Page 35 of When Nothing Else Matters

Summer catches my eye when she enters the room. She makes a beeline for me, without bothering to take in the surrounding scene, and for some reason, I straighten in my seat. Before saying a word, she grabs the beer from my hand, knocking half of it back in one go. “Thanks, I needed that.” She smiles and then sits on the armrest of the couch beside me. “So, what does one do on a boys’ night? Should I belch, drink straight from a bottle of bourbon, bust out my best video game moves, smoke a cigar?” I snort out a laugh as she raises an eyebrow in question. She’s holding back her smile, but I can see the corners of her lips itching to rise.

Wiping the smile off my face, I play along. “All of those things,obviously, but so much more. You’ll need to talk a lot of shit about nothing, watch sports, and play poker. Oh, and you should be naked,” I deadpan and wait for her laugh.

She maintains her facade, and with a shrug of her shoulders, like it’s no big deal, says, “I’m down with all that.”

Then comes the laughter I was waiting for; it’s loud and obnoxious and it’smine.

A sassy smile crosses Summer’s face, and she winks.How have I not been friends with this girl my entire life?I befriended the wrong Kelly. Thomas isn’t this cool and definitely not as hot. Summer is fun and fresh, she’s easy to talk to, smart, and she’s so goddamn beautiful it’s hard to look away sometimes, not to mention the way her eyes…What the fuck, Dylan. Stop. She’s just a friend.

Something must show on my face, as the thoughts drift through my mind, because Summer gives me a curious look before grabbing my beer again and chugging the rest of it down. “I’ll get another,” she announces and walks toward the bar without looking back.Good one, Dylan.

When she returns, smile in place and curiosity gone, we quickly fall back into our easy banter, and I relax.Maybe it’s not so bad having girls here after all.

We’ve just finished watching one of the guys do the worm across the room, when Summer turns to me with a furrowed brow. “How come these guys are your closest friends—” I raise an eyebrow, silently asking where she’s going with this. She pauses and laughs, and it’s a beautiful sound. A sound I wouldn’t mind hearing more often. “Let me finish,” she says, playfully shoving my chest. “What I mean is, why don’t you live at the ‘Ball House’ if you’re so close to these guys?” She uses quote fingers and crinkles her nose when she says “Ball House,” like the very thought of it disgusts her.

I smile at her adorable expression. “Never even thought about it, to be honest. Joel and I always had plans to live together, so that’s what we did.” I shrug.

“Well, I think you made a good decision.”

“Phew, that’s lucky. I was worried for a minute,” I say while pretending to wipe sweat off my forehead.

Summer laughs and playfully shoves my chest again, but this time she runs a finger down my abs before pulling away. Both our eyes follow the movement, and when we look up at each other, I’m disappointed to see she’s not nearly as affected as I am.Damn. Cory arrives at that moment and joins our conversation, saving me from giving it any more thought.

With drinks flowing, the noise level gets louder as the night goes on, and my headache gets significantly worse. I should have taken something for it hours ago, but no, I’m an idiot. I’m leaning against a wall in the living room, taking a moment for myself, my eyes never straying away from Summer for too long. I rub my temples and pinch the bridge of my nose to try and dull the pain, briefly closing my eyes. When I open them again, I’m met with Cory’s concerned gaze. “Are you okay?” she asks in a sympathetic tone. In the weeks since the camping trip, she’s become like a mother hen to the boys.

“Pounding headache, but I’ll be all right.” I smile.

A hint of amusement crosses her face and then disappears.Not the response I expected. Before I have the chance to question it, she gets Summer’s attention from where she’s now talking to Luke. “Summer gives the best head and neck massages,” she says, trying to act all innocent, like a sneaky idea didn’t just pop into her mind. “They’ve helped my headaches in the past,” she continues, and when Summer’s mouth drops open midsip of her drink, I hide my smile.What’s Cory up to?I mean, I can think of worse things than a head massage from a beautiful girl, but I have to wonder what Cory’s thinking as she sets this up. Still, I’m not going to pass up this opportunity. All in the name of making Summer uncomfortable, of course.

“Does she now?” I ask.

“Summer, he’s struggling over here. Look at him,” Cory says.

I rub my temples again, for show, and groan. Eyes squinted, nose wrinkled, and teeth clenched, a look of fake and overexaggerated agony crosses my face.

“Drop the act and sit down,” Summer snaps as she walks my way and rolls her eyes.

I give her a salute and drop to the loveseat.

“The loveseat. Really? And how I am supposed to…Never mind.” She sighs and steps up onto the two-seater.

I instantly realize my mistake. She needs access to my head and neck, and the loveseat is up against a wall and low to the ground. I move to stand, but she pushes me back down and signals for me to slide forward in the seat. I do as asked, and she slips in behind me. On her knees, she parts her legs and pulls me back slightly into her.Shit, I thought this was supposed to makeheruncomfortable.

We are both dead silent and still at first, but then I hear an intake of breath, and soft fingertips make their way through my hair, pressing down into my scalp. Summer moves her fingers in and out, focusing on different areas, increasing the pressure as she does. I lean back into her a little more, and her legs clench around my sides. It takes a lot of willpower to stop myself from grabbing her thighs and pulling her even closer as she works my shoulders and neck, finding knots I didn’t even realize I had. When she moves back to my head and rakes her nails through my hair, my eyes close involuntarily and my body sags. Even with the noise in the room, I can hear Summer’s breathing, so I focus on that and relax even more.

When her nails scratch my head a second time, a soft moan escapes my mouth. Summer’s breath hitches and she clenches her legs again. If this isn’t the sexiest, nonsexual thing that’s ever happened to me, then…I don’t even know. I’m not even sure I could tell you the date or year right now.

After a few minutes, Summer’s strokes become softer, like she’s exploring my head and shoulders rather than massaging them. This new sensation sends a tingle down my spine, and I can’t stop myself from shivering.Fuck!

She stops suddenly, as though my movement broke her from a trance. When I finally open my eyes, I see that we’re alone.Hmm, when did that happen?

“Better?” Summer whispers. I’m still lost in thought so I don’t answer, too busy wondering if the others felt the same sexual tension I did and had to get away. I can hear voices in the backyard.God, what is wrong with me?

“They left as soon as you closed your eyes.” Summer answers my unspoken question. Her usually confident voice is softer and breathy. “Don’t worry, they didn’t hear your moans,” she jokes, but her voice does nothing to hide the fact that she’s equally affected. She jumps up off the couch and attempts to pull her short shorts down her legs.

“I’m going to get another drink,” she blurts out and rushes away. I listen as she moves about the kitchen, then the back door opens and closes with a loud clang. She’s gone. I take a much-needed moment, readjusting myself, before I join the group.What the hell just happened?I didn’t even speak or thank her. I couldn’t.Again, what the hell is wrong with me?

When I step outside about ten minutes later, Summer is raising a shot of something black to her lips.

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