Page 12 of The Pinkie Pact

Bear handed us our bottles. I wanted to ask him more about his ridiculous name, but the music was so damn loud. So we all just drank the cold beers, looking around at the impossibly crowded bar, Bear glancing at me, that smile so incredibly brilliant. He put one arm lightly around my shoulder, and I was surprised to find it felt really nice.

At one point, I remembered to move my last bracelet over and jabbed Kara in the arm to do the same. She gave me a pouty look but did it anyway.

Before long, an even louder song came on, making the whole place practically shake. We downed the last of our drinks, and Kara dragged us all out to dance again.

This time, I didn't hesitate to throw my arms around Bear, the hot, sexy motherfucker. As the music heated up, the look in his eyes did too. His glance moved down to my lips, making me shiver. I was scared, but more than that, I was curious. Could I even kiss someone again? Bear seemed like a good guy to try it with. Relaxed, chill dude.

And before he could even move in, I did it myself. I reached up and pressed my lips to his, our bodies still moving together. I tasted the beer on his mouth as our kiss grew deeper, tongues entwining. And damn, I was so relieved. It felt good. Surprisingly good. I pulled back to find him smiling at me.

Damn, Bear. You're kind of cute.

For a long while, the four of us all danced together, Bear never letting go of me. We'd dance, grind, kiss until I thought I might collapse from overheating.

Kara grabbed my arm. "Are you ready?"

I was definitely ready. "Yes!"

Turning back to Bear, I said in his ear, "I've got to go."

He nodded but didn't let go of my hand, just followed us as Kara started to lead the way through the tight crowd to the door that seemed miles away. As I glanced around to try to orient myself, something caught my attention by the bar near us. Someone watched me, their green eyes narrowed, lips compressed tightly together.

It was Kieran, leaning against the bar with a beer in his hand, that judgy look on his face that I hated. When our eyes collided, he raised his bottle in a mock salute.

Of all the people. How much had he noticed exactly? Had he seen me kissing Bear and grinding against his fit body?

Shit, shit, shit.

Maybe he hadn't seen anything. Maybe he'd only recently arrived. But no. Judging by the excruciating look he'd just shot me, Kieran had witnessed every damn thing.

Why did I even care, though? I threw him my best "fuck you" look and turned back around to fight my way through the mass of bodies to the door. Outside, I took a deep breath of the fresh air, glad to leave the sweaty, beer smell behind us. And even happier to leave Kieran behind me.

But now, I had a dude named Bear in front of me, probably expecting to leave with me. Yeah, it had felt great to kiss him and all, but I already knew without even thinking about it that I didn't want anything more right now.

Kara and I both stood with our potential hook-ups a little bit apart, and I wondered what she'd do.

"So hey," Bear said, grabbing my attention and still holding my hand. "I had a great time with you."

I stared up into his deep brown eyes as he flashed me that grin again. "Yeah. Me too."

"Can I get your number?"

Shocked that he wasn't asking for anything more, I dug out my phone from my teeny purse I had slung across my body. I hated carrying a stupid purse and couldn't wait to get this dress off and kick off my heels. I was definitely done with this night.

We exchanged numbers, and as I typed his name into my phone, I asked, "So is Bear your real name?"

"Nah. My name's Barrett. But it sounds so pretentious, so I go by Bear."

I couldn't help laughing because he was absolutely right. "Do you go to Georgetown?"

"Yep. Senior year. How about you?"

And here was my moment of truth. If I said my actual school, would Bear run off? "No. I'm a junior at GW."

I watched his face, but he still had that smile. "Nice. I knew I hadn't seen you around before. Where are you from?"

"Sacramento."

His eyes brightened. "No way! I'm from Santa Cruz."

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