Page 21 of Tempt Thy Neighbor

Is Sutton attractive?

If you find assholes attractive, then yes.

I guess if you find men who easily stand over six feet with tousled coffee-colored locks and the most hypnotizing golden eyes attractive, then also yes.

The problem is, I know Sutton, which makes all his incredibly attractive features equally unattractive.

“He’s okay.”

“Okay?” She balks. “What is wrong with you? That man is gorgeousandrich!”

“Shh!” I hold my finger up to my lips, glancing around to make sure he’s not skulking about. “He doesn’t need his ego stroked.”

She grins wickedly. “I bet he needs something else stroked, and I’d be more than happy to help.”

Images barrel into my head.

Of a time when we were wrapped in each other’s arms and I was stroking more than Sutton’s ego.

Of a time when he was whispering sweet words into my ear as he made love to me with his fingers.

When I thought he was more than who he truly is.

I give myself a shake, trying to push the memories away.

“Oooh—you’re totally into him too. You’re just too afraid to admit it.”

“No, no. It’s not that, I promise.” I wave my hand, dismissing her accusation. “It’s just…we have history.”

“What? You know him?” Her eyes widen, excitement shining in them brightly. “Puh-lease tell me you had your way with that hunk of a man.”

More like he had his way with me.

And it wasn’t just a one-time thing either.

Sutton and I somehow came from the same social circle and had nothing in common all at once. He was old money; I was new. He stuck his nose up at me due to my upbringing; I thought he was a spoiled asshole. We hated each other and spent most of high school working to prove we were better than the other.

The ninth-grade science fair? I snagged first place, beating out Sutton for the first time in his academic career.

Debate team? We argued louder and more fiercely than anyone else.

Hell, I even joined the school newspaper just to prove I could beat him to the editor-in-chief position.

We weren’t friends. We were competition.

Untilthatsummer.

We’d just graduated high school, and unlike our friends off exploring the world before plunging into the world of college, we were stuck at home.

Bored and lonely, we called a truce and became semi-friends. It wasn’t long before all the tension we’d had between us for years came to a head.

I spent more time with Sutton in the coat closet than I did doing anything else that summer.

Our mouths were constantly fused together, hands roaming.

Exploring. Learning.

When the summer ended, so did we.

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