swear I heard the knob jiggle, like someone checking to see if it was locked.
I finally enlisted Vi’s help, having her sit next to me at dinner. She didn’t mind, since Larsen never came back from his impromptu trip home. She made me promise to fill her in later on the details of why I was so hard pressed to keep distance between Adam and myself.
Blocking Adam’s attempt to be near me may have worked at dinner, but he’s currently got me cornered in the kitchen. Caging me against the counter with a hand on either side of me, he braces his weight on the granite surface. Mere inches separate us as he stares down at me. “Why are you running scared, Rocky?”
“I’m not scared.”
His face lowers, and I draw in a surprised breath. The kiss I expect doesn’t happen. Instead, he stares intently into my eyes, as if he’s looking for the answers to every one of my secrets. “Then why are you avoiding me?”
“I’m not. I’m right here, aren’t I?”
“Only because I forced the issue and you couldn’t dodge me any longer.”
“Look, I told you in the pool why I wouldn’t let anything happen between us,” I remind him.
“Yeah, then you kissed the fuck out of me.”
“Hey, you kissed me first,” I point out.
“I did. But you kissed me back. Talk about mixed messages.”
“I’m sorry I kissed you back.”
“No, you’re not.” He smirks knowingly.
“Fine. I’m not sorry, but that doesn’t mean it can happen again. I’m drawing the figurative line that we can’t cross over.”
He bumps his thick chest into mine. “What line?” His green eyes are pure mischief.
I sigh. “Don’t make this harder than it is.”
“Shouldn’t that be my line?” he jests. I try to bite back my smile, but I can’t. “You like me, Rocky. Why are you fighting it so much? Give in and put us both out of our misery. Think of all the fun we could have tonight.”
I have a pretty good idea of how enjoyable spending the night with him would be. It doesn’t matter that every single one of my erogenous zones is screaming for me to say yes, my brain is still in control and it’s shouting a loud hell no.
I shake my head. He places a fingertip on my closed lips before I can reply. “Don’t make your decision yet. Give me your answer later.” I nod, not because I agree. I don’t want to drag this out any longer.
Every second spent this close to him tests my restraint. After the pool mauling incident, I don’t trust myself completely. It’s difficult to turn down what could very well be the best sex of my life, even when I know it’s imperative I do.
Red, white, and blue splashes across the dark sky, like a star bursting apart. Next, purple erupts above us in the shape of a willow tree.
Sitting on a blanket in the town square with Vi on one side of me and Adam on the other, I lean back on my hands, tipping my face upward. Every time I assume the fireworks show is over, it keeps going. With them shooting off right above us, they appear so close. It seems like I could reach right up and grab one from the night sky.
The weather is a perfect seventy-five degrees, and, miraculously, I’ve yet to be swarmed by mosquitos. Maybe it has something to do with the burly guy sitting next to me. He keeps looking around and mean-mugging at anyone who has the nerve to look in our direction.
And his scowl is damn intimidating. If it was aimed at me, I’d be shaking in my flip flops.
Adam’s arm nudges mine and snakes behind me, his palm bracing on the grass. The new position has him leaning toward me and puts our arms in constant contact. Our bare skin touching sends a nervous flutter to my stomach. There’s no doubt that I react to his touch, even when it’s an inconsequential body part.
I’m thankful Vi is next to me and Dani and Rex are on another blanket in front of us. If not for them, I’m almost positive Adam and I would be making out on this blanket under the fireworks like a couple of teenagers, and I might be the one instigating it.
As we continue watching the fireworks, the three of us end up lying on our backs. The new position gives us a different perspective. The colors seem brighter, and each time the fireworks go off,