Текст книги "Wait for You"

Автор книги: Jennifer L. Armentrout

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Текущая страница: 7 (всего у книги 21 страниц)

“I’m not.”

Wetting my lips nervously, I had no idea what to say to that so I went with a, “What time is it?”

His gaze had dropped to my mouth and my entire body tensed in a way that wasn’t unpleasant at all. “After midnight,” he responded.

My heart was pounding. “You didn’t even look at the clock.”

“I just know these kinds of things.”

“Really?”

His eyes were hooded. “Yes.”

“That’s a remarkable talent.” My hand curled into a fist beside my thigh. “What time are you leaving in the morning?”

“Are you going to miss me?”

I screwed up my face. “That’s not why I was asking. I was just curious.”

“I told my parents I’d be home by lunch.” With his other hand, he scooped a few strands off my face and that hand lingered to, in my hair. “So I probably have to leave between eight and nine.”

“That’s early.”

“It is.” His hand smoothed over my head, and my eyes drifted shut again, relaxing in spite of myself. “But the drive is easy.”

“And you’re not coming back until Sunday night?”

“Correct,” he murmured, and I felt his chest move with a deep breath. “Are you sure you’re not going to miss me?”

My lips cracked a small grin. “It’ll be like a vacation for me.”

He chuckled. “That was entirely mean.”

“Wasn’t it?”

“But I know you’re lying.”

“You do?”

“Yep.” His hand moved, and I felt the tips of his fingers graze my cheek. My eyes flew open. He was smiling down at me. Not a big smile that showed of his dimple, though. “You’re going to miss me, but you’re not going to admit it.”

I didn’t say anything, because I was trying not to think about the next four days.  And then his fingers moved, trailing the curve of my cheekbone, and I wasn’t really thinking about anything. They drifted to my jaw and one finger carved a path to my chin. Air leaked slowly out of my lungs as he finger hovered near my bottom lip.

He tilted his head to the side. “I’ll miss you.”

My lips parted. “Really?”

“Yeah.”

I closed my eyes against the sudden burn of tears. I had no idea why those three words affected me so, but they did and for a teeny, tiny moment, I admitted to myself that I didn’t want him to leave. That made the burn worse.

Several minutes passed and the only sound was the low hum of the TV.  He traced the outline of my lower lip, never quite touching it but coming close with each pass. I wondered if he would ever touch my lip and if I wanted him to.

I think I sort of did.

“You talk in your sleep,” he said.

My eyes popped open. Screw the touching of the lip. “I do?”

He nodded.

Oh God. My stomach dropped. “Are you messing with me? Because I swear to God, if you’re messing with me, I’m going to hurt you.”

“I’m not messing with you, sweetheart.”

I sat up, and both of his hands dropped away. I twisted on the couch, facing him. My pulse was pounding for a whole different reason. “What did I say?”

“Nothing really.”

“For real?”

Leaning forward, he scrubbed his hands down his face. “You were just murmuring stuff. I couldn’t really make out what you were saying.” He lifted his head. “It was kind of cute.”

My heart started to slow down as the fear loosened its grip on my chest. God only knows what I could’ve been saying when I slept. Glancing at the clock, I saw it was past three in the morning. “Holy crap, you suck at your special ability at telling the time.”

Cam shrugged as he slid forward. “I guess I should be going home.”

I opened my mouth and then closed it. What was I about to do? Ask him to stay? Like have a slumber party on my couch? Real smooth. I doubted he was interested in PG-13 couch parties. “Be careful when you drive,” I finally said.

He stood, and I stared at the spot he’d occupied. “I will.”  And then he swooped down, moving faster than I could figure out what he was up to. He placed his lips to my forehead. “Goodnight, Avery.”

I closed my eyes and my hands balled into fists. “Goodnight, Cam.” He made it to the door before I sprung up, clutching the back of the couch. “Cam?”

He stopped. “Yeah?”

Taking a deep breath, I forced the words out. “I had a really good time tonight.”

Cam stared at me a moment and then he smiled. The dimple appeared in his left cheek, and my own lips responded in kind. “I know.”

