The Next Contestant Read online

  The Next Contestant

  Dani Evans

  Copyright © 2014 by Dani Evans

  Cover design by: Sarah Hansen of Okaycreations.net

  Interior design by: Angela McLaurin of Fictional Formats

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book. This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, brands, media, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners.

  Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

  Evans, Dani

  The Next Contestant / by Dani Evans

  p. cm

  1. THE JERK

  2. OFF LIMITS

  3. FUNHOUSE

  4. TAP THAT

  5. GAME ON

  6. PREY

  7. HOT WIRED

  8. THE WRONG FLOOR

  9. THE CUTTING EDGE

  10. NERVOUS GIRL

  11. SNAPSHOTS

  12. WHINEY GIRLS AND THE EX

  13. PIG AT A PARTY

  14. AFTER PARTY

  15. GREAT ESCAPE

  16. NICK THE NUT-SACK

  17. ALPHA MEN

  18. WHO LET THE DOGS OUT

  19. OVER THE OCEAN

  20. TRUTH

  21. LIAR

  22. THE REAL TIMBER

  23. CONFRONTATION

  24. FLOOR SKANK

  25. FANTASTICALLY HUGE

  26. MUZING

  27. CURIOSITY KILLS

  28. SLUMMING

  29. BODY SHOT

  30. TRASHY

  31. SO EROTIC

  32. SEDUCTION

  33. CONFUSED

  34. HALF MOON BAY

  35. INTIMATE

  36. WELL MARINATED

  37. DOUBLE ENTENDRE

  38. RISKY BUSINESS

  39. REALITY BITES

  40. STUNNED

  41. CAT AND MOUSE

  42. THIEF

  43. FELON

  44. STUMPED

  45. BRIBERY

  46. BUSTED

  47. THE NEXT CONTESTANT

  48. PORN STAR

  49. CLOSER

  50. PREDATOR

  51. HAVE I TOLD YOU

  52. TRUE LOVE

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  A NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR

  The Facebook Girls!

  Kimber, the foul-mouth-gotta-love her lipsmackin goodness.

  Tiffany, my lovely book dame dameausaurus.

  Sandy, the lovely ladies & naughty books beauty.

  Darcy, the not-so-innocent sweetheart.

  Diana, the fierce lover of all things dark… and Dean.

  Trena, the badand dirty lover of chocolate thunder.

  Angela, the poster child for Tumblr pics.

  Amy, the naughtiest Tumblr poster.

  Janice, for the delicious Promises, Promises.

  And to all the faces that I know and love without ever physically being present,

  I heart you all!

  Author Gracen Miller, for rocking my heart with your Rockin’ the Heart novel. And for allowing me the privilege to mention the glorious band and cast of characters in your Hot Wired series.

  Author Rachelle Ayala, for swooning me with yet another Jewell man in Whole Latte Love. And for allowing me the privilege to mention the bedazzling band, The Licked Blues, and for infusing my characters with caffeine from The Brewed Force.

  DEVIN HILTON. HE is the hottest soccer player on my brother’s team. He’s so damn sexy. Black hair, caramel eyes, and his hot body have my attention. His hair is in disarray, little beads of sweat dripping down his nose and cheeks, but it’s his smile and the way he winks at me that has my heart fluttering. And then he wiggles a finger, calling me to come closer. I scan the area for my brother, knowing he’ll stomp over here and ruin this moment for me if he knows Devin is flirting with me. I spy Kolby out. He’s on the other side of the field, with his team, flirting with the girlies vying for his attention.

  I’m good to go. I push through the crowd and when I reach Devin, I swear my stomach flips over itself as he stares down at me with a killer smile.

  “Kimber, Kolby’s little sister.” His smile is endearing, and a little bit promiscuous. “I recognize you from the family photo’s Kolby has hanging on the walls at the frat house.” He lifts his hand, brushes the long blonde locks of my hair over my shoulder, and lets his fingers settle close to my neck. Then he smiles, a sexy, sweet smile. I melt.

