“Chaz?”
I know he owns his own house and the car he drives looks super expensive but he's so unpretentious.
You can see the spoiled rich boy behaviour in Reece and Pryce sometimes, but Chaz?
“You don’t know whose bed you’ve been sleeping in every night for the past two weeks?”
Gabbie made it clear that she doesn't exactly approve of the fact that I’m basically living at Chaz's and that I’ve been sleeping in his bed every night.
She doesn't even approve of me dating the whole A-Team, she doesn't think I’m a slut, she doesn't think that the boys deserve their dangerous reputation but she thinks that dating all three of them can only end in heartbreak and she doesn't want that for me.
“Chaz’s parents own the biggest talent agency in the country. So they’re filthy rich in their own right but Chaz had a band. The biggest, most successful pop band on the planet. Their first album alone made more money than the Beatles made in their whole career. He was the lead guitarist, solo singer and he wrote most of their second album. Then he was in a car accident and he broke his hand so badly that he could never play guitar again. He quit the whole showbiz scene after that. No one knows why, since he could still sing and write. Abi, you need to watch him live, he's a legend. His guitar solos have been compared to Jimi Hendrix and Van Halen ...”
I’m shocked that my sweet Chaz used to be a pop star, even though he still has the look when I come to think about it.
He seems the most reserved out of my boys and while at first I struggle to imagine him on a stage, putting on a show, he has a magnetic charm that draws people to him.
A loud knock on the bathroom door interrupts my thoughts and Gabbie rolls her eyes.
“It’s Pryce. He was worried about you and was about to barge into the girls bathroom. I offered to check on you but if you don't talk to him, he’ll probably kick the door down. But what I was trying to tell you, Abi, is to watch your back because a lot of girls are jealous of you. I don't know who posted that disgusting poll but I put my money on Lissa.”
I’d be more inclined to believe that Kylie and Marlene could've orchestrated the whole rumours and the fake Facebook profile but Gabbie is adamant that those two are Lissa's minions.
“But she was so nice to me at the beginning ...”
“Was she? She wouldn't let you sit at our table before tryouts, she was gonna make you strip in front of everybody at the party last weekend. She was nice at first but trust me, Abi, she's a psycho bitch and passive aggressive to boot. Marlene and Kylie do her dirty work but think about it: who pounced on Reece the minute you guys were in a fight? I bet she posted that crap and was waiting for her chance. After all, the cheerleaders’ captain gets to request which football player she wants to rally for.”
“What? I thought it was assigned randomly.”
“It is. But I heard Mrs Stubbs say that she always lets the captain pick.”
Abi
“SWEETS, ARE YOU ALL right?”
Pryce is driving us to Chaz's house and I’ve been quietly sitting in his car, thinking about the things that Gabbie said.
I nod.
“Yeah, I’m fine. Thank you for driving me home, Pryce. I didn't feel like sticking around for practice today. It was a shitty day.”
Pryce apologises for Reece’s behaviour.
“I know it sounds crazy, Abi but him kissing Lissa didn't mean anything. Actually, no. I’m fucking wrong. He did it to piss you off because he cares for you and he thinks that you hurt him. I know for a fact that he doesn't even like Lissa.”
I squeeze my eyes shut.
I know that Pryce’s absolutely right but the image of Reece’s lips on Lissa’s is burned into my mind and it makes my stomach churn.
“I know.”
I whisper and Pryce turns his head towards me with a worried look in his eyes.
“But the shit he said was out of order. He said it to hurt you and I’m sorry.”
I sigh and whip my phone out, opening Facebook.
“Well, not everyone believed him. Jessica, one of the JV cheerleaders started a new poll:
‘Do you believe that Abi Richmond is a virgin?
Yes 18%
No, she's a fucking skitch© 80%
Who cares, she can fuck or not fuck whoever she wants 2%’
Pryce parks the car in Chaz's driveway and as we unlock the door, I thank God for some peace and quiet.
“I just wish people at school got a fucking life and stopped gossiping about others. It's disgusting.”
I agree with Pryce and I know that he feels that way because he's been the victim of gossip as much as I have after that trial.
So I step closer to him and I place my hands on his strong biceps, looking into his sexy silver eyes.
“Thank you for not doubting me, Pryce. For believing me immediately when I said that I didn't post that poll on Friday night.”
His eyes darken and for a second he looks guilty.
“I’m sorry about not believing you the first time, after Lissa's party.”
I stretch on the tips of my toes and touch his cheek with the tips of my fingers, our noses almost touching.
“I don't blame you. You didn't know me then.”
His kiss is sweet and comforting and his scent of coconut and sunshine makes me think about the beach, so I say on a whim:
“It's still pretty warm outside. Why don't we go for a swim in the pool?”
“I love the way you think, sweets. See you down here in five.”
I packed a lot of my clothes, since I seem to be staying here more than I do at my own house.
Chaz offered to give me a bedroom last weekend but we talked about how we sleep better next to one another, so we decided that I’d take some space in his bedroom closet instead.
