by Alex Rosa
I let out a mocking laugh, raising a brow as I see Josh’s face pale. “Oh really, Josh! Maybe if you cared to ask me about Vanessa before you started fooling around with her, I might have told you that her little black book probably rivals Blake’s!”
Josh’s face empties of emotion, and I continue. “Yeah, at least I knew what I was getting into when starting a relationship with Blake. Don’t get me wrong, Josh, I think you and Vanessa are good for each other. I’ll give you that, but it has been nothing but hypocritical bullshit since the moment you found out. And for what? I understand I broke your rule, and should have been up front about it. That I will admit. I never want to disappoint you, and I thought, hell, I knew getting involved with Blake would make you upset and angry—so I kept it a secret. Now I feel stupid for it.”
I let out an exasperated sigh, looking at my shell-shocked brother. “But you have to know that amid the secrecy and sneaking around, I’ve really fallen for him, Josh. And for some reason, he’s fallen for me, too. I don’t know when or how it happened, but it happened. If you must know, I fought my feelings for him to the end, and the only reason he didn’t fight you back tonight, and took every punch, was to prove to me that he’s in love with me.”
Hearing the words aloud has me wanting to roll my eyes at Blake’s adorable absurdity, but instead my brother’s breathy chuckle in the midnight silence catches my attention. “The idiot.”
I shrug. “I can’t argue with that.” I pause a beat and take a risk. “But isn’t that what you’d want for me, Josh? Someone willing to take a beating from you to prove how he feels about me?”
Josh rolls his eyes. “I expect my best friend to be honest with me, Skye.”
“You don’t think you would have punched him anyway? I know you want me with some uptight med student or lawyer.”
“You’re right. I guess I would have slugged him anyway. He doesn’t deserve you, you know?”
I shake my head and smile. “What if I don’t deserve him, Josh?”
He falls back onto the couch, shaking his head. “You’re both idiots.”
“I think I’ll take that as a compliment.”
Silence hangs in the air as Josh eyes me, pursing his lips. “I have to be okay with this?”
“Yes, absolutely. But you have to mean it.”
“I’ve never seen Blake with a girl long-term, Skye.”
“Well, I guess now is as good a time to witness it. And how about this: If he breaks my heart, you can beat him up again?”
I raise my eyebrows double time, which earns a chuckle from my brother. The sound is an ocean of relief to my senses.
“Without a doubt. You tell that rat bastard I won’t be taking him on as a client, though. I’m still pissed, but I accept it for what it is.”
I stomp my feet. “Josh! You will most definitely be taking him on if he asked you to.”
“Oh, now you dictate my job, too?”
“When it comes to my brother and my boyfriend, I think I have a say.”
He grunts. “Skyler . . .”
“No, Josh. If you told him yes already, then our relationship shouldn’t make a difference to your business relationship with him.”
He rises again. “Fuck! Fine! I’m upping my earnings by two percent though if he thinks he can get away with screwing around with my sister.”
I huff, rolling my eyes. “Boys are so stupid, but good!”
“I don’t know how I’ll be okay with this, but I’ll try. Is that good enough for you?”
“More than good; it’s great!”
I chew my lip, eager to run back to Blake, but my curiosity over the conversation piques. “Josh, why would you be taking Blake on as a client now?”
“Doesn’t seem like your boyfriend has told you yet. He snagged that movie and starts filming soon. That’s another thing, Skye. His life is about to get public. I don’t think you underst—”
“What!” I screech, giddy at hearing him.
Josh rolls his eyes. “Yeah, he got the part.” He rubs at his face, and waves me off with his other hand, as if exhausted with me. “You better get back to your idiot boyfriend.”
I’m about ready to turn on my heels, but I make it one step before I hear my brother. “Hey, Skyler?”
“Yeah, Josh?”
“Did you mean what you said about Vanessa?”
I let out my grunt. “Don’t let it get to you, Josh. You’ve tamed her. It’s obvious that all it takes is meeting the right person to stop your shenanigans, right?”
He lets out a long sigh before turning around and making his way back to his room.
