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  14

  Seeds of Yesterday

  Chapter Two

  Trina obsessively checked her watch, praying Amy would hurry up. It was almost midnight—her dad would throw the fit to end all fits if she didn’t hightail it home already.

  Thanks for getting me in trouble yet again, Ames…

  The party on Front Street had been awesome—the most fun Trina’d had in all of her sixteen years! Eric’s friend Robbie had finally noticed her…maybe Amy had been right about wearing the tight muscle shirt and painted-on jeans that were so popular right now.

  The party had been fun, but it was over. Everyone was heading for their cars, giving the street overlooking the Cuyahoga River a deserted, ghost-town sort of feel.

  Gone was the loud, thumping music and boisterous dancing. Shopkeepers were pulling down their shades and hanging up their CLOSED signs.

  Things were getting spooky.

  Shivering, Trina decided to go find Amy herself. She took the path that wound down to the river, hoping to find Amy and Eric there. The path was always dimly lit, an eerie contrast against the pounding, whooshing sound of the waterfall that emptied into the river.

  Her teeth sank into her lower lip. Where are you, Ames?

  Rounding a corner, the sound of female giggling reached her ears. Trina breathed a sigh of relief, knowing that laugh all too well. Picking up her pace, she jogged down another bend, not stopping until she was face-to-face with her best friend. Her blue eyes widened.

  Oh my God.

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  Jaid Black

  She couldn’t believe what it was she was seeing. Trina knew that Amy loved to smoke marijuana—Trina didn’t approve, but she could live with it. What she had not known about her best friend, however, was that she was into snorting cocaine. It explained a lot, but she still couldn’t believe it.

  “Amy!” Trina shouted, her heart thumping like mad against her breasts. Her nostrils flaring, she ran over to where the trio sat on a boulder and snatched away the razorblade Amy was using to separate the drug into lines. “What are you doing?”

  She couldn’t speak. Her eyes were glazed over, her pupils dilated.

  Eric grinned. “Come join the party! Robbie was wondering when you would get here.”

  The look on Trina’s face was one of disgust. Just a few minutes ago she’d been grateful that Robbie had finally noticed her. Now she would rather he hadn’t.

  Her gaze flew to Amy. Her best friend’s face was a chalky white and paling by the second. “I think she needs to see a doctor,” she breathed out.

  Eric’s smile dissolved. “Then take her yourself. No way am I going to an ER.”

  Because they’d get arrested.

  “The stupid little slut should have known when she couldn’t take any more!”

  Robbie chimed in, defending him and Eric.

  Anger toward Amy was quickly replaced by indignation and worry. “Maybe you two junkies shouldn’t have given her any to begin with!” Ignoring Eric and Robbie, Trina used every bit of strength she could muster to hoist Amy up onto her, piggyback-style.

  Her heart whooshing faster than the waterfall next to her, the adrenaline thankfully kicked in. Within five minutes, Trina had Amy in her mother’s Cadillac. Within another ten minutes, she had her at the city’s only emergency room. Amy was looking worse by the second.

  Please live! Oh God, Ames…!

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  Seeds of Yesterday

  “How much did she take?”

  “Did you give it to her?”

  “How long has she been unconscious?”

  Doctors, nurses, and police officers rattled the questions off while Trina cried and paced in the waiting room. She didn’t have any answers. Eric and Robbie were the only ones that knew, and they had refused to accompany them to the ER.

  “I don’t know!” Trina finally shouted. “I don’t know anything!”

  “Sure she doesn’t.”

  At the sound of a familiar male voice, Trina’s pacing immediately ceased. Her head shot up. Standing in the waiting room was Amy’s crying mother, her worried father and a very angry Daniel. A police officer looked at Daniel, then over to Trina. He frowned.

  “I think you better come with me, missy,” the officer said.

  Trina’s face went ashen when the cop reached out and grabbed her arm. The police officer believed Daniel, she realized, terrified. “But I didn’t do anything! All I did was bring Amy to the ER.”

