strong chest. The contrast of such bright white against his tanned flesh made it difficult not to stare, let alone drool.

While I considered asking Cooper for a ride, I immediately shot down the idea. I had successfully avoided him most of the week, seeing him only on Wednesday night when he came in for dinner. He did a lot of his intense staring and made a few comments squarely in the domain of inappropriate. He also left me another twenty dollar tip. We had created a nice relationship so far, but owing him anything was a mistake.

Cooper just wanted to fuck me. Though I wasn’t wholly against the idea of sex with him, I sensed he would be rough and I’d cry. My tears would likely piss him off and he would find a way to punish me. Maybe I assumed too much, but I didn’t want to take the chance of ruining my life in Ellsberg.