  The moment doesn’t last long. Members of the team rush at Devin and drag him back on the field. I don’t see him the rest of the night.

  A week later, Devin begins showing up at some of my classes. He doesn’t even go to this school! One late afternoon I find him leaning against the wall outside the room, arms crossed, looking sexy as hell. Oh, he’s slick in his methods. He doesn’t immediately ask me out. No, he’s totally sweet and works his way into my heart before he finally asks me out two weeks later, and against my brother’s wishes, we start dating. I don’t think Kolby likes him, but Kolby says all his frat brothers and the soccer team are players. Says I’d be stupid to date any of them. But really, Kolby is just being the over protective big brother.

  Devin and I had spent every free night after our first date together. He’s charmed the hell out of me, makes me feel beautiful, like I’m his entire world, and I love him enough to give him my virginity.

  Six months later, his sweet disposition slowly fades into something dark and unrecognizable. The tension between us is palpable. To make matters worse, I have a little problem and decide I need to head to the frat house to tell him. My brother and the rest of the fraternity are out on a voluntary mission so I know Devin’s there alone.

  I knock numerous times before he answers. I can tell he’s in one of his moods the minute he opens the door. His face is void of emotion and everything within me freezes.

  “Are you going to come in or stand out there all day?” Devin asks and waves his hand.

  I don’t budge. He’s got that cruel look in his eyes and I have to ask. “You’ve been distant, mean. Is there someone else?”

  “Don’t be stupid, Kimber.”

  I feel like I’m going to fall apart, but I suck it up, hold back the tears, and stare at him.

  “What? Why are you looking at me with sad, dopey eyes?” He reaches for me and drags me inside. “Baby, I’m sorry. I’m just tired and worn out from practice and school.”

  Okay, so when he goes all sweet and kisses me the way he’s kissing me now, I love him all over again and I feel like I can tell him. He’s dragging me toward his room and once we’re inside, he’s stripping my clothes off while I remove his. Devin drops down on the bed and pulls me on top of him. He doesn’t bother working me up, he just plunges in.

  I bury my face in his neck, kiss my way up to his ear, and whisper, “I love you, and I’m sorry, but I’m two weeks late.”

  He moans and grinds into me harder. I drop my head when Devin stops abruptly, his whole body stiffens. He pushes me up.

  “What? What the fuck did you just say?”

  “I-I’m late. Two weeks late.” A tear escapes and tumbles down my cheek. Instead of comforting me, Devin rolls me off him.

  “Fucking bullshit. Did you do this s
hit on purpose, Kimber, because you said you were on the pill. What the fuck?”

  His words, his accusations make me feel dirty, unworthy. I get up, collect my clothes, and get dressed. I can’t even look at him let alone answer the question. I’ve got to get out of here. I make it into the hall and down the steps before Devin catches up to me. He grabs my arm and yanks me back, causing me to stumble.

  “Let go of me! I hate you. I hate you!”

  “Get rid of it, Kimber. I’m not going to be a father. No fucking way.”

  Get rid of it? I can’t believe he’s saying this to me. This is the same man who promised he’d take care of his own if he ever knocked anyone up. What a liar.

  “No, Devin. I can’t do that, but don’t worry, I don’t need you. We’re done, over!” I charge for the front door and after I escape I hear the door slam shut.

  Once I reach my car, my hands are shaking so bad I struggle with the handle to open it. After I slide into the seat and buckle up, I realize I left my purse inside the house. I can’t go in there, not until I calm down.

  Ten minutes later, I’m at the door. Instead of knocking, I grab the handle and turn it, expecting it to be locked, but it isn’t.

  I don’t know what I expected when I stepped inside, but I know it isn’t what I’m seeing. I can’t believe my eyes. I… Oh, my god. Oh, my—

  “What the fuck! You—” Devin’s pants are down, butt exposed. He pulls the needle out of his gluteus; blood gushes out until he grabs a cotton ball off the table and presses down over the injection site. I see a bottle with a light oily liquid. Steroids? And then our eyes lock, his wide and wild, full of fury and I swear, if he had a gun, he’d probably shoot me.

