Hate Me

Leaving him.

Telling him I’ve been lying to him.

The trainer comes back in the room, hands Aiden some Advil and water, wraps his ankle, and says, “The game’s almost over. Why don’t we get you set up in your room before everyone starts coming out of the gym.”

Once the trainer gets Aiden into bed, with a pillow propping up his foot, he gives him a few more instructions and leaves.

“I have some pain pills left from when I got stitches. Do you want one?” I ask him as I gingerly sit on the corner of his bed.

“Let’s see how the Advil works first, but I might take you up on that later.” He makes a sad face.

“What’s wrong?”

“We’re supposed to go to Stockton’s tonight.”

“We can go there any night, Aiden. The candy will wait.”

I move closer to him and run my hand gently through his hair.

He leans back on his pillow, closes his eyes, and falls asleep.

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 14TH

ifly.

5am

Aiden texts me, waking me up.

Hottie God:  I’m going to get X-rays this morning. Swelling is better than last night, but I can’t put any weight on it. Sorry if this wakes you up. I can’t sleep.

Me:  Does it still really hurt?

Hottie God:  Not as bad, unless I try to stand.

Me:  Text me and let me know what they say. 

Hottie God:  I will. ifly.

Me:  ifly too, Aiden. 

Things heat up.

French

I learn absolutely nothing in class this morning. My mind is too busy worrying about both Aiden and my trip tomorrow.

When Aiden walks into French class with a boot on his foot, I almost want to cry again.

“You didn’t text me,” I say.

“Sorry, I forgot my phone.”

“Should you be walking on it?”

“That’s what the boot is. A walking cast.”

“It’s broken?”

“No, just sprained. The boot will help support it, and I won’t have to deal with crutches.” He laughs. “Now we’re both Boots.”

I look more closely at his eyes. “Did they give you pain medication?”

“Yeah, I feel pretty good right now. About ready to fall asleep, though.”

“I don’t think you should be in class.”

“I wanted to see you.”

“Why don’t I see if Miss Praline will let me take you to your room.”

He raises his eyebrows at me. “That sounds even better.”

I tell Miss Praline that Aiden isn’t supposed to be in class because he’s drugged up and ask if I can take him to his room.

Thankfully, she gives me a pass.

I barely get Aiden situated on his bed before he’s pulling me onto his lap and kissing me hard.

Things heat up very quickly and soon he’s taking off my blazer and unbuttoning my blouse.

“I should probably lock your door,” I tell him, getting up quickly to do just that.

When I get back, he’s got his pants unzipped and the Titan unleashed.

I have to say that I never really thought boy parts were particularly attractive.

Until now.

But, then again, everything on Aiden’s body is perfection.

In my eyes, at least.

He pulls me back onto his lap and resumes his hard kisses, his hands simultaneously finding their way under my skirt and pushing my panties aside, so that . . .

I can barely even describe it, I’m so overwhelmed.

But my parts are touching his parts.

All I would have to do is push up a little, then slide back down on top of it and we’d be doing it.

When Mom had surgery a couple years ago for te

Would it be bad of me to take advantage of Aiden while his judgment is impaired?

As he’s sliding me back and forth on top of him, I don’t care about his judgment. I just want to do it.

But then I look deep into his eyes.

I feel the heat.

The hunger.

But not the co

His eyes don’t have the focus they usually do.

And I can’t do that to him.

I want him to remember every single detail of our first time.

Which means I have to get the heck off him or it’s going to happen by accident.

Like accidentally on purpose.

I roll so that I’m lying on the bed next to him, take the Titan in my mouth, and do what he enjoyed at the loft.

Aiden’s so damn cute afterward.

You’d think I just gave him a million dollars, let him watch porn, and made him a sandwich. The grin on his face is so contagious that I can’t help but smile too.

“We almost did,” he says. “You stopped it. I didn’t think you’d stop it.”

“If you weren’t all drugged up on pain medication, I wouldn’t have.”

“I made the trainer stop at the store so I could buy us a movie to watch tonight,” he says, the drugs obviously causing him to flit to a random topic.

“You did?” I say, humoring him. “What did you get?”

“Clash of the Titans,” he says, suppressing a laugh. “I also got the sequel, Wrath of the Titans.”

“Oh,” I say, realizing he’s still sharp as a freaking tack.

When I’m with Aiden, I never know whether to curse the gods for making him or praise them for doing so.

But for this, I’m going with damn the gods.

I’m just saying.

“Are you going to tell me about the name? And, more importantly, has it lived up to its name so far?” I can tell he is both teasing and serious.

I might as well tell him now. Maybe he won’t remember it.

“Do you know the story of the Titans?”

“Sure. They were the first gods before Zeus and all of those guys took over.”

“Right. So you know that I called you the God of all Hotties when I first met you.”

“I’m still in your phone as Hottie God.”

“Yes, you are. I thought you were so beautiful that you must be part god. You also seemed to always have this power over me.”

“What kind of power?”

“Like, I couldn’t think straight. Sometimes I thought you could read my mind. I’m pretty sure you’re infused with love potion. And when you kissed me . . .”

“When you kissed me, I was done for. Ever since that first kiss on the Ferris wheel. Totally and completely your love slave.”

“You didn’t act like it.”

“I was trying too hard, I think. But you were like uncharted territory. I had to make my own map. I was serious when I said that I did stuff for you that I’ve never done for anyone else, but I also know that, had I done it for any other girl, she would’ve been ripping her panties off for me. Instead, everything I did just seemed to piss you off.”

“Because I heard you were a player. I was still getting over B and, the way you made me feel, I was afraid of setting myself up for heartbreak.”

“And what do you think now?”

“That I’m setting us both up for heartbreak.”

He places his hands possessively on my cheeks, exactly the same way he did in St. Croix. Like he desperately needs me.

He gives me a single long kiss.

The kind of kiss that always affects me the same way.

Deep within my soul.

Telling me that we can make it through anything.

That we can survive the kiln.

Which, if I do what I’m thinking about doing, is going to get very hot very soon.

“So, tell me the rest of the Titan story,” he says, changing the subject again.

“Remember that day, when you got mad at me about wearing Dawson’s jersey?”