Sebastian scopes the room and points at me when he finds me. “You up?”
I shake my head. “Pass.” Gaming is Sebastian’s first love, not mine. He tosses the second controller to the guy Sylvia was sweet talking and sets up another round of the game. I take that as my cue to head back and grab a shower. I’ve been sitting here too damn long and it’s only making me feel worse with each minute that passes that Violet isn’t near me.
I scoop my glass of water up, down the rest and head into the kitchen where I set it in the sink. My phone buzzes and I pull it from my back pocket, seeing a text from Finn. Just another reminder that he was ready for his money weeks ago. I’m in the midst of typing a message back to reassure him that I’ll have it soon when I sense someone entering the room. I know it’s Violet before I look up and see her standing there. Took her damn near long enough.
I finish my text, send it to Finn, and pocket my phone.
“Going to ignore me all night?” she asks.
I lean back against the sink and cross my arms, appreciating the way she slowly walks her way deeper into the kitchen. She’s not wearing her normal work-out clothes. She’s in a pair of frayed shorts and a basic V-neck t-shirt that has me wanting to hook my finger into the point and bring her closer.
“Not ignoring you,” I tell her. “Just giving you space.”
She stops at the island, her palm dragging over the smooth countertop behind her. “I wasn’t aware we needed that.”
“We don’t, but you’re with your friends. Didn’t want to interfere.”
Sylvia made it more than clear that I’m not welcome in her space, and while I know Violet feels differently, I don’t want to cause a problem for her by making myself known. I’d rather stay in the shadows. Let her come to me if she wants to engage after our yoga session.
“You don’t need to do that.”
“Yeah, I think I do.”
“We’re okay, Colson,” she says in a quiet voice, like she knows I was giving her space for more reasons than her friends being in the same room.
I lick my lips.
What am I supposed to say to that?
This isn’t the time or place to get into why I touched her the way I did.
My eyes flick to her mouth when she speaks. “We got lost in a moment that ran away from us…and then we snapped back to reality.”
“Violet…”
“Nothing has changed,” she promises. “We’re still friends. You can still count on me.”
I drop my gaze to the ground. I don’t know if I should be relieved over her not making a big deal out of this or pissed at myself for walking away from such an amazing fucking girl.
“And besides, Sylvia can get over herself,” she says, like we weren’t just talking about something a lot heavier. “I like having you around. I’ve been waiting for you to come over and talk.”
“Funny, I was waiting for the same.”
She looks at me. “I wasn’t sure it was safe for me to approach.” There’s a short pause before she adds, “Not because of, you know, but because you look like you’ve had a day.”
“It’s a lot better now.”
She smiles and leans her elbows on the counter. Her shirt dips lower at the point in her collar, inviting my eyes to it for a second. My gaze flicks back to hers when she says, “You say that, but your face doesn’t.”
I scrub my hands over my forehead and cheeks, trying to smooth out the frustration of my poor choices and waiting this long to talk to her. “Better?”
She slants her head to the side with a smirk. “Slightly.”
“I know something that might help.”
Her face lights up, and as much as I know I shouldn’t flirt with her, I can’t fucking help myself. This is another moment that’s ours, and I intend on spending it exactly how I’ve imagined it since I sat my ass at that table and kept to myself.
“Tell me. What is this something?”
