Chapter 9
Trystan
B ass vibrated through the floorboards as I pushed through the entryway, the air thick with cheap beer and weed. Rotating lights carved paths through artificial fog—red washing over twisted bodies, then blue, then green. I shouldered past a guy sloshing his drink, scanning the crowd for that familiar mess of dark hair.
Thankfully, I was taller than most, so it was easy to spot her pretty quickly.
"Cam," I shouted over the music, stepping up behind her.
She spun, her eyes widening when they landed on me. "What are you doing here?"
"I came to get you." She knew exactly why I was here—to figure out why she was freaking mad at me.
Her brows pulled together. "What part of no didn't you understand?"
"Why don't we just skip the bullshit, and you just tell me why you're mad at me?"
"Fuck you." She moved to sidestep me. She was madder than I thought.
I stepped into her personal space, blocking her. "If you're hoping I'll chase you, you should know I don't chase girls." I didn't bother hiding the irritation in my tone. I hated games, and I had no intention of playing her games either.
She raised her brows. "Then what are you doing here, Trystan?"
She was right. What was I doing there?
Groaning, I grabbed her elbow and led her out of the crowd, steering her into an empty hallway. "Cam, I'm too old to play little girl games."
Her lips curled into a devilish grin as she huffed out a humorless laugh. "The only one playing games here is you." She raked her gaze over me, her lip curling in disgust as she jerked her arm out of my grasp.
I wasn't playing games, but I could see how she might think I was. I said one thing but acted a different way. I invited her on tour with me knowing damn well I had no intention of actually bringing her. It was like my mind and my mouth were working against each other, and I had no control over any of it.
"See you around, Trystan." She twisted around and strolled off, disappearing into the crowd of partiers.
I bit down on the inside of my cheek to keep from growling out loud. If she were anyone else, I would walk away, but if she were anyone else, I wouldn't be here right now. For some fucking reason, I actually cared. I moved through the crowd, glancing around in the direction Cam disappeared.
"Hey, Trystan." Mariah smiled, flipping her long black hair over her shoulder. I knew Mariah from Jaxtyn. She'd been at a few of Jax's parties over the years.
"What's up?" I forced a smile. "Uh, have you seen Cam?"
"That Cam?" She pointed over my shoulder, and I twisted to follow. Cam and a blonde were standing on the kitchen island dancing.
Blowing out a sigh, I nodded. "Yep. That's the one." I flashed her a smile. "Catch you later."
"Hey," Mariah batted her big brown eyes as she tugged on my shirt, "what did she do to get your attention?"
That was an excellent question. A question I couldn't answer. There was just something about Cam.
"I can dance for you if that's what you're into."
I shook my head. "Another time." By another time, I meant never in the nicest way possible.
Pushing through the crowd, jealousy bloomed in my chest as the crowd of men circled her like she was their prey and they were getting ready to pounce.
"Cam, get down," I shouted over the music. My commanding tone got her attention.
She rolled her eyes. "I thought you left." She continued dancing.
Fuck. I had two options I could say 'fuck this' and walk away, or I could rip Camryn off that counter, toss her over my shoulder and lock her in the room until she told me why she was fucking mad.
"Fuck this," I muttered, whipping around to leave, already tasting the bitter satisfaction of walking away. This was what I did, wasn't it? Keep moving, stay detached, never look back. Simple.
Except Camryn didn't seem to care. She wasn't like other girls. Even though I knew she wanted me, she wasn't going to chase me.
"Take it off," the guy next to me shouted, and I froze. That ignited a fire inside me that I didn't know I was capable of feeling, and I couldn't control anything I did after that.
Rearing back, I saw red as I slammed my fist into the short man's face, twisted, reached up, and jerked Cam off the counter. If she fought me, I didn’t notice. Anger and adrenaline were coursing through me. Shifting her, I flung her over my shoulder and stormed to the back of the house into a bedroom, slamming the door behind me.
"What the fuck?" Cam growled, and I leaned forward, dropping her on the king-size bed. "What are you doing, Trystan?" She pushed up to a sitting position on the edge of the bed. "I gave you your fucking out. Why didn't you walk away?"
"Honestly," I gritted out, my chest heaving. Standing between her knees, I stared down at her. "You make me crazy. I want to make you mine, but I know I can't, and yet the thought of anyone else touching you makes me want to rip someone's eyes out. I don't believe in monogamy, but I don't want to share you."
Her expression softened.
"I don't know what's happening." I shoved a hand through my hair, pushing it out of my eyes.
"Why did you ask me to go on tour with you?"
"Because I don't want to leave you behind, and I wasn't thinking..." I shook my head. "It just came out."
"You can't say stuff like that to me." She pushed to her feet, brushing her body against mine. "You have to say what you mean."
I huffed out a laugh. "That's the problem. I do mean it."
She shook her head. "No, you don't. You may want to mean it, but you don't."
Dropping her gaze, she bit down on her bottom lip. My hand tangled in her hair, tugging softly, forcing her eyes up as I stared down through lowered lids. "How about we just take this one day at a time? No expectations, no labels, just you and me."
"We need clear boundaries."
"We can do that."
"And honesty?"
I nodded. "Just don't ask anything you don't want the absolute truth to."
"Deal."
"So does that mean I can kiss you now?"
The corners of her lips lifted, and her hands curled into my black tee. "Ye..." My lips crashed against hers.
It was addicting.
She was addicting.
We kissed until our lips were swollen, and we were gasping for air.
"My aunt and uncle are gone for a few weeks," she breathed as I dropped my forehead to hers. "Want to come home with me?"
My lips curled into a grin. "Yeah." I wanted to set the boundaries as soon as possible so that I could spend the rest of my time here with her, in her, on her, around her.