Page 3 of Insatiable

The sound of splashing has me frowning, nearly dropping the cigarette from my mouth when I see the mystery girl is still here. She’s perched on her elbows, casually chilling at the edge of the pool, still admiring the stars in the sky.

I shouldn’t feel a rush of excitement, but I do.

What do I do? Talk to her? Walk away? Hide?

“Who are you?” I ask, taking another drag as I walk towards her.

She doesn’t acknowledge my existence, and I really want her to look at me. I try again. “Hello? Who are you?”

I don’t like being ignored, especially by a random person who resembles a ghost with freckles all over her body. I wouldn’t usually try to socialise but colour me fucking intrigued.

From her side profile, I can openly admit she’s pretty. The thought smacks me upside the head because I’ve never thought of someone as pretty before.

I assumed I was defective in that department, but since I like the way she looks, perhaps I’m not. It’s hard to study her the way I do others, but I’m more than happy to just… look at her.

Getting annoyed with the silence, I huff. “You should go back inside. It’s too cold out here, Freckles.”

Grimacing, I mentally punch myself in the dick.Freckles? Really,Kade?

Still silent.

If she ignores me one more time, I’m shoving her in the fucking water.

I shake my head.

Sitting on the bench next to the diving board, I inhale, unsure why I keep talking. I never talk. “You don’t go to my school.”

I freeze when she looks up at me, and fucking hell, her eyes are insane. Coughing out the rest of my smoke, I lean my elbows on my knees as she stands, shaking off the water from her legs and slipping on her shoes.

I don’t get it. Or her. Or why she’s walking around the pool towards me.

Wait.

She’s walking towards me.

Oh shit. What the fuck is she doing?Go away.

My breath is slowly being ripped from my lungs as she draws closer. In fact, I don’t think I’m breathing at all.

Her hair flows down her back in curls, freckles dusting over her skin, and those eyes are fucking killing me. They aren’t blue, maybe a light green mixed with silver, like a forest in winter.

What the fuck is wrong with me?

She sits beside me and takes the cigarette from my lips, then places it between her own. The touch of her fingers against my lips doesn’t make me uncomfortable.

I try not to show how much she’s affecting me by looking away, but my insides are somersaulting.

I clear my throat while she smokes my cigarette like it’s hers. There’s a breeze and fuck do I inhale the sweet vanilla – she smells good.

I turn my head and watch as she rests back, the end of the cigarette bright orange. Then she blows a cloud above us, eyes closed as the smoke dissipates in the air.

Her eyes open, and now she’s looking at me. I’m stuck gazing right back at her beauty.

Fuck.

Once she’s done, she places what’s left of the cigarette back in my mouth. Her fingertips graze my lips and send a spark to my chest, and I’m not sure what that means. I toss the finished bud aside.

“My name is Stacey.” Her voice is soft, quiet and calming. Colour me even more fucking intrigued. “I joined Luciella’s dance class a few months ago.”

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