Cameron exhaled and Gavin could hear his empty, humorless chuckle. "Yeah, well I refuse to be his lackey. He doesn’t have the right to tell me what I can and cannot do."
"When it comes to Ebony he does," Ethan said dryly.
"She's his sister. His goddamn sister! Why is everyone ignoring that fact?" Cameron snapped and Gavin could imagine the anger written on his face.
There was a pause. Then Luis spoke, his voice even. "But she's not his sister, is she?"
Ethan's tone turned amused. "Wait. Was it the red dress? Last year?" He snapped his fingers as if the thought was catching. "Last year when we were all over at their house and their parents were there. We were hanging out in the kitchen when she came down in that red cocktail dress?"
Luis groaned. "Fuck. That dress."
Ethan kept going. "Was that when you fell for her? She came downstairs and we all just stood there. Like a deer in headlights. I swear I didn’t even make it home that night. Just scrolled through my phone and ended up at Jenna’s."
Luis whistled low. "To be fair, same. Not Jenna's but Rachel's."
Gavin stepped back. It was best he stepped away now before he heard anything more that might make him barge in and throw all three of them overboard.
Making his way to her cabin, he stopped in front of her door. The hallway was quiet and there were a few other cabin doors along the wall. Most likely belonging to her uncles. Gavin knocked softly. A few seconds later her door opened.
Standing in a fluffy white robe that seemed to swallow her whole, she stared up at him. Her curls were big and bouncy, framing her face like a soft black cloud.
Gavin stepped inside and closed the door behind him. Her room, a carbon copy of his, was swathed in soft amber light from a lamp in the corner, reducing the space into something private and intimate.
“I'm happy you're here.” As if she had been holding it in all night she began to speak. “It felt wrong you not being here to celebrate our birthdays, but don't think I'm just going to forgive and forget everything you've-"
Closing the distance between them, he grabbed her face, gently kissing her on the cheek, cutting off her words. "I've missed you," he sighed. His words came out like a confession.
Ebony blinked, her face small between his hands. Grabbing his wrists she lowered them and fixed him with a stare. "If you've missed me then prove it. No more cryptic statements, no more walking off when I press for answers. Tell me why you pulled away from me. Tell me why you decided to treat me like a stranger."
Hervoice caught on the last words, a small shift. A small crack in her tone that hit him like a gunshot. He tried to pull her in closer but she stepped back. Her eyes bright with unshed tears, she stood her ground, silently demanding he speak.
There was so much to say and so much she wasn’t ready for. Gavin sighed. "I'm sorry. I was just mad."
Not at all satisfied with that answer, she balled her fists into the fabric of her robe. "Mad about what?"
"Mad that my best friend wanted to date you,” he snapped. “Mad that you probably wouldn't mind. But even madder knowing I should step back and not get in the way." And even though it wasn’t the whole truth, it was a truth. True enough that the words were bitter on his tongue, scraping across his insides as they poured from him.
His own fucking friend had betrayed him. Hell, it sounded like all fucking three of them had considered it at one point or another. Frustrated, he turned away, willing his anger to calm.
"I'm not dating Cameron," her soft-spoken words felt like cool water splashing in his face.
Frowning, Gavin turned on his heel and gave her a look that saidare you serious. Because he was still haunted by the image of her laying on Cameron's bed with his fucking hand up her shirt.
"What? I'm serious, we aren't," she said, her eyes wide. For some reason, Gavin believed her.
Running a hand through his hair he thought about that as he continued to give her a speculative stare. "Does he know that?"
Ebony shrugged and looked away. "We're just hanging out."
"Good Lord, you're a cruel woman," he laughed, only to laugh harder when she threw a pillow at him.
"But no seriously. You treated me like that for so long just because…you thought I was dating. That's not fair or right. You've done all sorts of-"
Again, he cut her off this time crowding her close until they were standing by the bed. Dipping his head to her collar, he inhaled the citrusy sweet scent of her shampoo. He buried his face in her curls, letting them glide over his skin. "Please forgive me Ebbs. I've been a dick," he groaned into the dark mass of her hair. "I was angry. So fucking angry, you have no idea. It feels like I've been angry forever. I forgot what it felt like to smile and laugh and hold you."
Ebony pushed at his chest and he briefly considered not moving but relented, allowing her to push him back only a step.
She gave him a look of indignant outrage. "But you were the one who left me! You were the one who did all of that. Why should I just forgive you and pretend you didn’t hurt me so badly?" she said, her voice rising.
