Page 123 of Between the Lines

I look at Chaos, and then nearly black out.

Whatever top she’s wearing is practically see-through. Her nipples are hard, and they’re poking out through the thin, sheer fabric of her barely there dress.

She smiles at me. Freckles dot her nose, and the tops of her shoulders look a bit red. She’s gotten more sun.

“Hello, Aiden,” she says. She’s holding a goodie bag of her own and a half-finished glass of bubbly.

A dull pulse starts to throb at my temples. The desire to pull her close is so overwhelming that I have to fist my hand at my side.

Jealousy is not an emotion I’m familiar with.

I can’t remember the last time I felt it around anyone but Charlotte. It’s irrational. Like most emotions, it serves no purpose. But it’s damn impossible to evade.

“Logan was telling me?—”

Charlotte’s interrupted by a group of people joining us. Mandy’s business partner is among them, and she immediately puts a hand on Logan’s arm.

It’s a chance for an escape.

I wrap my arm around Charlotte’s waist. “We’ll be right back. Gotta top up her glass,” I tell everyone and steer Charlotte away from the pool.

“My glass is half-full,” she tells me. “Or are you a half-empty kind of guy?”

“Very funny.” I look around us, but no one is staring at her tits. “What are you wearing, Chaos?”

“Apparently, it’s part of the new launch,” she says. “Your sister gave me this babydoll dress.”

“It’s see-through.”

“I know. Isn’t it crazy?” She laughs. “But I’m wearing underwear.”

There’s a quiet alcove, further away from the action. I lead her toward it. “Your tits are out.”

“What tits?” she says and chuckles again. “I barely have any. It’s fine, Aiden.”

She pulls away and twirls slightly in front of me. The skirt splays out, rising high up. I see the swell of her ass cheeks and the matching thong she’s wearing underneath.

“Do you like it?”

There could be a raging wildfire behind me, and I wouldn’t be able to look away from her.

“Yes,” I say, “but Idon’tlike that everyone here can see so much of you.”

She laughs again. There’s an air about her—like she’s a little drunk, a little happy. It washes away the jealousy that has gripped me like a vise.

“It doesn’t bother me. There are no phones here. I love that rule.”

“Someone might break it.”

“Don’t be like that.” She pauses her spinning, and her hair falls back into the soft waves. A smile plays on her lips. “I feel like I’m playing another role. Nighttime Charlotte goes to sex parties, gets goodie bags, and talks to famous movie stars.”

She looks up at the sky above us. It’s dark, barely any stars are visible. But she smiles up at it like the entire Milky Way is on bright display just for her.

It wouldn’t surprise me if it was.

“I feel alive tonight, Aiden.”

“You look it. You look beautiful.”

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