Collin brought back a bottle of olive oil and the salt shaker before leaning against the bathroom counter.
"This shit better come off before tomorrow," he complained.
I let out a small laugh and shook my head. "I'll do my best." I dabbed the corner of the washcloth in the oil before sprinkling salt onto it. "This might hurt because the salt makes a scrub. I'll be gentle." I grabbed his chin to steady his face and began rubbing circles onto the unicorn.
His chin in my hand made my heart skip a beat. It might have been a small gesture, but to me, this was as close as he was going to let me get at the moment and I could smell his cologne. Damn, he smelled amazing. What was that?
"How'd you know how to get this off if you've never had a henna tattoo before?" He asked, trying to keep his eyes on the wall behind me.
I shrugged. "G****e."
He laughed. "Gee, why didn't I think to do that?" He paused as I watched him swallow and tense up. Was I making him uncomfortable? "I think I can take over now."
"I've almost got it," I lied, but I didn't want to let go of him just yet.
We stood in silence for a moment before he looked down at me.
"Tell me about your life." His statement took me by surprise before I rolled my eyes. "You don't want to hear that story. It isn't very pretty."
"Diamonds don't exactly start off pretty, do they? Sometimes the most beautiful things in life have to go through the not-so-pretty stages in order to come out shining." His voice was soft and I swear I was about to jump his bones. Had he just called me beautiful? Was I a diamond in the rough to him?
"I'd rather not discuss it right now if you don't mind," I finally replied.
He grabbed my hand to stop scrubbing his face and I looked up into his soft eyes.
"You know you can trust me, right?"
I swallowed, feeling like my throat was dry. How does he keep doing this to me?"Yes," I whispered out.
He was so close I could almost reach out and touch his lips with mine and that's exactly what I did. I very slowly crept forward, not wanting to go too fast in case I freaked him out, but he wasn't moving so that was a sign, right?
Our lips just lightly brushed as I felt his hand on the bottom of my chin.
Yes!! He wanted this as much as I did!
He leaned back just enough to look down at me. A haunted look flashed through his eyes before he slowly came back to me. Our top lips connected and right before he locked our lips completely, he pushed away from me, stepping away from the counter.
"I'm sorry," he breathed out, running his hand through his hair after he tossed his hat to the counter. "I can't do this."
My heart was still thundering excitedly in my chest and I had no idea what to say. We were having a special moment, between two adults, and he stopped us. Was it me?
Heat filled my cheeks as embarrassment overtook me. I had never felt this embarrassed by a guy in my life and I hated it.
"I'm sorry," I whispered, feeling hot tears fill my eyes. I quickly looked away from him before I stormed out of the bathroom. I couldn't face him right now.
I just made it to my room when I heard his footsteps approaching.
"Saige," he pleaded.
"I feel like such an idiot," I said, spinning on my heel to find him standing in the doorway. "I'm so sorry for coming here. I should go."
He stepped farther into the room and shook his head. "Nah, you can stay, Saige. I shouldn't have let it go that far back there. You're a very beautiful girl and I let my other head do my thinking for me. You need a safe place to sleep tonight. Please don't go."
I honestly had no idea how to reply to what he just said. So, he was attracted to me but he wasn't? I'm so confused right now.
"Collin, I've clearly made you uncomfortable and you clearly don't want what I'm offering." I started shoving my feet back into my shoes.
"I thought we were friends, Saige."
I laughed, shaking my head. "I don't do the whole 'friends thing with guys' thing, haven't you heard?" Even my own words hurt me, but it was true. I made a reputation for myself that I'm not proud of but it's who I'd become. "We could never be friends, Collin. I've made a huge fool out of myself for ever thinking we could be." I turned to glare at him, bringing my feistiness back out. "I fuck guys and then move on. You're clearly the one that got away and now I must go with my tail between my legs."
I tried to walk past him but he stopped me, his arm around my waist.