I wear a black bikini with a little white flowers pattern that Ayla insisted I buy when she took me clothes shopping after I arrived back in LA and I look at myself in the full length mirror, hoping that Pryce’ll like how I look.
I’m petite but I’m not skinny and I guess that every girl, given the chance, would change a few things about her body.
I let my hair fall down my back in long, beach waves and make my way downstairs where Pryce is waiting for me in a pair of light blue swimming trunks.
“Wow!”
He beams when he sees me, giving me a slow once over and making me giggle.
“You’ve seen me naked.”
He reaches me with two short strides and places a soft kiss on the sensitive spot behind my ear.
“I know. But that doesn't mean that I can't appreciate a hot bikini or sexy underwear. I just think I’ve got the hottest girlfriend in the world.”
He palms one of my buttocks and I instinctively hug him tighter, enjoying the touch of his smooth skin.
Instead of going into the pool, I push him towards one of the sun-beds that dot the patio and sit right on top of him, straddling his waist and bending down to kiss his warm, soft lips.
He responds to the kiss eagerly and lets his hands skim gently over my shoulders, arms and the sides of my breasts to then come and settle on my hips.
“I thought that we were gonna swim? Not that I’ll complain if you’d rather make out.”
His tone is a little teasing but flirty and I react with a smile that mirrors his.
“I wanted to swim but then ... I don't know, I feel a little weird. Earlier I thought that I was gonna get my period but I’m not. And now the idea of the water makes me feel cold. Maybe I’m coming down with something. I’m sorry, is mentioning my period weird? I’m used to an all girls school.”
Pryce smiles and drags his thumb along my bottom lip, making me want his kisses again.
“You can talk to me about anything you want, sweets. I’m your boyfriend and if I can't handle talking about your period, how can I ever expect to make love to you?”
The way he says it, the softness in his voice and the light in his silver eyes makes m
e feel so close to him that I’m comfortable asking him something very personal.
“Pryce, you know I’ve never had sex before, right?”
He nods.
“How many girls have you been with?”
He blushes.
Pryce is actually the most open, happy go lucky out of my three boys and I’ve never seen him embarrassed, so I immediately begin backtracking.
“Oh, I’m sorry if I overstepped ...”
His easygoing smile returns.
“No, sweets. You haven't. I just want you to understand that people change and they grow up. You're my first girlfriend, Abi. And I’ve only ever cared for one girl before you.”
“Emily?”
He nods.
“Yeah. But we were only friends. We never even kissed. When we started getting closer and she realised that we were all happy to date her, she made it clear that it wasn't what she wanted and that she’d make a choice. She chose Max and that was it. Before her, it was only hookups. Sometimes with the others too and sometimes one on one. I’ve been with eight girls.”
I really, really wanna keep my facial expression neutral and not make him feel judged but he must see it on my face because he asks me if I think that it's too many.
“I don't know. How old were you your first time?”
He looks even more unsure about wanting to tell me but he does anyway.
“Fourteen. I know. I know it’s young.”
I shake my head.
“It’s young. Yes, I agree. But who am I to judge when I turned eighteen last May and until I met you guys, I’d never even been kissed? That's not normal either. Our experiences make us who we are and I really like who you are, Pryce.”
He releases a breath he’d been holding waiting for my reaction and then he comments.
“Pheww! I was worried that you’d get all weird and jealous.”
I giggle at the look on his face and nip at his bottom lip before whispering in his ear.
“Of course I’m jealous! I’m gonna get all their names off you later and hire a hitman.”
He chuckles and squeezes my hips a little tighter and the movement of his fingers feels ticklish, so I squeal and squirm in his hold.
My reaction makes him decide to start tickling me and trying to prevent me from running away.
I’m soon laughing uncontrollably and I beg.
“Stop, please, stop. It tickles too much, I can't breathe!”
He stops tickling me but doesn't release me from his hold.
“You stop wiggling and bouncing, you're making me hard.”
And all of a sudden, I realise that he’s right: he's rock hard in his swimming trunks and my body reacts instantly with an involuntary clench of my core.
I lower my voice.
“Maybe I don't mind you being hard?”
He challenges me.
“Uh, really? And what are you gonna do about it?”
Only a few weeks ago, a question like this one, would've made me run or die of embarrassment.
Instead I look into the depths of his silver eyes and utter a promise that I’m ready to keep.
“Everything you want me to do about it.”
One of Pryce's hands comes up to cup the side of my face and his tone of voice is low and a bit unsteady.
“You know that you don't have to do anything that you don't feel ready for, right?”
I nod.
“What if I want to?”
He closes his eyes and inhales deeply, trying to calm down and when he reopens them, his eyes look darker, full of the same desire I feel for him.
“If you seriously want to, Abi ... we need to be safe.”
“Ok. I think I’ve seen condoms in Chaz's bathroom. But maybe we only need ‘em this time. After the other day, when we were all together, I convinced Gabbie to come with me to see a doctor and I got the pill. I’m waiting for my period, so I can start it. And once I do, as long as you guys get tested, I'm happy to not use condoms.”
