My lungs open, and even though I’m in the middle of a growing crowd, I can breathe.
Two songs come and go and then Cam and Trey join me, fists full of liquor.
We knock back two more shots.
An hour or so in, I’m feeling good. My smile grows a little lazy, my body the perfect amount of loose, my mind on nothing but the beat blaring around me.
I look over to find Cam watching me, her back pressed against Trey’s front.
I reach out, squeezing her wrist, and she jumps at me, making me laugh as she wraps her hands around my neck.
She gets my message.
Thank you, friend.
“I love you, biatch!” she shouts, louder than necessary in my ear, and we laugh, separating from one another.
Trey puts his arm around her middle, and my eyes flit from his arm to hers.
She shrugs, biting back a smile.
Trey catches it, but lets his smirk fly free. “Another?” he asks.
“Might as well do it right.” I shrug. “And a water?”
“You got it.”
“I’ll go with, back in a minute.” She blows me a kiss, and they slink away.
“I’ll be right here.”
I keep dancing, swaying my hips to the music, enjoying every minute of freedom the music offers me.
When the song closes out and the DJ changes tracks, I give myself a mental fuck yes, and let my body lead me into more seductive movements as Ariana Grande’s “Dangerous Women” plays in the background.
Two verses in and someone joins me from behind, his shadow wide, enveloping me completely. While the heat of my new dance partner’s body is ridiculously present, he doesn’t slip closer, hovering the smallest bit away instead, and it’s as if a switch is flicked.
My heart rate spikes, my body warming. I grin into the dim room and keep moving to the music, my hands gliding along my ribs as I softly sing the song to myself.
Strong hands come up to cover mine then; he’s not actually touching my body, but he uses the position of my own hand to press just below my belly button, bringing me closer to him.
I allow it, feeling the provocative rhythm of the song as it courses through me, and when his fingers span out on top of mine, I lace them together.
I test my dance partner, swaying my hips one way, while rolling my shoulders another, making an ‘S’ like shape with my back. My head sways slightly with my movements, and my god, he keeps up, matching every twist and turn of my body with his own. Not once does he have to pause, pull back or readjust. We’re in perfect sync.
It’s intoxicating. Cathartic.
It’s exactly what I needed, a fresh, healthy way to release all my pent-up emotions without breaking down and bawling my eyes out.
Simultaneously, my chin lifts as his dips, but only the slightest bit, his warm breath now feathering across the sweat-slicked skin at the nape of my neck. It’s as if fire meets ice and has me gasping. I’d swear his chest swelled at the sound.
He pulls our joined hands away from my body, lifting them above my head, his fingers never once leaving my skin. He trails them oh so slowly down my form, until he reaches my hips. Abandoned in the air, somehow my hands know what to do, know what he wants them to do.
They dance down in time with the beat, my fingertips meeting the tips of his short, soft hair. While my right hand glides across his neck, latching on there, my left lowers, now clasped over his strong knuckles this time.
His grip on my hips twitches in response, and my body decides to push into his in return, my head falling back, the sudden weight unbearable.
As if sensing my next move, his right hand flies up, gently stopping me from looking his way.
He can’t see my face, but somehow senses my pout, his chuckle giving him away, and my eyes close, soaking up the deep, raspy sound.
His smile is evident in the way he breathes, his amusement in the way he’s dancing. It’s as if his exhilaration runs through my own veins, and when he unlinks his hand from mine, sprawling his fingers across my ribs, his curiosity is written in the way his heart beats, peaking my own.
I want to see you.
He knows I do, so when the song rolls into another, it’s no surprise we both stop moving.
My toes curl in my heels as I begin to pull from his grasp, but I’m rooted in place in the next second when his lips press gently to the edge of my ear.
“You can turn around now, beautiful.” He speaks in a deep whisper, and an airy sensation whirls through me.
