DELETED SCENE
LAUREL
Nervous as hell, I climbed out of my car in front of the red-brick building where I’d spent at least seven hours a day for four long years of my life. As I stared at the wide double doors and the ivy-covered walls of my old high school, I could barely believe it had been ten years since I’d last been here.
Gosh, where has the time gone?
It felt like just last week that I’d been hanging banners and blowing up balloons for our graduation, and yet, that had been a whole decade ago. I dragged in a deep breath, keeping it in my lungs for a moment as Gemma and Mariam followed me out of the car.
It was good to be here with them, and I was even staying with Gemma for the weekend so we’d all have more time together. As I stood there staring at the school, relief spiraled through me that I was here alone.
In the past ten years, I’d grown so much and learned so much, but standing here, parked in the same spot under the old oak in the far corner of the lot that I’d always managed to get as a senior, I felt like that same girl.
The same scared, nerdy seventeen-year-old I’d been when we’d started our final year here. Swallowing hard, I glanced at my friends, wondering if I was the only one feeling this way. Thankfully, it didn’t look like it.
Gemma tugged at her short blonde hair, smoothing it unnecessarily for at least the tenth time in the last ten minutes. She glanced at me, nerves shimmering in her eyes before she looked back at the school.
“Well, here we are,” she murmured. “Can anyone believe that it’s been ten years?”
“Nope,” I replied.
Mariam tugged nervously at the neckline of her dress. “Definitely not.”
“We’re all single,” Gemma said suddenly. “You guys do remember what that means, right?”
I groaned and Mariam frowned, shaking her head at our friend. “You can’t be serious right now.”
“Oh, but I am.” Gemma grinned, finally looking like she was relaxing a little bit. “We made a pact, Mimi. We’re here. We’re single. It’s time to bring out the list.”
“Not this weekend,” I said quickly. “We don’t have time.”
“Fine. I’ll bring it on our trip, but neither of you are getting out of this.”
Mariam sighed loudly. “Don’t you have better things to think about? Like did we receive Noah Parks’ rider for the Diamond Festival?”
“I did.” Gemma leaned forward to wink at her as she brought her index finger to her temple. “I’ve got enough going on up here to think about everything, all at once. Are we going in then, or are we spending all night outside?”
“We’re going in,” I said, lifting my chin in the hopes that it would make me appear more confident. “Come on. Let’s go. Time’s a wasting.”
I led the way, flanked by my best friends as we made our way across the parking lot without any of us falling on our faces even once, which was a win in my books. A balloon arch in the school’s colors, gold and maroon, had been draped across the main entrance to welcome us, and I swallowed hard as we walked underneath it, but my mouth remained bone dry.
High school hadn’t been the worst years of my life. Far from it. I’d had my two best friends by my side every day. I’d been first chair in band. I’d helped to run the school. I’d been friends with everyone, but it had been ten years.
It’s only natural that I feel faint, right? That’s a long time to not have seen most of these people.
I drew in another deep breath, noticing my friends doing the same thing on either side of me, but it didn’t help that the first person we saw when we walked into the building was Suzie Sanders, our former class president and head jerk.
She was bossing a few other girls around, complaining loudly about the font used on the name tags and being, well, a jerk. On the upside, she’d picked up a lot of weight and she really didn’t look good at all.
Yay! I mean, boo.
In the past, her nails had always been meticulously manicured and her hair perfectly styled, but tonight, her nails were short and stubby, not a hint of polish in sight. Her hair had lost its youthful shine and she didn’t seem to care.
“I heard she was broke,” Mariam murmured to me. “I didn’t believe it until right this minute, though.”
“Are we supposed to feel sorry for her?” Gemma whispered loudly enough for both of us to hear. “She was horrible to us. I know reunions aren’t about who won or who lost, but am I allowed to feel just a little bit good about winning?”
Yes, I thought.
“No,” Mariam said strictly, forcing a smile as Suzie came over and smacked a name tag into each of our hands.
“Ladies,” she drawled, dismissing us from her gaze almost immediately. “Cute of you to come. Who are you again?”
Gemma’s eyebrows shot up, but Suzie was already stalking away from us. “Well, I definitely don’t feel bad about winning now.”
“Ignore her,” I said lamely, reverting to advice I hadn’t had to give in a decade. “She knows who we are. It’s probably just been a long day.”
