Page 96 of Cruel Legacy

Finn’s always talking, giving his mouth and tongue a workout. Is he a good kisser? What am I thinking? Kissing him falls firmly in the reckless column.

I beat that urge back and stare up at him, pretending to be bored out of my mind. Ignoring the butterflies in my stomach and that heady feeling I get when I experience that pull of attraction to somebody. I snort derisively. Hiding the fact that, yup, I was thinking about kissing him.

Instead, I say, “Let’s hold off on that until you become someone I actually like.”

“If you don’t like me now, it’ll never happen, so why don’t I just skip the useless waiting and kiss you, anyway?”

He’s being intentionally difficult, and yet his question makes so much sense. “Besides the fact that I’m not interested?”

“Aren’t you?”

He's staring at my chest. Thank god for the sports bra I’m wearing. It does a great job at hiding my nipples. He won’t be able to tell they’re hard unless he touches me again.

He wedges his knee between my legs. It takes everything in me not to react. I arch a brow and take a deep breath, hold it and let it out slowly, releasing the tension in my body. That cools me down. A little.

His smile widens. “I like this game.”

I hold his gaze, waiting for him to elaborate on the game he thinks we’re playing. He leans over again, his warm breath fans my ear as he whispers something in what I think is Japanese. I have no clue what he’s saying, but I’m guessing it’s vulgar. Then he licks up the side of my face.

“Did you just lick me?”

He looks happy as fuck about it, too. “Don’t even think about washing it off.”

I get to my feet, shoving against his chest to put some space between us. “Oh buddy… not only am I gonna wash it off, but I’m gonna scrub the skin until it’s raw.”

I grab my book and march into the closest building to do just that. It’s a five-minute walk from where I was sitting, but at least I looked fierce, strutting away.

I stomp down the hallway, cursing the traffic pattern the students are forced to use, and finally reach the bathroom. When I get to the sink, I turn on the water and nothing happens. I try the next one and still no water. All the sinks are out of commission.

I find another bathroom on the second floor. Those sinks aren’t working either. Shouldn’t there be a sign posted that the water is off in this building?

I head to the gym and push my way into the girls’ locker room. How the hell isn’t there any water in here too? As I’m trying to figure out where to go next, a campus alert rings on my phone.

I pull my phone out to read it. Great. The water is off on campus while unscheduled repairs are being conducted and there are only two bathrooms available. One for guys, the other for girls.

Water conservation is imperative. So unless you have to use it to take a shit, they're off limits. An attendant is assigned to each bathroom to ensure compliance. Oh, and ladies can go to the infirmary if they’re bleeding through their tampons and need a little extra clean up.

I’m in my next class, fuming. I can’t believe I have to sit through this entire day with Finn's spit on my cheek. This is…hisfault.Sonofabitch. I told him I was scrubbing my face and somehow he’s made it impossible for me to do it. I don’t know how he got the water turned off so fast, but I know it’s him.

My class ends and I head to The Rock, which is just as busy as it usually is. I’m looking for a quick pre-packaged meal, but I hear the hospitality manager telling someone that the water works fine in the dining hall.

I guess Finn wouldn’t dare eat pre-packaged food, so he’s graciously decided to keep potable water on in here. I order a Grilled Chicken Caesar Wrap. I’m told it’s a five-minute wait for the chicken to be ready, then grab a parfait with strawberries and extra whipped cream for dessert and go to my table to wait for my number to be called.

I give a tight smile to my table mates and casually scan the dining hall. Austin walks by, heading to his usual spot. I reach out to grab his hand, giving it a little squeeze.

“Damn, Thea.” He says, grinning down at me. “You look good enough to eat.”

I smile at him, and start to brush off his compliment, but then I come up with an idea. When genius and inspiration strike, you have to roll with it. I wish I had time to loop Austin in, but I don’t. Hopefully, this doesn’t backfire on me.

“Oh really? Prove it.”

I make a production of smearing the whipped cream along my cheek, where Finn licked me. Austin wastes no time leaning forward, kissing and licking from the tip of my chin to the top of my cheekbone. I meet Finn’s gaze over his shoulder.Take that mother fucker.

When Austin’s gotten as much of it off me as he can, he presses his lips against mine. Shit. I wasn’t expecting that, but I go along with it, kissing him back, earning double points, since Finn was going on about kissing me earlier.

Austin pulls away with a laugh when his buddies start whistling and cheering.

“I’ll catch you later, beautiful.” He walks away with a satisfied smirk on his lips.

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