Ricochet (ADDICTED SERIES, Band 2) - Softcover

Ritchie, Krista; Ritchie, Becca

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0593549481 ISBN 13: 9780593549483

Verlag: Penguin Publishing Group, 2022

Inhaltsangabe

The second book in the TikTok sensation Addicted series, now in a print edition with special bonus material!
 
As a sex addict, Lily Calloway must do the impossible: stay celibate for ninety days. Fall in love with Lily and Lo in this edgy new adult romance set in a world of lust, fame, swoonworthy men, and friendships that run deeper than blood in this special edition with bonus materials—in print only!

Cravings and fantasies become her new routine, but while Loren Hale recovers from his alcohol addiction, Lily wonders if he'll realize what a monster she really is. After all, her sexual compulsions begin to rule her life the longer she stays faithful to him.

Progress. That's what Lily's striving for. But by trying to become closer to her family--people who aren't aware of her addiction--she creates larger obstacles. When she spends time with her youngest sister, she learns more about her than she ever imagined and senses an unsettling connection between Daisy and Ryke Meadows.

With Lily and Lo's dysfunctional relationship teetering and unbalanced, they will need to find a way to reconnect from miles apart. But the inability to touch proves to be one of the hardest tests on their road to recovery. Some love brushes the surface. Some love is deeper than skin.

Über diesen Titel

Über die Autorin bzw. den Autor

Krista and Becca Ritchie are New York Times and USA Today bestselling authors and identical twins—one a science nerd, the other a comic book geek—but with their shared passion for writing, they combined their mental powers as kids and have never stopped telling stories. They love superheroes, flawed characters, and soul mate love.

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One

I fucked up.

That's the only thought I have when I digest my surroundings. A live DJ blasts music from wall-engulfed amps while people guzzle colored drinks. My youngest sister, Daisy, sips beer from a Solo cup, scouting her model friends. I fear that she'll pull a guy over and try to hook us up-to take my mind off Loren Hale. Five hours ago, I believed a house party would be a safe choice.

Not true.

So. Not true.

I should be chastely tucked beneath my comforter, sleeping through the New Year's riffraff at my place with Rose. Only days ago, Lo-my best friend, my boyfriend, literally a guy who encompasses my entire life-left for rehab. Rose and I spent a full Monday packing my belongings. And I sorted through pictures, knickknacks and valuables, bursting into tears in random spurts. Besides clothes and toiletries, what's mine was Lo's. I felt like I was going through a divorce.

I still do.

Only an hour in, Rose called movers and paid them to finish packing my old apartment and unpacking at our new house. She bought a four-bedroom villa near Princeton with five acres of sprawling, lush land and a white wraparound porch, black shutters and purple hydrangeas. It reminds me of the Southern homes in Savannah or the Ya-Ya Sisterhood. When I told her this, she stood with her hands on her hips, appraising the building with those powerful yellow eyes. Then she broke into a smile and said, "I suppose so."

The isolation from male bodies doesn't stop my flyaway mind from traveling to bad places. Mostly, I worry about Lo. I toss and turn at night only to have to swallow large doses of sleeping pills to rest. I miss him. And before he left-I never imagined a world without Lo here. My throat closed up at the idea, my heart dropped and my head spun. Now that the moment has arrived, I realize that he took a piece of me with him. When I told this to Rose, she patted my shoulder and said I was being irrational. That's easy for her to say. She's intelligent, confident and independent. Everything I'm not.

And I don't think . . . I don't think many people can really understand what it's like to be so invested in someone-to share every single moment and then to have them ripped from you. We have an unhealthy, co-dependent relationship.

I know this.

And I'm trying to change, to grow beyond him, but why does that have to be a stipulation?

I want to grow with him.

I want to be with him.

I want to love Lo without people telling me that our love is too much.

One day, I hope we'll get there. Hope, that's all I have to go on right now. It's my driving force. It's literally what keeps me standing.

The first few days in withdrawal tortured me, but it helped that I hid in my room. I refused to see the real world until I could push past the most fervent urges. So far, I've contained my sexual needs by drowning in self-love. I've thrown out half of my porn to try to appease Rose and to convince myself that I'm on the path to recovery like Lo. But I'm not so sure that's the case. Not when my stomach clenches at the thought of sex. But mostly, I want to have sex with him.

