"You always do," she said and gave in to the need for sleep.
Drew waited, listening to her deep breaths and promising himself that he would find a way to make it all work out. When he was sure she was deep asleep, he unwound himself from her and made his way to his laptop in the kitchen, determined to find a way to make that pledge come true.
10
Leah
The Catfish Creek High School had never looked so glam. The decorations that had looked like a bunch of mishmash Tuesday had come together into an elegant whole. There were gold chairs around circular tables, black and red decorations hanging from the walls, twinkle lights on the ceiling, and masks hanging down instead of balloons or streamers. The whole elegant effect was the last thing Leah expected—well, second to last. The absolute last thing she'd expected was to be teetering on the edge of forever with the man whose palm rested on the bare skin of her lower back as they stood just inside the gym doors.
"Don't tell me you're thinking of running now," Drew whispered in her ear, sending a shiver of desire down her spine.
"Not a chance."
&nb
sp; "Good because that dance floor may be the only decent excuse I've got to hold you as close as I need to right now. That dress is killing me."
She smoothed her hands down the clingy black dress with its conservative front and deep V cutout in the back that ended at the base of her spine. If he had any clue how small her pink panties had to be to not be seen above the cutout, they never would have made it out of his house. Add a pair of killer heels in her favorite shade of ebony and she was all legs, ass, and back—it was almost as if she'd packed it in her suitcase with Drew in mind.
"This old thing?" She tossed her hair back over one shoulder so it teased the bare skin between her shoulder blades and would have winked at him if it wasn't for the stupid masks they'd both been required to put on for entrance. "I only wear it when I don't care what I look like."
Linking her hand in his, she led Drew out onto the dance floor where couples in fancy outfits and detailed masks were swaying to a slow song. Despite the disguises, she recognized a few people in the gym. Gray and Tessa were there, both dancing with other people though. So was Jessica, with whom Drew shared a knowing look and a smile. He'd sworn last night that his sister wasn't the same person she had been. God knew leaving Catfish Creek behind had changed her, maybe it was time to give another Jackson a second chance. They'd been friends once, there wasn't any law that said because of a shitty high school experience they couldn't be again.
Before that thought could spiral into another though, Drew pulled her close and everyone else in the room disappeared. All she could see was him. It felt so right to be in his arms, but Leah couldn't quite settle the nerves making her stomach do the weird flip-flop thing it always did when she wasn't exactly sure what was going to happen next. This was usually when she ran or, at the very least, put on her bitchy bad girl attitude—but she refused to let herself do that tonight. Drew wasn't the only one breaking bad habits it seemed.
The song ended way before she was ready and they walked hand in hand to one of the tables.
"What can I get you from the bar?" he asked.
"Dr. Pepper, gotta get the good stuff while I'm still in Texas." It never tasted as good anywhere else.
"You got it." He dipped his head lower so his mouth was only inches from hers. "I just need a little something before I go." He closed the distance between them, pulling her body close at the same time that his tongue slid between her lips in a demanding kiss she was more than willing to surrender to.
Hot didn't begin to describe it, but face of the sun times two might come close as her body responded automatically to his touch. Warm, wet desire had her clenching her thighs together as she gave back as good as she got. Nothing else mattered at that moment but Drew. If he'd whispered in her ear for her to get on her knees she would have, her mouth open and wanting before she hit the gym floor. Luckily—or unluckily—he ended the kiss without anything more scandalous than making her nipples so hard she could get a second job etching glass. With a wink for her and a nod for the people sitting at the table, he turned and left for the bar while she tried to remember her name and why in the hell she was back home in Catfish Creek.
One look at the people sitting at her table, though, cleared the fog of lust in her brain in a hurry. Karly sat at her table, soaking up every tidbit, no doubt. Unlike the others, Karly had taken off her mask.
Leah reached up and took off her mask, dropping it to the table and then sat down. "I thought they were required," she said, determined to brazen the whole awkward situation out.
"Oh, they are, but we can't expect bad girl Leah Camacho to pay attention to that," Karly said with an indulgent smile as if they were old friends. "So I was right, you and Drew are more than just fuck buddies! Does this mean you're moving to Fort Worth with him when he takes the new job?"
"Fort Worth?" she asked, her voice sounding strained even to her own ears.
Leah froze in her seat. Fort Worth? In all the hours they'd spent talking last night, he'd never mentioned a new job once. In fact, he'd been open to coming up to Denver to see if he'd like it. Wait. Had he said that? Specifically? Fingernails digging into the palms of her hand, she tried to recall his exact words and realized he'd evaded giving a direct answer. She'd just filled in the blanks with what she wanted to believe. Just like she had that summer when he'd left her without a goodbye.
"Oh yeah. From what I hear, this week was just one last hurrah in Catfish Creek before he starts with the Fort Worth Police Department next week. It was totally good luck that you were here to take advantage of the moment," Karly said. "I guess you two will always have Catfish Creek though."
No. They wouldn't. Not anymore. History had repeated itself one too many times.
Without uttering another word to Karly, Leah shoved her chair back from the table and marched away, her only objective being to get the hell out of Catfish Creek. She never should have come back.
"Leah," Drew grabbed her arm as she passed by the bar, jerking her to a stop, "everything okay?"
"Just fine and dandy," she managed to get out between clenched teeth. "Congrats on the job. Good luck in Fort Worth."
Confusion formed a deep V between his eyes. "What are you talking about—“
"Don't bother." She yanked her arm free, missing the warmth of his touch as much as she hated herself for being weak enough to still want it. "Karly told me everything about your new job and how you're starting on Monday. Wow, it really is like deja vu all over again with us, isn't it."