“I will. And by the way, I’ve always used condoms before.”
I give him a soft kiss.
“Abi, let's wait then. Let's wait until we can love each other without any barriers between us. It’s ...”
I like the idea.
“I’ll be your first too, like that. In a way ...”
He nods.
“That’s exactly what I was thinking, sweets.”
“But what about now?”
He smiles and promises that he can think of many ways to take care of me.
“But I wanna take care of you too.”
“Ok. I think we can do that ...”
He gives me a deep, hot kiss, different from the teasing ones he was giving me before.
It’s as if now, every touch of his lips, every stroke of his tongue has a purpose.
His fingers start playing with the strings that tie my bikini top and I help him untie them.
“You have the most gorgeous tits in the world, Abi.”
His voice is just a whisper and after teasing the sensitive skin of my nipples by rolling his palms over them and creating a delicious, hardening friction, his mouth closes on one of them making me moan and grind against him.
As he releases my nipple from the warm, wet embrace of his mouth, I drag my nails on his muscular chest making goosebumps appear all over his tanned, smooth skin.
He arches his back and takes his swimming trunks off, making me grasp his hard length.
He closes his eyes when I stroke him, unable to avert my gaze from his impressive hard on.
But when I hook the sides of my bikini bottoms with my fingers, he stops me.
“Keep it on. We need something between us, or I might try to talk you into being really unsafe right now.”
I nod and whisper that right now, he could talk me into pretty much anything.
His smile is sweet but I don't miss the heat in his gaze as he pushes his hips upwards, rubbing his hard length against my centre and making me gasp when sparks of electricity and heat spread all over my body.
He keeps moving his hips rhythmically against me and the feeling gets better and better with every thrust.
I don't even realise that soon, I begin matching his movements with my own, grinding on him, my body rising and falling on his lap until I feel that familiar throbbing and that almost painful ache that precedes the sweetest release.
Wave after wave crashes over me and my pleasure is only intensified by Pryce's warmth, hitting the fabric of my bikini and the skin of my stomach and chest.
He kisses me again and his voice is deep and low when he says the best five words I’ve ever heard.
“Abi, I fucking love you.”
I smile, trying to catch my breath.
“I fucking mean it. I love you.”
And I have no reason in the world not to say it back.
Reece
CHAZ AND I ALMOST CRASH our cars into each other's as we both arrive in his driveway at the same time.
He climbs out his Rolls and opens my car door.
“Dude! Please tell me that you aren't still drunk. If you came here to try and upset Abi more than you already did earlier on, I swear to God ...”
I reassure him, putting a hand on his shoulder.
“No, bro. I’m fucking sober. And I’m here to grovel like I’ve never grovelled before.”
Chaz narrows his eyes, as if he were struggling to believe that I’ve come to my senses and had a change of heart.
I guess he’s known me long enough to know that I can be a fucking stubborn dickhead, so I come clean.
“I know for sure that Abi didn't post that poll, didn't start those rumours and that isn't even her Facebook profile. Lissa and a few of the other cheerleaders are behind it.”
“How do you know? Did you fuck Lissa until she confessed?”
He isn't totally joking.
“No. Look, I don't like Lissa, ok? I only hooked up with her a few times last year but she's a twunt©.”
&n
bsp; “So how are you so sure?”
“Max.”
I explain about the conversation I had with our former bestie and Chaz wonders the same thing I did.
“What the fuck does he have to gain from fessing up?”
“He said that he felt guilty when he realised how hurt Abi was. But I’ll worry about Max later on. I have to tell her that I’m sorry for everything and that I like her ... that I more than like her.”
We enter the house and the lounge is deserted, Abi's book bag is on one of the couches and her uniform blazer is right near it.
“They must be home, Pryce's car is outside. Maybe they're in the backyard. Look, the patio door isn't completely closed.”
We step outside and the backyard is quiet in the late afternoon receding light.
“Maybe they're in the pool or the hot tub.”
We descend the few steps that lead to the pool area and we freeze when we spot them on a sun-bed.
I retreat behind a potted mandarin tree and drag Chaz with me.
“He’s ... they're...”
Chaz is as surprised as I am by the sight of Abi straddling Pryce on a sun-bed.
I don't see everything because the sun-bed is sideways and the plant is partially in the way, but she's bare chested and I can see his light blue swimming trunks on the floor near her discarded bikini.
My first reaction is anger: is she doing this to prove me wrong? Because I told the whole school that she was a virgin?
Then I tell myself not to be an even bigger asshole than I’ve been lately.
I’ve noticed how close Abi and Pryce have been growing lately and how he called her his girlfriend earlier on.
So what if she wanted to do it with him? I know that he cares about her as much as I do.
“Chaz, did you know that they were doing it?”
“No. I mean, she's been sleeping in my bed every night but I know that they’ve been spending time together. Are you mad about it?”
I shake my head.
“No, I’m really not. Do you think this means that she wants just Pryce?”
Beverly Hills Prep Academy The Complete Boxset : A Light Bully Romance Page 48
