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She smiles and presses her lips to mine once more before pulling back. “Thank you for another great day.”
“Get used to them, Gray Eyes,” I tell her. “I want to make all our days together great.”
16
BLAIRE
As I lie in bed, my mind is filled with thoughts of Camden. I have only seen him once since our first kiss and that makes me long to be near him. This feeling is new and strange to me. Being around Camden, I feel cherished and safe. This is something I was afraid would never happen after my assault because Harvey had my trust and took what I gave him, stomping it into the ground.
I haven’t told Camden about what happened to me when I was sixteen, and it terrifies me what his reaction could be. The only other person here who knows about it is Emree. Every time I think about telling him, bile rises. The worry of what he will think of me after he finds out keeps me up some nights. If he looked at me with pity, I would hate it. And if he looked at me with disgust, I don’t think I would be able to handle that kind of heartbreak.
Emree comes bursting into my bedroom, where she finds me snuggled under my comforter up to my chin. “Hey, cutie, you have any plans for today?” Emree asks as she plops down beside me.
“Well, Garrett gave us this weekend off, so I planned on relaxing and lounging around reading.”
She clutches a pillow to her chest as she turns to lie on her side, facing me. “How about we make tomorrow a boring reading day and this beautiful afternoon we spend it poolside getting nice and tan with the guys we’re seeing?”
“What are you talking about?”
“Conrad texted me they’re having a little pool party, but nowhere near the size of the last one. Just the guys who live there, Mateo’s best friend, Jules, and us. I mean, if you want to go.” This is the first time I’m hearing about this, and I wonder why Camden didn’t tell me himself.
As I reach for my phone, I say, “One second,” to Emree. Unlocking it, I see a text message from Camden about half an hour ago telling me about the get-together and how he wants me to go.
“Sure. If you say it will be small, I’ll go,” I reply to Camden after giving Emree my answer.
“Awesome.” She jumps from the bed and tosses the pillow at me. “I’m going to shower and start getting ready. Want to be sure I’m smooth in all the right places.” She winks as she heads toward the door.
“Ew, so not what I needed to hear,” I tell her, grossed out by her comment.
“You mind if we take your car? I’m packing a bag and probably going to stay with Conrad tonight.” She lifts her eyebrow at me. “Unless you think you may want to join in on the sleepover too?”
The thought alone makes me nervous. “I think it’s far too soon for that.”
I had told Emree about Camden’s and my kiss in his car the moment I got inside after he walked me to the door, planting another longing kiss on my lips. She screamed and dragged me onto the couch to give her every detail and forbade me to leave anything out. It was the first time I did that girl bonding over a guy one of us is seeing and it was something I never knew I needed. We giggled, which I don’t think I had ever done before, and I told Emree I was getting closer and closer to trusting Camden.
Since the moment we met, he has been kind, considerate, and sweet with me. Camden continuously assures me that the pace of our relationship is up to me, and he has never pushed for anything more. When we get to class, he greets me with a cup of my favorite coffee and a bright smile. Both of which I am happy with and welcome. He even surprised me before his practice Thursday when I was in the library tutoring to say he missed me and was thinking about me. And before leaving, he kissed me so hard I felt lightheaded for the rest of my shift.
I’m falling for this man, and it is much easier than I thought it would be.
As Emree vacates my room to shower and get ready, I check my phone to see if Camden replied.
Camden:Can’t wait. Bring a swimsuit, baby ;)
I blush, thinking of him seeing me in something as revealing as my bathing suit.
Blaire:See you soon.
* * *
By two,Emree and I are showered, shaved, hair styled to perfection, and dressed in cut-off shorts and T-shirts that cover our bikinis beneath. Emree had tried to get me to wear one of her string bikinis that leave little to the imagination, but I drew a line there. No way could I wear that, even in private by myself.
As we drive to the boys’ house, my nerves begin to grow with the anticipation of seeing Camden. He gives me butterflies with every look, every small touch, and every sweet word that comes out of his beautiful mouth. In the short time I have known him, he has broken down so many walls I have kept up for years.
The guys’ house isn’t too far, and we make it in less than twenty minutes. There are a few cars parked outside, but nothing close to how crazy it was the first party before school. The one where Camden entered my life in the most awkward of ways.
I think back to that interaction and how if I had taken the front door out of the house like a normal person and not the side gate in an attempt to avoid the people inside, I never would have come across Camden. Our first time coming into contact may not be traditional, but it sure is memorable.
As we exit my Toyota Camry, the beat of the music drifts from behind the two-story house Camden shares with four of his roommates. He has told me the school has provided the house because of the number of donors there are for the sports teams. A few of the guys are here, some in the dorms, more are in fraternities, and there are two more houses near campus where some of the players live. For the soccer team, upper classmen get the pick of the three houses while freshmen and sophomores are restricted to the dorms unless they pay to live off campus or join a frat. The football coach made the same decision for their players.
