While My Boyfriend Watches by Lexi Arabella Page A

didn’t want to have sex, too. But that didn’t change
the fact that I was still a virgin and was going to stay that way
for the foreseeable future.
    At first, I wouldn’t even fool around with
Brandon, but then he got drunk at a party and locked himself in the
bathroom with Anna Blakely for ten minutes. He apologized and swore
all they’d done was make out, but I figured I had to do more than
kissing to keep him from cheating again.
    My best friend Kate got pregnant even though
she always used a condom with her boyfriend. Her parents were
beyond pissed when they found out, and even threatened to kick her
out. That scared me because Kate’s parents were known for being
pretty laidback. If that’s how they had reacted, I didn’t even want
to think about what my super strict parents would do if I
got pregnant.
    Thanks to what happened to Kate, there was no
way I could feel safe relying on condoms. And even though I was
eighteen years old, I couldn’t secretly go to the doctor to get on
the pill and risk my parents finding out. They still snooped
through my things, so as long as I lived at home, I would remain a
virgin.
    And honestly, the way Brandon begged for sex
was a turnoff. His persistent, whiny pleading wasn’t ever going to
convince me to give in. Even though it was my choice to stay a
virgin, sometimes I wished Brandon would take charge and challenge
that choice like a man. Of course, I never told him that. Having to
ask for him to be forceful would take away the appeal. Besides, it
was just a silly fantasy, not anything I’d really want.
    Just as I opened my mouth to tell Brandon to
shut up and kiss me, a noise from downstairs grabbed my attention.
“Fuck, the front door just opened!”
    Both Brandon’s mom and his stepdad should
have been at work right then, so I wasn’t sure which one of them
had just come home early. No matter who it was, it was bad news for
me and Brandon. He was allowed to have people over when he was home
alone, but only if he asked his parents’ permission first, and only
if it was for school work, and he could only have people
downstairs. Being naked in Brandon’s bed definitely didn’t
fit those strict conditions.
    Brandon bolted from the bed, panic on his
face as he moved like lightening. He sat at his desk, his fingers
at the keyboard so it would look like he was working. “Hurry up and
get dressed, Emily!”
    “I can’t go faster than I already am,
Brandon!” I snapped, hurriedly fastening my bra as my heart raced.
Grabbing my dress, I yanked it over my head and wiggled into
it.
    I reached into my backpack on the floor,
pulling out a notebook and opening it to a random page.
“Historically, political propaganda has been used throughout the
world to influence people to believe in one position or another,” I
said, pretending to read from the page as footsteps neared the
bedroom.
    A few seconds later, a deep, masculine voice
sounded from the doorway. “What are you two doing in here?”
    A shiver of nervousness ran through me as I
looked over at the man whose muscular frame had just entered the
room. It was easy to tell that Mr. North wasn’t Brandon’s real dad
just by looking at them. Brandon had taken his new dad’s last name
when Mr. North married his mom, but they couldn’t be more
different. Brandon was about my height, with sandy blond hair and
an average build. In other words, he was pretty much the physical
opposite of his stepdad.
    Mr. North was tall and imposing, with a
muscular body and dark hair. The only thing they had in common were
blue eyes, but even those seemed different. Mr. North’s were stormy
and penetrating as his hard gaze swept over me.
    Brandon swiveled around in his chair to face
him. “Oh, hi,” Brandon said, his voice too high. “You’re home. I
didn’t even hear you come in.”
    “Hi, Mr. North.” I tried to sound casual, but
I could feel my cheeks heating. Hopefully, Mr. North wouldn’t
notice that they were turning pink.
    He