by Lawton, Lexi
“Thanks, but no thanks,” she said, ignoring the gesture and whoever was at the other end of it. She hoisted herself out of the pool and turned to help Celeste.
“Kylie?”
She froze. That voice. Her heart slammed against her chest so hard it was a miracle she didn’t break a rib. She slowly turned around and came face-to-face with those familiar brown eyes and that so-handsome-it-should-be-illegal smile.
“Xander.” His name came out a bit breathless. She’d been starting to think he’d ditched her, but now there he was, standing in front of her, looking a hell of a lot sexier than she remembered.
And here she stood, soaking wet, looking like a hot mess. She’d spent extra time getting ready tonight, too. She’d straightened her hair and let Celeste apply some makeup, which Kylie never wore, but she’d wanted to look good tonight in the hopes she might finally make something happen with Xander. But now she was dripping wet, her hair was probably stringy, and she was positive there were black mascara streaks down her face.
“It’s okay. I got it. I’m out,” Celeste said from behind her. “Thanks for the help.”
Oh shit! She turned to face Celeste. “I’m sorry.”
Celeste shook her head and then twisted the hem of her shirt, wringing out the excess water.
Xander cleared his throat, and she turned back to him. He was trying not to laugh, but he wasn’t hiding his humor very well. “You two were being wallflowers, huh?”
She narrowed her eyes. “Didn’t realize that was a crime punishable by drowning.”
His forced-serious facade cracked, and he laughed long and hard. “Sorry,” he gasped. “I should’ve warned you.”
“Ya think?”
“C’mon, I’ve got some towels up in my room that you can use.” He nodded toward the staircase to his left.
“Forget the towels.” Celeste twisted her shirt again. “I’m going home.”
Kylie whipped around to stare at her. “You’re leaving?” The promise she’d made earlier rushed back at her. If you hate it, we’ll leave. Based on the scowl Celeste wore, she hated it.
“Well, I’m not staying here looking like this.” She waved her hands over her body.
Personally, hanging out in wet clothes didn’t bother Kylie much, but she would like to dry off and make sure she didn’t have raccoon eyes. Plus, she’d just found Xander and didn’t want to leave yet. But she couldn’t break her promise, either. “We can go home and change and then come back?” Hope filled her voice.
Celeste shrugged, then glanced toward Xander. She stepped closer and lowered her voice. “You should stay. I’ll be fine.”
Kylie shifted on her feet. She didn’t like the idea of Celeste walking across campus alone at night. “No, it’s okay. I’ll go with you.”
Celeste looked miserable, and a pang of sadness landed in Kylie’s gut. Nothing about this night was going as she’d hoped.
“I can walk you home,” Xander offered.
Kylie turned to him and smiled. “Thanks, but we can make it back to our res hall on our own.”
“I have no doubt you can. My offer was purely selfish.” He winked, and her face warmed with a blush. Moments like this she cursed her fair, freckled skin. Why couldn’t she sport a permanent tan like Celeste?
“Dude, you trying to move in on my girl?” Finn walked up and put his arm around Celeste’s shoulders.
Celeste’s face split into a massive grin, and she stared up at him like a girl with her first crush. “Your girl?”
“I can take Celeste home if you want to stay and hang out with Xander,” Finn said to Kylie. “If that’s okay with you?” He glanced down at Celeste.
Maybe the night would be salvageable after all.
Celeste turned to her. “You stay and hang out. I’ll go home with Finn.”
“Are you absolutely sure about this?”
She nodded. “I didn’t want to come here in the first place, and now I have a good excuse to leave.” She chuckled. “But you stay. Really. It’s fine.”
Kylie couldn’t contain her smile. She hugged Celeste. “Thank you so much. I owe you.”
Celeste stepped up to Xander and poked him in the chest. “You best make sure she gets home safely, and don’t you dare let anything happen to her.”
“Don’t worry, she’s safe with me.” He glanced over at Kylie. “I have no intention of letting her out of my sight.”
His words sent a thrill up her spine.