I scamper back to Blake’s bedroom and try to contain my rabid smile as I shut the door behind me. When I swivel around, Blake is sitting on the corner of his bed, and has the frozen bag of peas held up to his face.
I slink toward him, noticing that he’s removed his pants and is wearing nothing but a distractingly low-hanging pair of briefs. I lick my lips as I approach him, and find that with everything out in the open, my confidence with this too-good-looking-for-his-own-good human being is now unwavering.
Although I like to think of myself as the predator from time to time, his intense green gaze tells me he merely lets me feel that way and could pounce at any moment. A thrill reverberates through my body as I climb over him, straddling his hips. His free arm snakes around my waist, holding me in place as we sit nose to nose. I peel the bag from his face and toss it aside.
“So it must have gone well.”
I grin, placing a delicate kiss on his lips, pulling away before he can capture them fully. “Pretty well, actually.”
He lets both hands come around, taking a firm grip of my behind, and I have to do everything in my power not to groan and jump his bones.
“I guess I should tell you I heard everything.”
I wrap my arms around his neck, aching to kiss him again. “Figures. How did I do?”
His hands drag up my body and underneath my shirt. “Amazingly.”
My heart flutters at his seductive tone of approval.
I cannot help it any longer. I lean into his lips, and as if he was showing the same teetering patience, he accepts the kiss. The sound of his erotic growl at the touch has my insides pooling in desire. I breathe out as I feel his right hand make contact with my breast.
“I’m so proud of you.”
He grins. “For what?”
“For getting the part. So am I dating a movie star now?”
He chuckles, his breath humid and inviting against my mouth. “I wouldn’t say movie star.”
“I knew you could do it.”
Another appreciative groan erupts from him as he pulls my body into his. “Your confidence in me is crazy.”
I smirk, skimming my tongue over his bottom lip, and mimic his words from earlier. “Only crazy for you, babe.”
He pulls away to let out a string of laughs. I sit back on his thighs, basking in the honest sound as I bring my left hand to his face, stroking his bruise that serves as the evidence to his admission.
He leans back onto the bed, leaning on his elbows, which only puts his mouthwatering physique on shameless display as he quirks a brow. “If your brother thinks I’m upping his earnings by two percent, he’s kidding himself.”
I crawl over his body, and he turns me over onto my back and nestles against me. I wrap my legs around those wonderful hips of his.
His green orbs darting over my features has me squirming as I raise my hands up to his chest, tracing the hard sinews, thinking right now that Blake deserves more from me.
“Hey, Blake?” I whisper.
“Yeah, Skye?”
“I love you.”
He shies away, and I find it a stunning look on him.
“I love you, too.” He says it with such ease.
I grin, feeling like the luckiest girl in the world. I run my fingertips over his scalp as he leans down, placing skin-tingling kisses across my jawline and down the nape of my neck. I let my eyes sink to a
close, absorbing every sensation.
“You know what I want to do now?” he breathes. He pushes the edge of my shirt over my stomach, moves his lips to just above my panty line now, and makes everything below my waist clench in anticipation, soaking my panties through.
I open my eyes, watching him as I chew my lip, thinking I know where this is going. “What do you want to do?”
He pauses, peering up through his long lashes. His eyes hold a wicked gleam combined with a devouring sense of love. “I’d like to take you on a date.”
I smile, tilting my head to the side as if not understanding him, but blushing all the same. “You what?”
“I want to make you into an honest girl, and take you out on an honest date.”
I lick my lips. “An honest date sounds perfect, but can we wait on the honest girl part?”
His teeth clamp down on his bottom lip to stifle his chuckle. He rises back up to my face, grinding his hips into mine. “I was hoping you’d say that.”
And I’m lost in his overwhelming, but ever-so-perfect possession of my lips.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
I adore the world of writing and the people in it. I feel honored to be a part of it. It’s this tight-knit, cozy community of support and the weird . . . which makes it utterly perfect. I have made so many friends, writers, and readers along the way, and I know it’s going to be impossible to thank everyone, but I’m going to try.
