Love or Lust (LOL): Part 3

That’s a loaded question and she knows it.

“I want... I don’t know. I want to be with him, but I’m afraid of getting hurt again. It scares me that he has the power to do that already. And if he destroys my heart, there will be no coming back from it. I can’t survive a second time, Naomi. You and I both know I almost didn’t survive Wren.”

“You’re right, but then again, you just said his name. Without hatred in your voice. Without even realizing it. I think you’re stronger than you realize. That you can survive anything. I also think you know he’s not Wren. He would never hurt you on purpose the way Wren did.”

“How can you be so sure?” I ask, needing a little more reassurance.

“Because, when you were with Wren, you hesitated about everything. Almost as if you knew it would turn out the way it did. With Jace, you’re not afraid to admit how you feel. The way you talk about him, the things you’ve told me, I can tell he’s a good person. That he honestly cares about you.”

“I haven’t really said that much about him, have I?”

“Since day one, you’ve been talking about him, whether you realize it or not. Sure, you talked about Lennon a little, but not the way you talk about Jace. Not with as much excitement in your voice. You may not have wanted to go on this show, Presley, but I’m glad you did. You’ve healed since being there, and now you’re allowing love in your heart again. A love that I think has the chance to go the distance. But it’s not about what I think. It’s about how you feel. You have to decide what you want.

“Do you want to be with Jace? Take a risk and move to Florida and see where things go? Or would you rather leave there with nothing more than a passing fling? Can you let him go?”

Her words run through my mind as I slip into a tank top and short shorts. They’re still running through my mind as I rush over to Bella’s villa so we can greet the guys together. And they continue to run through my mind until the moment Jace steps out of the main house and our eyes connect.

The answer is no.

I won’t be able to let him go.

The windin Teegan’s sails has successfully been destroyed. She thought she found a way to get rid of me when, in fact, it may have been the nail in her coffin, and she didn’t even see it coming.

After Claudia left last night, I sent Jace a text. I filled him in on everything from the day. Teegan’s unnecessary comments. The dares that were made. Including the one that I won’t be following through on. The slap that took both me and Teegan by surprise. And finally, the unsigned paperwork that somehow slipped past Claudia.

Not that I did it on purpose. I went through and signed every single piece of paper they sent me. That specific form wasn’t included, or I accidentally missed it. Either way, my lack of a signature saved my ass. I’d be on my way to a hotel right now if I’d signed it. And I would have if I’d seen it. I have a strange feeling it wasn’t in my packet. Or anyone’s.

Jace found everything funny judging by the emoji’s he was sending me. At least that’s what I thought until he started trying to sext me. That’s when I realized he was a little drunk.

So, when the boys finally arrived earlier this afternoon and I jumped into Lennon’s arms, wrapping myself around him and kissing him as if I needed his oxygen to breathe, Lennon wasn’t surprised. Neither was Jace when Bella kissed him. Milo, on the other hand, either wasn’t informed of what was going on or wasn’t told about the dares because he appeared genuinely shocked when Teegan started making out with him.

Her hands holding his face hostage. Her tongue invading his mouth.

It wasn’t pretty.

Especially with the expression on Milo’s face the first few seconds.

Then he got into it and took it a step too far.

Pressing her against the side of the house and slipping a hand under her shirt. Going straight for her boob and fondling her in front of everyone.

The expression on Teegan’s face made me want to crack up laughing.

She pushed him away and slapped him across the face.

Doesn’t she know she can’t do that? It’s against the rules.

Oops.

Milo and I have been laughing about it all evening along with the movie he brought over for us to watch. Not that we’ve watched any of it. We’ve basically been talking about Teegan the entire time. About their camping trip and how drunk all the guys were last night. Apparently Jace was reading my text messages out loud to them.

Good thing I kept them clean.

Or at least in the beginning, I did. I’m hoping he didn’t share the last few.

“I thought she missed me. What can I say?” he explains, shrugging his shoulders as he takes another bite of semi-burnt frozen pizza, washing it down with a beer.

“You have a thing for her, don’t you?” I inquire, causing him to choke on his pizza.