Unavoidable

by Yara Greathouse

  “Let’s go eat this outside, in the fresh air.” I grab her hand and we head out to the front porch. I sit her on a chair and open the bag of Cheetos, placing a bottle of water on the little table next to her. Ciara stuffs a handful of Cheetos in her mouth.

  “Mmmm, Brianna, these are sooo good! Really, really good” she tells me rolling her eyes to the back of her head while I lean on the rail in front of her. Even before I turn around, I could feel his eyes on me.

  “Ahhh… Brianna, is that right?” He says with a champion grin on his face. I give him a half-ass smile while gripping the railing so hard, to the point that I know my knuckles are white. Pulling a cool façade on the outside, my heart is hammering fast like a seal swimming away from a shark. I remind myself why I don’t need to get involved with anyone. While I am actively thinking of an escape plan, I avoid his gaze. I can see from the corner of my eye that he is heading my way. I swallow hard. Then I hear Ciara chirp in…

  “Yeah, that’s her name, Brianna Gilmore. Her friends also call her ‘Gilmore” and sometimes we call her ‘Knuckles” but it has to be at the right time. Hey! I don’t know ya, what’s your name?”

  I speak before he does. “Colton Hensley.” I risk a quick glance, he’s smiling. “Ciara meet Colton. He is known around his close circle of friends as ‘Grass Monkey.’ Colton, this alcohol vacuum here is my best friend, Ciara Collins.”

  Ciara’s mouth hits the floor and I believe she forgot she was speaking out loud when she said “Oh, the guy from this morning! Dang, girl! You did not give him enough credit!” Her eyes slide from the very top of Colton’s head to the very bottom of his feet.

  “Brianna Gilmore, huh? Are you trying to avoid me, Brianna?” He is smiling and chuckling. The nerve!

  I look straight into his eyes and try to keep my cool. Game on. “Not trying, no. I believe I did avoid you, twice, if I recall correctly.” I snap with the sassiest voice I have.

  “How is it that I have never seen you around here and not one of the guys knows your name or recognizes you from somewhere?” He asks me direct and to the point.

  “Because, ” Ciara gets in the middle again, “She just got here a week ago and she doezzen’t know anyone but me.” I smack her upper arm, give her a look and tell her to drink her water and be quiet.

  “Did she, now? He’s looking at me with amusement. So frustrating. I want to control this situation, but I’m having trouble with Ciara’s blabbermouth. Ugh! “Tell me, Ciara,” he looks at her while she is drinking her water, “where was she before coming to Pristina?”

  Not skipping one beat, not even with a mouth full of Cheetos, my traitor and so called best friend goes on to answer “We were in the Army. We were doing soldiery things all day and going to school at night. Most of what we did is classified, and if I tell you, well, you know…”

  I give her a scowl and finally I am able to get a word in the middle of this damned conversation. “Okey, dokey… That’s it for tonight. I think this is our queue to go home. Someone,” I look pointedly at Ciara, “has had way too many silver bullets and now it’s time to go.”

  “Silver bullets?” she says, “Who the hell brought a gun to the party?” I roll my eyes and puller her up to her feet by grabbing her wrists. Once she is up, I place one of my arms on her waist and start walking with her to the car. Suddenly, I feel his hand on my free arm and it makes it tingle and shiver all at the same time. Oh.My.God!

  “Wait, what’s the hurry? We haven’t had a chance to get to know each other a little,” he pins me with his smoldering gaze, “or a lot, whichever one you prefer, Brianna. I’m not picky.” He smiles really big. I want to jump into his arms and kiss those lips so bad… I steel myself so I can respond.

  “Sadly for you, I am picky. I have seen the likes of you in action before. I am sure you will not disappoint. I am sure you have the stamina for a long night of pleasure. However, I am not looking for any kind of hookup or relationship at the moment. So I will have to pass ‘Go’ without collecting anything.”

  “How come? Can’t you have a little fun?”

  Damn, those eyes. That questioning look. Before I catch myself, I’m telling him things that were none of his business. “The reality of life and its complexity has been thrown in my face since I was really young. I certainly enjoy looking,” I say this as I stare at him all over and lick my lips a little bit, “and have dabbled in the occasional sampling, but I don’t have the time or the want – for that matter – to deal with guys like you. Goodbye, and good luck finding suitable entertainment for the night, because I am not it.” I have to get away before I say too much more. He gives me a surprised look, I jerk my arm from his hand, and his gaze follows me until Ciara and I are out of sight.

  Chapter 4

  Brianna

  I spend all night tossing and turning, getting a little sleep here and there. When the sun rises, I decide to give up sleep and be productive by going for a run.

  As I’m brushing my teeth I think about his easy smile and that one crooked tooth. I wash my face and think about his tanned skin and muscular body. I pull up my hair in a ponytail and think about my hands going through his messy dark hair, and then slowly pulling his lips to mine…

  Argh! Stop! Stop! STOP! I’m so frustrated. The more I try NOT to think about him, the more I do. I quickly put on my sports bra, shorts, t-shirt and step into my running shoes.