Chapter 12

Tossing my history text onto the edge of my bed, I flopped onto my back and smacked my hands over my eyes. It was only Thursday afternoon and I already felt like I was about to crawl out of my skin.

I guess I could clean something.

Yawn.

My cell chirped from the nightstand, and I rolled over, grabbing it. Half afraid to look at the screen, I did so with one eye closed. Like that somehow made things less shittier if it was the friendly, neighborhood asshole.

It wasn’t.

Sitting up, I opened the text from Cam. Two words and I was grinning like a fool. Miss me?

I responded back with a: No.

The response was almost immediate. If u were Pinocchio, ur nose wld span the state.

Crossing my legs, I leaned against my headboard. Pinocchio? Sounds like your reading level.

Ha. U wound me. Deeply.

Thought you didn’t have feelings?

I lied. I have so many feels for u.  Before I could respond, another text came through. When I lie something else grows on me.

I laughed out loud. Thanks for sharing.

Ur welcome. Just keeping u updated. 

You can keep that to yourself. Biting down on my lip, I texted back: Did you make it home?

A few minutes passed while I stared at my phone. Yeah. Fam showering me with affection. U cld learn frm them.

I think you get enough attention.

I’m needy.

Boy, don’t I know that.

There was another span of minutes. What r u doing?

Lying on my back, I crossed my ankles. Reading.

Nerd.

Jerk.

Bet u miss me.

My grin had reached embarrassingly epic proportions. Bet you have better things to do right now.

Nope. A few seconds later, who is this??? I frowned as I sat up. And then, Sorry, my sister just stole my phone.

I relaxed. Sounds like a pretty cool sister.

She is. Sometimes. She’s needier than I am. Gotta run.

I texted back: TTYL

The rest of the afternoon dragged and by nine o’clock, I briefly considering taking some NyQuil just to go to sleep. From the living room I heard my cell chirp again. Throwing my toothbrush into the sink, I made a mad four feet dash to my living room and then slowed as I approached my phone.

Go out with me.

Laughing, I forgot I had toothpaste in my mouth and ended up spewing white, foamy gunk all over my chin and shirt.  “Jesus, I’m a dork.”

I cleaned myself up and then responded to Cam. Asking me over text is no different from in person.

Thought I’d give it a try. What r u doing now? I’m beating my dad at poker.

Picturing him with his family, I smiled. Getting ready for bed.

Wish I was there.

My eyes widened. What the what?

Wait r u naked? 

No!!! I sent back. Perv.

Damn. At least I have my imagination

That’s all you will ever have.

We’ll c.

No you won’t.

I choose to ignore that. Ok. Gotta go. Dad is kicking my ass.

Night Cam.

Goodnight, Avery.

I held onto the phone for an indecent amount of time after that and then took it into my bedroom. Lately, I’d taken to the habit of turning my ringer off at night, because I never knew when I’d get the UNKNOWN CALLER messages. But tonight, I left it on.

Just in case.

#

Sunday morning didn’t feel right without Cam, his obsession with hard-boiled eggs, that damn little skillet, and all those yummy baked goods. I woke up early, as if some internal clock was expecting him to knock on my door. Of course, it didn’t happen and he hadn’t texted all day Saturday. I imagined that he was hanging out with his family and friends that were still living up there.

I tried not to miss Cam, because he was  just a friend, and while I wished Brit and Jacob were around, it wasn’t like I missed them, missed them. It wasn’t the same. Or maybe it was.

Pulling out a box of cereal, I made a yuck face. I really could go for some blueberry muffins. I ate my cereal, feeling all kinds of grumpy. I’d just finished washing the bowl when my phone rang.

I hurried into the living room and drew up short when I saw the name on my caller ID.

Mom.

Ooooh fuck.

The phone kept ringing while I debated on picking it up and tossing it out the window. I had to answer, though. Mom and Dad never called. So it had to be important. Answering the phone, I winced. “Hello.”

“Avery.”

