Page 99 of The Naughty List

“You’re too important to me to gamble with. I want you, but I refuse to fuck this up. I don’t know what I’d do if I lost you. That’s why I think that sleeping together would be a mistake. If I hurt you, if I lost you, I don’t know what I would do.”

“So, you’re taking me home?” she asks, looking at the road and seeing we’re back on our street.

I nod once. “I need to drop you off. I need to get as far away from you as I can before I fuck up and take you, ruining everything we’ve built since we were kids.”

“You do realize that I’m right next door, right? My window looks into yours. That isn’t taking away much temptation, is it?” She doesn’t seem to understand how serious I am.

“Felicity,” I warn, pulling in front of my mom’s house.

She looks over at me. “Seriously?”

I nod, chancing a look at her. She doesn’t seem sad like I thought she would. She seems let down, mad even. “So tonight, the kissing on the hood…”

“That was me giving into my urges one last time, but I can’t do that with you. I can’t be selfish. If I do, I’ll only take something great from the both of us. I will hurt myself to protect you, Felicity.”

She lets out a long breath and shakes her head, but climbs out, slamming the door behind her without another word. Feeling as if I’ve let her down, I wait and watch in the mirror until I see her enter the house and the porch lights go off. After that, I climb out and walk inside the house I’ve grown to hate.

My mom and Jack must already be in bed because the house is dark and quiet. I waste no time in going straight to my room like I’ve always done. I flip on the light and see that room has been changed to a guest room now. My mother has taken the liberty of turning down the bed for me, and she’s brought my bags in and placed them on the foot of the bed. I pick up the bag that holds my clothes for the weekend and start putting them away. Then I grab my laptop and place it on the desk, having a seat in the chair. I turn it on and go through my email. I return a few and then lean back to stretch. I notice that my mother has all the curtains open in the room and I get a glimpse at Felicity’s window. There is a red curtain hanging over it. I wonder why? They always used to be white before, but maybe she’s re-done the room. That’s when I see the curtain move, like something brushed up against it. That makes me curious and I wait to see what happens. Will she turn off the light and go to sleep or will she open the curtains?

When we were kids and we’d get into fights, she’d keep the curtain closed until she forgave me. When the curtain opened, I knew it was okay to go over and talk to her. The curtain moves again and I see light. I turn my chair so I’m facing the window directly; that’s when I see the curtain fall. I know this is fucked up. I’m torturing myself.

I was right. The room does have white curtains. I can see them on either side of the open window now. And Felicity is standing directly in front of it with a wide smile.

5

FELICITY

Sure, I’m angry that he changed his mind. I’m upset and let down, but that doesn’t stop me. No, I’m not stopping. Not this time. This time, I’m getting what I want. Him.

Every other time I’ve decided to try for him, it always backfired, and this time it might too, but each time we do this little dance, I feel his resolve crumble just a little more. Tonight, we were closer than we have ever been before. That has to mean something. We’re closer than that night at his college when we kissed on the street. That was just a kiss. Tonight, it was more than a kiss. There were words said that he can’t take back. There was touching. I felt him in my hand. He had his hands all over me. He wants me just as badly as I want him. The only difference is that I’m not giving up.

So when I come up with this drunken plan, I know it won’t work but it’s another step in the bigger plan I have in my head. I have one weekend to make him see before he’s back to the city and away from me. Tonight is only step one. I hang a red tablecloth over the window and move the curtains to the side while I get ready. I crack open that bottle of gin I stashed in my purse earlier and turn on some music. I have to give myself a little pep talk but I finally have the balls—aka the bottom of the bottle.

I jerk the curtain down and to my surprise, he’s already there at his window with his eyes on mine. I smile and he gives me a confused look, then I start to sway my hips to the beat of the music as I back up so he can see all of me. I spin around in a circle and my hair flies around me. When my eyes find his again, he’s wearing a smile. Then I reach for the hem of my shirt and his smile falls. I pull it up, revealing my black lace bra. His eyes stretch wide open as his brows raise. I drop the shirt and dance around a little more, slowly unfastening my jeans and lowering the zipper. When I look up at him, he’s scooting his chair closer to the window.

I smile. My plan is working.

I turn my back to him and start moving my hips from side to side as I work my jeans over my ass. I look over my shoulder at him just as the jeans get past my ass and he sees my black lace thong. He’s sitting back, his elbows resting on the chair’s arms. His eyes are dark, smoldering as he watches me dance for him. I spin around a couple of times before reaching behind me and unclasping my bra. His eyes narrow the moment the bra falls and my breasts bounce free. Slowly, I lower the straps on the bra and let my arms escape. Still holding the bra to my chest, I pull it away, holding it out to the side where I let it drop. The moment I do, his mouth drops open like a cartoon that’s drooling.

I smile as I walk closer to the window. He leans up in his chair. I watch as he slides the window open. I do the same, then bend down so his face and mine are at the same level.

“What are you doing, Felicity?”

I smile and shrug.

“Are you trying to kill me?”

“Just want you to know what you’re missing,” I say.

“Trust me, I know what I’m missing.”

“Good night, Carson.” I lower the window, then close the curtains.

I smile to myself as I pull on my pajamas and slip into bed. I put my phone on the charger by the bed and turn off the light. I think of him all alone over there in that bedroom and wonder what he’s doing now. Is he thinking about me? Was he turned on by me?

My phone dings and lights up. I grab it and look at the screen, finding his name.

Carson: No fair.

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