  I go outside and begin my pre-run stretch which leads to thoughts of him. Oh yes, rubbing his hands all over my body, massaging all the right places. It makes me wonder if his hands are soft – like a spoiled brat’s – or a bit rough – like someone who knows hard work.

  I start running and all my efforts are futile, because with every step I take, I’m thinking about him and I really don’t want to be. Colton, getting hit by the ball. Colton, smiling at me. Colton, looking at me. Colton, touching my arm. Colton, making my vajay-jay tingle. Colton, Colton, COLTON!!!! Gah! I sound like a stupid broken record. Dammit!

  I have never had a connection to someone the way I feel it between me and Colton. I have never had a serious boyfriend. Life was too cruel growing up with an alcoholic mother, and well, I don’t want to recall the nightmare I went through after I ran away from home. I am grateful that those nightmares are finally gone.

  When I was away in the Army, I immersed myself in everything that I could: Military Police training, Airborne, Investigations, etc. I was provided with structure and positive reinforcement, which are things I never had before. I wanted to be the best at everything I could volunteer for because it made me feel somewhat accomplished and admired. Yes, being at the top is nice. I still crave it. That’s exactly what I need in order to remind myself that boys and relationships are bad for me. No time for drama. Leave the drama fo’ yo’ mama! I laugh to myself at my own cheesiness.

  I make a promise to myself that from now on I will concentrate on school, work and completely forget about those blue gray eyes, kissable lips, the messy black hair just long enough to pull on, the body that was made for sinning, and that smile that can melt ice… Grunting, I decide to pound the pavement harder and faster. I am not accomplishing shit by inundating my head thinking about HIM. I have to avoid him like the plague.

  When I reach my apartment building, still feeling antsy, I decide that a ride is what I need to release more endorphins, since I was not able to go to the shooting range yesterday. Endorphins make me happy. Opening the door, I find Ciara on the couch with eye patches on. “Hey, darling,” I say, “How are you feeling?” I imagine not too good since the radio is not on this time.

  “Shhh… Please close all the blinds…” she is actually whispering. Too funny.

  “Honey, the blinds are already closed. It does not surprise me that you ended up with a hangover… Let me get you some Ibuprofen and a bottle of cold water, it should help you feel better.”

  “I tried to get to the kitchen…” Ciara says, “… but it was too far.” She lifts an itty bitty corner of her eye ma
sk to see if I was getting her the meds and the water. I was. “I may have a hangover, but I remember everything that happened last night. Especially that gorgeous specimen of a man named Colton, who – by the way – was looking at you like you were a steak on the grill.”

  “Don’t start. I just spent an entire hour running, just trying to forget about him.” I sit on the couch across from her, placing my elbows on my knees and my fists under my chin. I add a little bottom lip pout to emphasize my frustration.

  “Oh no, no, no, no, no, NO!” She attempts to sit up but can’t. I try to stifle a giggle. “It’s time!”

  Crap. I need to be concerned. She is giving me the motherly voice. “Time for what?” I ask her in a very gentle tone of voice.

  “Time for you to let go of things from the past and start living in the present. This is the real college life and having a fling or two is part of it and I will not let you avoid it, I will not let this experience, which by the way we both wanted to have, pass you by.”

  “You know, you sound a bit too lucid for someone who has a hangover.” I squint my eyes at her.

  “I know! If I could only follow my own advice!”

  “Where is Nate?”

  “He is out of town AGAIN! That is the problem of dating older guys who are already out of college… He travels a lot for work and I don’t get to see him as often as I’d like.”

  “It really sucks. I’m sorry.”

  “Yeah, that’s why I need to live my life vicariously through you.” She winks at me.

  “I’m going to get the coffee going, I know you’ll want some of that. Then I’m going to get in the shower and after that I have to go for a ride. Maybe it will help clear my head.”

  “Don’t forget this afternoon is the bikini car wash sponsored by Pet Village to benefit the local animal shelter. I hope you are up to date in your waxing! The only bushes I want to look at are the ones on the ground!” She laughs, then holds her head steady with both hands.

  I gasp in mock madness and hand her over the first KCup of coffee that comes out. “You think you are so clever, don’t you? Besides, the only time that ever happened was when we were in special training and I had no access to wax in weeks! So you better start playing fair and stop with the cheap shots, got it?” I tell her with a big smile on my face. Then I grab the other cup that has just finish brewing and head to the shower. Maybe hot water is what I need to help me sort out things pertaining to a certain gray eyed, black hair guy.

  Colton

  It’s mid-morning and I’m already pissed. I woke up this morning with a raging boner. Funny thing is that when I tried to hit it off with some of the other girls at the party, I could not get excited about any of them. I finally gave up after the third one. They all offered me BJs, and they were cute, but I just could not get excited about any of them. I decided not to embarrass myself. Don’t need to start any rumors about my performance. So I just told them I was not feeling well and left it at that.

