Before I know what I’m doing, I get up from the table.
“Don’t do it,” Jamie warns.
I ignore him and stroll over to Bex’s table, as if I’m drawn to her like a magnet. She has this strange hold over me. And now that I know how she feels, how she tastes, and the sexy moans she makes when she comes, I need more. I can’t control myself.
“Parker,” she says, crossing her arms over her chest. “What can I do for you?”
I want to kiss the smug look from her face and then bend her over this fucking table. She’s killing me. I never knew I could be so drawn to someone, so addicted to being around her. But I am.
“Can I talk to you for a second?”
She thinks over my question and nods. “What’s up?”
I grab her elbow and tug hard enough to get her to follow me away from her table. She locks onto me, her eyes burning into mine. I want to kiss her, right here in front of the entire cafeteria.
I lead her in the direction of my table. “I need to see you again.”
“We had a deal.” Her voice is low. She’s careful not to speak too loud with everyone watching us. “What part about one-time did you not understand? You should be used to hooking up with girls and forgetting about them the next day. This shouldn’t be any different.”
I place my hand on her shoulder, and I can feel watchful eyes on me. But who the hell cares? What I want to say to Bex needs to be said before I go crazy. She has to know how I feel.
“I meant what I said last week. I don’t want to stay away from you. And now that we—”
“Don’t finish that sentence. Not in public.” She sighs. “I like you, too, but for so many reasons this can’t work.”
“Name one.”
“For starters, my dad will murder you if he finds out.”
“What does it matter if you’re with me or some other guy on campus?”
She turns away from me, and I slide my hand under her chin to guide her eyes back to mine.
“You’re making a scene,” she says. “Everyone will know there’s something going on between us.”
“Maybe I want them to know.” I drop my hand to my side when she shakes me off. “If you were my girl, I would never hide you. I’d want everyone to know you are with me.”
“But I can’t be your girl, Preston. You know how this will end. Even if we see each other until the end of the school year, that’s where it will end. You’ll get drafted into the NHL and leave me behind. It happens all the time. I don’t want to be another statistic.”
“You never told me why your dad has these rules to begin with, and why you go along with them?”
She grinds her teeth. “I’m not ready to have that conversation.”
“I want to know you, Bex, but you’re not making it easy for me.”
“Everything comes easy to you,” she counters, and then her tone changes. “We can be friends, like we talked about before. Let’s see how that goes.”
“Friends hang out together,” I remind her. “They don’t ignore each other’s texts and calls and run away from them on campus.”
She laughs, most likely getting a kick out of what she’s been doing all week to avoid me. “I’m well aware.”
“Come to this party with me on Saturday.”
She bites the inside of her cheek. “Where?”
“The Delta Sig house.”
Her eyebrows lift. “A frat party? That’s not really my scene.”
“Humor me.”
She sucks in a deep breath and lets it out. “Okay. Fine. Can I bring Taylor with me since this isn’t a date?”
“Sure, invite whoever you want since it’s a non-date.” I laugh. “That sounds so fucking stupid saying that out loud.”
She smiles. “You looked adorable saying it.”
“Men are not adorable. That’s something you say about an animal.”
“But you are…” she coos, “… adorable.”
“I don’t think friends are supposed to say things like this,” I challenge.
“I suppose you’re right.”
I dip down to whisper in her ear, “I guess I shouldn’t tell you how all I can think about is your tight, wet pussy. Or how hot you sound when you moan my name.”
She clears her throat. “Um… probably not.”
“Say it. Please.”
“What?”
“My name.”
“Preston,” she breathes.
“Fuck, you’re making me hard.”
She takes a step back from me. “Then stop doing this.” Bex motions her hands in front of her. “All of this. You. It’s so distracting.”
I laugh at her comment. “Touché.”
“I don’t see how we’re going to be friends,” she confesses.
“Me either. But we can try. We can be friends with benefits. No attachments. No breaking your last rule. What do you say?”
Taylor calls Bex’s name from the other side of the cafeteria, ending our conversation. She flags Bex down and yells about it being time for practice.