  “That girl is gutter garbage!” Mrs. Hunter screamed. “She’s a liar!”

  Her heart sank, nausea overwhelming her. Trina had never felt smaller or more insignificant in her life. Mrs. Hunter was wealthy and well-respected in the community.

  If she said Trina was gutter garbage, she knew the officer would believe it as the gospel truth.

  Led into a private room, it was an hour before Trina was released. The drug test the hospital had given her came back clean. There wasn’t even a trace of alcohol in her system, let alone a narcotic.

  “Do you have someone to come pick you up?” the officer asked, his expression gentle. He sighed, taking in her unblinking expression. “I’m sorry I was rough with you earlier. You told the truth and the test proved that. I’ll make sure the Hunters know.”

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  Jaid Black

  Trina blinked. She cleared her throat. “Please don’t tell them anything about me.

  They see what they want to see and it doesn’t matter what you say. They will always believe what they want to about me.”

  Silence.

  “Amy is okay,” the officer said softly. “She’ll be in the hospital a while, but she’s going to live. Do you need a ride home, sweetheart?”

  Trina briskly rubbed up and down her arms. She felt numb, shell-shocked. “No. I’ll call my dad,” she lied. All she wanted to do was get out of there. She didn’t want to spend another moment in the hospital. Nor did she want an uncomfortably silent ride home in a police cruiser.

  She forced a fleeting smile to her lips before repeating her position. “Thanks for the offer, sir, but I’ll go call my dad.”

  * * * * *

  Trina quietly cried as she walked home, madly swiping away tears as they fell.

  Living clear across town from the emergency room, it would be another hour or so before she reached her house. Rain poured down from the black sky, harsh and unrelenting. Perfect for her mood.

  Perfect for disguising her tears.

  The loud honk of a horn startled her. Glancing up, she squinted at the lights of an oncoming vehicle. Within seconds a sports car pulled up beside her. Her heart pounded as she realized who the car’s sole occupant was.

  “What do you want, Daniel?” Trina asked, the fight draining out of her.

  His dark eyes raked over her, probably noting her sopping wet hair and soaked clothes. The rain plastered the white muscle shirt she wore against her breasts, showcasing her body to the point that she might as well have not even worn a shirt. Her nipples poked against the fabric, making her look every inch the doped-up slut Daniel thought her to be.

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  Seeds of Yesterday

  “I’m going to give you a ride home,” Daniel muttered. “Get in.”

  “Forget it.” She made to leave. “I’d rather walk.”

  The passenger door flew open, crashing against its hinges. “Get in,” he bit out.

  “Now.”

  She hesitated.

  “You’re going to catch pneumonia,” he said a bit less gruffly. “Get in the car, Trina.”

  As much as she hated it, he had a point. Begrudgingly relenting, Trina plopped down into the passenger seat and slammed the door shut. “There. I’m in. Happy?”

  His answering scowl told her all she needed to know. Daniel Michael

  “Straightlaced” Hunter was doing the gentlemanly thing, regardless to how he felt about her as a person.

  They rode in silence for the ten-minute drive, both of them staring at the road. By t
he time they pulled into Trina’s driveway, the rain was coming down even harder.

  “It doesn’t look like anyone’s here,” Daniel muttered.

  Trina had been worried about her dad’s reaction to her tardiness and he wasn’t even home. No doubt drunk, he’d probably lost track of the time. Her younger sister, Sarah, was spending the night at a friend’s. At least she knew Sarah was okay.

  “I’ll find a way inside.” She opened the sports car’s door. “I can squeeze through a window if the door isn’t unlocked.”

  Daniel sighed. “I’ll help you.”

  “I’m fine—”

  “I said I’ll help you.”

  Her nostrils flared. “Don’t you get it?” Trina wailed. The tears came back unbidden.

  She couldn’t take another second of being anywhere near a Hunter. Especially that Hunter. “I don’t want your help!” she cried. “Please just go away. Believe what you want to about me and go the hell away!”