I suck in a breath, biting my lower lip as I turn, but I don’t short myself of the fun by darting straight for his face; instead, I drop my gaze slightly, coming eye-level with a strong, corded neck, tan skin and the collar of a simple gray T-shirt. I don’t tip my chin but allow my gaze to travel down as much as the position allows, finding a hint of ink settled under his right sleeve.
His hand lifts from his side then, and I admire the way his muscles grow more pronounced. He chuckles again, and I close my eyes, readying for the touch I sense is coming, and it does.
Strong, rough to the touch fingers press on the underside of my chin. He gives a small nudge, wordlessly asking for my attention, and my lids fly open.
His jaw is firm and flawlessly curved, his lips drawn into a side smirk, but not the kind that says he’s full of himself. It’s soft, charming.
Familiar?
His chest rises with a full breath then, his free hand twitching beside me, and finally, my eyes rise.
When I meet an open metallic blue gaze, I stop breathing.
He doesn’t say a word, just stares unblinking, and when his mouth hooks higher, I snap out of it, my wide smile breaking free.
He laughs, allowing his hand to fall to his side. “Hi, Juliet.”
“Noah.”
Chapter 13
Arianna
* * *
“Wait a minute!” Cam chokes through her laughter. “She convinces you to take her home, then what?” Her brows shoot up. “Says hang on a sec, let me pull the plug to my red river, but hurry so I don’t make a mess?”
Noah laughs into his fist while my palm slaps over my mouth to hold back a giggle, so I don’t spit water all over, as tears of laughter leak from my eyes.
Trey grins. “No. She waited until I got sheathed, reached between her legs, pulled the shit out and tossed it to the floor like it was fuckin’ normal.”
My mouth drops open, and Cam laughs so hard she does spit water… all over Trey’s lap, but he only smiles, nudging her shoulder with his.
“Okay.” Noah frowns in amusement. “No more of your frat stories tonight.” He smiles, not a hint of judgment present.
“Let’s hear some of yours?”
Noah’s gaze darts to mine, eyes bright. “Me?”
I nod, taking another small drink of water.
His chuckle is low, and he licks his lips, but it’s Trey who speaks.
“Unless you want a detailed description of the practice field, gym, grocery store and maybe a local gas station or two, you probably want to stick to me for entertainment.” He laughs, whipping his head to the side to avoid the peanut Noah throws his way.
Noah grins good-naturedly, throwing his arm out along the back of the booth as he settles more into it.
“A homebody then?” I wonder.
Noah brings those eyes back to mine, a hidden grin threatening to slip. “Depends.”
“On?”
His gaze narrows the slightest bit, but a smile is written in the creases framing his face. “On the day, the situation, and the reason I’d have for going.”
“I didn’t mean he’s a grandpa.” Trey laughs. “He’s a focused-ass fucker is all. Surprised I got him out tonight.” He looks to his friend, and then Trey’s smirk widens. “Actually, I’m not.”
They share a secret laugh, and I smile, glancing around the table as the conversations flow, truly enjoying the easiness of the evening.
After my dance partner surprise, N
oah and I tracked down Cam and Trey by the bar, quickly grabbing an empty table to hang for a while longer. We’ve been sitting here for about an hour now, listening to Trey’s hilariously horrific tales from his first year in college when he pledged a fraternity at UCB, where he completed his first year. He transferred to Avix his sophomore year, and he learned quick football and fraternities don’t always mix when you want to be on top of your game, ergo the football house Mase and the boys live in.
Chase.
My stomach turns at the thought of him, and I fill my glass with the remainder of the pitcher. When I set the heaving cup back down, my eyes rise, finding Noah studying me, his head tilted slightly.
His tongue peeks out, wetting his lips, and his dark brows slightly pinch, strangely making his face all the more handsome. Thankfully, Cameron begins to speak, so I have an excuse to look away.
“I’m wiped.” She turns to me with a drunken smile. “You must be dying if I’m tired.”
I grin but drop my gaze to my glass. I hate how a simple, unintentional thought that was linked to Chase leaves me sulky, even through the buzz.
