Page 31 of The Pinkie Pact

"That's it! What this song means," she said, a triumphant smile on her face.

"Right! I'm sure I'm wrong. So what is it then?"

"He's telling a womannotto cry," Kieran surprised me by saying. "Kind of like, 'No woman, don't cry,' trying to comfort her."

"Really?" I stared at him, a warm feeling washing through me. "God, that's amazing and totally not what I was thinking." As I thought about the rest of the lyrics, yeah, that completely made sense.

As the band started to play "Africa Unite," I noticed Bear walking in, a big smile on his face as he spotted me and headed our way. Man, he was hot too. In a very different way than Kieran. But still.

Shit. What was going on with me right now? I was horny as hell.

Kieran turned around to see Bear and gave him that dude handshake thing. "Well," Kieran said, nodding his head toward the table. "I'm going to get back to my friends. Let me know if you need anything."

This time he looked at me, then Kara, then back to me again. So I was included in this little offer, huh? I nodded, not sure how to take that, and he took off.

Bear gave me a ginormous hug, and it felt really nice to be in his arms, I had to admit. We'd texted each other a little bit over the week about our classes and how everything was going. But I hadn't seen him since last Sunday, and I forgot about how good he felt.

He gave Kara a quick hug, then we joined the rest of the crowd near the stage, the music so close it flowed through me, making my heart rate match the beat.

Bear stood behind me, gathering me in his arms and swaying with me to the song. I felt him bend down close to my ear. "You somehow look even more amazing than last week."

Smiling, I shook my head. Bear was certainly a boost to my ego, and I fell back into him, enjoying the feel of him against me. God, I had missed this.

Again, like last week, the music became something more than notes, instruments, and lyrics. It felt soul-changing. And I leaned into it, leaned into that feeling, letting it fill me.

As I danced with Bear, sometimes I closed my eyes and I'd forget whose arms were around me. I imagined the strong arms of a certain guy with darker hair and green eyes and wondered how that would feel. Heat shot through my body at the thought of it. Fuck.

I knew it wasn't fair to Bear—another freaking rhyme—but I couldn't help it. The attraction I had to Kieran was undeniable and on a whole other level than I'd ever experienced before.

But nothing could come of it. So I needed to forget it and keep it completely to myself.

When Bear started to kiss my neck, I knew we needed to have "the talk." So when the band took a break and the house music came on, I grabbed Bear's hand and started to lead him outside.

"I'll be right back," I said to Kara who wiggled her eyebrows at me then kept dancing with the guy next to her.

Clearly, I needed to have a chat with her too about what was going on between Bear and me. As we walked toward the door, I couldn't help but look at Kieran's table. His eyes stared straight into mine, and then I saw him glance at our joined hands before his gaze returned to his friends.

I let out a breath as we left the closeness of the club and stepped outside, the cool night air refreshing. We walked a little way down the street till we found a secluded spot, and Bear leaned against the brick building behind him, now holding both of my hands in his.

"What's up, Sky?" he asked, those sweet brown eyes holding a hint of concern.

Sighing yet again, I noticed a small smile forming on Bear's gorgeous face.

"Let me guess," he said. "Are you friend-zoning me?"

I met his smile with one of my own. "Um, I guess. Kind of. Is that okay?"

He nodded, his smile a little sad. "I had a feeling."

"I'm really sorry." I looked away, feeling like a total bitch because here was this guy who had such incredible potential. He was hot as fuck, smart, sweet, and most importantly nice. And even though I was attracted to him, I didn't feelit. I'd never felt it before, and I knew I wouldn't with Bear either. "I just want to be friends."

Bear nodded again. "Can we at least be friends with..."

My heart sunk as I realized Bear was exactly like all the other guys out there, wanting to be friends with benefits, always trying to get laid.

"...kissing benefits?" he asked.

Letting out a surprised laugh, I said, "What? I've never heard of such a thing."

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