Free First Kiss by Dawn Michelle Page B

gone, leaving nothing behind except a sense of familiarity. Like seeing an old friend she couldn't remember the name of.
    Beth frowned and grabbed her purse. She rooted through it until she found her phone. Her messages were empty, nothing new since yesterday evening. No voice mails. No calls. No clues. She sighed and started to set it down when she noticed the clock on it. It was almost four in the afternoon!
    Beth dropped the phone and stumbled back. She caught her balance as she bumped into Carla's desk. She turned, surprised by how close it seemed. Her reflection in Carla's mirror caught her attention and drew her gaze. Her lips parted in a gasp that her chest wouldn't take.
    She turned to face the mirror fully and raised her hand to her face. Was that really her? The lipstick and eye shadow and wild hair? She'd slept in it, giving a fluffy eighties look, but she could tell she'd spent some time on it. She still looked better than she thought was possible, even after sleeping in her hair and makeup.
    "What did I do last night?" she wondered. She bit her lip to stifle a giggle. "Or who?"
    No, it wasn't sex. She was pretty sure she hadn't done that. She'd only done that once, sort of, and that left her sore for days. It hadn't been invited or welcomed though. He'd kept doing it though. Doing her, rutting like the animal he was. Over and over.
    Beth shook her head. That was a lifetime ago. A different girl. A southern belle wannabe. A stupid kid. She was older and wiser now. Maybe not more experienced, but wiser. Except how wise could she be if she couldn't remember last night? Or much of anything, really.
    She turned away from the mirror and grabbed her running pants out of her dirty clothes basket. She pulled them on over the strange panties and  grabbed her shower bag. She needed to get cleaned up first, then she'd worry about the rest.
    Beth paused at the door and turned to look at herself in the mirror again. It wasn't just the makeup, she really was thinner. Sure, she had that morning after / walk of shame look, but she looked good. Pretty. No, not pretty, sexy. Hot. She caught herself smiling and turned away. That wasn't her. This. This wasn't her.
    Beth opened the door and stepped out. The conversation in the room died instantly between Carla and Mandy. They both rose to their feet but Carla did one better and charged at Beth. She slammed into her and knocked the wind from her as she stumbled back a couple of steps.
    Beth started to struggled until she figured out that Carla was hugging her. She reached around her roommate and hugged her back. It was an awkward hug. "Um, Carla, what's going on?"
    Carla let go and backed up. She stared at her and shook her head. "Holy shit, girl! You are hot! What did you do last night?"
    Beth's eyes widened. Carla didn't know? "Um, it's kind of blurry."
    "Did Colin like it?"
    "Colin?" Shit! What had happened with Colin? They'd gone out. A weird first date, she'd taken him for his birthday to a strip club downtown. Her eyes narrowed as she tried to pick out the details. There was a bouncer, a big black guy that was pretty cool wearing a knit cap because it was so cold out. She'd worn— She glanced down at her shirt. She hadn't worn this.
    "Beth? Is something wrong? Did he do something? Is that why some strange woman drove you home?"
    Beth gasped as a fleeting image of a dark haired beauty wearing something white flashed in her mind. It was gone before she could focus on it "Strange woman?"
    "Blurry isn't right, is it?" Mandy asked as she stuck her head around the corner of the bedroom door. "Did you get drugged? What's the last thing you remember?"
    Beth bit her lip and glanced at her phone on the desk. She picked it up and glanced at it. This time she focused on the date, not the time. It was January twenty fourth, not the seventeenth. She hadn't gone out with Colin last night— except Carla and Mandy thought she had.
    "Oh fuck," she whispered. Beth staggered back and sat down on