by Kai Juniper
"I didn't. Finn kept it."
I yank the bill from my pocket. "I can't take this. You'd be out $200. That's way too much."
"It's nothing. You've seen my house. My car. You really think I care about $200?"
"Okay, but you're not paying me again. If you need a ride, I'll do it as a friend."
"You think of me as a friend?" he asks, a huge smile covering his face.
"Sure," I say, hoping it'll make him go away so I can leave.
"Let me walk you to class."
"I'm leaving. I don't feel well. I'm going home. But I'll see you tomorrow." I shut my locker and race to the door, hoping he doesn't follow me.
When I get home, I see Briggs' Porsche in my driveway. I park my truck and jump out, running over to Briggs in his car.
"I'm going to go in and change," I say, as he rolls his window down. "Did you decide what we're doing?"
He smiles. "You want to go swimming?"
"That's perfect!" I say, suddenly remembering he has a pool. "I'll go get my suit."
It's a great day to go swimming, hot and sunny with no clouds in the sky. I love to swim, but the public pools are always so packed with kids that I can't swim so I don't bother going. Briggs has a huge pool and I'll have it all to myself. I doubt Briggs will get in the water. He said he doesn't use the pool.
We get to his house and stop in the kitchen to grab some drinks. He has a glass cooler just for beverages. I didn't notice that last time I was here. I grab a soda while Briggs takes out a bottle of fancy water.
"I forgot to bring a towel," I tell him as we go out back.
"Over there." He points to a big wooden box. "All the clean towels you want. I'll grab us some."
"Are you going to swim?"
"I don't know." He gets the towels and brings them over to me. "I haven't decided."
"You should. I don't want to swim alone." I yank off my t-shirt, exposing my bikini top.
Briggs' eyes immediately drop to my chest, then go lower as I take off my shorts. There isn't much to this bikini. I bought it for when I'm tanning in the back yard. I have others that cover up more, but I grabbed this one instead.
"Yeah, I'll get in there with you," he says, a slight smile forming. "I'll be right back."
This could be trouble. Briggs and I in the pool together, just the two of us, barely wearing any clothes. Maybe this was a bad idea, but if it was, why do I feel so excited right now, and so alive?
Briggs comes out wearing his swim trunks and my jaw nearly drops when I see his abs, his chest, his arms. Every muscle is on display, making my eyes struggle with where to look next. His body is amazing, which I already knew, but seeing it like this, right in front of me, half naked, is making my body react in ways it's never reacted from just seeing a guy. Briggs isn't even touching me and I'm completely turned on.
"How's the water?" he asks, sitting at the edge of the pool.
"Feels great." I lay back, looking up at the sky. "You really never use this?"
"I don't have time. I get home late and then I have to study. And it's boring being out here alone."
"Your dad doesn't swim?"
"No."
"When does he get home?"
"It depends. Usually it's around seven unless he's entertaining clients. Why do you ask?" He laughs a little. "You worried about him coming home and finding us here?"
"A little."
"You need to stop worrying so much. Shit happens, you deal with it. It's as simple as that." He scoops some water from the pool and splashes it on his chest, then does it again to his arms. His tan skin looks even better when it's wet. Now I'm thinking of us in his shower again. Dammit!
"Why don't you get in?"
"I'm not ready to." He leans back on his hands. "You think she's talked to him yet?"
"Who? Oh! The guy! I totally forgot." I race to the edge of the pool to get my phone.
"Relax. It was just a question. I wasn't trying to freak you out."
"I guess I don't know what I'm looking for," I say, scrolling through my messages. "It's not like Susan's going to text me with me an update."
"That's the cop? Susan?"
"Yeah, the woman my dad's dating. He wants me to go to lunch with her. Maybe I should, to see what she'll tell me."
"You can try asking her stuff, but you need to be careful what you ask. You don't want her getting suspicious."