Ah, there was the voice—the cultured, clipped, highly impersonal, and cold voice of Mrs. Morgansten. I bit back a string of curses that would burn her perfect ears. “Hi, Mom.”

There was a huge gap of silence. My brows rose as I wondered if she misdialed me or something. Finally she spoke. “How is West Virginia?”

She said ‘West Virginia’ like it was some kind of venereal disease. I rolled my eyes. Sometimes my parents forgot where they came from.  “It’s really good. You’re up early.”

“It’s Sunday. Theo has insisted on doing an early brunch with your Father at the Club. Otherwise I would not be up at this time.”

Theo? I plopped down on the couch, my mouth hanging open. For the love of little babies everywhere, Theo was Blaine’s father. My parents, they were such… fuckers.

“Avery, are you there?” Impatience filled her tone.

“Yes. I’m here.” I grabbed a pillow and shoved it in my lap. “You’re going to have brunch with Mr. Fitzgerald?”

“Yes.”

And that was all she said to that. Yes. Like it was no big deal. The Fitzgerald’s paid the Morgansten’s off and I was labeled a lying whore, but it was all good in the hood, because they all could still have brunch at the club.

“How is school?” she asked, but she sounded bored. She was probably surfing the Internet for her next cosmetic procedure. “Avery?”

Oh, for fuck’s sake. “School is perfect. West Virginia is perfect. Everything is perfect.”

“Don’t you take that tone with me, young lady. After everything you put us through—”

“Everything I put you through?” I was living in an alternate universe.

“And still putting us through,” she continued as if I hadn’t spoken a word. “You’re clear across the country, going to some little university in West Virginia instead of—”

“There’s nothing wrong with this school, Mom, or West Virginia. You were born in Ohio. Not that different—”

“That is something I try not to remember.” Her huff was pretty epic. “Which brings me to the point of this call.”

Thank God, baby Jesus, and the Holy Ghost.

“You need to come home.”

“What?” I clenched the pillow to my chest.

She sighed. “You need to stop playing around and come home, Avery. You’ve made your point quite clear by up and doing something as childish as this.”

“Childish? Mom, I hated being there—”

“And who do you have to blame for that, Avery?” Some of the coolness slipped from her voice.

My mouth dropped open. This wasn’t the first time she’d said something like that. Not by a long shot, but it was like a punch in the chest. I stared at the window, shaking my head slowly.

“We only want the best for you,” she began again, regaining the cool aloofness with a line of pure bullshit. “That’s all we’ve wanted and the best thing for you to do is to come home.”

I started to laugh, but it got stuck in my throat. Coming home was in my best interest? The woman was crazy. Just talking to her made it feel like I got the crazy on me.

“Some things have happened here,” she added, and then cleared her throat. “You should come home.”

How many times had I done what they wanted? Too many times, but this was one time I couldn’t back down. Going home was equivalent to sticking my head in a meat grinder and then asking why it hurt. I took a deep breath and opened my eyes. “No.”

“Excuse me?” My mother’s voice turned shrill.

“I said, no. I’m not coming back home.”

“Avery Samantha Morgan—”

“I’ve got to go. It was nice talking to you, Mom. Goodbye.” And then I hung up the phone before she could say anything else.  I placed the cell on the coffee table and waited.

One minute went by, two minutes, and then five minutes. Letting out a sigh of relief, I collapsed against the couch. I shook my head, literally blown away by the conversation. My mother was insane. I closed my eyes and rubbed my temples. What a way to start a Sunday morning.

A sudden knock on the door startled me.

Hopping to my feet, I hurried around the couch, wondering who it could be. It was too early for any of my friends to have come home. Hell, it wasn’t even nine yet, which meant it was probably also too early for a serial killer to pay a visit.

I stretched up and peered through the peephole. “No way.” My heart did a series of backflips as I yanked open the door. “Cam?”

He turned around, lips tipped in a crooked grin. In his hand was a grocery bag. “So, I woke up around four this morning and thought I could really eat some eggs. And eggs with you is so much better than eggs with my sister or my dad. Plus my mom made pumpkin bread. I know how you like pumpkin bread.”

