AllFreeNovel
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I think of her talking with Ben at the party and of what Jake told me about her at the club. Both feel like months ago. ”I might understand the building blocks of life. But you understand how to live it. You get how the world works, in all its twistedglory.”
My fingers are playing with a piece of her hair but she doesn’t stop me. Rena’s face turns toward the balcony’s edge, her little nose and parted lips silhouetted as she rubs her arms. “It’s cold. Let’s goinside.”
I stand first, holding out a hand to help herup.
“Hey,Rena?”
“Yeah.” She puts her hand in mine, and a current of electricity buzzes through my skin as I tug her tostanding.
I lean in and sniff her neck. “You smell good. You should bottle that and sellit.”
She snorts, her slim shoulders rocking. “Pizza would smell good to you rightnow.”
“That’s not it,” I argue. “And you can’t bottle pizza.” But I crack up too. “It’s really fucking romantic, standing out here, talking about ourparents.”
That makes itworse.
We’re holding our sides, and each other, more than a littlehigh.
Everything I know, everything I built, is crumbling aroundme.
Somehow, I can’t remember being happier in mylife.
“Wes?” she says when I finally reach for the sliding door. “You did fuck methough.”
My fingers freeze on the handle. “Iremember.”
“I don’t blame you for leaving. I was amess.”
“That’s not why.” She looks up at me, questioning. “I left because that would’ve been something I could never come backfrom.”
“I thought you were trying to forget it.” Her half smile is undermined by the embarrassment in hereyes.
I trace a finger along the scratch, nearly healed, on her cheek. “Fuck, no. I’ll never forget how youtaste.”
The expression on her face, soft and a little needy, is nothing compared to the way her lashes lower and she sways towardme.
I feel it too, the pull that’s wearing me down everyday.
With an effort that nearly kills me, I force myself to think of all the men who paid to date her at Jake’s party. The men who’ll want to date her in real life. The ones who’ll getto.
“Don’t worry. I’m sure there’s a line of jacked mouth-breather types waiting for their chance to impress you,” I murmur. “You won’t lose sleep over me,babe.”
“Did you just call me ‘babe’?”
I flush in the dark. “No.”
“You didtoo.”
“It was thegummies.”
“Don’t take it back,” she says quickly. “You can call me anything youwant.”
I reach back to tug lightly on her ponytail, and fuck if that doesn’t give me a rush. “EvenJosephine?”
“Except that.” Rena reaches for my loosened tie, shoving it tight in one smoothstroke.
She follows me inside, and we take in the screen, still holding the menu screen for theDVR.
