On The Rebound (Steinbeck U #1) - L.A. Cotton Page 0,62

one person who had stood by her when so many people had walked away.

My chest squeezed.

I might have hated her for what went down between us, but I wasn’t completely heartless.

Life was so fucking cruel sometimes.

So much bad shit happened to good people, like Fiona.

But Calli wasn’t good, she was just like everyone else in the world. Selfish and untrustworthy.

Calli’s breathing slowed, and I knew she’d fallen asleep. She looked so peaceful, with her soft features and pouty lips. I couldn’t resist tracing their shape with my finger, remembering how many times I’d kissed this mouth. It had been different back then. We were young and innocent, untainted by the harsh realities of life. We’d both been inexperienced, learning together; exploring our changing bodies and curious desires together.

We didn’t need any lessons now. Our bodies knew exactly what to do, and I didn’t like to think of her learning with some other douchebag.

A low growl rumbled in my chest, my heart having a real fucking problem with accepting she wasn’t ours anymore.

It had been a dick move to out her to Joel and the guys, I knew that. But at least I wouldn’t have to deal with him jonesing after her anymore. In a way, I’d done us both a favor. If she was on the outs with Joel, she had no reason to be coming around the team. Which meant she had no reason to be showing up in my life at every turn.

It was for the best.

We’d fucked away our frustrations, given in to our lingering connection one last time. And when morning rolled around, we could finally go our separate ways.

So why as I closed my eyes, did I have a huge fucking pit in my stomach?

I woke to a stream of light dancing over my face. “What the—” I pushed up onto my elbow and rubbed the sleep from my eyes.

Where the fuck was I?

Memories of the night before slammed into me.

The fairground.

The Ferris wheel.

Victoria dropping the bomb about Calli... me detonating the thing wide open.

Calli.

Fuck.

My name on her lips.

My dick buried deep inside her.

I glanced at the empty space beside me and frowned. “Calli?” I called out to the empty dorm room. The bathroom door was ajar, no sign of life.

She was gone.

That was a fucking first, waking up alone in the girl’s apartment. Usually, I was the one ducking out of dorm rooms in the cover of darkness, not the other way around.

Perhaps she went to get coffee.

But after lying there for another fifteen minutes, I realized she wasn’t coming back.

I hadn’t meant to fall asleep and spend the night, so maybe she woke up and panicked, and decided to save us both from an awkward morning after.

I didn’t know how to feel about that.

Throwing back the sheet draped over my body, I climbed out of bed and pulled on my clothes. Checking my cell, I ignored the messages from my teammates. They had questions, no doubt. But I wasn’t ready to answer them.

I had more pressing issues—like how the fuck I was going to get out of Calli’s room without attracting attention. Attention we didn’t need if I wanted to put this thing between us to bed.

Ducking into her small bathroom, I cleaned up a little. Even with the hood on my tank pulled on up, there was no way I making it out of Abrams without being recognized.

Splashing some water on my face, I tried to tame my bed hair out of my eyes. It was a little past eight thirty. Maybe everyone would still be sleeping or at least enjoying a lazy Sunday morning in their own rooms.

Whatever.

I couldn’t stay in here forever. Calli had obviously left for a reason. I didn’t want to be here when she came back.

But when I left the bathroom, I didn’t head for the door. Instead, I was drawn to the collection of photos hanging above her desk. There was Calli with her mom, Calli with her best friend Madison. Photos of the three of them. Photos of Bay View’s coastline. One of the old Travers house on the edge of the beach. Another taken from higher ground looking down on the bay, a bonfire roaring below.

I plucked the photo off its crocodile clip.

Halloween.

This was last Halloween. It had to be. Calli had her camera with her that night. I knew because I’d snatched the damn thing from around her neck and taunted her with it.

Fuck, that had been hot. Snapping photo after photo of