Page 9 of Tempt Me

“Ple-e-ease.” Sam chuckles. “She won’t ever give him the time of day.”

“What makes you say that?” The second the words are out of my mouth, I cringe. God, I sound desperate. I cough and clear my throat. “Never mind. Anyway. She was telling me something at the house yesterday, and I wanted to run something past her.”

The white bag with the phone carrier’s name in red and black on the outside rests on my passenger seat.

“You could call Mom and see if she knows.”

At that moment, Bella steps into the parking lot. Even though she’s four rows away, my heart skips a beat as the sun shines down on her like a halo. Like yesterday, she’s still gorgeous and showing too much skin. Does she want a bunch of losers gawking at her all day and then jerking off when they get home? That thought alone makes me want to punch someone in the face.

I squint. She’s frowning. My heart lodges in my throat. Did he call her again?

“I’ve got to go.” I click the phone off before Sam can reply and hop out of the cab with my boots thudding on the pavement. After I shove my phone into my back pocket, I march in front of her car.

That’s when she screams and clutches her chest. “Damn it!” Her eyes narrow into slits. “You scared me to death.” She glances around the busy parking lot. “What’re you doing here? Are you seeing someone that’s going to classes here?”

“No.” I stomp two steps closer and clasp her upper arms. My palms tingle as I make contact with her bare skin. “Why’re you frowning?”

“What’re you talking about?” She tips her head back until she meets my gaze, and it takes every ounce of willpower I have not to drag her against my chest and kiss her plump lips until she whimpers.

I growl under my breath and push the fantasy away. I’m never going to kiss her, and everyone else is a poor substitute for the real thing. I tried dating in college, but it was no use. They were too clingy. Or too boring. Or whatever. Hell, it wouldn’t have mattered if the girl was perfect. She wouldn’t have been Bella.

“You’re upset. Did he find a way to contact you again? If he keeps harassing you, I’m paying him a visit whether you want me to or not.”

“Stop.” She shakes her head. “He hasn’t tried to contact me since I blocked him yesterday. It’s usually a couple of weeks between attempts. He’s probably going through his list of women, hitting them up one after another until he finds some girl who’s just been dumped to agree to go out with him again. Maybe he’ll find someone who’s desperate, and he’ll never call me again.” She shrugs. “Or maybe he won’t try again since you threatened him.”

“He’d better not.” I rub my thumbs in a circle on her arms. After I threatened him, I blocked him. I have no use for the guy.

Did she shudder? My breath catches in my lungs as I search her eyes, hoping to find some indication that being this close to me excites her because it does me. Her scent fills mylungs, and like the desperate man I am, I inhale it, dragging it deeper into my lungs and searing her into my brain.

Then what? You ruin everything? Remember what Sam just said. Dinners would be awkward. I’d have to move and lose all my friends. I’d lose her. I’d lose their parents, and they’ve always been like my surrogate parents. I don’t want to disappoint them and ruin everything.

I step back and drop my arms to my sides. “Then, why were you frowning?”

She shifts her weight from foot to foot and glances around as if she expects someone to pop out of the woodwork and snatch her. Or she’s looking for someone.

Is she seeing someone else? Fu-u-uck.

“It’s nothing. School is just not going the way I hoped.” She gnaws on her bottom lip with a faraway look in her eyes.

As if she realizes she’s spacing out, she chuckles and shakes her head. “Don’t worry about it. Everything’s fine.”

I cup her cheek and rub my thumb over her cheekbone. “Are you sure?”

“Yes.” Tears pool in her eyes before she hastily blinks them away. “I’m fine. Really, I am.” She smiles brightly, but it’s fake as shit. “Don’t worry about me. Promise?”

My mouth remains shut. I can’t promise that. It’s never happened yet, and I’ve known her since I was a kid. “If you say it’s fine, I’ll back off.”

“Thank you.” She clutches my hand and squeezes it. “It’s kind of nice having you worry about me again.”

I ache to lace my fingers through hers, but before I can, she steps back and tucks a strand of hair behind her ear. I’ve never had this much trouble keeping my distance from her. I shove my hands into my pockets. She’s like the strongest magnet in the world that’s pulling me forward, drawing me in until I can’t breathe without her.

“I bought you something.”

Her eyebrows arch upward as she swipes her hands on her shorts. “What is it?”

“A phone.” The sun is warm, but having it beam off the asphalt and the vehicles in the parking lot makes it a good ten degrees hotter than the weather app predicted. At least that’s what I’m sticking with for why my armpits sweat like I’m running a marathon.

“A phone?”

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