Page 84 of Detour

Coty collects all the glasses to set them aside. The others take turns kissing my cheeks before returning to the festivities. I go to follow but Coty yanks me back into his chest. Against my ear, he whispers, “Not so fast.”

Giggling, I see Coty’s hand appear in front of me holding a container of paint. He untwists the lid and dunks his fingers inside, then he does the unthinkable and smears it across my stomach.

I spin in his arms.

“You did not just do that?”

“What did you think this was for?” He laughs.

“I-” I hadn’t really thought about it actually, but now that I have, I dip my fingers in and swipe it on Coty’s face making two lines under his eye down to his neck.

Now it’s my turn to laugh except when the cool paste is spread down my arms in retaliation, we both fall into a bated silence. Without breaking eye contact, I scoop out more with both hands, covering his abs with embellished swirls, reaching the lines of his hip bones. When his chocolate eyes darken I get those, too, leaving no stone-hard muscles left unturned. I run my hands up to rest on his chest then make the climb to his neck and clenched jaw, the paint easily forgotten. I stand back with my stained hands on my hips, daring him to make the next move.

His hand snakes out and grabs my waist, dragging me back to his chest—that’s coated in a medley of colors. “Turn around,” he demands huskily.

I simply shake my head.

“Have I ever told you,” his hand comes up to rub my jaw, leaving a wet sensation behind, “that you look good in pink?” The hand he pulls away is covered in the color.

Damn him.

“Hmmm, I wonder if you do, too.” I rub my cheek against his, returning the favor.

Before I can pull away, he reaches up to turn my lips to his, placing a hot kiss there.

I win.

“Ooh, I think drunk Coty is my new favorite.”

“I missed you,” he whispers against my lips, eyes at half-mast. “I’m serious, I can’t sleep without you here.”

“I doubt that.”

“It’s true,” he insists. “I know how to fix that though.”

I quirk an eyebrow.

“Oh, yeah? How’s that?”

“With you sleeping in my bed every night.” The shrug of his shoulder is flippant, his tone is not. Not getting the reaction he was hoping for, he changes tactics. “Fine, I’ll sleep in yours. If I’m with you, I’m good.”

“You’re drunk.” I shove him lightly. He doesn’t budge.

“So are you.”

“Maybe.” Definitely.

“Dance with me.”

“Without Me” by Halsey starts up, so we do just that. We dance with each other like we’ve been doing it for years. The familiarity is palpable. His body molds to mine while my body responds to his every move. Coty’s hands roam my dips and curves as the music pounds across the lawn. I grow bolder, teasing him right back. The cat and mouse game we have going intensifies with each song. Stealing kisses should be listed on Coty’s resume since he acts like it’s his job to keep his lips on mine. Toward the end of the night, I’m so close to exploding, I start to think maybe it is.

Somebody starts a fire in the designated pit so we take a break to fill up on the gooey goodness of s’mores. Coty has a mesmerizing habit of licking the melted marshmallow from escaping between the graham crackers before taking a bite and I take full advantage of the erotic show he’s unknowingly providing. Unfortunately, every other female at the party has noticed Coty’s oral ministration as well which has my nails digging into my thighs.

I stand to grab a handful of sparklers from the table—I’ll do anything to get away from these fiends and maybe the lit-up sticks will serve as a deterrent. The fact that I want to warn them away from Coty has me crawling back into my head. Shaking the tension in my shoulders away, I refocus on the one night I’ve allowed myself.

With Marc’s lighter, Coty steps close to light the ones clenched in my fist. As they catch, star-shaped sparks shoot out in all directions. They’re absolutely mesmerizing. So much so that I don’t even notice Coty trying to grab some for himself until his fingers loosen mine. I allow a few to be pulled from my stiff hold, then follow him closer to the pool area.

We keep to ourselves, drawing out different shapes and watching as the fire eats up the thin sticks. Each time one burns out completely, someone is there relighting more. After several moments of playing pyrotechnics, our eyes connect across the lawn, holding me hostage. Coty gives one of his signature winks, then draws out a heart with his last remaining sparkler causing my actual heart to stop, then pick back up going double, maybe triple, the rate it was seconds before. Hell, maybe it was never truly beating until that very moment. I can’t tell anymore because I’ll only ever remember this feeling. The sensation that Coty’s drawn-out fiery heart caused my very real beating heart to respond like life just started. Coty and his damn winking having ruined all normal heart activity, and he then has the audacity to come closer.