Yo, I updated! I feel like I should throw a party. Anyways. Hope ya like it.

The ride to Allen's felt longer than usual, mostly due to the fact that a particularly randy Mendoza seemed to find teasing me amusing. After 45 minutes of breathlessly removing his hands from my thigh and up the back of my shirt, I was positively vibrating with sexual frustration. Damn kid really knew what he was doing...

I exploded out of the car the minute we pulled up to Allen's big, rickety house.

"Bathroom!" I shouted back at Meredith's questioning face, clambering up the steps and through the front door. I nearly mowed down one of Allen's roommates as I made a beeline for the front hall bathroom. "Oh hey, sorry Don; I just- uh, bathroom, ya know?" I apologized and blushed, knowing from his immediate smirk he deduced the real reason for my hurry. I absolutely never get flustered, like ever. Except for when I'm, ahem, turned on. Don chuckled and took a swig of the beer in his hand.

"Yeah. Go take care a'that sweetheart. On second thought, need some help?"

"Oh, bite me. Pervert..." I shoved him. He winked and leered.

"Later honey, I promise." I could hear him laughing even after I slammed the bathroom door shut. Jesus, what was wrong with me? I dared to glance at myself in the mirror: a scarlet flush pooled at my neck and was now creeping up to my face thanks to Don and his penchant for humiliating innocent girls. My chest was heaving, less from the rush into the house than the thrilling desire that pulsed through my veins. Mendoza was under my skin, and all I wanted to do was be under him.

My hand immediately smacked to my forehead in embarrassment. Like, sure Luis was attractive, and hey, I do have needs, ya know? But the degree to which I was currently responding physically... it bugged me out that I could be reacting this way to him when Charlie was the one I really wanted. It was like a firebrand to the heart thinking of him, and how he looked at Lisa. I needed to forget. Drown the ache. In my experience, nothing drowned hurt better than pleasure.

Well, guess that settles it huh? I thought to myself, immediately calmer at my decision. Now to choose the victim…

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I'd spent longer in the bathroom than I'd thought. By the time I got out, my crowd was on vodka shot number three; Allen's roommates were big on getting started early.

"Shit, Don, it's barely 8:30." I laughed as he presented me with a shot glass filled to the brim with clear liquid.

"That's right, sugar. Throw that back, you're falling behind!" Don grinned. Behind him, the third roommate Luke was pouring another round for everyone else. The vodka burned down my throat, and I was suddenly very thankful for Allen and his roomies' propensity for never letting guests into their home without putting a drink in their hand. I tossed back another two before setting my glass resolutely upside down on the counter.

"I'll start back in when ours gets here, thanks Luke." He took my empty and poured himself a shot, raising the glass to me as he winked.

"Na zdravi, krásný." He gulped it expertly and I rolled my eyes, even as his use of Czech made my lady parts tingle.

"English, dude! How do I know you didn't just call me an evil troll, huh?" I complained. He laughed and leaned on the bar.

"Well, you can't really… I could give you some private lessons, help you get the basics. Then you'd know." The twinkle in his eye tipped me off to his harmless teasing, but that accent of his still got me worked up and breathless.
"Yeah right. Perv…" was all I was able to say without squeaking. Luke laughed again before grabbing the bottle of vodka and tweaking my nose.

"Jste rozkošný když se červenám." The low timbre of his voice set me tingling.

"Ugh, again with the hidden insults!" He ducked away as I made to sock him in the shoulder; I unabashedly checked him out as he headed for the living room. Lukas was a star striker for the UMN soccer team, and had the spectacular ass to show for it. Add in the sexy foreign guy x-factor and he was most definitely a candidate for my salacious mission.

"You gonna fuck him or what or what?" Devin appeared at my elbow as tilted my head to better appreciate Luke's ass. I smirked and helped her shrug on her sweater so she could accompany Allen to the liquor store.

"I'm considering it." I allowed, walking her to the door. Devin grinned as Allen waltzed up.

"Ready babe? Let's hurry, I need a drink." The tall blond donned a grimace and rubbed his temples like he had a headache. "My chem prof piled on the homework this weekend, and coach made me finish it all today. Punishment for skipping training yesterday morning." Allen's hair stuck straight up as he scrubbed his hand through it and over his face. He held the door open for Devin and gave me a critical once over, eyes landing somewhere over my left shoulder. "That kid you brought is staring you down, Montero." And then they were gone.

Allen was way too observant. My eyes were rolling even as my face colored, not expecting to get called out this many times so early in the night. I snorted when I turned to find Mendoza regarding me intently from the kitchen. The smirk that spread over his lips at my blush made my heart thrum just a little bit… jeez, I'm only human!

