Page 6 of Surviving Lies

Standing by the back door, looking around the room, I think for me. She hadn’t found me yet. The first thing I noticed about her was what she wore. The white dress was not as innocent as it first appeared. It was tight and low cut, pushing up her ample chest, making it about to spill out of the damn top. Up against her tanned skin, the dress looked damn sexy. And her hair. Fuck, it had some, like, reddish color to it that made her eyes pop even in the dim light of the room. Already some heads were turning, and that was pissing me off.

And then she found me. Our eyes connected. I had been standing still for what felt like hours but had to be only seconds. And Xander noticed.

“Hey man, I guess you’re going to want to talk to her, huh?” he asked. I turned to him and bent low to ask him my question.

“Is there somewhere upstairs I can have a few minutes alone with her? I won’t be long, I promise. But I need a few minutes, man.” I looked up and knew he got me.

“Yeah, second room on the left should be open, but don’t be too long. I’ll get some shit for letting you off.” I nodded before turning toward Becca.

And I started making my way toward her. I wasn’t exactly sure what I was going to say or do once I got her upstairs. All I knew was that I needed to be close to her. And get her away from these guys who were staring at her. At least if they saw me take her upstairs, they might think she was still mine, even if she wasn’t. There was no way of knowing if she was going to kiss me or punch me.

But that was a chance I would take.

Chapter 3

Becca

He grabbed my hand when he finally reached me and I tried to pull it out of his, but he wouldn’t let me, his grip fierce. His determination took me by surprise, I won’t lie. But I liked him taking control and guiding me through the crowd.

How was he able to move us through the people so easily? I was stuck by the door, shoulder to shoulder, yet he was parting the seas. We made our way to the staircase, where there were far fewer people, and I thought we would stop there, but we didn’t.

His grip tightened as he pulled me up the stairs. I tried to determine his mood, but I couldn’t see his face as I trailed behind him. He appeared to be looking for a specific room at the top. Once inside, he slammed the door, locked it, and spun me around against the back of it.

Looking up, I still couldn’t read him. The look in his eyes was one I’d never seen before. My heart was beating out of my chest. It felt like it was pounding against the door behind me, my hands flat against its wood, searching for something to grab hold of to help me stay upright. I felt a rivulet of sweat drip down my back.

I was about to start my usual blabbering, yelling at him again for what a terrible summer we had. Thank God I couldn’t find my voice.

His hands caressed my face.

His eyes stared into mine, into my soul.

I couldn’t breathe.

I wanted time to stop.

I never wanted this feeling to end.

This feeling, like I was the one, the only one.

And then he crushed his mouth to mine, as if he needed my breath to survive. His tongue seeking entrance, tasting me, devouring me. His hands entwined in my hair. My hands finally let go of the door behind me and landed on his chest, gripping his shirt, pulling him closer. I had been craving this. My body shook from its need for this, its desire.

Suddenly, he pulled his mouth from mine, his face still close, his breathing ragged next to my ear. His arms caged my head up against the door. His voice, a cracked whisper.

“Bec, I missed you.” My heart swelled at his words. “I want to keep going, but ...”

And then my heart sank. Because I had to agree.

“But we shouldn’t,” I agreed. His eyes popped open to stare at me in surprise. “We’re not together anymore. And as good as this feels, it doesn’t solve any of our issues.” He placed a finger softly on my mouth to stop me from talking.

“That’s not why.” There was a tiny shake of his head before he continued. “I’m not supposed to be up here, away from the guys, the party. I’m gonna get in trouble, the other pledges will have my ass, but when I saw you walk in, shit, I couldn’t think straight.” He pulled back and was looking at me again, that same look in his eyes, like I was his only one. “I don’t know if it’s that we haven’t seen each other in a while, or the new hair color, or this sexy dress, but I needed to touch you, to smell you, to be close to you. I begged Xander to let me have a few minutes up here with you.”

Just then, there was a soft knock on the door.

“Hey guys, it’s Lanie. Xander sent me up. Ty, he needs you to get back downstairs ASAP. I’m sorry, guys. I know it sucks. I’m heading back down, but don’t be long.”

“Jesus Christ, this pledging shit is ridiculous. Do they really have this much control over you?” I couldn’t believe they could do this to him.

“Unfortunately, yeah, but these guys aren’t as bad as some, so I’ll take it.”

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