“I’ll see you later.” Celeste’s gaze bounced between them, and then she left with Finn.
“She’s kinda scary,” Xander whispered conspiratorially.
Kylie playfully elbowed him, and he chuckled. He led her up to his room. She had no idea what she expected a frat bedroom to look like, but she wasn’t expecting it to be so clean and orderly. Everything had a place, the bed was made, and even the floor was free of dirt and clutter.
“Here.” He held out a towel to her.
“Thanks.” She wiped her face and arms first.
“I’m really sorry about those guys.” He tucked his hands into his pockets and rocked on his heels. “Brad gave them one thing to do tonight—find wallflowers and prank them.”
“Yeah, there really should be some sort of warning on your party flyers.”
“In our defense, we’re kind of known for that prank. It’s our thing. Almost everyone who parties here knows that.”
She glared at him.
“I’m sorry.” He frowned.
She sighed. “No, it’s okay. I mean, I’m not happy I’m standing in some strange guy’s bedroom soaking wet, but I have to admit, that prank is kind of funny.”
“So, I’m just some strange guy now?” He leaned against the doorframe and crossed his arms with cool confidence. Sex appeal radiated off him. “And here I thought we were getting to know each other.”
“We were.” She nodded and ran the towel over her hair. “But then you ignored me all week, so we’re back to stranger status.”
“Is that so?” He smiled but didn’t offer any explanation as to why he hadn’t contacted her all week. “Want some dry clothes?”
She hesitated. “You have girls’ clothes hidden in your room? Is there something I should know about you?”
Laughing, he shook his head. “No. I have T-shirts and some sweatpants with drawstrings. Not exactly a fashion statement, but they’re dry.”
“I’ll take a dry T-shirt.” She didn’t want to walk around a party like this with his pants on. The dirty looks and rumors would be ridiculous. Granted, she wasn’t in her small Ohio hometown anymore, and no one would probably even notice her. Still, she wanted to salvage some of her dignity and look halfway presentable. “Um, is there a bathroom I can use?”
Xander pushed off the doorframe and walked in. He handed her a dry T-shirt with Greek letters. “Follow me.” He led her out of his room and down the hall. After walking through a large office-like room, he held open the door to the bathroom. “I’ll wait out here for you.”
“Thanks.” Kylie closed the door and blew out a breath. She stripped off her wet shirt and bra, then checked her reflection in the mirror. Her hair was stringy and no longer sleek and shiny. Using the towel, she dried the ends so they wouldn’t continue to drip down her back. Thankfully, she always kept a spare hair tie around her wrist. She used her fingers to comb through her hair and pull it back into a loose ponytail. Then she attempted to dry her jeans, but after patting at the denim for a few moments, she didn’t notice much of a change. They were still soaked.
Most of her makeup had washed off, so at least there wasn’t mascara streaking down her face. But she did have raccoon eyes. Shit. She wet one corner of the towel and attempted to remove what was left of her makeup. She didn’t look nearly as hot as when she’d arrived, but she wasn’t a complete train wreck.
Pulling Xander’s shirt over her head, she slid her arms through the armholes, breathing in the scent she’d quickly come to associate with him—clean and
outdoorsy with a hint of fresh mint. She brought the shirt to her nose and inhaled, letting her eyes close as his unique aroma seeped into her. Thank God the shirt was two sizes too big on her. It helped to mask the fact that she no longer wore a bra.
She double-checked to make sure there wasn’t anything stuck in her teeth, then she rolled up her wet bra and shirt. Taking a deep breath, she nodded to herself and stepped out of the bathroom. Xander sat in the oversize chair with his feet propped up on the massive desk, staring down at his cell phone.
“Hey.” He looked up, then dropped his feet from the desk. His gaze lingered on her face for a moment before lowering down the length of her body, stalling at her breasts. She swallowed hard. Could he tell she wasn’t wearing a bra? “All better?” he asked.