And I worry about that fifty percent chance where I'll drag another guy into a bathroom, where I'll pretend he's Lo for a single moment to satisfy my hunger. I shouldn't be here. At a house party. Distance from wild things has helped so far. This-this isn't even close to my wildest moments, but it's enough to push me someplace bad.

When Daisy called and invited me to a "house party," I imagined a few people mixing strong drinks and huddled around a television to watch music performances. Not this. Not an Upper East Side apartment crammed with models . . . male models. I can barely scoot an inch without a body part invading my personal space. I don't even look to see what kind of ligament brushes my skin.

I should have told Daisy no. I have many fears since Lo left, but my greatest one is failing him. I want to wait for Lo, and if I'm not strong enough to squash these compulsions before he returns from rehab, then our relationship will really be over. No more Lily and Lo. No more us. He'll be healthy, and I'll be stuck on a destructive turntable alone.

So I have to try. Even if something in my brain says go. I keep reminding myself of what waits for me if I don't wait for him. Emptiness. Loneliness.

I will lose my best friend.

As per Rose's knowledgeable instruction (she's been reading up on sex addiction-and so has Connor, but that's another story), I should be looking for a suitable therapist before I attend any social events that'll tempt me. Daisy has no idea about my addiction-that it surrounds the allure of hot guys and the high of a lay. Rose is the only person in my family who's aware of my problem, and it'll stay that way if I can help it.

Still, I didn't tell Daisy no. Even as I was trying to say it, she used the "I never see you" mantra to guilt me into submission. She topped it off by saying that I was oblivious to the fact that she broke up with Josh during Thanksgiving. (First mistake: asking "How's Josh?" on the phone this morning. And I thought I was being so sly remembering his name and all.) That's how "uninvolved" I am in her life. So not only was I processing her singlestatus, I was feeling a torrential downpour of sisterly remorse. I had to say yes to make it up to her. This is Lily 2.0-the girl who is actually trying to be a part of her family's world.

That means spending quality time with Daisy. And worrying about her jumping back in the dating pool. Especially if these older models are flinging in their hooks to catch her.

So here I am. Obviously not prepared for this type of party. Although, I did ditch my sweats for black pants and a silky blue blouse.

"I'm so glad we're here together," Daisy exclaims for the third time. "I never see you." Her arm flings around my shoulder, pulling me into a tipsy hug. I almost eat her golden-brown, nearly blonde, hair. The feathery, straight strands flow past her chest.

We separate and I pinch one of her locks off my glossy lips.

"Sorry," she says, trying to pull back her hair, but her hands are full: beer in one and a cigarette idly burning between two fingers in the other. "My hair is too fucking long." She sighs in frustration, still combatting the strands. She ends up using her shoulder and neck to try to push her hair off her chest, looking like a spaz in the process.

I've noticed that Daisy curses more when she's irritated. Which is fine. But I'm sure our mother would need to spend an extra three hours meditating to forget about Daisy's foul mouth.

And that's precisely why I don't care if she swears a lot or not at all. Do what she wants to do, I say. Daisy needs to be Daisy for a change, and I'm actually excited to see her away from our mother's neurotic, maternal claws.

She settles down and sets her elbow on my shoulder for support. I am short enough to be her armrest. "Lil," Daisy says, "I know Lo isn't here, but I promise that I'm going to take your mind off of him tonight. No rehab talk. No mention of comics or anything that'll remind you of him. Nada, okay? It's just me and you and a bunch of friends."

"You mean a bunch of attractive people." I use the correct terminology. I am surrounded by pretty people who could sprint along a beach, Baywatch-style, and cause a wave of boners. Or they could walk down a runway and you'd probably be staring at their face more than their clothes.

At least I would.

Does that make me the ugliest person here? I'm probably the only un-model-ish girl. I nod. Okay. I'm cool with that. Surrounded by tens and I'm probably a six. I'll take it.

She blows out smoke from her lips and smiles. "They're all not that good-looking. Mark looks like a gerbil in bad lighting. His eyes...

Details zur Ausgabe

• Verlag: Penguin Publishing Group
• Erscheinungsdatum: 2022
• Sprache: Englisch
• ISBN 10: 0593549481
• ISBN 13: 9780593549483
• Einband: Taschenbuch
• Anzahl der Seiten: 304
• Kontakt zum Hersteller: Penguin Random House Ireland; https://eu-contact.penguin.ie; ; Morrison Chambers, 32 Nassau Street; Dublin; D02 YH68; Irland