Struck silent, I stepped aside and watched him carry his bag into the kitchen. The back of my throat burned, my lower lip was doing this really weird tremble thing. A knot somewhere deep inside my chest unraveled. My brain clicked off. I didn’t even shut the front door or feel the cool air washing over my bare ankles. I shot forward, crossing the distance between my door and kitchen. Cam turned just as I launched myself at him.

He caught me and stumbled back a step as he caught me with his arms around my waist. I buried my head against his chest, eyes closed and my heart thumping. “I missed you.”

Chapter 13

Hunkered down in my hoodie, I shivered as the cold wind whipped between Whitehall and Knutti, rattling the brown and yellow leaves above us. Several were tossed into the air and they spiraled down to the ground, joining the thick carpet of leaves.

Brit drew in a deep drag of her cigarette and let it out slowly. “So the next time I answer a late night booty call from Jimmie and I actually go over to his place, what will you do?”

I hobbled from side to side. “Punch you in the vagina?”

“Exactly!” She took one last draw and then put the cigarette out. “God, why are we girls so stupid?”

I fell in step beside her, keeping my arms wrapped around me. “Good question.”

“I mean, I totally know he doesn’t want to be in a relationship, that all he wants is sex, and he’s usually a little drunk and yet I still go over there. Seriously?”

“Do you want to be in a relationship?”

Her lips pursed as she pulled her knit cap down over her ears. “You know, I don’t think so.”

I frowned. “Then why are you so upset because he doesn’t want to be.”

“Because he should want to be in a relationship with me! I’m friggin’ awesome.”

Fighting a grin, I glanced at her. “You are awesome.”

Brit smiled. I’d met Jimmie a couple of times around campus with Brit. He seemed like a pretty okay guy, but I really believed she could do better than some guy that only called her when he was drunk. So I told her that.

“And that’s why we’re friends,” she responded, wiggling her arm through mine. “Man, where did fall go? It’s like winter came out of nowhere and bitch smacked us.”

“I know.” I shuddered as we stopped at the intersection. “I feel sorry for the kids who are about to go trick or treating tomorrow night. They’re going to freeze.”

“Fuck the kids,” she said, causing me to giggle. “I’m dressing as an angel—a slutty angel.”

“Of course.”

“And that means I’m basically wearing lingerie. My nipples will probably freeze and fall off.  Speaking of which, don’t think I haven’t noticed how you’ve been avoiding the whole party topic.”

I had no idea how she went from frozen nipples to that.

Outside of the register’s office, she pinned me with a look. “You have to go with us. Everyone is going to be there.”

Looking away, I watched campus police doing a car unlock for an unlucky person. “I don’t know. Not big on Halloween parties.”

“You’re not big on any parties. Come on, you’ve got to come. I need you there. Jimmie will be there and I’ll need you to punch me in the vagina.”

I laughed. “I’m sure Jacob will gladly do that for you.”

“It’s not the same! He doesn’t understand and gives the worst advice. He’d probably tell me to go hook up with him,” she protested, and I had to imagine that was true. “You have to come. Please. Pretty please.”

My resolve to not even consider this party started to crack. Jacob had been talking about it all week. Last night, as Cam and I were finishing up our assignment and in-between him asking me out, he even brought up the party his friend Jase was throwing.  Jase was a year younger than Cam and pretty high up in one of the frats, which one I couldn’t remember. I’d seen Cam with him a couple of times, but we’d never spoken. Not that any of that mattered, because even considering going to this party had the beginnings of an ulcer forming in my stomach.

“I got to head in here and take care of the stupid scheduling for next semester.”

She’d been having a hell of a time getting classes. I’d been lucky and got into all the classes I’d wanted. “Are you going to cut a bitch?”

“Maybe.” Brit gave me a quick hug. “Thank you for walking me here.”

“No problem.” I was done for the day, so I didn’t have much else to do.

She started up the wide steps but turned around. “Think about the party. Please? You need to go, not just for me, it will be fun. You’ll get to let loose a little. Okay?”

