It Was You (19 page)

“I wouldn't,” I said. “Especially coming from her. Your ex-girlfriend.”

“
I know, but still. It just freaked me out and pissed me off. And the fact that you hadn't said anything about it made me worry that she'd told you something about me that you were wondering about.” We reached another crosswalk and we stopped at the corner. He looked down at me. “I didn't want that. So I went apeshit.” He paused, looked away for a second. “I have a temper. It's not pretty and it's better than it used to be, but when it gets lit, it goes quick.” He looked back to me. “So that's why I acted like a complete idiot and I'm sorry I went off like that.”

I reached up and put my hands on his face. The dark stubble rubbed against my fingertips. His eyes were filled with something I hadn't seen before. Remorse. And worry. My heart felt ready to burst.

“Don't go off on me like that again,” I said, stroking his cheek. “It scared me. Just tell me.”

He nodded and closed his eyes at my touch. “I will. I'm sorry. I won't do it again.”

“And I don't care about Kayla or anyone else,” I said, immediately thinking Annika. “Anybody else can tell me whatever they want. All I care about is what you tell me. Alright?”

He covered one of my hands with his, pressing it against his cheek. “Alright. I promise.” He leaned down and kissed me and I kissed him back, hard, wanting him to know I meant what I said.

As we walked the rest of the way back to his place, though, his arm wrapped around my shoulder, I couldn't help but wonder one thing. One small thing that instantly filled me with worry, that set me on edge.

What exactly was he afraid of that Kayla might tell me?

TWENTY EIGHT

The only article of clothing left on either of our bodies were the panties I'd purchased at the mall. I'd made sure they were freshly laundered for my date with him.

We'd gone back to West's place and as soon as we realized that Griffin wasn't there, I attacked him.

I pushed him up against a wall and kissed him, running my hands under shirt, touching his chest, my nails digging into his smooth, muscled skin.I pressed myself up against him, pushed my hips into his and immediately felt him swell inside his shorts. I slid my hand down, found the bulge and squeezed softly, eliciting a moan from him. I forced my tongue into his mouth, licking at his teeth, then sucked on his bottom lip. His hands drifted down my back and cupped my ass and he lifted me off the ground. I wrapped my arms around his neck and thrust my hips forward, his cock pushing up between my legs. I gasped into his mouth.

The clothes came off as we made our way back to his bedroom and he laid me down on my back. He stood over me, unbuttoned his shorts and let them fall to the floor. I reached out for him, wrapped my hand around and guided him to the bed.

He came down gently on top of me and his lips found my neck, biting into the skin just behind my ear. I arched up into him, my hands roaming his beautiful naked body. His warm, muscled skin rippled beneath my fingertips. He unclasped my bra and slid it out from under me. His mouth slid down my neck, kissing the skin as he went, until his tongue found one of my nipples and I arched again as he sucked at my breasts. I wrapped my legs around him, pulling him to me.

I was ready. Ready for the last step. Ready to let go.

Ready for West.

He was driving himself into me and I was pulling myself up into him, the warmth between my legs turning in a fire. He slipped his fingers into my panties, his finger sliding easily inside me. I moaned and reached between us, trying to find him. I did and wrapped my entire hand around him, my hand sliding up and down his shaft.

“
Careful,” he whispered, his mouth still hovering over my breasts. “I'll lose it.”

“
Take them off,” I whispered, then bit his ear. “Take them off. I want you.”

He lifted up over me and stared into my eyes. “You sure, Abby?”

I threw my head back and ground my hips against his again. “Yes. Please.”

His fingers slid out of me and tugged at the waist band of the panties, pulling them down over my hips.

And then someone knocked at the door.

“
Jesus Christ,” West muttered, then shouted, “What?”

“
I need you,” Griffin said on the other side of the door.

“
I'm busy,” West said, burying his face against my chest.

My fingers clawed at his back. His skin was so smooth. Absolutely perfect. I couldn't ever remember wanting anyone the way I wanted him.

“I need you, bro,” Griffin said, his voice sharp.

West's body felt heavy on top of me. He sighed. “Grif, come on.”

“I need you,” Griffin repeated. “If I didn't, I wouldn't be knocking.”

“
Shit,” West whispered. Then he looked at me. “Gimme a minute, okay?”

I made a face, but said, “Okay.”

“I'm sorry,” he whispered. “I'll be right back.”

He lifted himself off me and I stared hungrily at his naked body as he stood next to the bed. He picked up his shorts and slid them on, tucking himself into them before he buttoned them. He reached for the blanket at the edge of the bed and pulled it up over me.

He leaned down and kissed me. “Do not move.”

I nodded and watched him open the door and then close it as he stepped out of the room.

For the first time since we'd gone into the room, I exhaled. I pulled the blanket up to my neck. Being naked with him felt like everything else did with him—natural. I wasn't embarrassed or self-conscious about my body or not having any clothes on. And I couldn't get his clothes off fast enough. I wanted to touch every inch of his body, taste every square inch of his skin. Every dirty thought I'd ever had was rocketing through my mind. I felt like the most sexual person on the planet.

The door opened and West came back in. He shut the door and leaned back against it. He tilted his head and sighed, a deep heavy sigh.

“What?” I asked, propping myself up on my elbows.

“
I have to go,” he said, staring at the ceiling.

My heart sank. “Oh. Okay.”

“No, it's not okay,” he said, frowning. He pushed off the door and came over to the bed. He laid down on top of the blanket next to me. “It's really not okay.”

