Page 57 of Atlas Uncharted

“No. I’m not admitting shit,” she replied, laughing.

Lu chimed in, “We knew she was writing about somebody. Everything felt way too real.”

I grinned at Kairi, enjoying how she squirmed slightly. “The bathroom scene too,” I continued. “That’s how Dion was made. And, like in the book, I sometimes followed her. I didn’t think she knew, though.”

Kairi lifted her eyes to mine. “I knew. You were a giant white boy trailing behind me, a Black girl. Every Black or Brown person on campus noticed and told me. Michael broke up with me because of it and you always staring.”

That got my attention. “Michael ended things because of me?” I asked, leaning closer.

Kairi met my gaze. “Yeah. He said he was tired of you always being around—tired of you watching me, or me watching you.”

“Why didn’t you say anything?”

Her fingers traced the rim of her glass slowly, as if she were weighing her words. “Maybe I didn’t want to,” she said, her voice barely above a whisper.

I couldn’t let it go at that. “Did you like it, Kairi? Did you like me following you?”

She paused, the moment heavy between us. Her lip was caught between her teeth again, and it took everything in me not to reach out and free it. “Sometimes,” she finally admitted.

That single word hit me hard, repairing a fractured piece of my ego. Immediately, all kinds of filthy thoughts rushed through my head. But then softer thoughts followed—maybe she liked it because it made her feel seen. Not as Ashlen’s sidekick, not as just another pretty face, but as Kairi—my obsession.

Our eyes locked, and it felt like the rest of the world had fallen away.

“Sometimes?” I pressed, my voice low.

Ebony cleared her throat dramatically before Kairi could answer, breaking the moment. “Alright, alright, y'all, simmer down. We’re trying to eat here.”

It was hard to tear my eyes away, but I did. The conversation we were having wasn’t meant for other ears.

Kairi cleared her throat and picked up her menu.

The waiter approached, and the girls ordered everything from steak to lobster, laughing and daring me to object. I didn’t. I just watched Kairi as she laughed and joked with her friends, and I couldn’t help but feel hopeful.

Chapter 41

Kairi

My body felt like I hadn’t relaxed in ages, but I was making up for it. I floated lazily in the warm water, the slight buzz from the margaritas making everything feel fuzzy around the edges. Ebony passed me a blunt while Lu poured another round. We were in the private pool, just enjoying the dark. I felt so fucking unburdened, even if just for a moment.

Atlas sat poolside, his feet dangling in the water, a small frown etched on his face. He was the self-appointed lifeguard, claiming he wasn’t drinking tonight, but I knew the real reason—he was watching me. He had that look again, the one that said he was trying to figure me out. It had been there since I told him I knew he followed me. Sometimes, I thrived off that little bit of attention, but I wouldn’t tell him that.

Lu leaned back on her floatie, grinning slyly. “I’m thinking about sneaking off later, finding one of these country boys to fuck me unconscious,” She laughed, but it didn’t sound like she was joking.

Ebony giggled. “Same. It would be a shame to waste this kind of opportunity without getting some dick. I could get my back blown out and then leave their asses right here in Florida,” she said, then shot Atlas a look. “What’s up with you? You look tense. Is all this sex talk making you uncomfortable, Daddy?”

I choked on my drink, nearly spilling it in the pool. “He’s probably hard as fuck right now,” I teased, tipsy and feeling unfiltered. I pushed off my raft, swimming lazily in his direction. He didn’t move, but I saw his jaw tighten, his eyes darkening as I drew closer.

“Aren’t you?” I asked, voice low, my gaze daring him to admit it. I let my fingers trail lightly across his knee, moving upward.

He grabbed my hand before I reached his dick. It was visibly hard.

“Damn, girl,” Ebony hollered from behind me, clearly enjoying the show. “Give him a break, Kairi!”

But I wasn’t done. I reached up and pulled the strap of my bikini top down, teasing him with my bare breast. My nipples were diamond-hard. “You want to touch these, don’t you? You’ve been looking at them since I changed,” I said, my voice dropping to a sultry whisper.

Atlas’s expression was unreadable even though his eyes were locked on mine, but I could see the tension in his body—the way his fingers dug into the edge of the pool like he was trying to hold himself back.

Lu and Ebony were hooting and hollering now, egging me on.

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