Total pages in book: 102
Estimated words: 99766 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 499(@200wpm)___ 399(@250wpm)___ 333(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 99766 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 499(@200wpm)___ 399(@250wpm)___ 333(@300wpm)
“What’s wrong?” Tierra asks as she hobbles our way. “Is Zella okay?”
She must see the panic written all over my face.
“She’s missing, Tee. She and Penny both.” My voice is hoarse, strangled with worry.
“What?” she mutters. “Is it Jack?”
I shudder at hearing his name. “I hope to fuck not.”
“Why aren’t you out there looking for her?” she shrieks.
“The tracker app shows her at a hotel a couple miles up the road,” Hollis barks out as he rushes over to me. “Let’s go.”
“Check the grocery store,” I bark at Tierra. “Check the snow cone stand.”
The four of us guys fly to Cal’s truck, jumping in. Cal, peels out on the gravel, hauling ass down the road. We have to stop when we exit the campground because a fire engine speeds by followed by an ambulance.
Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.
“Go,” I grind out. “Follow them.”
Cal’s truck fishtails as he gasses it. I grip the dash, holding on as Cal drives like a bat out of hell. Jordy is quiet, but Hollis is talking loudly to his dad.
“Meet you there,” he says. “I’m going to call the station.”
A few minutes later, I can hear him talking to someone he must know. When he ends the call, he curses.
“They’re headed to the hotel,” Hollis croaks. “Fuck. He has my sister. He fucking has my sister.”
I swallow the lump of fear in my throat. There’s no way in hell I’ll survive if something happens to Penny and Zella. No fucking way in hell. As we drive, I drift back to the early hours of the morning when I had Penny naked and in my arms.
“Tell me about the sounds,” I say, stroking her hair from her face. “Tell me why you need the white noise. Have you been diagnosed with something?”
Her brows furl. “This is quite possibly my least favorite subject, Smash. Wouldn’t you rather talk about your dick?”
A chuckle rumbles from me. “We can talk about my amazing dick later.”
Several minutes pass in silence. I almost fear she won’t speak, but then she does.
“I read up on it,” she says quietly. “It’s a thing. Misophonia.”
“Miso-what?”
“It literally translates to ‘hatred of sounds.’”
“That sounds like you,” I tease. “Is this real or did you make it up?”
She smacks my chest. “It’s real. Turns out, I’m not the only person who suffers from it either.”
Suffers.
I sober up quickly, hating the idea of her suffering at all.
“Is it something that can be treated or healed?” I ask, frowning. “What does your dad say?”
A guilty look passes over her features, tugging her lips into a frown. “Dad has always known something was wrong. Since I was little. He wanted to help me, but as you know, I’m stubborn.” We both laugh and then she continues. “I didn’t want to be treated like a freak, so I tried to find ways to distract myself from the maddening sounds.”
“The white noise?”
She nods. “Maybe I should go to med school. I wasn’t far off from how they treat it.”
“You’re better now,” I murmur, kissing her supple lips.
“Knowing is half the battle. I read up on it when…” She trails off, tears welling in her eyes. “When we broke up. Everything was worse. Total chaos inside my head. I wanted to die.”
Guilt guts me, making me sick to my stomach. “But you’re tougher than that. You figured out a way to cope.”
“Once I realized this was an actual disorder, I devoured information on it. There are lots of therapies and medications to help. I started with trying to stick to a sleep schedule and using my headphones to block out trigger sounds. Since I didn’t want to involve Dad because he’d go over the top, I researched the cognitive behavioral therapies that worked on people. It’s been a lot of trial and error, but I’m learning how to ignore certain sounds that bother me and distract myself. It’s a work in progress.” She smiles at me. “With you, it’s easier.”
But I left her alone for months to cope on her own.
“I’m sorry, baby,” I murmur. “You won’t have to deal with it alone ever again. I fucking promise.”
“I know,” she says fiercely. “Now, can we change the subject to your dick?”
I flash her a cocky grin. “Anything for you, beautiful.”
My lips crash to hers for a searing kiss. Zella is still asleep, so we steal this moment for ourselves. Penny rolls me onto my back and then kisses her way down my stomach. My dick practically weeps at the beautiful sight. Penny with her blond hair loose and wild as she teases her way down to my cock.
“I’ve never sucked dick before,” she reminds me. “I might suck.”
“You already have step one down,” I tease.
Her tongue flicks out and she runs it over my tip. “Kinda gross, Smash.”
“Good thing you’re a nasty girl,” I croon, running my fingers through her silky hair.