There was a moment when I was just an author workshopping my books online, using reader feedback as a way to help me with rounds of edits. Never did I think posting my work online would lead to getting published with Penguin InterMix. I want to give a BIG thank-you to online writing community Book Country and InterMix—this includes Lucy Silag, Kristine Swartz, (and Nevena Georgieva), for taking a chance on a new author and loving Tryst as much as me! This journey has been tons of fun. Thank you for the opportunity.
Once Tryst was picked up by a publisher I went on a manhunt for representation. My e-mails were hilariously unprofessional to a slew of agents. So a big thank-you to Erin Niumata of Folio Literary Management who responded to my frantic e-mail and took me on as a client. Thank you for all your hard work and slaying the publishing world! I’m excited for all of our future projects and thankful that you are always open to answer my endless questions.
Thank you to my editor extraordinaire and bestie, Dani Crabtree, who became my friend first and editor second. You have taught me so much and helped me grow more than you will ever know, as a writer and as a person. Thank you for being part of my life.
To my Mom and Dad, who didn’t look at me funny when I told them I wanted to be a writer. I thought they were going to tell me that I was crazy, but it never came, and that’s when I knew crazy runs in the family. Thank you for always being willing to listen to me jabber endlessly about writing, publishing, and everything in between. I don’t know what I would do without having you both as a solid support system. There isn’t a day that goes by that I’m not thankful for you and your unconditional support. Thank you for doing everything you can to help make my dreams come true. What more could I ask of my parents? The answer: absolutely nothing. I love you.
To Alys Arden who has become a best friend and long lost sister even though we are constantly in different states, and sometimes different countries. Thanks for always being a sounding board to plot debacles, talking me through overwhelming writing/editing schedules, and joining forces to navigate the publishing world. Cheers to friend tattoos, cemetery movie screenings, tackling video interviews like champs, and thanks for somehow always understanding what’s going through my head.
To my partners in world domination, Jaycee Ford and Len Webster, thank you for being there for me every step of the way and allowing our little tripod to be a safe zone of hilarity and support. The world is ours for the taking, I just know it.
Writing can be a lonely sport and although the players are few, it doesn’t mean there isn’t collateral damage. Thank you to my bestest friends: Geoffrey Gonzalez, James Ybarra, and Matthew Smith. My little family. I adore you three more than you will ever know, and I’m so grateful to have you in my life. Thanks for dealing with my random disappearing acts to go write, and listening to my constant updates. You keep me grounded and smiling, and I am thankful every day that I have friends like you.
To Sabrina Ferlita, who has read Tryst more times than I’ve asked her, and given me tons of writing support along the way even though she may not realize it.
Amanda Angulo Vargas, a.k.a. the Marge to my Norma. What would I do without our late night chats from bookish rants, sharing book recommendations and reviews, to our endless conversations that discuss everything and nothing at all? One day I’ll come and visit you, or we will go on that road trip we talked about. Thanks for always being such a great friend, a sounding board for ideas, listening to my randomness, and being part of this journey with me.
To all of the amazing people who read Tryst as it was posted online and fell in love with Blake and Skyler as much as I did—I swear I am more your fan than you are mine. All of your comments, reads, and fangirling for this book has made it into what it is today, and I appreciate every single one of you! A special thanks to “Alex’s Agents” street team members: Michal Sue Walker, Kimberley Lake, Rosa Sulaiman, Renee Roy, Sarah Aherne, Noelle Beltz, Nat Rowlin, and Hira Ali Raja for all of your amazing support. You all keep me laughing and writing.
A special thanks to all the bloggers out there who take the time to read, review, post and share books online. It’s a tireless job that deserves endless thanks. Thank you for helping promote authors and their hard work. We are forever grateful!
When Alex Rosa isn’t scouring city parks or cafés to write in, she is most likely trying to convince her friends to join her on her next adventure. A sufferer of wanderlust, she is always looking for a new mountain to climb, a canyon to hike, or a plane to board. Her résumé consists of coroner, zoo worker, and most recently, executive assistant, but she finds her home among words, whether in books or in film. Her obsessions are on the brink of bizarre, but that’s just the way she likes it.
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