Memory lane is not a place I’m willing to go with her, so instead of saying anything, I hum and admire the sky. Neither of us speak for a while, both lost in our own thoughts. I can remember the last time I was up here with her like it was yesterday. That first kiss meant everything to me—a ten-year-old kid who thought his dreams were about to come true, before they were all ripped away. It’s a bittersweet feeling.
“We should go back in, before we get sick,” I suggest.
Shrugging her shoulders, she finally looks at me. “I’m not tired.”
“Oh, don’t worry,” I smirk. “I can think of plenty we can do to wear ourselves out.”
THE SOUND OF MY phone vibrating against the nightstand pulls me from my peaceful slumber. I go to reach for it but am stopped by the weight pressing down on my chest. After hours of what can only be described as sexual heaven, we fell asleep—wrapped up in each other. I slip out from under her and grab my phone before leaving the room.
“Hello?” I practically whisper to make sure I don’t wake her.
Tyson chuckles into the phone. “You know, I was going to ask why you weren’t here, but I think I just figured it out.”
I groan and go downstairs to the kitchen. “Fuck off. You don’t know anything.”
“So, you mean to tell me there isn’t a blonde in your bed right now?” He may be an asshole, but he’s the one person in my life that I’d never lie to. When I don’t answer, I can practically hear his grin. “That’s what I thought. So, you two are still fooling around, huh?”
“Yeah, all thanks to your fucking stellar advice. Thanks, dick. Now I can’t focus on what I’m supposed to be doing because every time I look at her, I want to fuck her against every surface of the room.”
He laughs. “Yeah, it may have been a little ill-advised, I’ll admit. Though, in my defense, I think I underestimated your feelings for her a bit.”
“I don’t have feelings for anyone,” I retort.
“Sure, you don’t, buddy.”
I roll my eyes. “Will you shut the fuck up and tell me what to do? How am I supposed to hurt her when all I can think of is fucking her senseless all the damn time?!”
Letting out a sigh, he takes a moment to answer. “Okay, maybe you should just relax on the revenge front for a little bit.”
“What?”
“Don’t jump down my throat, shithead. Just listen. Maybe you just need to ride this out. You spent your entire childhood pining after this girl, and with what you’ve been through, you’ve earned the right to live out that fantasy,” he explains. “So, let yourself enjoy this, and once it’s run its course, get back to what matters.”
I run a hand over my face. “Wouldn’t that be exactly what my dad didn’t want? For me to be involved with her?”
“When you were ten, maybe, but you’re not a little boy anymore, Grayson. You’re eighteen and more than capable of not becoming a pawn in her father’s games. I mean, unless you’re afraid you’re going to fall in love with her.”
Snorting, I shake my head. “Fuck you. You know I don’t fall in love with anyone.”
“Good. Just make sure you don’t let that happen, and you’ll be golden.”
The sound of someone coming into the room catches my attention. Savannah leans against the doorway, wearing only my T-shirt, and I’m immediately drawn to her.
“Ty, I have to go. I’ll text you later.”
He snickers. “Have fun.”
Without saying goodbye, I hang up the phone and look her up and down once more. She’s gorgeous, in that doesn’t even need to try kind of way, and all I want is to mark every inch of her skin.
“Hi.” She greets me, not coming any closer.
I get up and walk toward her, placing my hands on her waist. “Hey.”
“I’m going to go get dressed, and then I’ll have Delaney drive me home.”
In a careful move, she arches up on her tiptoes and kisses me. It’s quick, and as sweet as she is, but it only makes me want her more. I’m battling between what I want and what my father wants, when finally, one wins.
She goes to turn away, but I stop her with a gentle hand on her cheek. “Don’t.”
19
Grayson
Savannah and I spend the entire weekend together. Both of us are insatiable, which leads to having sex in as many places around my house as we can manage. The kitchen, the den, the shower. We even wonder if we could get away with it on the roof, but for safety reasons, and the sake of Delaney, who could probably see us from her bedroom window, we decide against it.
When we’re not a sweaty mess of tangled limbs and breathy moans, we watch movies and make a failed attempt at baking a cake. What can I say? She tastes so much sweeter. The two of us laugh like we haven’t in years, and by the time I drop her off on Sunday night, we’re both exhausted.
AT SCHOOL ON MONDAY, I can already feel the shift in our dynamic. I’m not constantly battling between ruining her life and ripping her clothes off. She sends subtle looks my way, with a look in her eyes that tells me she’s replaying this past weekend in her mind. It’s torture to have to want her this bad and need to wait, but I fucking live for it.
By midday, Jace has kept his hands to himself, and Savannah has stayed off his lap. However, I know that if she gets the slightest inclination that I’m rubbing Kinsley in her face again, there’s going to be more of what she pulled Friday afternoon. Since I’m not able to handle that without risking a criminal record for breaking Haven Grace’s favorite kicker, I know I need to tell Kinsley it’s over.
With a text message to meet me at my locker before lunch, it’s the perfect spot to end this without giving Savannah the satisfaction of thinking she’s won. Familiar dark brown hair comes walking down the hallway. Judging by the smile on her face, she has the wrong idea on what this is.
“Hey, you,” she simpers, throwing her arms around my neck and going to kiss me.
I turn my head just in time. “No, stop.” Removing her hold on me, I take a step back. “I didn’t ask you to come here so we could hook up.”
“Then, what?” As she studies the expression on my face, I can see the moment it clicks. “Grayson, that’s not funny.”
“Who’s joking?”
Crossing her arms, her anger shows. “Are you kidding? Do you even realize the mistake you’re making?! I’m the best you’ll ever have, you know that? How could you do this to me?”
The more she yells, the less patience I have. Finally, when she shoves me, I’ve had enough.
“Okay, stop. You’re acting like we were serious or something. Newsflash, we weren’t. All that happened between us was a couple of blowjobs, and that was over a month ago. Don’t act like you didn’t see this coming.”
She’s caught off guard, and clearly doesn’t like being put in her place, but as her eyes land on something behind me, her expression hardens. “What the fuck are you looking at?”
Pushing past me, she storms away. I don’t need to turn around to see who’s standing there—I can feel it. The buzz in the air, the sexual tension so thick I could choke on it, the pull in my chest that demands I go to her. Of course, it’s Savannah, and she heard everything I was hoping she wouldn’t.