"You're so much more than that, Saige. Don't you see that?"
One look into his eyes and I knew he didn't look at me like other guys did. He actually saw me.
"All I see is a girl that guys love to use and abuse and I'm okay with that. I'll never have this." I waved my hand around to indicate the fancy surroundings. "I've known my destiny for a few years now, Collin. Your little act of kindness isn't going to change that. You're not going to change that."
When I tried to get past him again, he turned me and pushed me against the wall, staring down into my eyes.
"What if I said that I could? That I could change your destiny, Saige."
My heart was thundering in my chest once again as I stared into his intense gaze.
"Why would you want to do that for me? I'm just the slutty cheerleader, Collin. Don't be ridiculous." I tried to push against his chest but he was solid like the brick wall around him.
"You're so much more than that, Saige. Let me show you."
I thought he was going to kiss me, but he didn't. The look in his eyes told me that he wanted to, though.
"As friends?" I asked with an attitude in my tone.
"Why not?"
"Did you not hear what I just said?"
He snorted, shaking his head. "Did you not hear what I just said? You're better than that and I'm going to show you."
"Can we have just a little bit of fun?" I asked, pressing my chest into his.
"We're friends, Saige- not friends with benefits." He pushed away from me then and disappeared down the hallway.
SAIGE POVI took a hot shower and crawled into bed. I tossed and turned but sleep would not come and it was driving me crazy. The reflection from the pool water was dancing on the ceiling, distracting me from closing my eyes. It swirled and danced, creating the perfect night light but who the hell could sleep when it was that bright?!I rolled toward the windows, noticing that there weren't any curtains, and cursed under my breath. This was going to be the worst night ever. Not to mention that Collin was sleeping a floor above me in probably nothing more than boxers or briefs. I wondered then what his whole body looked like with all those tattoos on him. Did they cover every inch of him? Or, just the main parts? I really wanted to explore his ink, to really see what he had permanently printed onto his skin and what they all meant. He isn't much older than I am, so I wondered when he started getting them done.A sound from the pool area pulled my attention there as I leaned up to look
COLLIN POVI slept like hell last night knowing Saige was just below me in the guest room. I promised I'd show her that she was better than she thought she was, but all I could think about were her lips and how she tasted. It was a struggle not to go downstairs to see her, knowing she was willing; but I was not that guy.And that was the exact reason why I called the guy standing at my front door right now. He's the guy I know who can show Saige she was worth more than a one-night stand. Women loved him and he loved them. It was really a win-win.I whipped the door open and came face to face with my cousin, Finn. He took a flight out here the second I called him like he always did."Bro, what's up?!" He stepped in and embraced me in a giant bear hug. We laughed and smacked each other's backs."Damn, it's good to see you!" I replied with a grin. "Come on in, man!”We headed straight for the kitchen, hoping to keep the noise level down and not wake Saige. I needed to explain a few thing
SAIGE POVCollin's cousin was hot! And he asked me to ditch school to hang out with him?! Hell yes! I needed a good day with a hot guy after the dream I had last night. If I couldn't have Collin, then this Finn guy would have to do.Then an idea struck me: If Collin had any feelings toward me at all, which I gathered he did, then being flirty with his cousin might do the trick, right? Guys are known for doing some crazy things when they're jealous.After I freshened up, I headed back out to find Finn standing by the front door eating a banana.Finn winked at me. "Ready to go?"A huge grin spread across my face as I blushed. I was actually fucking blushing. That rarely happened to me."I'm ready."Collin appeared in the foyer and glared at me. "I really think you should go to school, Saige. You can ride with me. You and Finn can hang out later."Was he serious?"The last time I checked, Collin, you're not my dad." I stepped up to him then and ran my finger down his neck and over his ch