It really wasn't. I wanted to pull him under the blankets and finish what we'd started.

“It's his dad,” West said quietly. “He's got...some issues.”

“
Issues?”

“
Mostly alcohol,” he answered. “He just got arrested. Again. I need to go with Griffin to bail him out.”

Suddenly, I felt horrifically selfish for wanting to keep him there. “Oh my God. Wow.”

West shook his head. “Yeah. Pretty much. Not the first time and probably won't be the last. He doesn't wanna go by himself and I don't blame him. His dad will be totally belligerent and it'll take both of us just to get him in the car and home.”

“
It's okay,” I said, meaning it now. “You should go.”

He ran his hand ran up the blanket, over my legs. “I don't want to. But he'd do it for me.” He paused and looked away. “He'd help me out.”

I knew what he meant. It was exactly how I felt about Tana.

“
It's fine,” I said. “I understand. You need to help him.”

“
I'm sorry,” he whispered.

“
Stop,” I said, touching his cheek. “Don't be. He needs your help.”

He nodded slowly, then leaned down and kissed me softly. “I'll make it up to you.”

“Nothing to make up.”

“
Still. I kinda liked where we were at. And where we were going.”

I laughed. “Kinda?”

“More than kinda,” he said, corner of his mouth turning upward. “Like, this is about the only thing in the world that could've pulled me off of you.”

I was disappointed. I couldn't deny that. But I was also glad that he was willing to help his friend. In the same way that I wasn't going to back out on Tana, I liked that he was loyal to his friend.

I could wait.

I shooed him off the bed and slid out from under the covers. I stood there for a moment in just my panties.

“Next time, then,” I said, raising an eyebrow.

His eyes moved slowly up and down my body and if I hadn't already been undressed, I would've been when he was done.

“Next time,” he croaked. “For sure.”

I found my clothes and dressed quickly, then ran a hand through my hair, straightening out the slight case of bed head I'd developed while laying with him.

He came over and put his arms around me. “Thank you.”

“
For what?”

“
For tonight,” he said, his voice soft. “For understanding. For everything.”

“
Don't thank me, West,” I said, putting my head against his chest. “There's nothing to thank me for. You need to go help your friend.”

His fingers found my hair and combed through it and I closed my eyes, listening to his heart beat. We stood there like that for quite some time before he had to go and I was pretty sure that it was just as good as the sex would have been.

TWENTY NINE

The rest of the week went by quickly and didn't, unfortunately, involve sex with West.

I didn't hear from him that night after I went home. Not that I expected to, but there was a small part of me that was hoping he'd text or call after they picked up Griffin's father. He didn't, though, and I tossed and turned all night.

I went to school feeling like a zombie and West was waiting with coffee for me at the bottom of the stairs. He explained that they'd been at the downtown jail for most of the night, waiting for Griffin's father to get processed. When they finally got him out, they'd learned that he'd been evicted from his apartment in El Cajon and had no place to stay. So they brought him home to the apartment.

It had been a long night for them, too, and the thing that went unspoken between us was that there was now another body in the apartment. Finding some alone time was going to be tough.

So we spend the rest of the week hanging out at school, talking about our classes, reading together in the library and stealing dinners at Salazar's, the small Mexican restaurant just up the road from Mesa.

If he wondered why I hadn't taken him home yet, he hadn't asked and I was starting to feel guilty about that. Maybe I was being a bit overzealous in protecting my privacy and keeping him away from my sister, but I still couldn't manage to invite him over to the house for fear that Annika would somehow magically show up. I couldn't risk it. I didn't want to think about what might happen if she was introduced to him, if he realized there was another person just like me walking the planet. Not just like me, I amended. But someone who looked like me, someone who might be able to absolutely take the place of me.

As we got closer to the weekend, I was dreading leaving him. I knew I was being ridiculous. It was just one night, but it felt like my days began and ended with him. I liked the routine. I liked the familiarity. And I liked him.

Actually, I was starting to think that I more than liked him. And that didn't scare me one bit.

On Friday, he and Griffin were going looking for a new place for Griffin's father to live, so we had to say goodbye at school after my last class.

“You'll text me?” he asked, standing next to my car. “A couple times anyway?”

“
More than a few,” I said, reaching for his hand. “Hundreds. Thousands, maybe.”

“
Nah, you'll be busy,” he said. “I just need a few.”

I folded my fingers into his. “I don't want to go.”

“So don't. Stay here. Spend the whole weekend with me.”

It was tempting. More than he probably knew. To go hole up with him in his apartment sounded like about as perfect of a weekend as I could dream up. My parents already knew I was heading to San Luis. I could pretend I was still going and spend my entire weekend with him, instead.

“Maybe Tana will call me and say she's sick,” I said, half-serious. “Or that she found another friend to babysit her.”

He laughed. “I doubt that will happen. But if it does, come find me. I'll be around.”

We hugged for a few minutes and I didn't want to let him go. I don't know why it felt like such a big deal to leave him. It was one night, I reminded myself. One single night. But there was something about going away without him that bothered me. I just couldn't put my finger on it.

I pulled back. “I need to get moving.”

He nodded. “Okay.”

I stood up on my tiptoes and he leaned down. He kissed me, nearly lifting me off the ground, his arms wrapped around me. I pressed into him and if he'd picked me up, carried me to his car and taken me away, I wouldn't have objected.

But he eased his grip on me. “You need to go and if we keep doing this, I won't let you go anywhere.”