“That’s for thinking that fucking me can fix everything,” She barks, tugging up her shorts, and straightening herself up. She leaves me standing there, speechless.
My mouth tugs up on one side. This woman is going to be the death of me.
* * *
“So Braxton slips and lands his ass in a pile of cow dung. At least we hope that’s what it was.” Bryce cackles. “We hiked the entire trail with his stinking ass! Needless to say, he didn’t manage to impress Beatrice Willis.”
I flick him off. The entire dinner has been a banter session between Bryce and me. I say something embarrassing, and he tries to top it. That hike story was too much. My mother had tried to stop him, but apparently, he was having far too much fun. Give my brother a glass of whiskey, and he thinks he’s a comedian.
Eliana seems fascinated with the stories, her face red from laughing so hard. My mom gives me a look, a smirk on her face when she catches me looking Eliana’s way. I just narrow my eyes at her.
“On a more serious topic, are we all set for the party tomorrow night?” I ask, trying to change the subject.
“All set. It’s a beach party, so I hope you packed your bikini,” Nadia winks at Eliana.
“I did actually. Brax told me it would be.”
“I bet he did,” Bryce chortles, earning him a glare from Nadia. I laugh it off.
“So do you have any siblings, Eliana?” my father asks.
“I do. A younger brother.” I had told my family it’s a touchy subject, so I’m relieved they’ve refrained from asking about her parents. I place a hand on her bare thigh, and she lets out a small gasp.
“You okay, dear?” my mother asks.
“I’m great, this dinner is wonderful, by the way. It’s nothing like anything I’ve ever had before.” I continue to run my hands up and down her thighs. She’s better at hiding it now, simply continuing to fork bits of food into her mouth. I’m heady from the food, wine, and whiskey I had before, and all I want to do is go upstairs, fuck my girl again, and go to sleep.
The small talk continues until I yawn visibly. “Tired, are we?” Bryce winks.
“As a matter of fact, I am, asshole. I drove two hours here.”
“Haven’t been getting much sleep then?”
Eliana spits out her wine. “Oh, my God, excuse me!” She uses a napkin to wipe the wine she spat mostly on herself. She’s lucky it wasn’t red; that would give my mother major anxiety.
“I get just enough, thank you very much. Are you? I couldn’t help but notice Nadia hasn’t had any wine this evening.” I waggle my eyebrows at my brother.
Nadia’s pretty, caramel eyes widen, and she looks at Bryce accusatorily.
Recognition hits my mother. “Are you two-” Not even finishing her sentence, she’s out of her seat and tugging Bryce and Nadia into a hug. Nadia stares daggers at me. I shrug.
He started it.
The women are in the kitchen cleaning up. Bryce and my dad are at the fire pit outside. Everyone is tipsy and in high spirits. I walk up to my old bedroom, it looks exactly the way it did the last time I was here. But it was a different time, and a different girl was sharing a bed with me. I open my laptop and open the folder I am drawn to. Pictures of Ro smile back at me. Wild red hair and kind green eyes. I think of deleting it, deleting her, but instead I slam the laptop shut.
Is it wrong that I feel torn in two? Eliana does things to me, there is no doubt that I’ve fallen for her, hard. I’ve been trying to deny it, but she’s like gravity, holding me down to earth, to reality. But it scares me to feel that way about someone again.
I make my way downstairs and out to the fire pit, where I laugh with my father and brother, and pretend my heart isn’t torn in two.
