Not in a traditional way. More in aI will kill anyone who crosses me but would also lay on the floor and pet puppies all daykind of way. His dark hair was pulled up into a bun. She had never once considered man buns to be attractive. Actually, she had neverconsidered them at all. But now she decided it was one of her most favorite things. His broad shoulders seemed to take over the entire width of the chair he was lounging in and his tattoos rippled across the expanse of his muscular chest and abdomen.
But his arms.
That man had the arms of a god. For a moment, she conjured up an image of him easily holding her up against a wall as he whispered all manner of wicked things into her ear and had her screaming out his name. She was quite enjoying the image when it shattered at the sound of hers and Christian’s names being yelled from across the field.
She didn’t know why, but her immediate (and idiotic) response was to look straight to Callum. Who, of course, was now looking straight at her. Even at this distance, it was hard for him to hide the rollercoaster of emotions that crossed his face.
Shock. Anger. Jealousy. Indignation.
She didn’t care.
That's what she told herself in order to remain calm. She didn’t care that he was possibly the most beautiful man she had ever laid eyes upon. She didn’t care that he was somehow also the most annoying and yet intriguing man she had ever met. She didn’t care that he made her entire body ignite as if it had turned to pure flame. She didn’t care that he’d drawn her. She didn’t care that he was currently surrounded by a number of beautiful women who were not her. And she definitely didn’t care that every time she thought of him, a rush of goosebumps washed over her skin.
She. Didn’t. Care.
But she did.
She most definitely, certainly, absolutelydidcare. Which is why it took more than a moment to reply when the two girls standing before her kindly introduced themselves.
“Hey, I’m Amanda and this is Maddie,” the taller of the two said as she reached out her hand.
“Sorry.” Sam shook her head. “I’m Sam. Nice to meet you.”
“I’ll be right back. We are going to set up the targets,” Christian whispered a little too close to her ear before he walked away.
“So, he finally got you to come out with us, huh?” the other girl, Maddie, questioned. A rather large smile was plastered on her face.
She tilted her head in confusion. “What?”
“Christian talks about you all the time. Says you two grew up together?” Sam’s heart rate spiked in fear that they knew who she was and where she came from. She knew she shouldn’t have been ashamed of where she came from, but it was hard to wash away the stigma of being an orphan. It was a stain that had bled through onto every aspect of her adolescence, and she wanted to make damn sure it didn’t get a chance to alter her future.
She figured that most people, in one way or another, were trying to run away from something that had occurred in their past. Whether it be a person, or an action, or even themselves. But the problem for her was that she was trying to run away from her entire past and everything in it. Every minuscule detail of that time before she had left that last foster home was littered with feelings of inadequacy, loneliness, hatred, and loathing. She didn’t want that to also become her future.
“Yeah, we did.” She gave off a smile she hoped hid the fear bubbling up underneath. It was a vague enough reply, and she prayed there wouldn’t be a follow-up question. Thankfully, there wasn’t.
“Has he made a move yet?” Amanda wiggled her eyebrows with the question.
“What?” Sam said at the same time Maddie’s look shot virtual daggers at her friend.
“Amanda! You can’t just ask her that. We literally just met her.”
“What? It’s a valid question. He is obviously totally in love with her, and I’m just glad he finally got her to come out so we can stop just hearing about her and actually get to know her.” Amanda smiled as she tossed her arm around Sam and started walking toward the group of guys.
“We aren’t like that. I love him, but like a brother. Nothing more,” Sam quickly interjected with words she’d never thought she would say.
She wasn’t sure why the idea of Christian wanting something more now seemed like the most repulsive thought she could have ever come up with. This was what she’d always wanted. This was what she’d spent far too many nights dreaming about. Even though she wouldn’t admit it to the girls, she had to admit to herself that Christian was different today. He had constantly found an excuse to touch her, or compliment her, or just be near her. Normally, they played their brother-sister role perfectly with just the right amount of teasing and aggravation, but also just enough mild flirtation to let others know they weren’t really related. That tiny little tease of more was what used to drive her crazy. It’s what had kept her up until the wee hours of the morning, replaying their conversations over and over again as she tried to figure out if there could ever be something more.
Today was the complete opposite. Today, it was obvious what he wanted, and the very thought made her skin crawl.
Maybe she was sick?
Fever?
Meningitis?
Ebola?
Something that snuck its way in and altered her mind making her see, think, and want things that would never have lined up with who she truly was. That was it. She had meningitis. It was the only explanation as to why Christian now seemed like the last person she wanted to be around and Callum was all she could think about.