Page 20 of Your Fault

“I guess a lot, because if I were sober, I’d have already told you to go to hell.”

He leaned his head to one side, observing me, and brought his body close. Without touching me, he placed his palms on the table behind me, imprisoning me between his arms.

I couldn’t breathe. His sky-blue eyes were seeking out mine.

“There’s no reason for you to be mad, Noah,” he said, now serious. “I’m the one getting hurt here. You’re going off to Europe on vacation.”

“I repeat: it wasn’t my idea.”

Nick took a deep breath and stepped back, giving me space.

“So we’re at a dead end,” he said with a poker face.

Part of me knew he wasn’t entirely wrong to be upset, but I wasn’t ready to admit that. I didn’t want to calm down. I didn’t want to be understanding… I wasn’t happy with the situation either. Going to Europe with my mother wasn’t in my plans, and it made me angry and sad that I couldn’t spend that month with Nick. My mother was the one I was really mad at, but Nick was there, and I had to get my anger out on someone.

“Maybe you shouldn’t have come back. You said you didn’t want to ruin my night, but now you’re doing it.”

Brow furrowed, Nick asked, “You want me to go?”

Was there a touch of disappointment in those eyes?

“What’s for sure is I don’t want to stand here arguing with you.”

Looking me over, he responded, “I think you’ve had a bit too much to drink, smarty-pants.”

Feeling full of myself, I glared at him, reached across the table, filled a glass from the punch bowl, and downed it. It had been spiked so much that the liquor in it burned my eyes, but it was worth it to see Nick’s furious face.

“You’re acting like an idiot,” he said, “and the person who’s going to have to deal with it later is me.”

I shrugged and walked off toward my friends on the dance floor, joining them without looking back. At some point, I dropped my glass, and it spilled on someone’s feet, but I didn’t care. Jenna came over to dance with me. After twisting and shouting until my stomach was upset, I stopped, looking around.

I knew Nick hadn’t left. He’d been staring at me the whole time. I hadn’t expected that. Certainly not when we were arguing.

At some point, I stumbled, and an arm grabbed me around the waist. A strong, muscular, attractive one…Nick’s.

I turned around and clung to him. “I see you’re still here,”I said.

“And I see you can barely stand. If your goal for tonight was to get under my skin, congratulations, you did it.”

“I don’t know about getting under your skin, but I’d be more than happy to get under those clothes you’re wearing or between some sheets…”

Nick didn’t laugh. He seemed to be trying to figure out what to do with me.

I tried to caress his neck and hair the way I knew he liked, but he grabbed my wrists and stopped me.

“Let me take you upstairs, Noah,” he said. Looking around, I saw other couples had had the same idea.

“Okay. Sounds fun…” I said with a grin.

Nick exhaled a breath and led me out.

“Fun’s the last thing it’s going to be,” he said to himself, but I heard him perfectly.

Had he been trying to play it cool because other people were around?

Dammit!

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