“For sure,” I mumbled, my body still covered in shivers, which were not being helped by how Sterling was still holding me.
“You sure? You look a bit flushed,” Lincoln goaded as I realized that he for sure knew. Sterling chuckled softly as I tried to ground myself.
“Absolutely peachy,” I insisted, causing Lincoln to flash me a dangerous smile.
Before he could say anything, the sound of a door closing and voices downstairs had me sitting up fast enough the room spun. Sterling groaned in frustration, rolling back into a comfortable position as Lincoln stood, steadying me with a hand. I knew it was the other guys, and I made a totally rational—not afraid—move and walked over to the bathroom.
“I’m going to get ready,” I called over my shoulder, wincing at how shaky I sounded. What? Can you blame me for needing a moment to myself?
Shaking myself, I walked to the mirror and examined my flushed expression. I looked… well, I actually looked pretty good. Mind you, my hair was a mess and my face was pink, but my lips were a bit more swollen than usual, and my eyes were more alive than they had been all summer. My fingers tangled through my hair as I considered what had just happened.
There had always been a tension between the boys and I, especially this past year. Looking back, I knew they found me attractive… at least, I was almost positive. The confusing part was why we had never done anything about it. Well, until today. Somehow, Sterling’s kiss hadn’t made it any more simple, because I also wanted to kiss Lincoln, Yates, King… and possibly Stratton and Dermot.
Yeah, okay, this was just ridiculous. I mean, seriously—how on earth did I handle this? My finger brushed over my lips as I considered all the other ‘first kisses’ I’d experienced. I mean, I would never tell the guys, but I’m pretty sure each of them thought they had been my first.
Yates had kissed me the last week of eighth grade, after we had argued almost nonstop about what a jerk he was being towards one of the guys in our class. It had come out of nowhere, and it had been brief but honestly very memorable. Then Sterling had kissed me, right after the freshman year homecoming dance while walking me home.
Both I had been able to dismiss because we’d been so young, and honestly, at that age, you sort of just wanted to kiss someone, even if they were your best friend.
Lincoln had kissed me sophomore year, although I wasn’t positive that fully counted, because it had been by accident, and luckily we’d been able to laugh it off. It was the first time either of us had tried champagne at a Labor Day celebration, so that probably played a part in it.
Then there was my kiss with Kingston. We’d been having a bit of a ‘going away’ party for him, and after the parents had gone home, I’d stayed up with the guys, not able to justify going to sleep knowing I would be losing my best friend for months.
So I had kissed the ever living heck out of him after having a few glasses of liquid courage, and he hadn’t seemed to mind one damn bit. He had all but tugged me onto his lap and took over the kiss, only to pull back seconds later insisting that he walk me back home. I’d been so unsure of myself and shocked that I’d only been able to nod, feeling both turned on and confused. We hadn’t spoken of it since, but the look he’d given me that night before heading home had made it seem like he wanted to kiss me again.
Or maybe that was my imagination.After all, he had left the country the next day.
Unfortunately, I’d yet to kiss Stratton… I mean, not unfortunately. I didn’t care. I promise. So yeah, the concept of kissing these men wasn’t exactly all that odd, but what did matter to me was what it meant to them. Call me crazy, but that kiss Sterling had just given me hadn’t seemed casual, and he sure as heck hadn’t seemed like he wanted to forget about it.
“Princess?” Kingston’s voice was outside the door.
“Come in!” I called out, my voice squeaking as I grabbed a straightening iron and plugged it in. King’s gaze ran over me before a small, amused smile tilted his lips. I thought for sure he would say something, but instead he focused on what happened at the club.
“Are you feeling good enough to go tonight?”
“Much better after sleeping,” I promised.And getting the crap kissed out of me by your best friend.
“Good.” He nodded and then flashed a smile. “We are going to get changed and come by to pick you up, how long do you need to get ready?”
“Give me thirty?” I asked, brushing through my hair.
With a nod, he walked back out into the room, and I heard the others leave. My lips dipped slightly, realizing that I had sort of wished Sterling had stopped in to say goodbye… and this is the problem with this entire scenario. I was already expecting them to act different, and all he had done was kiss me.
I just needed to assume nothing had changed.
Taking my time getting ready, I made sure to apply fresh makeup and straighten my hair before pulling the front of it from my face. By the time I was done, I looked far more put together and was feeling more grounded, even a bit excited for tonight. I just needed to keep Abby from realizing how much she bothered me. I hated being dismissive of others, but I knew how, so I would try to fully channel that.
Worst case, I could always leave. I had explained to my mom earlier that I hadn’t felt good, a result of lack of sleep and last night, and she had almost immediately sent me home with the twins in tow. But I was determined to not let Abby ruin my fun and to have tonight end better than the night before.
My eyes flashed to the house next door while getting ready. I frowned slightly, realizing that I needed to do something so that I understood fully what I was walking into tonight. I didn’t like legitimizing Abby’s story by giving it space in my mind… but I also didn’t like not knowing the truth. This could end poorly for me, absolutely, but I had to know if there was any authenticity to her words. Stratton didn’t owe me anything, but the idea of him with someone else shocked me to my core. It left me with a hollow feeling, and I found it difficult to even imagine.
I felt betrayed by the notion, which made no sense and only revealed further to me just how intensely I felt about the brooding man. So while I knew it was probably a bad idea, I couldn’t help but need to know.
I mean, realistically, what had I expected? That he would never date? That they would never date? Or hook up? I mean, I’d never heard rumors before now, and of course this had the ability to break my heart, which was insane. Sometimes I cursed my naivety when it came to stuff like this. I’d lived in such an isolated bubble that the concept of any of my guys spending time with other women just seemed… impossible.
And yes, Stratton was still one of my guys, even if he didn’t want to be.
Maybe I was a bit spoiled. A bit of a princess. Expecting for these men to be only mine and to not have to share them. But wasn’t that exactly what I wanted? All of them, forever, as mine. It was the epitome of entitlement, and I knew they deserved better. No man wanted to share the woman they loved with others, right? My hand came up to my hair in a nervous gesture as I remembered Abby’s words in my head.