Mariam had stiffened slightly. “This is bringing back the worst frigging memories. Let’s just grab our name tags and go.”
Gemma and I fell into step beside her, checking in before we fixed our tags to ourselves and joined a throng of our former classmates heading down the hall to the gym. As we went, I took a good look around, surprised to see how little had changed since we’d been gone.
Everything looked almost exactly the same, and I was so caught up in the feeling that I’d walked back in time that I didn’t even see him until Gemma poked me. “Is that Leif McIntosh? Shit, Laurel. I think it is. I think that’s him.”
I blinked myself out of my time warp, immediately zeroing in on the guy she was inclining her head at. My heart skipped a beat at the sight of him, my palms instantly clammy. She was right.
Less than twenty feet away from me stood Leif, my old flame from high school.
And wow.
He’d gone from math nerd to ultra hot guy in the last ten years. I’d always thought he was cute, but he was now objectively gorgeous. Without even looking, I could’ve pointed at a minimum of five other girls who were checking him out, struggling to keep their tongues in their mouths while fighting the urge to fan their faces.
It would’ve been rather comical if I hadn’t been feeling the same way, but damn. Leif looked good enough to eat, lick, and climb—preferably all at the same time.
He’d been talking to someone, but as if he felt me staring at him, he suddenly glanced my way, those clear blue eyes landing directly on mine. I saw them widen for just a moment. Then a slow grin broke out across his face as his head cocked.
My heart went wild, hopping and jumping all over the place as our gazes connected and held, an unmistakable current of electricity passing between us. In that moment, the years melted away, none of it mattering as I looked at him and he looked back at me, our own little bubble seeming to form around us as time stood still.
“Laurel?” Gemma’s voice invaded my consciousness. “Go speak to him. Say hi. Stop staring like a weirdo. We’ll be at the bar.”
I jerked my chin in a nod. Just as they left my side, he started forward, also still staring like a weirdo. Neither of us broke eye contact, my own feet starting to carry me toward him as if I was being drawn by some invisible tether.
I didn’t fight it, though. I just went, following my feet until I was standing right in front of him. He smiled and my heart skipped a year’s worth of beats. “Laurel, hey. Wow. You look amazing. How are you?”
I tried to remember that he was still just Leif. A much hotter, much more polished-looking version of himself, but still just Leif. Our shared history and even our shared trauma was all still there. All I had to do was ignore those award-worthy cheekbones, and I’d be able to speak.
“Uh, Leif? Hi. Thank you.” I cleared my throat, my cheeks on fire.
Okay, so that was bumpy, but not cringe-worthy. This is good. Now keep going just like that. Calm and confident.
“You look so great yourself,” I rushed out, and then I fought a groan.
Shit. Slightly less good.
Leif didn’t seem to mind, though. He laughed, his gaze lowering to rake over me and leaving goosebumps in its wake. When it came back up to mine, he jerked his head at the bar.
“Drink?”
“Parched,” I said, unable to resist the urge to squeeze my eyes shut as I cringed. “I meant to say yes. Please. I’m parched.”
He chuckled, valiantly offering me his arm to lead me across the treacherous valley that was our former high school gym, positively teeming with so many people who could steal his attention away from me at any given moment.
God, Laurel. This isn’t some epic fantasy you’re writing. Just walk!
I wrapped my fingers around his arm, shivering a little at the strong muscles I felt under his button-down shirt, and fell into step beside him. “So, obviously, I’m still the same awkward, geeky type I used to be. You seem different though, so let’s talk about that. How are you?”
He glanced down at me from his towering height, smiling again as he shook his head. “You used to be awkward and geeky? Someone should’ve told me.”
I laughed. “At least your sense of humor is still intact.”
“I know. Impressive for an accountant, am I right?”
My eyebrows twitched. “You’re an accountant?”
“I’m not just an accountant. I’m the accountant. At my firm, anyway. Which I started with my brother, so maybe that’s not as much of a brag as I thought it was.”
I laughed again, surprised at how easy it still was to talk to him, and that didn’t change as the night went on. Leif and I still clicked like lock and key, so completely in sync that there was never an awkward silence.
“It’s still a brag,” I said earnestly. “Being a business owner always is. Accounting, though? I always knew you were good at numbers, but I didn’t think you loved them enough to make them your living.”
