When the DJ switches up the music, finally playing something slower and softer, Travis stands and gestures to the dance floor. “Shall we?”
We approach them, and he easily pulls Ellie into his arms. Olivia smiles at her friend, then turns to me, her brows dipping as I stand with my hand stretched toward hers. She stares at it for a beat before placing her hand in mine, too reluctant for my liking. I pull her roughly into my chest and lock my arms behind her back. Her hands glide up my chest to my shoulders, and my whole fucking body heats up from her touch.
“Thought you didn’t want to dance,” she says as we start to sway.
“I said I didn’t want to dance withher.”
She bites back a smile, her eyes fluttering closed. We continue to move, and she sighs, laying her head againstmy chest. My heart stutters, skipping several beats before picking up rhythm. I look down. Can she feel how my chest is pounding? She hasn’t flinched.
My hands find her hips, my fingers stretching across the small expanse of her waist. Her legs are long, and she’s always in heels, but she’s still several inches shorter than I am, fitting perfectly under my chin.
The song continues, and she subtly shifts closer to me, her breast pressed against my ribs. Her hands are folded around my neck, but her eyes are still closed, like she’s fallen asleep.
When the song ends, the DJ bumps the music back up. I don’t listen to this kind of music, but it’s typical club music, the perfect bumpin’ and grindin’ kind. Olivia doesn’t move, and I’m about to carry her out because I’m sure she is asleep. Then she spins around and presses her ass into me.
I freeze, hands dropping to my sides as my brain tries to comprehend what’s happening.
She reaches for my hands and places them back on her hips as she continues to swing her body with the music. Her movements are slow and a little sloppy, no doubt due to the alcohol, but I’m entranced.
I don’t move a damn muscle as Olivia uses my body to grind on. I only inch back slightly when my cock starts pressing into my zipper—he doesn’t realize she’s drunk. She backs up into me harder, not letting any space between my dick and her ass.
I groan, my hips instinctively wanting to thrust, but I hold steady. I squeeze her waist in warning, but she throws her head against my chest, swaying all over me. The heat from her ass rubbing against my jeans creates a painful yet delicious friction that I want more of. I’m about to spring a full hard-on. I force myself to think of anything else other than the way she’s dancing. The way her body feels pressed against mine.
Cats. Dogs. Sick people.
When that doesn’t work, I step back. Olivia doesn’t strike me as the type to do shit like this often. Hell, maybe ever. As much as my cock wants her to keep doing exactly what she’s doing, she’s wasted. I grab her hand, and she looks over her shoulder, her eyes sleepy and confused.
“Come on,” I say in her ear before leading her off the dance floor.
I nod to Travis as I pass him, and he and Ellie follow me. Olivia is basically dead weight, hanging off my shoulder as we walk to my truck. Travis climbs in the back with Ellie, and I pick Olivia up and place her in the passenger seat. She mumbles something incoherent as I strap the seat belt around her, then recline her seat so she can rest.
Travis and Ellie start making out, so I turn on the stereo to drown them out as I drive. My eyes bounce from the road to the seat next to me where Olivia sleeps soundly, her face turned toward me, mouth parted slightly. Still no wrinkle in her clothes, just the small wet spot on her ‘cashmere’ sweater from her spilled drink.
I park in the parking garage, as per Ellie’s instructions. I round the truck and unbuckle Olivia, giving her shoulders a gentle shake, but she doesn’t move.
“Liv, we’re home. Liv,” Ellie says, tapping her leg.
Olivia doesn’t stir.
“I’ve got her,” I say, scooping her up.
“Her room is the third door on the right.” Ellie points down the hall as we step inside their apartment.
I kick my shoes off, noting the plush cream carpet under me, and head to her room. The door is slightly ajar, so I nudge it open with my foot.
I grin as I take in her room. It’s dark, but there’s a lamp in the corner casting a golden hue. A large white four-poster bedsits in the middle, covered by a fluffy pink blanket and several pillows stacked neatly. Her walls are light pink, not surprising at all. She has a vanity filled with makeup and other girly shit that’s neatly organized, nothing out of place. In the corner, there’s a small chair and a bookshelf full of yarn. Pictures hang on a corkboard, all of her and Ellie. There’s not much else here as far as decor goes, but everything is feminine and soft, just like I imagined.
I adjust Olivia in my arms and yank her blanket back before laying her down. I gently tug the sparkly boots off her feet before covering her up. She sighs and snuggles against her pillow. I place the boots by her bed just as Ellie steps into the room, long enough to deposit Olivia’s phone and purse on the table beside her bed.
I eye her phone for a moment, take one last glance at the sleeping beauty, and walk out.
13
PENN
The familiar treesblur as I speed past them. The sky is gray, like my mood as I head to my mom’s house. I don’t visit as much as I used to, and for no reason other than with Dad and Pacey gone, it’s hard. I miss my mom, but she throws herself into work. It’s too painful for her to sit in the silence of an empty house, one that used to be filled with so much noise—jokes, laughter, and music.Lotsof fucking music.
I felt like an ass for not moving home when things went to shit, but my mom insisted she didn’t want me to. My parents always encouraged me to chase my dreams. My dad wanted this for me, maybe even more than I did. He knew how much I loved it, and he loved me. After he died, that didn’t change. My mom still supported my dreams and, if anything, pushed even harder for me to live my life, knowing how fleeting it is, even if it meant taking me away from her.