Honestly, I’m not tired yet and the last thing I want to do is go home and lie in bed for hours, thinking about things I have no control over and a man I need to get over. Still, I ready to agree, turning back to her, but Noah speaks before I can.
“How ‘bout Trey walks you, and I make sure Ari gets home safely after she finishes that glass she’s just poured?” He flicks my cup, smiling at my friend.
Cam scowls, whipping her head my way. “Ari?”
I bite back a grin, but she knows.
“Go on, bitch.” She smirks, sitting back. “Let’s hear it.”
Trey grins and Noah’s brows draw in further.
“What’d I miss?” He looks between the three of us.
Trey reaches over, smacking Noah’s arm. “Dude, didn’t I tell you this girl comes equipped with a jukebox?”
Noah’s gaze flies to mine with growing intensity. “No.”
Heat makes its way up my cheeks, so I lower my chin slightly.
“Everything, everywhere reminds her of music. She’s physically incapable of not thinking of a song, no matter the situation. It’s weird, but you get used to it.” Cameron laughs.
My mouth drops open. “It is not weird, asshole.”
Noah looks between Cam and me with confusion.
Cam rolls her eyes and I grow more self-conscious. “I said I was leaving, you offered to walk her home and, in her head, miss thang sang…?” She looks to me with an expectant eyebrow raised.
I laugh lightly, trying to calm my nerves before singing out of tune. “If you get there before I do, don’t wait up on me…”
“See.” Cam smiles at Noah. “That. The song has nothing to do with what we’re doing. In fact, it’s sad as shit, and she changes the words when needed, but the me going home thing was the trigger.” She shrugs. “Weird, but all Ari.”
Noah laughs and crosses his arms on the table, his biceps flexing as he leans forward, capturing my brown eyes with his crazy blues. “Earlier, you grinned at yourself and looked away when Trey set the pitcher down…”
My smile is wide, surprised he caught that. “Ever seen Grease?”
He nods, eyes full of wonder.
“At the dance, Doody, Sonny, and Putzie drop their pants to the camera.”
He shakes his head slightly, not quite picking up what I’m putting down, but my lifelong movie partner beside me begins cracking up.
I look to her and together we sing in a low baritone, “Blue moooon.”
Noah throws his head back, laughing, his blue eyes brightening by the second.
I grin, picking up my full glass of fresh off-the-tap Blue Moon and take a large drink.
Noah nods, resting his back into the seat, his eyes never leaving mine, never losing their intensity. “Go ahead, guys. I’ve got her.”
Seeming unsure, Cameron turns to me.
Tonight’s the first night I’ve ventured out, so I know she’s uneasy about me not coming back with her, but one look, and she knows I need to stay.
She nods, moving to her feet. “For the record, if Mason blows up my phone looking for you, I’m totally ratting you out.”
I laugh, nodding. “Fair enough, but I’m betting he’s pretty wasted by now.”
“As if there’s a level of drunk Mason Johnson could reach that would erase his need to know of where his precious twin is and what she’s doing.”
“Considering he has no idea I’m out with you right now, I’d say we’re good.”
“If you say so, still throwing you under the bus if it comes to that!” She blows me a kiss, then off they go.
Laughing, I watch them disappear, before facing forward again to find that Noah, while still leaning forward, has scooted to the center of his side of the booth and is watching me intently.
I let him, not shifting, or shying away from his thoughtful gaze.
Finally, he sighs and sits back, a sad smile tipping his lips.
“You slept with him.” His tone is low, gentle, and sure.
My mouth opens, denial on the tip of my tongue, but the words never come, the truth somehow marked in his gaze. It’s as if I even tried to lie, he’d know it.
So I don’t.
I nod.
Something indecipherable passes over him, and his slow nod follows my own, as does his recognition. “He hurt you.”
I dip my chin, pull in and release a deep breath, then look up. Something in Noah’s candid expression has me spilling all the things I’ve held onto for the last few months, things I didn’t want to tell Cameron because I didn’t want her to inadvertently take sides. It was hard enough for her to witness the change the summer had on me.
