A Place So Wicked by Patrick Reuman (life books to read txt) 📕

then, he wasn’t so sure the light of day could penetrate the barrier into this wooded world.

Her fingers stayed locked in his, guiding him. Finally, they emerged into an opening. The trees parted way to a creek, the water bustling softly. Here, like some magical place, the moonlight shined down, reflecting off the water, lighting the area in a bright, mysterious hue. On their side of the creek was a patch of grass almost like a lawn. He stepped onto it. It had a different feel under his feet, soft instead of rooty and full of sticks and twigs.

“Where are we?” Toby asked, amazed at how inverse this haven was to the dense forest just feet behind him.

“This is where I go when I need to think.”

“How’d you find it? The path is so narrow.”

She laughed. “I’d hardly call it a path. I just stumbled upon it one day when I was adventuring around. Not a lot to do around here.” She smiled as she took in the surroundings. “Nobody really comes here.”

Toby smiled, just barely visible in the moon light. “Probably because they can’t find it.”

“Probably.”

Toby walked over to the water’s edge and stared in. The water was like crystal. In the yellow light, he could see straight to the bottom of the creek. Tiny fish squirmed about. He touched the surface of the water with his shoe, and they scattered.

Addy walked up beside him and joined in on staring through the water. “Mostly minnows, but I’ve seen a few larger fish swim by.”

“How deep is it?” he asked.

She pointed upstream. “It gets a little deep over there but only a few feet.”

He nodded, unsure of why he even asked the question. It wasn’t like they could swim in it. And even if they could, it was too cold outside for a late night dip. He noticed then that she was staring at him.

He turned, smiling back. “So what did you bring me here for? To think?”

“Not quite.”

Her eyes sparkled. She wore a red shirt with four buttons, two of which were undone just below her neck, showing the top of her breasts. He tried not to look, his eyes repeatedly wandering back to the sliver of exposed flesh. She wore short jean shorts, which he thought was brave for such a chilly night.

She stepped toward him, pulling him close. They began kissing. But unlike the kisses before, this kiss was long and passionate, continuing even after Toby became short of breath, their tongues intertwined in a suffocating embrace. Toby allowed his hands to drift lower, finding her hips.

She suddenly released him, stepping back. He wondered if he had gone too far. He had known he was letting himself wonder, the heat of the moment taking over his thoughts. But he was certain, at least a second ago, that, that was what she wanted.

His worry evaporated when he saw she was still smiling. But now he was confused. Was she teasing him? Was that what this was?

“I saw you the other night,” she said, a mischievous grin wrapped from cheek to the other.

He didn’t respond because he wasn’t sure what she was talking about. She just stood there expectantly, patiently waiting for him to understand what she was getting at. Then it hit him, and his heart took a plunge. The mild hardness he had felt under his jeans quickly faded, and his stomach lurched.

“I—I—” he stuttered, his thoughts tripping over each other in a desperate attempt to find a way out.

“It’s my turn,” she said.

“I’m so s—” He stopped himself. What had she just said? Her turn?

With her finger, she traced down from her lower neck, past her breast, to the bottom of the V in her shirt. His hardness returned immediately. He wasn’t sure if what was happening was real or if this was another dream.

“Well, I think it’s only fair that if you saw me, I should get to see you.”

“With my clothes off?” He looked around, sure there must be cameras hidden somewhere or a crowd of kids waiting for him to be dumb enough to remove his clothes here next to the creek.

She stepped toward him. “Do you disagree?”

He shook his head no. His heart was racing, but he still wasn’t sure this was real. It couldn’t be. Things like this definitely did not happen to him.

“Maybe I can encourage you a little.” She grabbed her shirt from the sides and lifted it up and over her head and then dropped it to the ground.

There she stood in only her bra. His eyes were fixated on her breasts which her bra seemed to barely be able to contain.

“Well?” she asked.

He startled into realization. It was his turn. This couldn’t be a set up. If it were, she wouldn’t have taken her shirt off. He pulled his shirt off and tossed it to the ground.

“Good. Good,” she said. “Now the rest.”

He waited a second, seeing if she would lead the way again, or maybe even say she was kidding.

“No. You first this time. We have to keep this fair.”

He hesitated a moment, giving her one last chance to change her mind. She didn’t. He kicked off his shoes and then unbuttoned his jeans and pulled them off in a funny stumbling manner. Now his jeans and shirt were in a pile together, and all that remained were his boxers and socks.

To his relief, she followed. She unbuttoned her shorts and pulled them down, wiggling her hips a little as she did so. He wasn’t sure if the act was intentional or if the shorts were really that hard to get off for some reason.

He swallowed hard, staring at Addy in nothing but her bra and underwear. The cold air had her nipples hard, pushing out from the