"I could tell her I'm asking for Charlotte. She's obsessed with crime investigations. Or maybe I could bring her along, although I'm supposed to be going to lunch to get to know Susan, so that might seem suspicious. I'll just pretend I'm interested in the case." I set my phone down and turn back to Briggs. "What if he told her about us?"
"Then we'll deal with it. It's him against the four of us. We can deny whatever he says."
"But that wouldn't make sense. Some guy we don't know wouldn't just accuse us of that."
"He would if we did something to piss him off. Telling the cops we did this could be his way of getting revenge."
"If he doesn't know us, how could we have pissed him off?"
"We make up a story to explain it. By the time we're done, the four of us are just innocent teenagers being accused by some guy who's lying just to get us in trouble. It's up to the cops to prove us wrong."
I pause, thinking that might actually work, but it's nothing I ever would've considered. Briggs' mind works differently than mine with stuff like this. If I'm accused of something, I panic and don't know what to say, but Briggs is cool and collected and can make a lie seem like the truth.
"How'd you learn how to do that?" I ask.
"Do what?" he asks, splashing more water on his chest.
"Come up with a story that fast. Lie, but make it sound like the truth."
He shrugs. "I don't know. I guess from watching my father."
"Your dad taught you to lie?"
"He wouldn't call it lying. He'd call it self-preservation. You do whatever you have to do to protect yourself. I feel bad about what happened to this guy, but I'm not going to let him destroy my future. I wasn't even the one who hit him."
"But we left him there."
"And went and called for help." Briggs lowers himself into the water, which comes to just above his waist. He makes his way over to me, lowering his voice even though nobody is around. "If the guy tells the cops about us, we lie. Finn and Parker won't have a problem with that. Will you?"
I take a moment to think about that. Would I lie? And could I go my whole life keeping that lie? If I told the truth, my entire future could be ruined. Even if I didn't go to jail, there'd be a record of me being involved in a hit-and-run. The story would be online forever. It could keep me from getting a job someday and could affect my relationships. Who would want to date the girl who left an injured man on the road and then tried to hide what she'd done? Who would even want to be friends with that girl? I didn't mean to do it, and I didn't want to, but it happened and I can't go back and change it. But people won't understand that. They never could, unless they were there that night. Only the four of us really understand what this is like.
"I could do it," I finally say. "I could lie."
Briggs is in front of me now. "You sure about that?"
My eyes meet up with his. "Yes."
Every time I look at him, I feel this connection between us. It's so strong it frightens me. I don't want to feel this type of closeness with my biggest enemy, and never would've if it weren't for the accident. But now I feel like Briggs is the only one I can talk to, the only person who understands what I'm going through. I can't talk to Finn and Parker. They want to pretend it never happened.
Briggs is the only one taking this as seriously as I am, but he's able to remain calm, which helps me stay calm as well. It's why I keep wanting to be around him. I feel better when I am, and safe. I feel safe when I'm with Briggs. I can't believe I'm feeling that way around the guy who used to spike fear in me just by walking past me in the hall. I didn't let him see that fe
ar, but it was still there. And now here I am, feeling safe, alone with Briggs.
"You okay?" he asks with genuine concern, which I honestly didn't think he was capable of until all this happened.
"I'm trying to be."
He moves forward and pulls me into a hug. "It's going to work out. Everything's going to be okay."
It's exactly the words I needed to hear, and he said them with so much confidence I believe him. I rest my head on his chest, which is warm from the sun, and feel a peace come over me. It shouldn't even be possible I can feel this way given what's going on, but somehow Briggs, of all people, is able to make me feel at peace.
"How do you stay so calm?" I ask. "Aren't you worried, even just a little?"
"I am, but I don't let it get to me. If I let every bad thing in my life get to me, I wouldn't be here right now. I just have to let it go and wait for it to be over."
I pull back enough to look up at him. "What bad things? Is there other stuff going on besides the accident?"
"Don't worry about it. It's nothing."