“A little.” Her stomach fluttered, and her heart raced. Why was she suddenly so nervous? Probably because she knew damn well where her thoughts were heading. And based on the way he stared at her, she guessed his thoughts were wandering down the same path. “I’m not sure what to do with these.” She held up her wet clothes.
“You can toss them in my room until you’re ready to leave.” He led her back to his room, where he took the wet clothes from her and set them on the floor right inside the door, but not before her bra fell out. He bent to pick it up. “Red lace.” He arched a brow. “My favorite.”
“Oh God.” She covered her scalding-hot face with her hands and shook her head. Although she wasn’t sure why she cared so much. So what if she wasn’t wearing a bra? Her boobs were firm and perky, and honestly, she was quite proud of them. “Seriously, what is with you and picking up my undergarments? Is this some sort of fetish I should know about?”
Xander smirked, then closed the door. “If you didn’t keep dropping them all over the place, I wouldn’t have to pick them up.” He flung his arm around her shoulders. “I’m starting to think you’re doing it on purpose.”
She playfully elbowed him.
He placed a kiss to her temple, his lips hot against her chilled, damp skin. “C’mon, let’s go get a drink.”
Of course he wanted to drink. She blew out a shaky breath. One drink wouldn’t hurt, she thought as she walked downstairs with him.
Chapter Nine
By the time they were downstairs, Xander had dropped his arm from her shoulders, but then he took her hand and wove through the party. His large, warm hand completely enveloped hers, and all she could think about was how his hands would feel elsewhere on her body. Would his touch be as self-assured and firm as it was right now?
I need to get a damn grip.
He stopped abruptly, and she almost slammed into his back. She shook her head, cursing herself for being so clumsy around him.
“Xander!” The guy behind the bar gave him a high-five. “I was wondering when you were going to show up.”
“Had a few things to take care of.” He glanced at her over his shoulder, and her face once again flushed. “I’m here now, though. What’re you mixing?” Xander pulled out two barstools. He sat on one and motioned for her to sit on the other.
“Whatever you want.” The guy grinned.
Kylie glanced around, confused. Since when did any frat house have a fully stocked and operational bar complete with a bartender? Didn’t they normally have kegs and random bottles of liquor scattered around?
Xander looked at her. “What’re you drinking?”
“Um…” She had no idea. The only thing she’d ever had to drink was that wicked-cheap, horrible-tasting beer a few months ago. “I don’t know. What do you suggest?”
“I got just the thing for you.” The guy behind the bar grinned and then turned his back to them.
“That’s Eric,” Xander said. “He works part-time at the sports bar off campus as a waiter. Now that he’s of legal age, he was promoted to work the bar, so this whole setup”—he waved his arm around—“was his brainchild. He wanted to be able to practice whenever he could.”
“Great. So, we’re all his guinea pigs?” What if his drinks tasted awful?
Xander laughed. “Trust me, he’s good at what he does.”
That did very little to calm her nerves, but she nodded, not wanting to ruin her time with Xander. Before either of them could say anything else, her phone rang. Kylie’s eyes widened as she reached into her pocket. Her wet pocket. “My phone!” She yanked it out to see Celeste’s name on the waterlogged screen. How the hell had she forgotten about her phone? Panic gripped her chest, making it difficult to breathe.
“Shit. Your phone was in your pocket when they threw you in the pool?”
“Where else would it be?” she snapped. She didn’t know what she’d do if her phone quit working, because she couldn’t afford to go buy a new one. Tears burned her throat. What was she going to do now?
“Stay put.” He stood and disappeared into the crowd.
She frantically tried to respond to Celeste’s text, which simply read: Made it home. Have fun. Be safe. But every time Kylie touched the screen, the phone went wonky. She pressed the button for her messages but was taken to her call log instead. Then, out of the blue, the phone shut itself off.
“No, no, no!” She punched at the power button, holding it longer and harder than necessary.
Xander returned with a large plastic bowl filled with uncooked rice. He plucked her cell phone from her hands, removed the battery and SIM card, and then dropped it all into the rice. After taking a moment to make sure everything was fully covered, he smiled, proud of his handiwork.