  What is the deal with that girl? Why is she so irritating? I have been nothing short of charming, and she wants nothing to do with me. I need to up my game or maybe I just need to move on. Why waste my time and energy on someone who does not want to give me any attention? Because she is special. I can feel it. I know she felt it too. I can tell by the way she looked at me those few times we touched. Her eyes were so haunting. There is an underlying sadness that I could not place. I must give it to her, her game face is strong. If it was someone else, they would move on. But not me. I am a glutton for punishment. I want to get to the bottom of the mystery of Brianna Gilmore. My thoughts are interrupted by Traxx and Notso barging in my room.

  “Good grief, man. Why are you taking so long getting ready?”

  “Sorry, I guess I’m still sleepy. I could not fall sleep last night, I spent half the night tossing and turning.”

  “Yeah? Does it have something to do with a certain brunette with blue-green eyes and you coming home empty handed last night?” Notso chuckles.

  “You know, you both really need to get a job if you have so much free time to keep up with my love life. I must have eaten or drank something that didn’t sit right with me. Why do you ask?” Am I that obvious? I wonder as I casually put on a t-shirt and try to find my flip flops.

  Traxx and Notso look at each other like I’m losing my marbles. “Dude, just don’t.”

  “Don’t what?”

  “Don’t try to play it off. We know you too well. You can’t fake your way out of this one. We know you want to get with Biker Girl, and we also know she shot you down big time ‘cause all we saw was smoke coming out of your ears and fire coming out of your eyes – you were so pissed. Then you were gone and there were no noises coming out of your room last night or this morning… Sooo, what are we supposed to make out of that? There are many things in life I am not certain of, but the one thing I know for sure is that we always score the girls.”

  I look at him with daggers in my eyes but he ignores me. “What the fuck are you talking about? I don’t give a shit about no ‘Biker Girl’ and I was not in the mood for anything else.”

  “Really?”

  “Really. One does not have to get laid to be happy.” I tell them.

  “True. But one must get laid as to not end up a fucking grouch the next day. We might as well leave it at that. You’ve never been a great liar, Colton.” And then looking at Notso, he tells him “He obviously thinks we are idiots. Like we didn’t notice how he tensed up the moment he saw her and then when she left the sports room, he’d about thrown the pool stick down and went after her like a puppy dog.”

  “Man, stop messing with me. I did not do such a thing.” I gave them a menacing look so that they change the stupid subject. Just the mention of her and my vision gets clouded with blue-green eyes and smiles with dimples, but most of all, a body that begs to be played with.

  “Look, whatever. It’s your business, man. We are just trying to point out that it’s obvious she does things to you. When you are around her, you are not the same Colton we know. Now, let’s go, the pool is waiting.”

  Traxx has an uncle and a cousin, Keagan, who are local residents and have a sweet property with lots of land. We do a lot of swimming, hunting, 4-wheeling and partying at their place. We are headed over there to spend time at the pool and then decide what we want to do tonight.

  We all gather our swimming gear, a cooler, some water bottles and Gatorade. As we get in the truck my mind is running for its life. If my best friends, who know me better than I know myself, are hinting at something weird going on with me when she is around, then I may no longer be able to ignore her like I want to, which simply means I’m in deep shit.

  As I drive and listen to the radio, I find myself loosening up a little bit. Traffic seems a little heavy on the main roads. I guess people are running their typical Saturday morning errands. I decide to take some of the back roads to avoid the traffic. Traxx and Notso are bullshitting, talking about who are they going to call and what we should do this weekend.

  That’s when I see it. Let me clarify. That’s when I see her.

  To the right, there are signs leading to a bikini car wash to benefit the animal shelter. My insides twist, because like a beacon does to a ship, I feel her presence before I even see her. Oh, and do I see her. There is no way in hell that I can miss that body. There is a God in Heaven, and He somehow likes me because I am in awe at the little present I’m being sent from up above.

  Traxx and Notso, get really quiet at first, then as soon as they notice what’s going on, they start teasing me.

  “Woo Hoo, down boy. Sit and stay you animal! Are we going to see who I think that is? Man, look at that booty!” We hear a growling, then we all realize that is coming from me. I’m giving them the evil eye.

  “Do. Not. Say. Shit. And stop looking at her that way.” I’m here to tell you that it is hard NOT to look at her in any way. Her flawless, shimmery, tanned skin is highlighted by a yellow bikini top with some kind
of metal buckle between her breasts and short shorts that showcase those beautiful legs. Her long hair is tied up to the side with some pieces loose around her face. I wish I was the car she was touching. I feel myself getting hard and have to mentally roll that thought back in. *Sigh.* Her facial expression is happy, smiling. She is enjoying herself. I admire her toned body. She is not skinny or tiny, but you can tell she has a lot of muscle. Especially in the legs and arms.