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“Why?”
Again, it takes him a minute to voice his response. He caresses the back of my hand with his thumb as he contemplates his answer. When he finally does, I want to punch him in his gorgeous face.
“I’m still pissed about that night.”
He’s angry about something that happened three years ago. Something I had no control over. And he’d know that if he’d had the balls to ask.
“You’re mad at me? Because I wasn’t waiting for you? And you’ve waited this long to tell me?”
“I guess—”
“That’s the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard, Colt. I should be mad at you.”
“What’d I do?”
“Let’s see… Where should I start?”
“Scarlet,” he warns, tightening his grip on my hand when I attempt to pull away.
“You kissed me, remember?” He nods. “Then, the next weekend, I saw you with a girl clinging to you like plastic wrap. The following weekend, same thing, different girl. It’s always been like that. I don’t think I’ve seen you with the same girl twice. And you’re mad at me? Don’t forget who started this. If you want to be mad at anyone, be mad at yourself. Point the blame in the right direction, Colt. I didn’t do anything wrong, and you would have known that if you’d bothered to ask the next time you saw me. Ihadto leave.”
“Those girls didn’t mean anything.”
“Why should I believe you? There were so many!”
“None of them were you, that’s why!” The boom of his voice feels like it slams against my chest as it echoes off the walls of my bedroom, the darkness suddenly making my room feel smaller. More intimate.
“You’re right. That doesn’t change the fact that you were with them when you could have been with me.”
“Is that a fact? What about Timmy?”
“You hadn’t spoken a single word to me since that first night. It’d been over a year when I met Timmy. What was I supposed to do? Watch you date every girl on campus but me and hold out hope that you’d eventually look in my direction?”
I can feel my anger rising. My blood is starting to boil. My free hand is shaking in my lap, and the one he’s holding is starting to sweat.
“I wanted you, Scarlet. The entire time, you were the one I wanted. The one I still want. That has to count for something.” The pleading in his voice has my resolve threatening to melt. I’m sure that’s what he’s hoping for, but I refuse to fall at his feet and worship him the way every other girl does. Lifting my chin in a show of strength, I stare straight ahead at where Colt sits and remain silent. “Say something,” he begs.
“I don’t know what you want me to say. If you truly mean what you said, you would have at least acknowledged my presence the last three years instead of ignoring me.”
“I had to ignore you, or I would have kissed you.”
“That’s a stupid reason.”
“It’s the truth.”
“So you stayed away because you wanted to kiss me? And now … what? You decided it was okay to kiss me, so here you are. Asking me for what? A second chance?”
Releasing my hand, Colt pushes off the floor and stretches his arms over his head. He looks ready to walk away again. Fine by me. If that’s how he deals with difficult conversations—
I’m being lifted off the floor before I can finish my thought. Pulling back the covers, Colt gently lays me on my bed, crawling in next to me.
“What do you think you’re doing?”
“I’m going to prove to you that I’m not the person you think I am.”
“By sleeping with me?”
“No, by not sleeping with you. Physically, yes, but otherwise, no.”