I rest my head back on his chest, my arms going around his waist, and we stay there for I don't know how long, just holding each other. It's confusing, and makes me want to question his intentions, but doing that would ruin this moment, and it's too perfect to ruin. I've never felt this close to someone, which scares me, especially since it's Briggs, but I'm not going to think about that, not now.
"You good?" he asks.
"Better than I was." I pull away from him and move back, dipping all the way in the water before popping back up. I wipe the water from my eyes and see Briggs watching me.
"If you want to swim, I can get out of the way."
"I don't need to swim. I just like being in the water."
He smiles. "That's right. You like getting high on the chlorine."
I laugh. "I don't get high on it. I just like the smell of pools, and I like the water on my skin. I like how it feels." I splash him. "Doesn't that feel good?"
"What the hell?" He wipes his eye, which must've got water in it when I splashed him.
"Sorry. I didn't mean to hit your eye."
He gets a mischievous grin on his face, then swipes his hand through the water, causing a huge splash that hits my chest and face.
"Hey!" I yell, putting my hands up as he splashes me.
"What? You don't like it? You started it."
"To show you how good the water feels," I say, turning my back to the water flying at me. "Stop splashing me!"
"You said you like how it feels."
"Yeah, well, I've had enough."
He stops splashing, and when I look back at him, I see that devilish grin is still on his face.
"Don't you dare," I tell him.
I barely get the words out before I'm struck with another huge splash, right in the face.
"Asshole!" I lunge at him.
His arms go around me, holding me against him.
"Let me go!" I say, trying to wiggle my way out of his arms.
"Is that really want you want?"
Looking up at his face, I see his grin is gone and the playfulness in his eyes has been replaced with desire. The same desire I've been feeling since the moment I saw him walk out to the pool. His body is pressed against mine, the heat from it setting me on fire and sending my desire for him to a level I didn't think was possible.
I've never wanted any guy as much as I want Briggs right now, and the more I try to fight it, the stronger it gets.
Chapter Six
Ella
"I don't think you mean it," Briggs says, his eyes locked on mine. "But if you really want me to let you go..."
He waits for me to give him an answer. I know what the answer should be, but it's not the one I want.
Before I let my brain convince me otherwise, I wrap my legs around Briggs and press my mouth to his. A low growl comes from deep within his throat, reverberating through his chest. It's so damn sexy, especially knowing I'm the cause of it. I've never felt this powerful with a guy. Briggs always takes charge, and he did when he grabbed me, but then he gave me a choice. And I decided to do what I wanted, to do what felt right in the moment, which is something I rarely, if ever, do. It was a risk, but it paid off with how I'm feeling right now, endorphins flooding my veins, heat erupting inside me, as Briggs kisses me back with a passion that replaces all rational thought with pure desire.
I feel the cool, slippery water on my chest and realize my top is undone. Briggs must've untied it without me even realizing it. His lips leave mine and when I open my eyes he's looking back at me. It's a hesitant look I don't normally see on Briggs. It's like he's checking to make sure I'm okay with this, waiting for me to tell him to stop. But I don't. I can't. I don't know where this will end up, but I'm not ready for it to end.
He takes my silence as his cue to continue and tips me back in the water as he lowers his mouth to my breast. I suck in a breath, overwhelmed by sensations and trying to take them all in. The heat of his skin. The chill of the water. The flick of his tongue on my nipple. His strong hands gripping my thighs. And his hot, thick, very hard cock between my legs, only the thin strip of fabric from my bikini keeping him from slipping inside.
Wait—how did this happen? His swim trunks are still on, but Briggs must’ve pushed them down enough to free his cock. I didn’t even notice him do it. This is all happening so fast. Too fast!
I shouldn't do this. I'm not ready. Even if I was, I shouldn't do it with Briggs. I should do it with someone who actually cares about me. So why do I want this so bad? Why can't I stop myself?
