The Crush

“Nothing. She’s been texting me a lot. I just haven’t seen her.”

“Why don’t you invite her over?”

I couldn’t think of one reason not to, even if the thought didn’t excite me. It might’ve seemed strange if I insisted on hanging out alone when Nathan had a girl coming over. I certainly didn’t want to be the fifth wheel. And I couldn’t bolt, as much as I wanted to skip this entire pool party.

Reluctantly, I took out my phone and texted Alyssa.

Jace: Hey. What are you up to this afternoon?

Her response was almost immediate.

Alyssa: Just doing some shopping. Why?

Jace: Would you want to come over for some burgers by the pool? We’re having a little get together.

Alyssa: I would love that! Who’s we?

Jace: Nathan, his sister, and a couple of their friends.

Alyssa: Ah. Yup. Sounds like fun.

Jace: Cool. Pick you up in an hour?

There’d been no doubt in my mind that she was going to say yes, considering she’d texted me almost every single day since we’d met, despite the fact that I hadn’t shown much interest.

Alyssa: I’m heading home now. So that will be perfect.

If Alyssa could get my mind off Farrah for even a minute, inviting her over would be worth it.

Chapter 13

* * *

Farrah

She was so damn pretty that it made me want to pull my hair out—or maybe chew it like the old days. The moment Jace walked in with Alyssa, I regretted telling him he should resume bringing girls to the house. What the hell was I thinking? I’d said it to be fair, but the current situation was proof that it wasn’t something I could handle.

Alyssa checked me out just as much as I did her. It was basically a staring contest. I caught her ogling my breasts. She caught me staring at her perfect nose and silky blond hair. Then she’d move her hand over to Jace’s leg, and my eyes would follow as a form of self-torture. The fact that my attention had shifted so dramatically from Colton to what was going on between Alyssa and Jace was a real eye-opener. I’d thought maybe I was turning a corner, finding a way to move on with Colton. My jealousy-induced inability to focus proved otherwise.

Poor Colton. The guy could not have been any nicer. He just didn’t do it for me the way Jace did. I didn’t have an uncontrollable need to jump him, didn’t feel the intense attraction through my core that I felt any time Jace was in the room.

Jace took Alyssa’s empty bottle as he stood up. “You want another beer?”

“I’d love one,” she said.

The fact that he waited on her and ignored me shouldn’t have bothered me, given that I was sitting next to the guy I was dating. Colton looked at me adoringly as I stewed over my screwed-up feelings.

Nathan and Crystal played around in the pool while the rest of us continued to hang out on the loungers. I forced small talk with Colton while trying to control my feelings.

It was exhausting. I excused myself to the bathroom, promising to get Colton a beer on my way back. Once inside, I splashed some water on my face.

When I opened the door to exit, Jace was walking down the hall toward me.

He stopped. “I’m just…going to grab an extra towel.”

His body was a few inches from mine, and I could feel its heat. My gaze traveled the length of his carved chest before moving to his face. We stared into each other’s eyes for a few tense seconds as he towered over me. I finally forced myself to put one foot in front of the other and go back outside.

As I landed back in my seat next to Colton, my body still quivered from the encounter.

“Did you forget my beer?” Colton asked.

Shit. “I’m sorry. I did.”

“No worries.” He got up. “I’ll get it. Want one?”

I wiped some sweat off my forehead. “No, thanks.”

Later, after the sun went down, Nathan thought it would be a good idea if the six of us watched a movie. After much debate, we finally settled on one of the old Bourne films with Matt Damon, because Crystal had never seen that series.

Jace and Alyssa made popcorn in the kitchen while Nathan pulled the movie up on the TV. Nathan let Crystal have his usual spot in the chair, and he grabbed a pillow and sat on the floor by her legs. I had settled into a seat on the couch next to Colton, who had chosen to sit at the end. That meant there was a chance I’d be sitting next to Jace.

God. All I could think about was getting to sit next to Jace?

When Alyssa and Jace finally returned to the living room, I straightened in my seat and tried to seem nonchalant as Jace approached. Then he sat next to me, giving Alyssa no choice but to sit at the far end of the couch. Had he intended to do that? This would be my first time sitting close to him knowing what it was like to kiss him. Knowing that he was attracted to me. Knowing that he wanted me. Knowing that he’d been on to my last movie night leg game all along. With four of us sitting in a row, it was a tighter fit than normal, so I didn’t even have to move my leg closer to his; we were naturally pressed together like sardines.