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“Hey,” I say as I approach. “How do you feel?”
“Like shit. ” She’s barefoot and wears a deep purple cotton shirt that hugs her waist and a pair of overly ripped jeans. Her shirt slips off her shoulder, exposing her black bra strap. I force my eyes to glance away. I became way too familiar with that tantalizing bra last night.
I stop at the foot of the stairs and shove my hands into my pockets. Does she feel like shit because she’s also hungover, or because she regrets making out with me? “My head’s hammered all day. ”
Beth slowly sucks in air and releases it, blowing a few strands of her hair from her face. “What do you want?”
“You left in a rush last night. ” Images of our night together flash in my mind. Her hands tugging off my shirt, hot on my skin, messing through my hair. I remember my lips on her neck and the sweet taste of her skin. The curve of her body against my hands. Her fingernails teasing my back. “I wanted to make sure you’re okay. ”
“I’m fine,” she says.
Beth retreats behind her brick wall. Closed off. Emotions cemented in. I stare at her. She stares at me. I have no idea what to say. Last night, we weren’t really on a date. It was an agreement. She wasn’t my girlfriend who I slowly worked through the bases with. She wasn’t a girl I took to dinner a couple of times and kissed a little too much for too long. With Beth, I crossed lines a real man wouldn’t cross.
“I’m sorry. ”
“For what?”
Her glare makes me feel like I’m standing in front of a firing squad, awaiting my sentence.
“For…” What am I sorry for? Taking off her shirt? Kissing her until I thought I was going to lose my mind? Touching her? Feeling her? Of all the things I may be sorry for in my life, I’m honestly not sorry for any of that. “For taking advantage of you. ”
The right corner of her mouth struggles up, then down, then slowly back up. “We didn’t have sex last night. ”
Heat runs up my neck and I focus on my shoes. “I know. ”
Part of me is thankful she left when she did.
The moment my lips found her body, we quickly became an erupting volcano. Hot and fast. Very fast. Fast enough t
hat I would have given her my virginity.
“Then what are you apologizing for?”
I gather my courage and face her. “You left.
In a hurry. And what I did…we were drunk. I don’t get drunk and I don’t take advantage of girls. You left upset. I crossed lines, and the way you left…I’m sorry. ”
Beth clears her throat. “Ryan. ” She stretches out my name, as if giving herself time to think.
“I was the one who took advantage of you. ”
I still. “No, you didn’t. Girls don’t take advantage of guys. Guys take advantage of girls. ”
Her lips bunch and twist to the side as she shakes her head. “Nope. I distinctly remember telling you I didn’t want to be alone. ”
“And that’s the moment I should have walked away. ”
“I didn’t want you to. ”
“But I should have. It’s what an honorable guy does. Especially for a girl he likes. ”
Beth points a finger. “See, that’s where you’re confused. You don’t like me. ”
Why is she making this apology complicated? Why does she make everything complicated? “Yes, I do. ”
“No, you don’t. You’re telling yourself you like me. ”
She drives me insane by finding a way to slink underneath my skin. “That makes no sense. ”