I took a deep breath. “I’ll think about it.”

“Like really think about?” When I nodded, she said, “Promise?”

“Promise.”

Brit headed into the building and I was probably going to be heading to the store to get some Tums. I was going to need them.

#

There were times in my life when I knew what I was thinking was wrong. Knowing that didn’t make things any easier. Going to a Halloween party shouldn’t have me sitting in my moon chair with a bottle of Tums beside me and a carton of Ben & Jerry’s Rocky Road in my hands.

A half empty carton of Ben & Jerry’s ice cream.

I felt like I was well on my way to becoming the neighborhood cat lady. All I needed was the cats.

Shortly after leaving campus, I had gotten a text from Cam about the party. He wanted me to go. Brit wanted me to go. Jacob wanted me to go. I wanted to go, but….

Groaning, I put the lid on the ice cream and shoved to my feet. I was nineteen years old. Living on my own. I told my mother to suck it and I actually hugged Cam and told him that I missed him. Going to this party shouldn’t be that big of a deal. It was about time that I did something like this. If I didn’t do it now, would I ever do it?

Probably not.

I put the ice cream away and then moved onto the spray bottle stashed under the sink. Spraying the surface of everything in my kitchen, I started cleaning with a wicked vengeance.

I could do it.

My heart flopped in my chest and it felt like my stomach had dropped to my feet.

No, I couldn’t.

Scrubbing the counter by the stove, the light reflected off the silver bracelet, catching my attention.  I stopped, unable to look away from something that had become a staple in my every day life. Putting the bottle down and dropping the cloth, I reached out and slid the bracelet off. Turning my arm over, I forced myself to look at the scar. I was ashamed of it, did everything in my power to hide it, but for what? Staying in my apartment, being antisocial and a general loser? Certain things were probably always going be a no go for me or insanely awkward, but going to a fucking party? Was I really that crippled by what happened, that five years later I couldn’t go to one?

I put the bracelet back on as I leaned against the counter.

I had to do this. I needed to do this. At least try to do this. My heart started its panicked thumping as I pushed off the counter and headed into the living room. I dug my phone out of my bag and before I thought about what I was doing, I opened Cam’s text from earlier and sent Okay.

A few seconds passed and then there was a text back. Incoming.

“Incoming?” What in the—?

There was a knock on my door.

Rolling my eyes, I tossed my phone on the couch and went to the door. “You didn’t have to come over.”

Cam strolled right in, twisting his cap on backward.

“Well, help yourself.”

He stopped near the kitchen and frowned. “Why does your apartment smell like Clorox?”

“I was cleaning.”

A brow went up.

“The whole kitchen,” I said sheepishly. “You know, you could’ve saved yourself the trip and just responded to the text.”

Casting me a long look, he sat on the couch. “I needed the exercise.”

Yeah, he did not need the exercise.

He patted the spot beside me. “Come sit with me.”

I stared.

“Come on.”

Muttering under my breath, I stepped over his legs and sat. “Alright, I’m sitting.”

His lashes lowered, and I felt his gaze over my mouth. Warmth spread across my cheeks, and his grin went up a notch. “So you texted me with the word okay. I’ve asked you two things today. So I’m curious to which one you’re finally agreeing to.”

I pulled my legs up to my chest and wrapped my arms around my knees. “You asked me about the Halloween party tomorrow night.”

“Yes, I did.” He reached over and tugged on my arm until I let go of my knees. “But I asked you something else.”

My eyes narrowed.

Then he got a hand on the hem of my jeans and pulled my legs away from my chest. “I also asked you out.”

“You know the answer to that.”

He narrowed his eyes.

My lips twitched. “I was saying okay, I’ll go to the party.”

“Smart choice. It’ll be fun and you’ll have a good time.” Once I was apparently sitting to his approval, he sat back. “When do you want me to pick you up?”

I shook my head. “I’m going to drive myself.”

“Why would you do that? We live in the same building and are heading to the same place.”

“Thanks, but I’ll drive.”