He shrugged. “Numbers make sense to me. How about you? I assume you’ve moved on from tutoring and babysitting for money?”
I chuckled. “I shouldn’t have, but sadly, yes. I no longer tutor or babysit, if you’d believe it.”
“What a pity,” he said mournfully, then grinned and it was like the world lit up again. “Okay, so let me have it. What do you do now? Or let me guess. You’re a base jumper?”
“Is that even a real profession?”
“I’m not sure.” He laughed, scratching the side of his neck as his eyes bored into mine. “My brother has been trying to convince me to give it a try, so it’s kind of at the top of my mind at the moment.”
“If humans were meant to fly, God would’ve given us wings,” I said, my nose wrinkling at the mere thought of hurtling through the air wearing nothing but a thin suit that was supposed to save my life. “It’s safe to say that I’m not a base jumper. I suppose I could write a book about it, though.”
He blinked a few times, the smile curving on those full lips radiant and genuinely excited for me as he widened his eyes. “You’re a writer?”
“And bookstore owner.”
Leif tossed an arm around my shoulders, casually pulling me in for a sideways hug. He threw his free hand into the air, signaling the bartender before he ordered us a round of tequila shots. “We have to celebrate this. I can’t believe you actually did it. That’s amazing. Just wow.”
Meanwhile, my heart practically thrummed in my chest at being so close to him. His expensive, very masculine scent enveloped me as I leaned into his side. “Thanks. It’s not a big deal.”
“It’s a huge deal,” he said, laughing as he released me. “I knew you could do it, though. I just wasn’t sure you’d ever go for it.”
“Neither was I,” I confessed, skeptically eyeing the little glass the bartender handed over. “I should warn you now that I’m still a massive lightweight when it comes to alcohol. If I make a fool of myself after this, it’s on you.”
“I’ll be right with you,” he promised, gaze lingering on mine as he lifted his tiny glass for a toast. “To living our dreams?”
“Living our dreams,” I repeated dutifully after him, drinking down the shot before I could mentally talk myself out of it.
Leif and I stuck together for the rest of the night, laughing and having fun, and I, for one, felt like I’d fallen instantly in love with him by the time the gym slowly started emptying out. It was probably just the tequila since he’d fed me a lot more of it than I was used to and he’d had his fair share too. Getting wasted with him was a blast, though.
So much so that when he smiled at me at the end of the night, I’d have given him an ovary if he’d asked. “Do you want to come back to my hotel with me?”
Well, that’s not quite asking for an ovary, but this is better. Definitely better.
“Yes.” I returned his smile, taking his hand when he offered it.
The moment my palm landed in his, I felt a delicious little shiver pass through me and I slid my fingers between his, relishing in the sensation of his strong hand in mine. Leif had a car waiting when we walked out into the warm night air, and he tucked his arm around my shoulders as he climbed into the backseat with me.
Without a word, I melted into his side, instinctively reaching for his hand again. His fingers slid between mine, holding them tight as the car drove us the short distance to a much fancier hotel than I was expecting, but I didn’t ask any questions. My tongue seemed to have glued itself to the roof of my mouth, all the moisture in my body having traveled south after spending the ride pressed up against him.
After he climbed out, he reached back into the car to help me out, holding on to my hand even after I’d gotten out. I didn’t try to withdraw either, sensing now that he hadn’t brought me here for another drink.
This was about something else entirely, and I had zero intention of putting a stop to it. Still without saying a word, we climbed into an elevator and Leif hit the button for the top floor. Then we spun around to face the doors in unison, like our limbs were operating on the same brain.
Tension stretched in the air between us as we ascended, undeniable chemistry sparking like a live wire while we waited for the doors to open. Once they did, he led me down a richly carpeted hallway and stopped in front of a door at the far end of it, swiping a key card over a reader before waving me in ahead of him.
The room turned out to be a massive suite, but I’d barely even registered it before his fingers circled around my wrist and he tugged me into him, his lips somehow finding mine. I wasn’t sure who had kissed who.
All I knew was that Leif McIntosh was kissing me, his tongue sliding against the seam of my lips and his big, hard body leaning into mine. He hooked an arm around my hips, holding me tight against him and walking me back until I crashed into a wall. Or maybe it was the door.