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  Jaid Black

  Slamming the vehicle door shut, she ran toward the house. She was relieved to find that, as usual, her dad had forgotten to lock the front door. Throwing the dilapidated thing open, she fled into the safety of her home.

  “Why did you give Amy those drugs?” Daniel raged, storming into the house on her heels. “Why? Don’t you know how sick Amy is? Don’t you even care?”

  Trina whirled around to face him. Thunder cracked, lightning flashed to semi-illuminate the tiny living room.

  “I didn’t give her anything, you son of a bitch!” She began to hysterically sob, then picked up the remote control to her dad’s TV and hurled it at him. “Go away!”

  “I don’t believe you,” Daniel gritted out, seizing her by the arms. “How else would Amy get her hands on cocaine? Answer me!”

  “Maybe because she’s the junkie, not me!”

  His breathing was heavy, his eyes on fire. Daniel’s brooding gaze raked over her breasts before settling on her face. One moment he was holding her roughly by the arms and a blink of an eye later his mouth was covering hers.

  Hard, demanding, angry.

  Trina kissed him back with just as much intensity, doing nothing to stop him when he began tugging at her wet clothes. Her muscle shirt came off first, followed by her jeans and underwear. A second later, one of her stiff nipples was in his warm mouth.

  She gasped, her head lolling back just a bit as Daniel sucked hard on her nipple. His powerful arms held her steady as he brought her down to the floor of the living room.

  Releasing her nipple with a popping sound, he quickly discarded his shirt, jeans and underwear.

  Trina was about to shy away from him when she saw his huge erection spring free.

  She couldn’t believe Daniel was hard for her. Didn’t he hate her?

  His mouth covered hers again as he settled himself between her thighs. They kissed long and ruthlessly while he used one hand to guide his cock toward her vagina.

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  Seeds of Yesterday

  Breaking the kiss, Daniel stared down at Trina through his mysterious, dark gaze.

  Gritting his teeth, he impaled himself fully within her.

  His eyes widened as she screamed, tears running down her cheeks. He stilled atop her, but she could feel his cock throbbing inside her tender flesh. His breathing was labored, his muscles tense. “You’re a virgin?” he murmured.

  Trina’s gaze skittishly avoided his. She swiped at a tear and said nothing.

  Daniel began to move within her, slowly, using a gentleness she had not anticipated. She had thought the discovery would cause him to stop, but on the contrary, he seemed to want her more than ever.

  Jaw tight and jugular vein bulging, Daniel stared down into her face as he sank in and out of her. “Your pussy feels so good, Trina,” he said hoarsely. “God, you feel so good.”

  He looked like he wanted to go slowly, but couldn’t stand it anymore. Picking up the pace, he pounded in and out of her, making her breasts jiggle beneath him. She watched him through stunned eyes, unable to believe he was inside her.

  His muscles tensing, Daniel came on a groan. His body convulsed atop hers, hot cum spurting up to fill her insides.

  Their breathing mutually heavy, it was a long moment before either of them moved. They laid there in silence until Daniel at last got up off her.

  Trina sat up and watched him dress. When he was finished, he looked back down at her for a lingering moment, his dark gaze raking over her body before settling on her face. Closing his eyes briefly, he sighed, then made to speak. Apparently thinking better of it, he shook his head and walked back to his car.

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  Jaid Black

  Diary Entry

  Okay, so I lied to Amy. But somehow it was easier to tell her that my cherry had been popped (that’s what we called it back then) by that loser, Bobby, instead of by her older brother.

  Looking back, I doubt she would have cared. Sometimes I even wonder if she’d known all along that I’d carried a torch for Daniel from the moment his judgmental gaze had first clashed with mine. I never confessed the truth to her, but then, after that night I wasn’t allowed near her again. Mrs. Hunter blamed me for Amy’s drug habit—

  no less than I had been expecting.

  Amy spent the entire summer in drug rehab, so it wasn’t like we could even sneak and be together. When summer ended, Amy was shipped off to a boarding school in Michigan and Daniel to a college in Boston.

