Page 49 of The Trouble with Wanting

“I thought you didn’t like to be teased.”

I take advantage of her position and shift my own body closer to hers.

“I don’t like to be teased, but I love teasing you.”

“Well that’s not very sportsmanlike.”

“I can play fair when the occasion calls for it.”

“And now isn’t a time to play fair?”

I shake my head, my eyes dipping to her lips, enjoying the little shiver that runs through her body at my attention.

“When it comes to you, Ruby Rae Roberts, the last thing I want to do is play fair.”

“And why is that?” she asks, her words coming out in a little bit of a whisper.

I lean in farther, until my mouth is right by her ear. “Because I’d much rather play dirty.”

Ruby lets out a long, tortured breath as I pull back, our faces inches from each other. My eyes zero in on her lips again, the ones she’s licked a few times since we’ve been sitting together.

They drive me crazy. Plump and full and soft.

That kiss earlier today was more than I imagined and yet not nearly enough. I didn’t plan on kissing her since we were both sweaty and gross and covered with dirt, but then I couldn’t help it. Couldn’t imagine another moment going by without connecting myself to her in some kind of tangible way, and holy hell was it a thing of beauty.

It might have been the most innocent kiss I’ve had in over a decade, but it still lit a fire inside of me that I know only Ruby will be able to manage.

I have that same feeling now, our faces close, our breaths intermingling in the dry mountain air. My nose is touching hers, and if I just shift a little bit closer…

She closes her eyes, all but begging me to kiss her.

“Well, well, well, what do we have here?”

I close my eyes in irritation and let a long, controlled breath out of my nose before I pull back and take a look at the woman standing in front of us.

With her back to the fire, I might not have noticed her here, but I’d know that voice anywhere. And it’s the last one I want to hear.

“Corinne,” I say, bobbing my head in greeting then glancing at the women standing next to her. “Jen, Keegan. Good to see you both.”

That’s a straight lie. Jen has always been an annoying pain in my side, and Keegan cheated on a friend of mine during our senior year. The only person I want to see less than them is the one who brought them over to talk to me.

“Judy, right?” Corinne says, looking Ruby up and down with an attitude she should have left back at Cedar Point High.

“Ruby, actually.” She gives Corinne a surprisingly friendly attitude considering their very short, very awkward encounter yesterday at The Mitch. “But you remember my name. You’re just pretending not to because you want to make me feel small.”

Corinne’s face freezes. I almost want to let out a small laugh at the way Ruby is handling herself, but I manage to hold it in—barely.

“Whatever,” she finally says. “I didn’t come over here to talk to you anyway.”

“Then why did you come over here, Corinne?” I say, my tone curt. “You can probably tell that I’m busy.”

Her eyes narrow for a split second before she puts on a smile. “I came over to say hello, of course. I’ve missed you since you’ve been away, and I was hoping we could get together soon.” Then she lowers her voice. “You know…catch up?”

I purse my lips, mulling over what I should say to her that isn’t mean but still conveys that I have no intentions of catching up, especially when she’s over here trying to stir up trouble.

“Can I ask you a question?”

The sound of Ruby’s voice is almost jarring, except for the fact that I love the way it sounds. I doubt the same is true for Corinne, though, because she and her two friends turn their eyes to look at Ruby almost in unison. She’s sitting next to me in a pair of jeans and a loose sweater with almost no makeup, and the differences between the two women couldn’t be more obvious.

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