So when Noah asks me to start from the beginning, and I sense his sincere desire to understand, that’s exactly what I do.
I tell him about us as kids, and our interactions. I replay how, at my and Mason’s fifteenth birthday party, Chase beat up the guy who gave me my first kiss, saying he was an asshole who didn’t deserve it and then wouldn’t talk to me for two weeks. I share how on the night of our junior prom, Chase got drunk and pulled me into his arms on the dance floor, singing along to David Cook’s rendition of “Always Be My Baby” ...all to pass me off when Mason came back.
I tell him how over the years, my feelings grew stronger than I meant for them to, and I sat back like the naive girl I clearly was, waiting for Chase to realize while explaining Mason’s take on everything. I don’t leave out any details from our time at the beach house, apart from our sexual experience, not Mason’s reaction nor Chase’s response.
I lay it all out, and not once am I hit with a feeling of judgment or pity by the man in front of me. It’s a strange sense of comfort.
“I mean the night before was heavy, we were mentally messed-up and exhausted, so I guess I should have known better, but I wasn’t thinking about what would happen later. Even if I had, it wouldn’t have changed anything at that moment.” No way would I have backed out. Not with the way Chase looked at me that night; he actually saw me, and even though it didn’t last past that, I’ll always have that one desperate look from him, his visible need for me. I’ll never forget the desire in his eyes that night.
“Looking back, I didn’t really handle the situation well.” My nose scrunches in thought. “Or at all, really. I was unfair, I’ve been unfair. I just… left and now…” I blow out a heavy breath. “Now I guess you could say I hide.” I peek at Noah.
As my downcast eyes lock with his, his bounce along my face, concern pulling at his own as mine gloss over.
“I never thought getting something you always wanted could be more painful than wanting but never having it. There really is no in-between.”
I’m not sure if it’s in my expression or laced in my tone, but Noah detects my self-reproach, and refuses to allow it.
“Juliet…” He speaks with a tender firmness, waiting for me to loo
k up once more, and when I do, a single word slips past his lips, his expression leaving no room for argument. “No.”
At his pained, sorrow-filled whisper, the dam breaks.
“Ugh.” I look up at the ceiling, willing the tears away.
Noah curses, shifting from his seat, but I only look to him when he takes my hand and pulls me to my feet, gently wiping tears from my cheeks with the pad of his thumb, and leads me toward the door.
My feet are a little unsteady from the alcohol, but Noah keeps me grounded with his body.
We walk back to campus in silence and despite my leaving the place in tears, there’s no awkwardness to speak of between us.
Twenty feet in front of the brownstone building my dorm room is located in, Noah reaches out to grab my hand, halting my footsteps, and when my eyes find his, he nods his head toward the fountain.
With a light laugh, I follow his lead, lowering onto the cement edge beside him.
He angles himself, so he’s facing me, and after a moment of holding my bloodshot eyes with his own, he nods. “You didn’t tell him, did you?” he speaks softly.
“Tell him what?”
“That it was your first time,” he guesses.
A sharp pain knocks against my ribs, my attention dropping to the ground beneath my feet.
I shake my head, somehow not at all surprised by his perceptiveness.
“Shit,” he mumbles, then shifts closer to me. He lifts my gaze to his, leaving his hand to rest on my cheek. His forehead is pinched, torn between a few emotions I can’t quite name.
“Was he gentle?” He works hard not to frown; I can see it in the strain between his brows.
“Noah—”
“Tell me,” he quietly cuts me off. “Tell me, Juliet.”
His voice’s barely above a whisper now, and something in my chest warms.
This man, who I’ve met a total of three times, feels like the furthest thing from a stranger.
My lips curve up slightly, and I reach out, placing one hand on his chest.
“He was gentle. Maybe even too gentle.” I scoff a laugh. “He had no idea, but he treated me better than I could have asked him to. We have a complicated relationship, more so now, but he’d never hurt me.” I smile sadly. “Never intentionally anyway.”
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