SAIGE POVThe mall was packed, but I was excited to be skipping school and hanging out with this hottie."So, where are we going first?" I asked.Finn looked around. "We need to get you a dress, right?" I nodded at his question. "Then we'll get you a dress and then find me a tux." He grabbed my hand and pulled me toward the escalators that would bring us to the second floor.As we found a dress shop, Finn pulled me in- pointing out several dresses immediately. None of them were my style, though. They didn't show off enough skin.Finn grabbed a little black number from the rack and held it up to me."This would look great with your skin tone. What do you think?" He spun me toward the mirror so I could see."I think it looks like I'm going to my grandma's funeral," I whined. "What about this one?!" I slid away from him and grabbed a purple dress from the rack, holding it up. The front had a deep V that would show off my cleavage and stopped high on the upper thigh.Finn shook his head,
COLLIN POVI hated that Finn got Saige to skip school, but whatever. Maybe I was just irritated about other things. Actually, I knew I was irritated about other things. One, in particular, was how I couldn't stop thinking about Saige and her lips. I knew having her stay the night at my place last night was a bad idea, but the girl needed a safe place to sleep.Speaking of a safe place to sleep, I needed to figure out where she was going for the night because there was no way in hell she could stay at my place again. If she stayed a few rooms away from me and I couldn't touch her, I might lose my cool and that was the exact opposite of what I was trying to help the girl with.When the last bell of the day rang, I couldn't wait to get out of there. Football practice was thankfully canceled for the evening because of some school dance they were throwing that night and I didn't mind having the evening off. It would give me time to figure out Saige's next destination.As I got into my truc
SAIGE POVThat unbelievable bastard!!I was running from Collin's, still in my bikini, but wearing Finn's t-shirt over it and I had no idea where I was going. My house was clear on the other side of town and I didn't want to go there anyway, so I decided to try Kora's. She was much closer, too.When I climbed the front stairs and knocked on the door, Kora's mom answered a moment later. She was laughing with someone but when she saw me, her smile faded. Her eyes looked me up and down disapprovingly but then waved me inside.I hated when her mom judged me like this. She was kind to let me stay when I needed a place to lay my head, but I knew deep down that she didn't want me anywhere near her daughter. If Collin, a new person in town, has heard all about me, there's no doubt she hasn't."Is Kora home?"She shook her head. "I think she's finishing up at school for the dance. Why don't you head up to her room though and take a shower? I can wash your shirt for you." She looked me up and d
SAIGE POV"Hey, don't worry about him." Finn's voice pulled me away as he placed his hands on my lower back and my arms around his neck. He turned us so my back was to Collin and I was thankful for that.I also couldn't help thinking about how I wanted to be in Collin's arms and not his cousins. Even after what he said about me.We continued to dance silently, but I couldn't stop myself from glancing over my shoulder to seek out Collin. The last time when I looked, though, he was staring at me intently. His jaw was tight and his eyes were emotionless. The female teachers were still standing next to him, clearly trying to catch his attention, but he only had eyes for me; even though he looked a bit disturbed.Was he upset that I had heard what he said about me? Or, perhaps he was upset about what he said. I really hoped it was the second one but I had a feeling it wasn't.He finally pulled his eyes away from me and looked down at the floor before I watched him make an exit.A small jol
SAIGE POVFinn led the way into the living room where he sat down on the couch, patting the spot next to him. I didn't sit down right away, too afraid of what he might have to say. Instead, I stood there until he spoke."What I'm about to show you is probably going to make Collin pissed the hell off at me, but you need to see it. You need to see why he's keeping you at an arm's length."I sat down, still wondering what the hell he was talking about. My interest was officially piqued.Finn pulled his phone out and started vigorously scrolling through whatever he was looking at before he showed me a couple of photos."That's Penelope. Collin's college sweetheart. He was going to ask her to marry him." He pulled his phone back and shoved it back in his pocket.Seeing those photos made me feel jealous, but what did she have to do with me? The woman was beautiful and I couldn't help but think she was better than me. Hell, I thought every woman was better than me."Collin was crazy about he