  I never saw Daniel again after that long ago stormy night when he took my virginity, so I gradually stopped thinking about him altogether. It took a while, maybe even a year or more if I’m honest, but by the time I took my baby sister Sarah and ran off to England to attend college two years later, Daniel Hunter was as much a distant memory in my mind as my dead mother was.

  In a way, the same thing happened with Amy.

  The first time I saw Amy after she’d been sent away to boarding school was when she came home for the Christmas holiday my junior year of high school. She called me on the phone, wanting to get together, so we snuck away and met down by the river on Front Street. We had a great time, just as we always did when we were together, but there was also an invisible wedge there between us that, until then, had never been present.

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  Seeds of Yesterday

  We both felt the barrier, I’m sure of it. We’d always been an unlikely match, what with me living on the wrong side of town, as poor as the day is long, and her living on the right side of town, her family affluent and cultured. Until that day we’d never realized the barrier existed, but we both recognized it that afternoon on the riverfront.

  We didn’t let it stop us from having a good day together, but I think we both knew it would be the last time we were ever together like that.

  And, indeed, it was.

  I ran into Amy a couple of times more over the years. Once when I was a senior in high school and once during college when my sister Sarah and I came home from England to visit Dad. (He went to rehab when I took off for Trinity College at Cambridge University and has been clean ever since, thank God.) But it was never the same with Amy. Those couple of times when we ran into each other on the street had been sadly awkward. Forced smiles and uneasy chuckles—the kind of conversation that leaves you feeling as though you should have had something to say to the person you’d once called best friend, but just didn’t.

  When I graduated from college, I could never bring myself to return to that tiny little town with all of its memories, most of them bad ones. Cuyahoga Falls made me think of Amy and Daniel, of wanting to be something more than that poor little daughter of an alcoholic, while secretly fearing I’d be stuck waiting tables for the rest of my life.

  But England was different. England felt like déjà vu, like home, from the moment Sarah and I stepped off the plane in London’s Gatwick airport. Nobody knew my history, nobody knew I was a nobody.

  In Cambridge, thanks to my writing scholarship, li
fe could start over again and I could be all of the things I’d always longed to be with no one the wiser. I think Sarah felt the same way, for when she turned eighteen my junior year in college, she decided to stay with me and earn her degree at the same university rather than return to the States.

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  Jaid Black

  Eventually Dad moved over, too. We lived together for a few years, all three of us, none of us particularly wanting that to change. Dad would teasingly grumble that Sarah and I should leave the nest and give him some space. I would teasingly remind him it was my nest—I’d bought the house with money I’d earned waiting tables at night.

  Those were three terrific years. Sarah and I got back the dad we hadn’t known since Mom died. We spent a lot of time together doing the seemingly mundane—blaring loud music to dance to while we cleaned the cottage, walking to market to pick fresh produce for dinner that night. Mundane or not, it felt wonderful being together like that again with Dad sober.

  On vacations we would tool around Europe, visiting everywhere from Bucharest to Zurich. We cheered on the bulls as they ran in Pamplona and watched the sun dip into the sea, turning the waters surrounding the Isle of Crete a haunting pink.

  Those were good years. No, those were great years.

  Ironically enough, none of us ever spoke of Cuyahoga Falls again. It was like a collective memory we didn’t wish to entertain. A bittersweet memory for all of us.

  Dad had met Mom and fallen in love with her in that tiny town, but he’d also watched her die there. Mom had wanted to be cremated, so it wasn’t like there was even a grave to visit, just a lot of memories of watching the woman he’d loved more than life itself slowly fade away, her body rotted with cancer.

  For me there were good memories of Amy, but memories that forced me to recall what had become of our friendship. And there were other memories, too, recollections of poverty, of Dad’s alcoholism and, yes, of watching Mom die.

  And then there was Daniel—memories of looking into his eyes and realizing I’d never be good enough for him. Memories of looking into his eyes as he thrust deep inside of me, hoping he’d love me as much as I loved him.