AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Julian
I've heardher sweet laugh. Seen her throw her head back and felt the pure joy radiate off her body.
I've been privy to her genuine smile. Seen the way the left side of her mouth lifts slightly higher than the right.
And now... I've seen her tears.
Felt her sorrow.
And I don't like it. I don't like the way my heart felt like it was being ripped out of my chest. Because this girl ... this sweet, sassy, strong girl shouldn't be crying. And I can only imagine it's over a guy.
It makes me want to find him and kick his ass. Maybe shatter his nose. His jaw. Cause him to shed his own tears. Only instead of a broken heart, he'll have a broken face. Courtesy of my fist.
Anger courses through my veins as I walk away from her. She promised me she wouldn't cry anymore, but that didn't mean it was easy to leave. To not look back over my shoulder one last time as I round the corner of the pool house. To put on a smile as I take a seat at the edge of the pool.
It definitely doesn’t make it easy to keep my composure when she reappears ten minutes later, her eyes glassy from the tears I know she shed after I left.
When our eyes meet, she gives me a small nod before lifting her chin and heading straight for the bar. Brady is sitting next to me, rattling on about some hot chick in a white bikini, but I don't hear a word of what he says. I can't focus on anything other than Piper. The beautiful woman who's been taunting me since the moment I met her.
Something always seems to be standing in the way of me getting close to Piper. Most of the time, it's my own fears. Or her friends. That first night it was the pledge I had to escort out of the house. Brady is often the culprit, nudging his way into any situation he can. Right now, that person happens to be Max.
I want to go talk to Piper. Find out if she's okay. Ineedto know she's okay. To find out if she wants to talk more. But I can't because Max is behind the bar mixing her a drink and talking to her. And judging by the look on his face, whatever he's saying is serious.
I don't like it.
"If you're going to shoot daggers at Max, you might not want to make it obvious," Brady says, nudging my shoulder.
For a minute, I forgot he was even there. I forgot there was a party going on around me.
"I wasn't ... what?" He thinks I was staring at Max. Good.
"You've been acting strange today. Even for you."
"Just thinking."
"Well, you might want to get your face under control. You looked like you wanted to strangle him for a second. If I can see it, so can everyone else. Unless you want them to know."
"I didn't even realize I was staring in his direction," I lie. He knows it. "I wasn't looking at anyone or anything specific."
"I think you need another drink. Something to help you relax. School hasn't even started, and you're stressed out. Hell, you're stressing me out." Lowering his voice, he leans in close and adds, "And whatever is going on with you and Piper..."
Is that what this is? Stress? Because if so, it's not going to go away anytime soon.
I've felt stressed around Piper for years.
Never once has this feeling gone away. I've slept with other women to try to get her out of my head. I've avoided places she would be.
Someway, somehow, we've always found our way back to one another. Like the morning they showed up at the campsite when the girls should have been hours away. I woke up for no reason that morning, early as shit. I should have still been dead to the world at that time of day, but instead I was brewing coffee over the fire.
When I saw her, my heart skipped a beat. She dropped into the seat next to me, and I greeted her the same way I always have.
Hey, pretty girl.
And when the other girls disappeared with their boyfriends, leaving the two of us with a sleeping Brady, we sat next to each other in comfortable silence, drinking coffee.
I didn't feel the pressure to say anything. To hold a conversation. To entertain her. It was obvious they were all exhausted, lacking much needed sleep from the night before. So when she rested her head on my shoulder and closed her eyes, I scooted my chair closer to hers so she would be more comfortable. I snagged Brady's blanket from his sleeping body and draped it around her.
And once I was sure she was sound asleep, her breathing deep and consistent, I kissed the top of her head and let myself fall asleep.