He studied me a moment. “If you don’t want to go with me, then at least get a ride with Brittany.”

I said something along the lines of agreeing to that, but I wasn’t planning on that. Taking my own car meant I could leave whenever I wanted to. I needed that lifeline.

“Hey,” Cam said.

Turning my head toward him, I raised my brows. “Hi.”

“Go out with me.”

I smiled. “Shut up, Cam.”

#

I was so nervous that my phone felt slippery in my hand and my seatbelt felt like it was pressed too tightly against my chest. I was sitting in the parking lot, thirty minutes past the time I should’ve left for the Halloween party at Jase’s house. I’d like to say that I was just being fashionably late, but that was so not the truth.

I was like two steps from a panic attack.

“So, you didn’t get a costume?” Brit said, and over her voice, I could hear music and muffled laughter. “It’s not a big deal. There are lots of people here that aren’t dressed up.”

Well, there went that excuse. After talking to Cam last night, I’d briefly considered the idea of making a last minute run to the store to find a costume, but dressing up would probably be too much.

“Are you almost here?” Brit asked. “Because I’m lonely—hey!”

A second later, Jacob’s voice came through the phone. “Hey, girl, hey, where you at?”

I closed my eyes. “I’m getting ready to leave.”

“You better, because Brit is getting on my nerves asking for you. So get your ass here.”

“I’m coming. I’ll be there in a little bit.”

Hanging up, I tossed the phone onto the seat next to me and gripped the steering wheel. I can do this. That’s what I kept telling myself as I glanced back up at my apartment. I’d left a light on and it was like a damn beacon right now, coaxing me back to the safety that was pure boredom.

I was being stupid, totally understood that, but it didn’t change the fact that my heart was thundering in my chest or that I was nauseous. What I was experiencing wasn’t normal to anyone else, and that was the key. I didn’t want this to be normal for me.

“Fuck.”

I needed to be brave.

I knocked the car into reverse and backed out. My arms were trembling by the time I made it to the end of the road and made the left onto Route 45. Jase’s house wasn’t that far from University Heights. Only a few miles, back in a nearby subdivision where several larger frats had taken up residency.

On the drive to his house, I focused on listing as many constellations I could. Andromeda, Antlia, Apus, Aquarius, Aquila, Ara, Aries, Auriga—who came up with these names? Seriously. I’d made it to the D’s when I spotted the line of cars pouring out of a large three-story home’s driveway. Cars were everywhere, parking along the road, in the yard, and down the street. I had to end up turning around so I could park on the other side of the street, about a block down.

The night air was chilly and the streets were void of children. Trick or treat had ended about an hour before and there were pieces of dropped candy every few feet.

Bright light spilled out from the windows, casting a luminous glow along the porch. There were a few people outside, leaning against the railing. Shoving my hands into the pockets of my hoodie, I avoided the garage, where a mean game of beer pong was going down, and through the open front door.

Holy crap…

The house was packed. People were everywhere, crowding a TV, in groups by the couch, on the floor, and in the hallway. Music thumped along with my heart as I scanned the crowd, searching for a sexy angel. There were a lot of angels—naughty angels in red, sexy angels in white, and I guess, very bad angels in black.

Hmm.

I squeezed past a girl dressed like Dorothy from The Wizard of Oz, if Dorothy had been a stripper. She smiled at me and I smiled back. It felt wobbly and weird. Sliding past a group at a card table, I saw Cam’s roommate Ollie at the table. He was too immersed in the game to notice me. I stretched up on the tips of my toes. The inside of the house had a slightly suffocating feel to it with all the people.

There was a nearby high pitched squeal and I turned, having only seconds to prepare myself before I was attacked by an angel in white.

“You’re here!” Brit shrieked, squeezing me. “Holy shit! I didn’t think you’d actually come. I thought you were going to bail.”

“I’m here.”

She squeezed me again and then grabbed my hand. “Come. Jacob is out in the garage. So is Cam.”