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The party was in full swing by ten thirty; other college kids hd begun to show up, and the crowd was just starting to overflow into the backyard. Portman and Luke had set up the bonfire soon after we'd arrived, so by the time people started to gravitate toward it, the flames were leaping high and the scent of the burning wood permeated the house through the open back door. After a couple hours of gradual inebriation, I was much less able to rebuff Mendoza's advances, but luckily he was almost immediately distracted by the co-eds that periodically flooded the party.

"I swear to God, Luis is gonna get killed tonight, man." Portman commented as he passed me to reach the cooler. I laughed, observing Mendoza attempting to put the moves on a tall red head that had just arrived.

"Hey, she looks interested enough." I allowed, noticing the girl fluttering her eyelashes as Mendoza tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. Portman chuckled into his newly opened beer and leaned back on his elbows against the counter where I perched.

"Sure," he said, before using the Michelob bottle to gesture at a stacked looking guy just beyond the girl. "But the guy she came here with? Not so much." I laughed out loud. Mendoza closed up shop pretty quick at a glare from the big guy.

"Oh shit, that's great," I giggled. The crowd in the kitchen had lessened, but tipsy kids still staggered around; one jostled Portman closer and he looked up apologetically as he moved between my legs to get out of the way.

"So, what about you?" I asked, privately enjoying the up-close view of his chiseled cheek bones. "Anyone caught your eye? Liiiiike, Meredith maybe?" My voice lilted up as I tried to imply a little something-something. In my peripheral I noticed his corded tricep twitch. He looked at me, an amused glint in his dark eyes, so close I could hear him inhale and exhale a deep, contemplative breath. I felt like a deer caught in headlights;

"Yeah," He said, took a quick draught of his beer, and turned to settle beside me once more, surveying the unfolding party. "Maybe."

Ummm… did Portman and I just have a moment?

The party noise rushed back into my ears, and I realized it had faded while I was focused on Portman. I fumbled behind me for the tumbler of water I'd switched to after I reached my first threshold. I sipped and tried to get a handle on what was happening.

"Water already?" Portman's question startled me.

"Uh, yeah. I've got a pretty solid system for beating blackout drinking; if I feel like I'm starting to get sloppy, I grab a water break. Eventually I'm able to circle back newly sober. Boot and rally minus the grossness!"

"Wow. Finely tuned athlete to the core." He laughed, and the deep sound reverberated down my spine. The left over alcohol in my system sped up my pulse as his arm made contact with my knee. Why am I still sitting like a loon on this counter? For fucks sake…

"I guess I am," I let myself smile a little in his direction. He turned to face the counter, setting his elbows forward facing on the surface, and met my eye line; shit, his eyes. They were something darker than puppy dog brown, and strummed a chord of arousal within me.

"Hey," he began. "You seen the fire yet?" The abrupt change in topic threw me (okay, so maybe it was the full, quirked lips that were throwing me, so fucking what) but I cleared my throat and looked through the backyard window behind me.

"Nah, haven't been out there yet—" Portman's arms around my waist cut off my words, and I squealed most unbecomingly.

"I helped build the fucking thing. C'mon, I'll take ya." Suddenly I was mobile, heading out into the backyard, courtesy of Portman Airlines.

"Seriously?! Put me down, Portman!"

"Geez, you gotta be such a killjoy, Montero?"

"Fuck you!"

I adjusted my shorts and crop top, having been sort of promptly set down on the un-even lawn.

"While I recognize and appreciate your skill at fire-making, there is absolutely no need to man handle me, you fuck." The flickering yellow porch light threw shadows over his sculpted features. Portman was looking at me with the most benign, unobtrusive look on his face I've ever seen.

"Hmmm. Acknowledged, Amber." He nodded, a caricature of diplomacy. Little shit must have learned something at those Goodwill Games after all…

Before I could protest, he took my hand in his and pulled me towards the bonfire. A grunt or two escaped me, but on the whole I was most interested in what he'd try next. I mean, he had a steel grip on my right hand in the presence of like fifteen college fuckers. Like, what the fuck was happening? The searing warmth of the fire hit as we got closer, and Portman parked us between two groups with expert precision.

"Wow. Okay, yeah, really nice fire. Very fire-y," I commented, resisting the urge to turn and stick my ass towards the toasty flames. It really was a nice bonfire; the boys had piled wooden pallets on top of each other, latticed like a funeral pyre. The tips of the flames leapt ridiculously high, and the safety ring around the pit was a good eight feet from the fire.

"Don't bullshit me, Montero," Portman grumbled. A second later his arm was draped around my shoulders. I stiffened out of reflex. His bicep felt warmer than the fire when it touched my skin. Not bad in any way… actually it felt— yeah, it felt good. Really, really good.

I guess that's why I found myself deeply focused on making out with him roughly 6 minutes later. Also he tasted like candy canes.

Na zdravi, krásný: Cheers, beautiful

Jste rozkošný když se červenám: You're adorable when you blush

(I used google translate, so apologies for any mistakes!)