Chapter 6 #2
Kieran looks at me. “Nick is right. Maybe you need to stop being the perfect son,” he says.
His voice is gentle, which is worse than if he’d been harsh.
“Maybe you need to start being yourself. You said it. The clothes aren’t just about teasing us with your luscious ass.
This is you trying something on. Seeing if it fits. ”
I look down at myself, at the pink crop top against my skin, the way the white shorts hug my ass, the exposed strip of my stomach, pale and freckled.
Four days ago, I would have died before wearing this outside my bedroom.
Now I’m sitting in the living room of my grandmother’s beach house with it on, and I don’t care who sees.
I pick the phone up and tap back to my messages, and my dad’s text is sitting there, sent twenty minutes ago.
Dad: Okay, Hank will arrive at noon on Monday. Enjoy the rest of your vacation.
Nick peers over my shoulder, and I let him read the messages. “Lilah returned the car?”
Kieran goes stiff. “She what?”
“She dropped the car off at my parents’ house. Your bags and everything are in it.”
“Maybe we should call her,” Nick says, leaning in and nuzzling my throat.
“Why would we call the woman who was cheating on both of us?” Kieran asks.
“To confront her, obviously! Closure is important.”
I set down my coffee, frowning at Kieran for a long moment. “Closure. Maybe we do need that,” I mutter, and I pull up FaceTime and hit her name.
She answers on the third ring. Her face fills the screen, her dark auburn hair pulled back in a messy bun, her hazel eyes going wide. She’s in her bedroom, I think. I recognize the bulletin board behind her from her freshman dorm.
“Chase?” Her voice comes through tinny and small. Then her eyes drop, taking in what I’m wearing, and her mouth opens. “What the hell are you wearing?”
I laugh, and it surprises me. “A crop top. I’ve decided to experiment with my style. You like?”
“It’s a bit… gay.”
“So is fucking men. Who knew?” I say.
“You’re—” She blinks. “Since when?”
“Since always, I guess. It just took me a long time to realize why sex with you wasn’t that good.”
Kieran chokes on his coffee. Nick snickers.
“Four days ago, I walked into your bedroom and found your boyfriend instead of you. And I liked it. So thank you, for leaving gracefully. I’m taking this trip to figure some shit out, and Nick and Kieran have been a huge help.”
“Jesus, Chase.” She runs a hand through her hair.
Nick leans closer, his weight tilting the phone. He presses a kiss to my cheek, warm and casual, his stubble scraping my skin. “Hey, Lilah.”
Lilah’s eyes go wide, her mouth dropping open. “Holy shit. Are you two a thing? I thought it was Kieran in the bed with you.”
I grin, because messing with her feels good after everything she did. “No, it was Kieran. And Nick, later, after you left.”
Lilah blinks. “You’re kidding.”
“Anyway, I’m not calling to gossip about my sex life. I’m calling for closure.”
“Listen, Chase. I’m sorry. About the car. About freaking out. About… all of it.” She sighs. “I was stringing you both along.”
“But why?” I ask, meeting Kieran’s eyes. The hurt is still there.
“I don’t know. You’re so sweet, and my parents would love you.”
“Love me, or love my money?” I ask.
“You of course.” She’s clearly lying, from the way her voice goes all high-pitched and weird. “But you know, I’m young, and Kieran was so fun. It was shitty. I’m sorry. Tell him I’m sorry?”
I look at Kieran, who narrows his eyes. “I don’t think he wants to talk to you right now,” I say.
“I’m sorry I took the car. Thank you for not pressing charges.”
“Well, thank you for returning the car,” I say. “My trust fund person would flip if I had to buy another one this soon.”
She laughs, and for a second we’re just two people who used to matter to each other, and it doesn’t hurt. “Take care of yourself, Chase. And tell Nick he’s an idiot if he doesn’t lock that down.”
“Nick and Kieran both,” I correct. “I’m hoping they both lock it down.”
I hang up and set the phone on the coffee table. Nick is snickering beside me, his arm slung across the back of the couch behind my shoulders.
“Do you feel closure now?” Nick asks.
I groan. “She was after me for my money? I think I felt more closure beforehand, when I thought she liked me as a person.”
“Ah well,” Nick says. “You win some, you lose some.”
Kieran is staring at me, his jaw tight.
“Sorry, I shouldn’t have said anything about locking you down, that was inappropriate,” I say.
Kieran frowns. “She was keeping you on the back burner because she wanted to marry a rich asshole.”
“I mean, she only liked my money, so all-in-all I think you win this contest, which is why you were on the front burner,” I say, tilting my head. “Is that the right word for it?”
“Fuck the poor guy, marry the rich one. You’d win in the end,” Kieran says.
“Honestly, she’s the only loser in this scenario, isn’t she?” I look at Nick and he nods.
“Agreed. She introduced us to her hot boyfriend, and we stole him!” Nick says.
“And we really, really like him, too,” I say, meeting Kieran’s eyes. “He’s definitely a keeper.”
Kieran stands with a sigh, then crosses the room, slides my phone out of the way and sits on the coffee table in front of me, his knees bracketing mine, and he takes my face in his hands. His thumbs trace my cheekbones, rough and warm, and he kisses me.
This kiss is slow and deliberate, his mouth moving against mine like he’s memorizing something, and when he pulls back, his hands stay on my face.
Then his arms wrap around me and he pulls me into a hug so tight I can feel his heartbeat against my chest. His face presses into my neck, his breath warm on my skin, and for a long moment he just holds me.
“This is just a fling,” he says against my neck. His voice is low, firm. “It can’t be more. You understand that, right?”
The words land in my stomach like a stone. I close my eyes. His body is warm against mine, his arms solid around my back, and he’s telling me this is temporary. Four days of the most intense connection I’ve ever felt, and he’s already drawing the line.
Nick’s hand slaps my ass, hard enough to sting through the thin fabric of my shorts. “Not a fling for me. I’m hooked.”
I try to breathe. My chest feels tight, but I keep my voice even.
“We have three more days,” I say. “Let’s not put labels on anything yet.
Let’s just… see what happens.” I want to beg them to make this last, but I smile instead, because the alternative is letting him see how much it hurts, and I’m not ready for that. Not yet.
“Right now,” I say, “it’s time to hit the beach. I need a distraction.”
Kieran’s mouth curves, slightly. He stands, pulling me up with him, and his hand finds the small of my back. “I’ll help you change.”
“Into what? You broke my thong.”
“I’m sure we can find something appropriate,” Nick says, and he’s already pulling at the hem of my crop top, tugging it up over my stomach. “These need to come off. All of it.”
I bat his hands away, laughing, and Kieran’s fingers find the button of my shorts, popping it open. His hand slides inside, cupping my cock through my boxers, and I gasp.
“Distracted?” he murmurs.
“Extremely.”
They surround me, and for a while there is nothing but skin and hands and the sound of three people who are very, very bad at getting ready to go anywhere. And I chase away my worries that there are only three days left and let them have me.