Page 3 of Trustfall

“How many times have we been over this, Allie? I change into different scrubs before I come home. These scrubs were nowhere near barf. And how did you even know about that?”

“Nate texted to give me a heads up. And I don’t care if you changed. Those fuckers are hardy, and I’m not taking any chances.”

It's clear she's not going to back down, and all I want to do is take a shower and wash away the exhaustion of the day. But when she gets in one of these moods, there's no point in arguing with her. It's always better to just go along with it. I glance around to make sure no one is watching, then pull down my scrub pants. Allie nods her head for me to keep going, so I remove my scrub top and toss it on the ground beside my pants. “Happy? Now can I please go inside?”

“Tank top, too,” she orders.

“Oh my God, Allie. What if someone sees?”

“No one drives on this street unless they live here, and Mr. Bellamy can’t see two feet in front of him,” she says, nodding at the cottage across the street.

“Ughh, fine!” I relent and pull my camisole over my head. But before I can completely remove it, I hear the distinct sound of a motorcycle approaching. At first, I think it's on the road next to ours, but it keeps getting louder. Without thinking, I finish taking off the tank top to see what's going on. That's when the motorcycle turns into the driveway beside ours. The rider gets off the bike, and as soon as he removes his helmet, my jaw falls to the ground.

Because standing no more than twenty feet from me is Luke Collins. As in wide receiver for my high school football team. As in Nate’s best friend. As in the guy I have had a soul-destroying crush on since I was twelve.

I go to grab onto my car to steady myself, but misjudge my proximity to it, instead leaning on thin air. I try to right my wrong at the last second, but it doesn’t work, and I go crashing down to the ground. Looking up at Allie, who is too stunned to even move, I start to sit up and make my way onto my knees to stand. But before I can get myself all the way up and crawl into an actual hole, I feel warmth against my hand and inhale a spicy scent mixed with the faintest hint of mint. I know what I’m going to see when I look up, but it’s somehow even worse than I was expecting. Luke is holding my hand, and I’m literally on my knees in front of him.His expression is hard to read. His lips are turned up slightly in the beginning stages of a smirk, but his eyes dance back and forth with concern.

“Are you okay? That was a pretty nasty fall.” He tugs gently on my hand, and I must be dead weight until I realize what’s happening and stand. It’s at that point that I get a better look at him, and it’s devastating.

His dark hair is slightly longer on top, falling over his cornflower blue eyes, which have these thin navy rings around the irises. He's wearing a white T-shirt and dark jeans that fit him like they were tailored to his body. I take a closer look at his hand, still holding mine, and notice the swirls of black ink on his arms, peeking out from under his leather jacket. He has aged in the best way possible, going from teenager to all man, in the eight years he’s been away.

I realize I haven’t said anything when his thumb grazes my hand. The hand he is still holding…

“I…”

He looks expectantly.

“You…” I try again.

“Shit. Are you having trouble speaking? It didn’t look like you hit your head,” he speaks again, and I notice he has lost the slight Southern drawl he had when we were in high school. The guys on the football team used to make fun of him, calling him ‘SG’ for Southern gentleman because of his accent but also because he truly was the definition of a gentleman. The kind that only exists in books and movies. He would be the first to run to open the door for a girl, whether she was a cheerleader or the captain of the chess team. He didn’t discriminate. He didn’t do it to get in her pants or make himself look like a hero. He treated everyone with the kind of warmth and compassion that could only be genuine.

Like right now, for example. He could have pretended he didn’t see what happened and gone about his business, but he flew over here because he saw someone in distress. Luke raises his hands to my cheeks, stopping just short of touching them. Looking straight into my eyes, he nods slightly, as if asking permission. When I don't pull away, he gently places his hands on my face and moves my head from side to side, inspecting me for any signs of injury.

“I—I’m fine,” I finally manage to get out. It’s at that moment that I remember something.

Something vitally important.

The moment I go to look down at myself, he looks down too and immediately releases me like my skin is on fire. Yep, I’m in nothing but a bright pink bra and Valentine’s Day underwear, complete with candy hearts.

Dancingcandy hearts.

And yes, it’s April.

“I have to go. Sorry. Thanks. Bye,” I say in one breath.

I don’t even bother to pick up my clothes from the ground as I rush up the steps, pushing a stunned Allie inside and slamming the front door behind us.

2

LUKE

I benddown to pick up the discarded scrubs and tank top from the ground. While I’m at it, I look both ways and discreetly adjust myself. Having Nate’s little sister on her knees in front of me in nothing but a bra and panties was not on my bingo card for today. My dick was certainly not expecting it, that’s for sure. I knew she lived next door, but I didn't think I'd run into her today. In fact, I was hoping to avoid her altogether. Nate had made it clear when he told me about the rental that if I so much as touched her, he'd kill me and make sure no one found the body. I had no intention of finding out if he was serious or not.

I guess I fucked that one up.

When she fell, something in me snapped. I didn't think twice. I just rushed over to check if she was okay. That’s when my brain caught up to the fact that she was wearing nothing but a bra and panties. The second she looked up at me with those warm hazel eyes, I was instantly hard. I knew it was wrong. I somehow resisted her all throughout high school, but the moment I saw her again, my friend downstairs got all kinds of ideas. Nate is gonna fucking kill me. But I had to help her up—I couldn't just stand there after rushing to her side. When she tried to speak, I worried she might have a concussion or something. Looking back, putting my hands on her face was probably a mistake. When her cheeks flushed a soft pink and her breathing quickened, I got even harder.

It wasn't just that she was blushing, panting, and half-naked. The moment I got off my bike, even before she fell, I felt like all the air was sucked out of me, like a vortex.

---