  “I-I left my purse…” I rush toward the couch, snatch it, but Devin’s fast and he grabs my hair, wraps it around his fist, and drags me up.

  “You tell anyone about this and you’ll be sorry. Keep your fucking mouth shut, bitch. You get me?”

  I nod.

  “Yeah? I can’t hear you,” he taunts.

  “Yes! Let me go, Devin. I don’t give a fuck what you do! Just let me go and leave me the hell alone. For good.”

  He releases me and shoves me toward the door. His devious smile doesn’t go unnoticed when I glance over my shoulder at him as I exit the house.

  Weeks go by and Devin continues to threaten me, making sure to mention how his governor daddy and lawyer uncle have him covered. I’m not sure if his threats were over the pregnancy or the drugs, but he finally stops his threats once I inform him it was a false alarm.

  The next weekend, I celebrate, hard, with my best friends. They assume I’m celebrating my singlehood, which I guess I am, but I never told anyone, other than Devin about the false alarm.

  I never step foot in the frat house again. My brother doesn’t say anything, but I know he’s happy about the break up. He later warns me that he and his fraternity swore an oath. No brother is allowed to date a sister of any of their fraternity brothers. That oath is ridiculous. Thank god we go to different colleges. My dating life would be ruined because Kolby thinks he needs to protect me. From the brotherhood.

  NOT LONG AFTER our break-up, there’s buzz about Devin getting busted for using steroids and the coach kicking him off the team. Guess good ol’ Devin couldn’t hack it because he was kicked out of the fraternity and then he transferred to a different college.

  I assume whatever issues he had with me were over, until I receive a text from him.

  D: U nark me off, bitch?

  K: Nope.

  D: Who then? That pussy brother of yours?

  K: Nope.

  D: Bitch, I swear I’ll get revenge. If not you, then whoever fuckin’ ratted me out.

  I have my number changed the next day.

  THE FOLLOWING YEAR, all is good in my world. Douchebag is out of my life and tonight, me and my bitches, Tiffany, Diana, Karina, Janice, Angela, and Trena are celebrating. We’ve been friends since childhood, been on the same dance team since high school, and that hasn’t changed since we started college a year ago. We’re all sophomores this year. Hurrah! And tonight, we’re heading out to the biggest party of the year at Jaden, one of my brother’s fraternity brothers, house. His family owns this massive piece of land and there’s a small lake, where the bonfire will likely be.

  I hear voices outside my dorm room and know it’s my girls. I’m giddy and anxious to party with them. It’s the first time I’ve been to one of my brother’s friend’s parties since Devin and I broke up.

  I’ve never mentioned Devin’s threats to Kolby. What’s there to tell? Devin was all mouth and no action. His threats were nothing but meaningless words to scare me. Kolby doesn’t need the stress. He’s beginning his third year of college and his soccer team, UC Berkeley Bears, is at the top of their game.

  There’s pounding on my door.

  “Your ass better be ready! Come on, bitch! Let us in.” That’d be Diana.

  There’s more pounding and laughter. And then they all rush in after Tiffany uses the key I gave her to unlock the door.

  I sit and slip on my shoes. “Hang on, assholes.”

  And off we go, stopping at a little Mexican restaurant to eat first. Of course we’re all on our phones, all on Facebook, and all in our favorite dirty little room.

  “This… this is all your fault, Karina,” I say as I point my phone in her direction .

  Her head snaps up. “What?”

  “This page you’ve created, this dirty, sexy little room! I’m so not ever going to want ‘normal’ again.”

  Karina blushes and smiles oh so sweet, but I know better. She’s sweet on the outside, but a dirty little ho on the inside. She has auburn hair, the sweetest smile with a cute little dimple. She’s like the pretty and cute all wrapped up in a bon bon… yeah that girl smiles, and the boys are looking… and smiling… but they don’t know that girl. Don’t get me wrong, she’s sweet, but dang! She flirts with the best of them, then say what? She’ll turn on a Jimmy Choo and ignore them boys, hard. So beware!

