Scorched

Ta

Of course, he knew where I lived, but he’d never, in the history of ever, shown up una

“Ta

He’d turned to me, and his brilliant azure gaze collided with mine for the briefest of seconds before dropping in a slow perusal that glided from my eyes down to the tips of my blue-polished toes. But that gaze…it lingered in some areas more than others, halted in a way that made his stare feel like an actual caress. The air hitched in my throat. I felt sort of dizzy.

Then I realized what I was wearing.

Since I hadn’t pla

Oh my God.

I was almost naked. Practically. Like, the entire length of my legs were visible and if he’d thought I was a proud owner of a thigh gap, he so knew differently now. There was no doubt in my mind that he knew how chilly I kept my apartment because of how thin my tank was, and I was not lacking in that department.

The longer he stared, the more conflicted I became about the whole thing. I wanted to dash back to my bedroom and layer up with clothing, but I also wanted him to look his fill.

But I didn’t have a body like Sydney or Mandie or Brooke. Or Clara Hansen, my freshman year roommate. I wasn’t tiny like any of them. I wasn’t straight up and straight down. My waist wasn’t miniscule and my stomach sure as hell wasn’t flat. It kind of did this weird concave thing, and right then, that damn pooch under my navel was probably visible through this freaking shirt. My hips weren’t slim. They were full, as was my ass. In other words, I would never strut around wearing this in front of a guy. Instead, I would strut with clothing strategically designed to hide all the flaws.

I’d sure as hell never caught Ta

Warmth invaded my cheeks, warring with the unsettling heat that had lit up my veins. I cleared my throat. “Is…is everything okay? Nothing happened, right?”

He blinked, dragging his gaze back to mine. “Yeah. Why would you think something had happened?”

I glanced around the otherwise empty apartment. “Um, maybe because you don’t usually just show up at my place?”

“Good point.” He raised a hand, dragging it over his hair. Clasping the back of his neck, he angled his head to the side. “Can I come in for a moment? I’m not going to take up a lot of your time. I’m heading in for a swing shift tonight.”

“Sure.” Confused and a bit curious, I stepped aside, but then my stomach dropped a little bit more. Was he here because of last night? Oh no. Had I done something so stupid that it warranted an unexpected face-to-face visit?

I was so never going to drink again.

Ta

I folded my arms across my chest as he turned toward me. “Can I get you something to drink?”

He shook his head and then turned, heading toward the couch. Sucked to admit this, but he looked damn good in nylon sweats. He sat on the edge and patted the cushion next to him. “Sit for a sec?”

Okay. The smidgen of curiosity expanded, as did the anxiety. The band around my chest was back. Walking past him, I tried to ignore the kernel of self-consciousness growing in my stomach. I really hoped my butt wasn’t hanging out of my shorts. I sat beside him, sending him a quick side-glance. “So, what’s going on?”

Blue eyes so bright they almost seemed unreal met mine, and his gaze snared mine, hooked me in. Unsure of why I couldn’t look away, I tensed. “How are you feeling?”

“Huh?”

That grin appeared again, and was gone way too fast. “You were…a little out of it last night,” he reminded me.

“Oh. Yeah.” I felt my face heat as I shrugged. At least he hadn’t said I was trashed. “I’m okay. Had a bit of a hangover this morning.”

“I can imagine.”

I pursed my lips. “Is that why you came by? To ask me how I was feeling? Because if so, I’ve got to say, you must be either really bored or high.”

Ta

My arms relaxed, settling in my lap. I was relieved, but also wary. “Why wouldn’t they be?”

One eyebrow lifted. “Is that a serious question?”

I yawned loudly as I leaned against the couch cushion. “Sure.”

Another smile greeted me, and I thought he was smiling at me a lot tonight, which made a weird, fuzzy memory wiggle loose. Something about smiling? “You and I? Well, we don’t exactly get along often.” He paused, like he wanted to choose his words wisely. “And I just don’t want to ruin it for Kyler and Sydney, you feel me?”

I jerked a little. “I would never ruin their time together.”

He turned the u

I started to frown, but ended up yawning again.

“I mean, it’s not just you. It’s me, too. I know I upset you a couple of days ago,” he said, and my mouth sort of dropped open as he smoothed his palms over his bent knees. “I’m sorry if I…if I hurt your feelings.”

All I could do was stare at him. Was I hallucinating?

“We joke around so much, and sometimes I think we both cross a line. So…yeah, I just wanted to make sure we’re going to be cool.” He looked at me then and his lips twitched. “You okay?”

I blinked, about to tell him that I was fine, but something totally different blurted out. “You don’t even remember, do you? We had, like, two classes together my freshman year.”

Now Ta

Shaking my head, I wished I’d kept my mouth shut, but my tongue was loose tonight. “Do you remember Clara Hansen?”

His lips tipped down at the corners. “Not really. I’m not following where this conversation is going.”

He didn’t remember Clara? Seriously? Wow. Part of me was pissed off on her behalf and the other part was disturbingly gleeful. “Never mind,” I said after a moment. “Everything will be fine. I’ll be on my best behavior.”

Ta

I snickered, not sure if that was possible either. I mean, expecting the two of us not to argue would be like expecting me not to chase after the ice cream truck.

“Who’s Clara?” he persisted, and when I didn’t answer immediately, he looked away again, his eyes squinting.

Tired, I felt like I was sinking further into the cushion. “You know, you could’ve just called or texted me.”

“True,” he murmured. “But I was on my way past here.” There was a pause. “Did we really have two classes together?”

I nodded. “Yep.”

“Are you sure? I would’ve remembered you.”

The way he said that as he frowned didn’t really leave me with the warm and fuzzies. I sighed. My thoughts were slowing down, but I was almost positive that the fire department he worked for was not on the way to my place. I didn’t know what to make of that as I watched him.

Ta

My heart stopped. He dropped that little bomb like it was nothing, like he was telling me that it was almost ten o’clock. “What?”