I didn’t know and I didn’t really care. My head spun—and not because of the alcohol this time. I wanted him so much, it hurt, and since it seemed like he felt the same way, I wasn’t going to let a little thing like disbelief hold me back.
Moaning into his mouth, I wrapped my arms around his shoulders, pushing myself up on my tiptoes to kiss him harder. A low groan vibrated through him, his hands gripping my hips before he lifted me clean off my feet.
I let out a surprised squeak, but he didn’t let that put him off. Instead, he deepened the kiss, his fingers sliding down to wrap around the backs of my thighs. As he lifted me against him, my heart started pounding for real, my panties so drenched I wondered if he could feel it through all the layers between us.
“Laurel?” he rasped against my lips.
I didn’t want to break our kiss either, so I murmured my reply into his mouth in turn. “Yeah?”
“You’re not too drunk, right?”
“Not anymore,” I assured him breathlessly, already reaching for the buttons of his shirt and quickly sliding the plastic nubs through the holes.
Leif groaned, keeping me up against the wall with his hips and he slid his fingers up the length of my arms, tugging my straps away from my shoulders and then finding the zipper by my side. He slid it down to where it caught on some bunched-up material, cursing under his breath as I heard him kick off his shoes.
Barely even able to breathe through the need coursing through me, I moaned when I felt him hard and ready against my core, and I was suddenly desperate to get him naked. He seemed to have other ideas, though.
Giving up on my zipper from this angle, he set me back down on my feet, quickly lowering the remaining few inches of my zipper before dropping to his knees in front of me. My breaths came out in labored pants as my dress slid free now that it was no longer being held up by either straps or the zipper.
It pooled around my waist and Leif gave it a sharp tug to help it slide all the way down. I barely even had time to process that I was practically naked in front of him now, left only in my panties since the dress had a bra built into it.
He groaned as he looked up at me, eyes hungry and eager as they roamed all over my body. Then he hooked his fingers into my panties and rolled those down too, tossing them over his shoulder once they were off. Without hesitating, he leaned forward, gaze shooting up to mine as he pressed his palms to the insides of my thighs and spread them.
My breath caught, my head dropping back as my eyes closed. The next thing I knew, his tongue was on me, his fingers teasing at my entrance while his other hand was on my hip, anchoring me to the wall. A good thing, since my knees buckled as soon as he sucked my swollen clit into his mouth.
My hips rolled, my hands flying into his hair to steady myself. He moaned against my slick flesh as he licked through me. Then he suddenly pushed up to his feet again, lifting me against him once more and kissing me deeply as he carried me to his bed.
All my nerve endings were alive with the promise of pleasure. He dropped me down on the mattress and crawled onto it with me. His shirt was still hanging open and I desperately reached for it as his mouth sealed back over mine.
Quickly shoving it off, I pulled him to me, wrapping my legs around his hips before I realized his slacks were still on. A whimper of protest left me, but I reached for his fly and clawed at his belt until I managed to free it. Then I undid his button and his zipper, bringing my feet up to help me push his pants off.
Leif lifted his hips for me to pull the fabric over his erection, moaning when the side of my hand brushed against his shaft. He trembled slightly above me and my nipples tightened to even harder points, my entire body on edge to feel him inside me.
When he tried to break the kiss to drag his lips down the length of my torso again, I caught his shoulders and shook my head. “I need you. Now.”
I didn’t even recognize my own voice, it was so husky and ragged, but he dropped his chin in a nod and pulled a condom out of his pants, sitting back on his knees to roll it on before settling back over me. I held his gaze as I felt the heat of his tip at my entrance, pushing at it and spreading me apart. He slid in. My breath got stuck in my lungs and a shiver of anticipation rushed down my spine, my mouth finding his once more as he thrust home.
I cried out, wrapping my arms tightly around his neck and kissing him harder. A growl emanated from somewhere deep within him once he buried inside me, but he kept still for a moment and then, when he finally started moving, I felt like I’d been flung to a whole new plane of existence.
A place where only pleasure and Leif existed, and I never wanted to leave. I knew I would have to eventually, but I shoved the thought way out of my head and focused on enjoying every moment of this instead.
We would only have another reunion in ten more years from now. By then, it was highly unlikely that we’d both still be single, which meant this was my one shot and I’d be damned if I didn’t make the best of it.