  I scan the faces of my friends, and they’re all glued to their damn phones. I halt on Angela, red hair, green eyes, and she’s so sweet, or so everyone seems to think. But I know better. Yes, she’s sweet but she’s got this naughty girl side and I swear, she finds the hottest freaking guys on Tumblr. And when I say hot, I mean every naked inch of them. Right now, her green eyes are working and she has this nonchalant sweet little smile on her face. That sweet little smile tells me she’s just posted something fantastically dirty in the room. I turn my attention to my Facebook, and sure enough there’s a new post, so I have to check it out.

  “Holy mother of Uranus! Angela, I officially dub you the queen of all things porn.” She so posted… oh I can’t even go there. But I can’t stop looking at the size of him, and how he has his thumb in her… yeah, THERE. Wow. Not sure I could let a guy do that to me, but it’s sort of hot.

  I look up again. It’s comical to watch the faces of my friends when I know what they’re looking at. We’ve got Trena, who’s pretty tall at 5’10. She has hazel eyes, long black dreadlocks, and smooth cocoa skin, like the milky way. Her man, Xavier… oh, yeah. OMG! She calls him chocolate thunder! Come on, for real? Well, whatever Trena has… whips, locks… yeah; chocolate thunder has met his fudge Sunday. Believe me, you’d understand if you ever had to experience sleeping in the room next to theirs. You’re sleeping, in a good dream, and then BOOM! You wake from the bang, bang, bang, and swear there’s a tornado, but then you realize it’s the headboard smacking the wall furiously. And the noise isn’t an actual train; it’s the g-force that is Trena and Xavier! I never had that with… well, you know who. Uh.

  Then we have Diana. She’s a fantastic friend, also very protective of our group. She’s always been that way and we all love her for it. But none of us want to get on her bad side. She has a temper hotter than St. Helen’s… or whatever that volcano is called. And if you’re her boyfriend, better not fuck her over ’cause she’ll
shove those balls you’ll never see again up your ass. True story! Okay, so maybe I’m exaggerating a little, but she is that awesome. And she’s been steadily dating Dean. Nothing comes between them, EVER!

  Yeah, they’re royally sickening to watch… okay! So we’re all jealous. Not only does she have the best hair ever, she’s also got the perfect boyfriend. They look beautiful together. His features… tall, lean with just the right amount of muscle… rugged blond hair….

  I miss having a boyfriend. I miss the old Devin, but not the monster he became. I’m totally over him, over the trauma, and ready to move forward, I think.

  Ah, then we have Tiffany. She has long legs, curly black hair that flows down to her waist, a curvy figure and she’s my BFF. She’s been sucking down Martinis since we arrived and now she’s nudging me.

  “Kimber… Since you won’t hook me up with Kolby, you’ve totally got to go to this party with me and help me hook up with Vincenzo! Oh. My. God. He looks at me and my panties are in a bunch… oh, wait. I don’t wear panties!” She’s laughing now and I can’t help it, I laugh too. I think she’s already tipsy.

  “Deal,” I tell her and then continue scanning the faces of my friends. I pause on Janice, the seemingly shy girl with blonde hair and green eyes, who is typing away. Yeah, she may look shy, but I know she’s not. I’ve read her novel, Promises, Promises, which was deliciously steamy, so I so know that girl is NOT shy.

  Okay, so we all like naked men, hot pics, and naughty books!

  The server comes and just like a bunch of kids, we all scramble to exit out of the app.

  We eat, we have dessert, and then we’re off to party.

  Yay!

  WE’VE BEEN AT party central for several hours. I hate to say that I’m sorely disappointed. Yes, I’ve been hit on, a lot, but then said guy asks my name and it’s like I’m a curse because they all suddenly have go meet a friend, or they’ll be right back, or better yet, a few threw their hands up and said, “Oh, no way, man. I aint getting my ass kicked.” So here I am—a walking plague, apparently—the only one in my group without a warm body to cozy up to.