AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“No.” I reply without hesitation. “I need you to come to Mixx 360.”
I can hear her shuffle around and the background noise fade. “Does this have something to do with Colton?”
“It has everything to do with Colton. Parker went home because he has class in the morning, but Maverick won’t let anyone else out of going. I can’t be alone with him, Ivy. I can’t.”
“Okay, okay. Calm down. I’ll meet you there.”
“Thank you.”
We hang up the phone and I let out a long exhale. I have no idea how Colton’s flirting went unnoticed by just about everyone tonight, but if I know Colton, it means that he’ll only get more ballsy at the club. At least with Ivy there I’ll have someone in my corner.
“Calling for back up?”
I startle and turn to see the devil himself standing unnecessarily close. “How long have you been there?”
“Long enough to hear you tell Ivy that you can’t be alone with me.”
Great. That’s just great. I swallow down the lump in my throat and try to appear strong. “What are you doing here, Colton?”
He gestures back to the restaurant with a confused look on his face. “It’s Maverick’s birthday.”
“No, what are you doing here, in this hallway? Why’d you follow me?”
“I told you, we need to talk.”
Shaking my head, I look away from him and down at the ground. “No, we don’t. It was nothing.”
“It wasn’t nothing. I kissed you, and unless I was imagining things, you kissed me back.”
“I’m sorry. It was a mistake.”
He takes a step closer to me, the same way he did last night, and I’m forced to look up. “A mistake? Is that right?” I nod, not trusting my voice enough to speak. “So, if I did it now…”
His voice trails off as he runs his fingertips up my side. His presence alone is enough to throw me off completely. Everything in me is screaming to move but I can’t. I stay frozen, waiting for him to do something, anything.
“McKenna.”
Tatum’s voice makes Colton’s head drop in defeat and he takes a step away. He gives me a look that tells me this is far from over, and turns to leave. When he passes Tatum, she smacks him upside the back of the head.
“What was that for?!” He rubs where her hand connected.
“You know what.”
Colton chuckles and goes back to the table, but Tatum comes right toward me. I brace myself for the words of disappointment I know are about to come out of her mouth.
“What the fuck, Mac? What are you doing?!”
“I don’t know.”
“Well, you may want to figure it out real fucking quick. You’re lucky it was me that found you two and not your brother. Do I even need to ask or are you still going with the ‘we’re just friends’ excuse?” She shakes her head and takes a deep breath. “He destroyed you.”
I run my fingers through my hair and push myself from the wall. “Okay, stop. Stop reminding me of what happened between us. Stop lecturing me on how wrong it is to have him in my life. And stop telling me what I should and shouldn’t be doing.” Her eyes widen at my outburst but I’m not finished yet. “Do you realize that every time you try to push me away from him, it only makes me want it more? It’s like sticking a big red button in front of someone and telling them not to push it. Making him off limits isn’t going to suddenly make all of this easy. I get it, he broke my heart and that should make me hate him – but I don’t. He’s still Colton.”
Her once hard expression softens and she frowns. “I was afraid this would happen.”
“What?”
“That you would come back and he would have you falling in love with him again at the snap of his fingers. I just don’t want to see you give up a good thing, only for him to hurt you again. You’re the closest thing I have to a sister. I worry about you.”
