Sondrae Bennett - Worth Fighting For

Misty took one last look at herself in the mirror, pushing a lock of hair behind her ear before flipping up the cars visor. With a deep breath to steady her nerves, she opened the car door and stepped out.

Nothing about the small house seemed intimidating, but the closer Misty got to the front door, the tighter her chest felt. She only made it four feet before doubt got the best of her, and she turned around, striding back to the car. She gripped the door handle, preparing to flee as if the hounds of hell were on her tail, but she paused, closing her eyes to try and calm her mind.

After the past weekend, this was the last place she wanted to be.

No, that wasnt true. Shed always liked coming to Codys house. The confession she was about to make terrified her, though. But like it or not, it needed to happen. She needed to know once and for all if there was a possibility, however small, that Cody might return her feelings someday, or if all this time shed been chasing a pipe dream.

If once she told Cody everything, he couldnt return her feelingsor looked at her with the same horror shed seen in her nightmare last nightwell, shed just have to accept reality. At least then she could spend her energy getting over him instead of trying to seduce the man.

Wellmaybe she wouldnt tell him everything. If he didnt remember last weekend, she wasnt going to remind him. That memory would go with her to the grave.

What had she been thinking? Even if she had managed to seduce him, there was no guarantee anything would come of it. Shed come close to losing one of her longest friendships because of some stupid plan. But shed been frustrated and desperate. Desperate because nothing shed tried budged her from the friend category shed fallen under since the first day of middle school. So when Cody had invited her to come over for pizza and a movie, bringing a bottle of tequila with hopes that he would take advantage of heror that she could take advantage of himhad seemed like a brilliant idea.

Not one of her finer moments. Even if it had almost worked. Would have worked. Except hed imbibed a bit too much alcohol and passed out when they were half naked and rolling around on the bed.

Of course, hed forgotten everything the next morning. Although, that might have been a blessing.

She blamed her fox for the whole fiasco. If it hadnt been for the sneaky fox inside, she never would have resorted to tricks. That was her story and she was sticking to it. Clearly, it was all the foxs fault.

Wiping her sweaty hands on her jeans, Misty squared her shoulders. Without taking any more time to second-guess her decision, she strode to the front door of Codys house. Best to get this over with. Either shed spend the rest of the day in Codys arms, or shed spend it in a carton of ice cream. But the sooner she did this, the sooner she could get on with whichever option awaited. Stalling would just make her more nervous and agitated.

She raised her fist to knock on his door, but froze with her hand inches from the wood. A strange scent lingered on his porch, leading straight inside.

She leaned forward and took a deep breath. The faint, but unmistakable, scent of a vixen fox wafted from behind the closed door. The knowledge hit like a blow to the heart, causing her to stumble backward.

Needing to be certain, Misty pressed her nose against the pane and took another breath, picking up traces of both Cody and a woman inside. She glanced at her left wrist for the time. Damn. No watch. How was she supposed to remember something so mundane when shed prepared to do something so important?

The scent of the strange fox didnt necessarily mean Cody was sleeping with whoever was inside...but it couldnt be later than nine in the morning. What else would a woman be doing in Codys house at that time of day?

Dont jump to conclusions, she chanted to herself as her breath hitched. Even if he were sleeping with someone, it wasnt as if he owed Misty anything. After all, they werent a couple yet. She knew thered been other women in his past, just as there had been other men in hers. But shed come here ready to lay everything on the line. Shed been ready to confess her love for Cody. Whether he knew her intentions or not, finding him in the arms of another woman hurt worse than she could have imagined.

There she went jumping to conclusions again. Misty backed away from the door and down the porch steps. A strange fox could be in his apartment at nine in the morning for a lot of different reasons. It could be a cousin she had never met, or a long lost sister.

Or he could have found his mate.

The last thought halted Misty in her tracks. Her breath shuttered out. This guesswork solved nothing. All it did was make her feel worse. She needed to find out who that woman was and why she was with Cody.

Determined to learn the truth, Misty snuck around the side of the house to peer in the window. From her vantage point, she saw the living room and the hallway leading to the kitchen. Nothing moved.

As she was about to turn away, ready to seek a different view, the bedroom door off the hallway opened. A woman emerged dressed in Codys shirtthe one hed gotten on his trip to California last yearand a pair of his boxers.

Misty wasnt sure how long she stopped and stared, her mouth hanging open. The woman wasnt simply beautiful. With her long white-blond hair and petite figure, she was stunning. There was somethingexotic about the womans looks, yet at the same time, she looked like the girl next door. Never before had Misty seen a fox with such pale coloring.

Misty didnt have self-esteem issues. She knew she was attractive, and she stayed fit. But she didnt hold a candle to this woman. And that knowledge felt like a dagger piercing her chest. Not because the woman was prettier, but because the woman was prettier and wearing Codys clothes.

As the woman turned toward the kitchen, Misty quickly rounded the house, hiding in the bushes for cover to stare through the sliding glass doors.

Cody stood at the stove wearing a pair of jeans, unbuttoned at the top. Even from a distance, she saw the line of hair running down his stomach, disappearing behind the waist of his jeans. Her core clenched in desire at the sight. She couldnt help but stare, mesmerized at the trail, as the smell of cheesy eggs and toast wafted toward her.

The scene looked like something out of her dreams. Except in her dream world, she was the woman walking out of his room wearing his shirt.

Gathering her courage, Misty looked up at Codys face. Attraction shone from his eyes.

Despair settled heavily upon her shoulders. The look told her everything she needed to know.

Unable to watch any more of their intimate interaction, Misty picked up the tattered pieces of her heart and crept back to her car. Later, shed worry about what all this meant. If she dwelled on it now, shed never be able to stop the tears.

The cellphone trill cut over the music pouring from the juke box in the corner of The Watering Hole. Misty set down her beer. Being the only pub in Vulpes Creek and the cool place to hang out in town on a Friday night, the place was packed. But she didnt need to look through the crowd to know whose cell rang. That jazzy piano riff belonged to only one man in town.

Sure enough, out of the corner of her eye she watched Cody, Premier of the Vulpes fox skulk, push his way out of the crowded bar. Misty sighed into her beer and tilted her head to the side as he swept past her booth. No denying the man had a great ass.

Still crushing on Cody, huh? her friend Jen asked, following her gaze to their skulks Premier.