There was a time when I thought that message was stupid; it drove me crazy. And now every time I hear it, it makes me cry.
I shut off my phone and stare up at the ceiling where Perry is no doubt passed out somewhere on the floor. I’m almost afraid to see what he’s doing. Somehow, I find the courage to get up and climb the stairs. When I open the door, he’s curled on the couch, one hand and one leg on the floor. And they say you never learn anything in college?
Instead of waking him, I grab a blanket off the back of the couch and drape it over him. He stirs and mumbles something incoherent.
“Go to sleep, Perry,” I whisper.
He shifts on his side and with his eyes still closed he says, “I slept with Sloan.”
“What else is new,” I tease.
His eyes open and his expression turns serious. “No, I slept with Sloan last night.”
I clasp my hand over my mouth and take the seat beside him. “Perry, she’s engaged. How could you?”
“That’s not the worst part.”
I turn to him, accusation in my tone. “What could be worse than that?”
“She left her ring on my dresser.”
6
Kiss Me
Tess- Then
It’s late evening now, and Sloan has yet to make an appearance. Perry had been sulking about it all day, regardless of how he tried to play it off. He disappeared with Jeremy a couple hours ago for reasons that were unclear. They said they had some errands to run and they would be right back. Thankfully, I’ve had Walker to keep me company. We spent the day out on the ski doo’s and are now cuddled up by the fire.
Sharing a blanket with Walker or Perry would be nothing to me. We’ve grown up together, shared secrets, ate off of each other—did everything together. But now, the older we get, the blurrier the lines between male and female friendship seem to be. You could go into it with the best intentions, but someone always gets hurt.
That’s what I like about Perry. He’s so wrapped up in Sloan that I doubt I even enter his radar. Besides, how to do you compete with perfection? I mean, her attitude is total shit, but she looks like a real-life Barbie doll. Shiny blonde hair, long, toned legs, perfect white smile—she even has that voice girls like her always do. Sweet with just a little hint of bitch that makes all the guys swoon. I tried to talk like her once, and the only thing I did was convince Perry I had a cold.
Then there’s Walker. I’ve had a suspicion from time to time he may be into me. It’s the way he stares at me when he thinks I’m not looking, or the subtle compliments he gives me when I’m obviously feeling insecure. Walker wouldn’t even come in second in the looks department compared to Perry. Walker is insanely hot. He has the right amount of muscle to not be too bulky, light green eyes that sparkle when he gets excited about something, and sandy brown hair that curls up at the ends. He probably just needs a haircut, but I think it’s adorable, anyway.
I feel him grab a piece of my hair and I shoot him a look.
“What are you doing?”
He takes his time scrutinizing the color. “I was wondering why you dye it black. Jeremy’s hair is very light brown, almost dirty blond even.”
I pull my hair from his hands and smooth it back down on my shoulders. “Because, I don’t want to be another dumb blonde. I want to stand out for my personality, not for the way I look.”
Walker wets his lips and leans into my ear. “Tess, even if you dyed your hair purple and shaved one side, you’d still be the prettiest girl I’ve ever seen in real life.”
I cock an eyebrow. “Be serious.”
“I am,” he says, leaning closer. He tucks a fallen strand behind my ear and kisses my cheek. “The personality thing is a bonus. Not everyone gets to fall for their best friend.”
Suddenly, my lips become very dry. Is Walker flirting with me?
“Walker, are you saying you like me?”
He nods, his lips brushing over mine.
“What about Jeremy?” I whisper, feeling the softness of his bottom lip once more.
“I think he’ll be okay with it.”
“How do you know?”
He threads his fingers in the back of my hair and pulls me even closer. “There’s only one way to find out.”
That’s when he really kisses me. Not just any kiss. Fireworks exploded inside of me. It’s slow at first, but then I open my mouth and he tilts his head. He tickles my bottom lip with the tip of his tongue before pushing it all the way inside. By this point, I have both hands fisted in his hair and am practically sitting on his lap. The soft hums that erupt from his throat are telling me I’m doing something right.
I could kiss Walker forever. The way he cups my face so gently, like he cherishes every touch, every second. He has no idea this is my very first one—and I’ll never forget it.
After Walker kisses the life out of me for a solid hour, we decide we need a drink. He wraps the blanket around me before walking up to the cabin to get beers. The ones in the cooler are long gone by now. I’m not even sure I should still be drinking. It’s not something I do very often.
He returns with a smile on his face, handing one to me first and kissing the side of my head.
My mind immediately goes to a place of doubt as I pick on the label of my bottle. “Walker, this doesn’t have to be anything. I don’t want any trouble with Jer.”
Walker’s eyebrows pull in. “You think I said those things just so I could kiss you?”
I shrug.
He scoots over on the log until our legs are touching. He grabs my hand and laces our fingers together. “I like you Tess, like a lot. If anyone, it was me that was nervous. You’re so… beautiful, I mean look at you.”
He holds his other hand out around me and I feel my cheeks flush. I lean my shoulder into his and sway him sideways. “Stop it, Walker.”
“No, I mean it.” He lifts my hand and kisses my knuckles. “It’ll be worth the fight with Jeremy if you’ll go out with me.”
“Like, you want to go out on a date or something?”
Walker laughs, and it’s the sweetest sound. “Yeah, that and I want you to be my girl.”
“You want me to be your girlfriend?”
He grabs the sides of my face and kisses me. “Yes, Tess. Be my girlfriend.” He smiles that ear-splitting grin and I can’t help but do the same.
“Okay,” I say in a small voice.
“Okay?” He cocks his head. “I think you can do better than that.”
I scoff. “You want me to shout from the rooftops that I now belong to Walker Summers?”
He shrugs and then steals a quick kiss. “It’s a start.”
I shove him backwards and he almost falls off the log. He rights himself, laughing. “Okay, I’m kidding. But it would be really fucking amazing.”
I lean in and kiss him again, because honestly now I can’t stop. I think I want this as much as he does, and I didn’t even know it. It feels right, and yet, I’m still nervous. This will be my first everything.
“How about a simple yes for now and we’ll work our way up to a public display of devotion?”