My body moves like it has a mind of its own, my pelvis thrusting against Briggs, rubbing along his cock. I hear Briggs groan, almost like he's in pain from trying desperately to hold himself back. I lift up from the water and grab his face, lifting it to my mouth. I kiss him without any restraint, letting him feel my desire. It's met with even more as Briggs kisses me back with an animalistic need that has me feeling like I'm on fire, and my only relief is to see this through.
Keeping hold of my thighs, Briggs moves a little, and then I feel it, his cock slipping under my suit. I feel the tug of the fabric as the tip of him rubs over my opening, almost going in. I love how it feels, and I'm sure it'd feel even more amazing if I wasn't freaking out.
This is really happening, or it's about to.
He's still kissing me, but he's slowing down. His hands get a tighter grip on my thighs and then I feel him, ready to slide in.
"Wait!" I pull back but look down, not wanting to see his face when I say this.
"Yeah?" he says, sounding out of breath. "What's wrong?"
I swallow. "I can't do this."
He doesn't say anything, and he doesn't move. My legs are still wrapped around him and if he nudges forward just the tiniest bit, he’ll be inside me.
"I'm not ready," I tell him, keeping my eyes on the water.
"Okay." He says it softly, and doesn't sound angry or disappointed like I thought he would. I wouldn't have cared if he got angry. This is my decision to make, and I'm not going to do something I'm not ready for, even if he yells at me for letting it get this far. But he's not yelling. He's letting go of me and backing away.
"Sorry," I mutter, but then wish I hadn't. I'm not sorry for stopping us. I'd rather stop us than regret that I did it.
"Don't worry about it," he says, backing up to the edge of the pool. "I misread the signs."
"No. You didn't." I swim over to him. "I really wanted to. I just..." I take a deep breath. "I'm a virgin."
"Ella, I'm not mad. You don't have to make shit up to explain why you changed your mind."
"I'm not making it up." I look at him, which is really hard to do when I'm feeling this vulnerable.
"You said in the car that night that you weren't a virgin."
"I lied."
"Seriously?"
"Yeah. I didn't want you guys making fun of me, which I knew you'd do if I'd told you the truth."
"
Fuck!" He stands up in the water, shaking his head. "Why didn't you tell me?"
"I did."
"I meant before I..." He takes a breath.
"Why are you getting mad about this?"
"Because I almost took your virginity! What the fuck? I can't believe you let us get that far and didn't tell me."
"What difference does it make?"
"Really?" He gives me a deadpan stare. "You really have to ask?"
"What? You think I'll fall in love with you if you're my first? Trust me, that wouldn't have happened. Just a few weeks ago, I hated you."
"Exactly, so why the hell did you almost let me put my dick in you?"
"Because I—" I don't know how to explain this—to him or myself. I never in a million years would've even imagined myself kissing Briggs, and yet I almost had sex with him. How is that even possible?
"I'm going inside." Briggs gets out of the water. "You can stay out here and use the pool."
"Briggs, wait!" I hurry out of the pool and race after him. "We're not done talking about this."
He stops before going inside. "What else is there to say?"
"I was trying to explain, but then you ran off."
"Go ahead." He folds his arms over his chest. "Explain."
I let out a breath. "I got caught up in what we were doing. It felt good—actually, it felt amazing—and I didn't want to stop. I kept telling myself to, but I couldn't. I didn't want to. But then, right before it happened, I panicked. I realized I wasn't ready. Something just didn't feel right. I think I just wasn't ready for it to happen."
He stares at me, not saying anything. I can tell his mind is working, but he won't tell me what he's thinking.
"I wasn't trying to hide it from you," I say. "I was just embarrassed to admit it, which I shouldn't be, but I didn't want you making fun of me."
"I wouldn't have done that," he says in a serious tone.
"But would you have treated me differently? Would you have decided not to kiss me? Or touch me?"
He looks to the side. "I don't know. Maybe."
"Then I'm glad I didn't tell you, because what we did just now was...something I've never felt before. I don't regret it. Do you?"
