Good to know his
mom raised him right.
“Well,” I begin as he gets in, “what is it about me that
makes you treat me differently?”
He unbuttons his dress shirt all the way down, then the
cuffs, removing it and tossing it in the backseat. I catch the familiar scent
of him as it passes between us. “What are you talking about?” He tugs at his
white undershirt until it’s free from his pants.
Now, he’s looking more like the Wes I remember.
“From the minute we first met, you’ve been different with
me. Makenna talked about how sweet you always are. Shane says you’re more of a
best friend to him than a brother, and even now, with your secretary. You
hugged her. With me, you’re hot and cold, sometimes all at once. Moody. I feel like we’re constantly butting heads, and we don’t even have a reason to.
And while I’m on a roll, I have to mention the weekend of your birthday party.”
“Oh, come on, Callie . . .”
“No, I talk. You listen. You went from being an ass to
ignoring me, then you were protective and kissing me. Then after taking care of
me when I wasn’t feeling well, you disappeared. Not a word in three weeks. I
know we talked about being friends and all, and I’m totally cool with that, but
something seems a little off. I thought for sure I’d hear from you at some
point. What gives? If I get on your nerves or whatever, that’s fine. I just
prefer you tell me that upfront instead of acting as if you like me one minute
and then like you can’t stand me the next. As it stands right now, I don’t know
which mood I’m going to get from you. ”
He drums his fingers on the steering wheel and blows out a
deep breath. “Am I allowed to speak now?”
I nod.
“Callie, we are friends.” He shifts in his seat to
face me and runs his fingers through the top of his hair, causing it to fall
over his forehead. “I’ve had a lot going on the last few weeks, and I did ask
Shane if he knew how you were feeling the day after I left my parents’ house.
The road runs both ways . . . you could’ve called me, too. I programmed my
number into your phone while you slept, but even if you didn’t notice, you
could’ve gotten it from Makenna or Shane. As far as me treating you
differently, I don’t know what to tell you. I know I’ve been hot and cold, but
cold is safer for me right now. I’m trying to stay the hell away from hot as
much as possible with you, and it’s damn hard.”
“But why? That’s what I don’t understand.”
His eyes cut right through me, right to the very core. His
penetrating gaze floods into me and touches a certain place within that I
didn’t even know existed, almost like a raw, exposed nerve. It’s pleasure. But
also pain.
“I wasn’t in the best frame of mind when I got to my
parents’ house that day.” His voice softens slightly. “You know why. But I liked
you from that first second when you thought I broke into my own house. Little
by little, and with a lot of alcohol, I pushed the bullshit with my mother from
my mind, or at least I tried to. It kept creeping back up on me. But for some
damn reason, you also kept creeping up on me. If I didn’t see you, I was
thinking about you, still reeling from the way you didn’t take my shit.
Honestly . . .” He closes his eyes and shakes his head. “It turned me on.”
At this point, I feel like a few of my questions have been
answered, but with that revelation, I feel hundreds more building. Since I have
him talking, though, I think I’ll keep them to myself for a while.
“I already felt like an ass for kissing you after making out
with Allison earlier that night, so when I carried you up to your bed, I
decided to give it a few days before I tried anything again. Then, when I woke
up the next morning and saw you undressing to get in the shower, it was the
hardest thing I’ve ever done to stay in that bed. Still, though, I refrained. I
kept repeating to myself to give it some time. But right after that,
mom raised him right.
“Well,” I begin as he gets in, “what is it about me that
makes you treat me differently?”
He unbuttons his dress shirt all the way down, then the
cuffs, removing it and tossing it in the backseat. I catch the familiar scent
of him as it passes between us. “What are you talking about?” He tugs at his
white undershirt until it’s free from his pants.
Now, he’s looking more like the Wes I remember.
“From the minute we first met, you’ve been different with
me. Makenna talked about how sweet you always are. Shane says you’re more of a
best friend to him than a brother, and even now, with your secretary. You
hugged her. With me, you’re hot and cold, sometimes all at once. Moody. I feel like we’re constantly butting heads, and we don’t even have a reason to.
And while I’m on a roll, I have to mention the weekend of your birthday party.”
“Oh, come on, Callie . . .”
“No, I talk. You listen. You went from being an ass to
ignoring me, then you were protective and kissing me. Then after taking care of
me when I wasn’t feeling well, you disappeared. Not a word in three weeks. I
know we talked about being friends and all, and I’m totally cool with that, but
something seems a little off. I thought for sure I’d hear from you at some
point. What gives? If I get on your nerves or whatever, that’s fine. I just
prefer you tell me that upfront instead of acting as if you like me one minute
and then like you can’t stand me the next. As it stands right now, I don’t know
which mood I’m going to get from you. ”
He drums his fingers on the steering wheel and blows out a
deep breath. “Am I allowed to speak now?”
I nod.
“Callie, we are friends.” He shifts in his seat to
face me and runs his fingers through the top of his hair, causing it to fall
over his forehead. “I’ve had a lot going on the last few weeks, and I did ask
Shane if he knew how you were feeling the day after I left my parents’ house.
The road runs both ways . . . you could’ve called me, too. I programmed my
number into your phone while you slept, but even if you didn’t notice, you
could’ve gotten it from Makenna or Shane. As far as me treating you
differently, I don’t know what to tell you. I know I’ve been hot and cold, but
cold is safer for me right now. I’m trying to stay the hell away from hot as
much as possible with you, and it’s damn hard.”
“But why? That’s what I don’t understand.”
His eyes cut right through me, right to the very core. His
penetrating gaze floods into me and touches a certain place within that I
didn’t even know existed, almost like a raw, exposed nerve. It’s pleasure. But
also pain.
“I wasn’t in the best frame of mind when I got to my
parents’ house that day.” His voice softens slightly. “You know why. But I liked
you from that first second when you thought I broke into my own house. Little
by little, and with a lot of alcohol, I pushed the bullshit with my mother from
my mind, or at least I tried to. It kept creeping back up on me. But for some
damn reason, you also kept creeping up on me. If I didn’t see you, I was
thinking about you, still reeling from the way you didn’t take my shit.
Honestly . . .” He closes his eyes and shakes his head. “It turned me on.”
At this point, I feel like a few of my questions have been
answered, but with that revelation, I feel hundreds more building. Since I have
him talking, though, I think I’ll keep them to myself for a while.
“I already felt like an ass for kissing you after making out
with Allison earlier that night, so when I carried you up to your bed, I
decided to give it a few days before I tried anything again. Then, when I woke
up the next morning and saw you undressing to get in the shower, it was the
hardest thing I’ve ever done to stay in that bed. Still, though, I refrained. I
kept repeating to myself to give it some time. But right after that,
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