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To keep myself awake, I chewed on some more gummy bears—probably not my most brilliant idea since I was already feeling sick. At least it would give me an excuse to leave.
I shivered from the cold, but I wasn’t desperate enough to go back inside and deal with that mess. I pulled my phone out of the pocket of my jeans, checking for a text from Rowan. Nothing. Grrreat. We had to have been here for at least an hour already. Surely that was enough time and we could leave. My bed was calling my name.
I sent her a text, asking her when they’d be ready to leave.
When I didn’t receive a response in five minutes, I was tempted to chuck my phone off the deck out into the dark void.
I didn’t.
The deck door slid open and I jumped at the grating sound. Relief flooded my system. Rowan hadn’t text because she was coming to find me.
Only it wasn’t Rowan walking towards me. I didn’t have good enough luck for that to be the case. Instead, it was Jude.
He wore a pair of jeans and a plain white tee. His feet were bare and he was the picture of ease. He sat down in the chair beside me, smiling crookedly. “I was looking for you,” he said simply.
“Me?” I questioned with a raised brow. “Why?”
He shrugged. “When Rowan said you came, I was surprised. This doesn’t seem like your type of thing,” he nodded towards the door that kept us barred from the craziness inside.
“It’s not,” I agreed, looking away from Jude, “that’s why I’m out here. By myself,” I added, hoping he’d get the message and leave. He didn’t. Jude never did what you wanted him to. He always had to go against the grain. If there was ever anyone that I’d saddle with the label of REBEL it was Jude. Some of the things he’d done in high school were borderline illegal. He was always looking for something stupid to do and a girl’s pants to get into. He was charming and never had a problem with accomplishing either of those things. Except with me.
“You know you prefer my company to being alone,” he joked, his eyes twinkling with laughter.
“I’ve had my fill of you for the day,” I grumbled, propping my head up. I was really starting to get nauseous. I knew I shouldn’t have continued to eat those dang gummy bears. Jude’s presence was also adding to my upset stomach. I could only handle so much of the crazy things that came out of his mouth.
“I’d like to fill you up.”
My eyes bugged out. “You did not just say what I think you said.”
His smirk widened, and he scratched at his jaw—almost as if he hoped the gesture would help mask his smile. “I did, and I meant it.”
Leaning towards him with my eyes locked on his I spat, “Never gonna happen. Get that through your thick skull, Brooks.” That’s when I got a whiff of his cologne and my gag reflex kicked in. “Oh God,” I slapped a hand over my mouth. I stood quickly, forgetting about the gummy bears in my lap. The bowl fell to the ground and the gummy bears littered the surface.
Jude’s eyes flicked from the gummy bears to me and back again. “Shit. How many of those did you eat?”
“A lot,” I replied when I had control of myself.
“Shit,” he repeated, thrusting his fingers through his hair so that it stood up wildly. “Those were soaked in vodka.”
“What?!” I shrieked, my voice so high that Jude flinched from the sound. “Who the hell does that?” I cried.
His laugh echoed around us—the kind of laugh that shakes your whole body and leaves tracks of tears down your cheeks.
“It’s a party, what did you expect?” He asked when he had control of himself.
“Not this,” I pointed to the mess on the deck. “You forgot to mention the vodka part when you told me you liked gummy bears.”
Still laughing, he said, “I only soak them in vodka for parties.”
“I can’t believe this,” I muttered, burying my face in my hands.
He stepped towards me and his cologne hit my nostrils once more. I gagged and dove for the door.
I ran through the house, looking for a bathroom. A line had formed outside a door of what I assumed was my destination. I was so screwed. I did not want to get sick all over the floor of Jude’s townhouse. That would be enough ammunition for him to make fun of me for the rest of my life—or at least until college was over and I never had to see him again.
A hand reached out for mine, before I could wrench it away I saw that the hand belonged to Jude. “This way,” he said, guiding me
through the hallway and up a third set of steps.