She stared at him like he’d lost his mind. “What on earth are you doing?”
“Saving your phone. The water will be absorbed by the rice. In a day or two, your phone will be back to normal.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. And if it isn’t, I’ll buy you a new one.”
Kylie’s jaw dropped. Did he seriously offer to buy her a new phone? What the hell? She closed her mouth, then opened it again to tell him how crazy that was, but Eric returned before she could speak. He set down two shot glasses filled with a cherry-red liquid.
“Sex on the Beach.” Eric smiled.
Xander picked up the shots and handed one to her before lightly tapping his glass to hers. “Also my favorite.” He winked, lifted the glass in salute, and then swallowed the liquid in a single gulp.
She sniffed the drink and scrunched up her face. It had a sweet smell, but it wasn’t sweet enough to mask the liquor. Raising the glass to her lips, she took a deep breath, her heart racing. I can do this. Without a second thought, she downed the shot. She expected a bad aftertaste or a burning sensation when she swallowed, but she was pleasantly surprised by the sweet flavor. “Mm.” She licked her lips.
“Keep ’em coming, Eric,” Xander called without taking his eyes off her. His gaze was intense and filled with an emotion she couldn’t describe. Goose bumps broke out on her arms, and she suppressed a shiver.
Eric set two more in front of them, and she stared at hers. “Those are really good,” she said, nodding at the glasses.
“They are,” he agreed, picking up his shot. That familiar twinkle returned to his eyes, obliterating her good sense. “You going to drink that?”
She shrugged, not wanting to divulge her fears about becoming a raging alcoholic. “I’m pacing myself.”
“Fair enough.” He pushed both the glasses away and rested his arm on the bar. “So, tell me. Who is Kylie?” He scooted closer to her, so close their knees touched, and her stomach jumped. She sat perfectly still, afraid if she moved even an inch, he would, too, and then she’d be left without the heat of his body touching hers.
She shrugged. “I’m just a freshman sitting here having a drink with an upperclassman.”
He chuckled. “Yes, I can see that. But I want to know about you. Where do you come from? What’s your major? Do you have a boyfriend who’s going to show up and beat my ass?”
Kylie shook her head. “I’m from a very small town in Ohio. Celeste and I actually went to sc
hool together. We hated each other when we first met.” She laughed at the memory. “But I totally grew on her, and now we’re best friends. I’m majoring in social work and psychology, with a focus on drug dependency.”
“Wow. Smarty pants.” He grabbed the shots he’d pushed away. “Let me guess, you want to save the world?” He downed one in a single gulp.
“Nope. Not the world. Just kids who are unfortunate enough to have shitty-ass parents.” She shifted on the barstool and looked around. Talking about her parents was always unpleasant. The familiar rock that landed in her gut each time she had to think about her father reappeared, dampening her mood. She grabbed the other shot and swallowed it. She wrinkled her nose and stuck out her tongue. That one didn’t go down so smooth. In fact, there was a horrible bitter taste left in her mouth. “Ew.”
“Oh yeah?” He leaned forward so their faces were inches apart, and then he put his hands on her knees. Heat shot up her thighs and radiated through her body, making her limbs tingle with the need for more. Her heart lodged in her throat, and her gaze darted down to his hands. She waited, hoped he would move his hands farther up her legs or that he’d lean even closer and kiss her. But he didn’t.
“Yeah,” she whispered.
“Then I’ll get you something else. But first…you never answered me about the boyfriend.”
She raised a brow. “You’re asking me about a boyfriend now? Isn’t that something you should’ve asked me a week ago?”
“Probably, but playing in the grass with your panties distracted the hell out of me.” He laughed. “I haven’t really been able to think about anything else since then.”
Well, that was a mental image she wouldn’t be able to get rid of anytime soon. Not that she wanted to. “No boyfriend.”
His face lit up with a gorgeous smile. “Good.”
“What about you? Any girlfriends I should know about?”
“No.” He held her gaze for a moment, and she sucked in a breath. “How about a blow job?” His expression was unflinching.