My overworked heart did some more cardio as she pulled me around the card table. A few guys looked up, dismissing me and my jeans outright and then settling on the tiny white dress Brit had on. Interest sparked in their eyes. One guy leaned back in his chair, brows knitting as he took her in. I couldn’t blame him. She looked hot.

“Coming through!” Brit announced, free hand in the air. “Beep. Beep.”

The air was easier to breathe in the garage, the light not so bright, and while there were more people out here, the muscles in the back of my neck relaxed. Brit led me toward a guy who had an old school, black bowler hat on and a purple blazer.

“Jakey-Jake, look who I found!” Brit yelled.

Purple blazer turned, and a genuine smile broke out across my face as I saw the big black rim glasses. “Bruno Mars?” I asked.

“Yes! See, Brit. Some people get my costume!” Jacob shot her a dirty look before turning back to me. He frowned. “What are you dressed as?”

I shrugged. “A lazy college student?”

Jacob laughed as Brit bounced over to the keg. “What do you have on under this God awful sweatshirt?”

“What’s wrong with my hoodie?” I demanded.

He gave me a bland look. “Nothing’s wrong with it if you just rolled out of bed and were going to class, but you’re at a party.” He went for the zipper on my hoodie and pulled it down. “Take it off or I’m taking it off.”

“He’s being serious.” Brit returned with two red plastic cups in her hand. “He once took my shirt off because he wanted to try it on and there I was, standing in a room full of girls, with just my bra.”

I slipped my keys into my jeans and took my hoodie off, dropping it on the back of a nearby camping chair. “Happy?”

Jacob took in my fitted black turtleneck, lips pursed. “Hmm…” He tugged the hem of my sweater up so that it exposed a slice of my lower stomach. Then roughed his hands through my hair, causing the waves to go in every which way. “Better. You have a tight, little body. Fucking own it, girl. Now you’re dressed like as a sexy, lazy college student.”

I took the drink Brit shoved in my hand. “Are you done dressing me like I’m your own personal Barbie?”

“Bitch, if you were my Barbie, you’d be half naked.”

I laughed. “Good thing I’m not.”

He dropped an arm over my shoulder. “I’m glad you’re here. For real.”

“Me too.” And once I said that, I was glad. I was here. I made it. This was huge. I even took a sip of my beer. Look at me. Party animal extraordinaire.

Telling myself I wasn’t looking for anyone in particular, I glanced around the garage. It didn’t take long to find Cam. Being that he was a good head taller than most of the guys around, he was easy to pick out. Seeing that he wasn’t dressed any differently than he normally was brought a smile to my face.

Cam was standing near the beer pong table, arms folded across his chest. His biceps stretched the short-sleeve shirt he wore. I didn’t know what it was with guys dressing like it was warm outside when it was obviously not.

Beside him was Jase, who was as equally tall as Cam, and just as nice to openly gawk at with his slightly longer brown hair. He too was dressed like it was sweltering and a dark tattoo peeked out from underneath his sleeve.

Brit followed my stare and sighed. “I don’t know which one is hotter.”

Cam, to me, won hands down. “Me neither.”

“I’d take them both,” Jacob commented.

“At the same time?” Curiosity filled Brit’s tone.

Jacob grinned. “Hell yeah.”

“A Cam and Jase sandwich.” Brit shivered. “I wish that was on the Dollar Menu.”

I laughed. “I think they’d cost more than a dollar.”

“True,” she murmured and then sighed out a, “I need to get laid.”

Jase elbowed Cam and said something. A moment later, Cam looked in our direction. A wide smile broke out across his striking face. He put his cup down on the edge of the ping pong table.

“And here comes one of them,” Jacob said, looking at my slyly. “It’s about to become a Cam and Avery sandwich.”

“Shut up,” I said, flushing.

People got out of the way for Cam. He was like a hot Moses, parting a sea of drunk college students. I took a step back, suddenly nervous.

Cam didn’t hesitate. There was a confident ease in everything he did. His arms were around my waist in under a second, lifting me off my feet in a bear hug. Brit wisely grabbed the cup from my hand before Cam spun around. I clutched his shoulders as the walls of the garage whirled.