Beneath The Skin (A College Obsession Romance) Read Online Free PDF

about passing through the tunnel that has me thinking about that guy named Brant again. Instantly, the cloud of bitterness around me parts, disintegrating to let in the sunlight. That sunlight happens to be his cocky face, and the further the clouds fade, the more of him I see: his smooth toned pecs, his rippling abs, his taut thighs and shapely calves.
    His big dick.
    I find myself smiling suddenly, all the anger from my art class gone in an instant. The girl in the green dress is very much alive; I have to believe that. The guy named Brant, though I know him for precisely what he is, is also the only guy who’s dared to breach my bubble in a very long time. Everyone else is too intimidated. Everyone else prefers to stare at me from a distance and whisper to their friends. I can only imagine what they say. “She’s a witch,” I’m sure I’ve heard. “She sacrificed her own sister for some Satanic blood ritual!” I wouldn’t doubt they’ve said that, too. “She keeps one of her ex-boyfriends in a basement and cuts off a tiny piece of him every morning to put in her breakfast cereal!”
    Maybe I made that last one up.
    The point is, I have no idea who the hell that goofball womanizer-wannabe Brant is or where he came from, but I’m determined to test him at every opportunity, no matter how adorable or sexy or hot I think he is—and no matter how strong he comes on to me.
    He wants to have fun? He’s going to learn fast that I get my fun first.
    When I emerge from the other side of the tunnel, I sit down on the grassy knoll outside the psychology building and pull out my phone. After tapping her face on the screen, I bring it to my ear.
    “Bitch, please,” is the first thing Minnie says. “Again?”
    I sigh. “They were talking shit about Pussy and just weren’t getting it. I’m so ready to get the hell out of this school.”
    “You’ve walked out of that class, like, ten times already.”
    “We haven’t even had ten classes yet. School year’s just begun.”
    “Nell. How many times do I have to say it? Don’t let the world ruin your art. Let your art ruin the world .”
    I sigh and kick something in the grass. If it weren’t for this one person I have in my ear right now, I’d be pretty convinced that there wasn’t a person left on this planet who wasn’t totally put-off or offended by my very existence. People don’t like me. I don’t easily make friends and I live alone. Maybe that’s why I’m so good with animals.
    Maybe Brant’s just a big, dumb animal.
    “Nell?”
    I bite a finger and rue the day I quit smoking; I could really use one right about now. “I need to leave this campus. You coming to get me?”
    “No, I have that thing with Crystal, remember? Besides, I’m stuck on I-10, sweetie. HELLO, WELCOME TO MY LANE, ASSHOLE. Sorry. I’m an hour away pushing through Houston traffic. Listen, I’m all about you getting out of that school, but I want you to be carrying a degree when you do. Don’t just drop out like I did.”
    I can’t stop picturing Brant sitting on that stool in front of me naked as his birthday—except I doubt he had that many muscles when he was born. It’s impressive, to be as slender as he is, yet to be so toned and cut with muscle in every curve of his sinewy body.
    He is such a lean, mean cut of meat.
    “Remember the nude model I told you about last night?”
    “Yeah. The one with the big dong. How can I forget?”
    I swallow a chuckle. “I was thinking of taking him to see Object . You know, the piece for my—”
    “Oh, yes!” she cuts me off excitedly. “For your thing this weekend!”
    “Right, my thing this weekend.”
    “Do you think you’ll get into the End Of Year Showcase? You have shown your latest work to Diane and Jacquelyn, haven’t you?”
    I grip the phone a bit tighter at her words, glancing off as a stray breeze catches my face and tosses my hair. “Diane’s always been good with me. It’s Jacquelyn whose taste is