Page 17 of Shake Your Love
“Neither did I, baby,” I admit, brushing my nose against hers. “That first day, you walked in like a dream girl stepping right out of my dreams. Never thought I would get the dream girl. Here I am, living a dream.”
“Me too. Now we get to live a dream together, huh? No more being alone. No more feeling as if we don’t belong anywhere. We belong together, honey. I belong with you.”
Closing my eyes, I nod. Because before her, I did feel alone. That I would never have anything worthwhile. I feared I would flip burgers for the rest of my life, hiding behind the diner pass-through watching the rest of the world living. Now I can have a life and have something of my own.
I can have Paige because she wants me to have her.
“Want to go home, baby? I think…” I trail off to press kisses along the slope of her neck, a spot that draws out the hottest little moans.
“Yes,” she pants the word, her chest heaving against mine, her eyes wild as they stare up at mine. “I want to go home, honey.”
Smirking, I nod, even if I am shaking inside. I have taken my time for all the wrong reasons. I have been waiting for the perfect moment. Doing all I can to impress her. To prove I am worth her time. Truth is, I have just been afraid she would suddenly realize she had made a mistake. That I had no business being with her because she is well out of my league.
“Wait for me, let me go tell Brenden we’re bailing. I will be back,” I tell her with a quick kiss on her lips before I skate myway across the floor towards my best friend.
Hesitating when I see him and Blair tangled up in a heated kiss, I let out a cough to break it up. I have seen enough of that from the two of them. Not that I have been much better since I have been with Paige. Brenden sends me a glare as he lifts his head, before a smile breaks across his face. Without a word, my best friend seems to know what I am up to.
“That’s my boy. Feed the kitten,” he teases me, nodding at me as I tell them goodbye.
“Don’t be gross. See you later guys.”
Blair laughs and tells me to have a good time, winking at me playfully. Rolling my eyes at how juvenile my grown ass married friends can behave, I skate back to my girl. Or rather, I stumble across the floor until I am back on the neon-carpeted floors, dodging other couples.
Stopping short, my vision goes hazy once I spot Paige. Towering over her is a guy I do not recognize. The guy looks as if he walked out of a Calvin Klein ad. And he is staring down at my girl with sparkling eyes and a perfect smile. I cringe when I see her laugh at something he says, bile burning the back of my throat. For a moment, my entire world spins.
What is wrong with me? Am I this sort of guy?
“Hey, baby,” I call gruffly, skating past the guy entirely to slide up beside her. “We ready to go?”
Paige blinks up at me, head jerking back in surprise. I do not like how her eyes flicker past me to land on him again. My heart hammers in my chest as I will myself to calm down. To think rationally. There is no reason for me to be upset. Nothing has gone wrong. Not yet at least.
“Uh, don’t be mean, Pierce. This is Calvin, one of the teachers I will work with during the new semester. This is Pierce, my….”
“Boyfriend. A teacher too, that’s nice. You here alonetonight?”
Paige gasps at my absolutely rude question. I even surprise myself with it. It is a couple’s night, so it’s not an out-there question. It is just none of my damn business. Calvin—his name istotallyCalvin —frowns at me before he puts on a smile. It strikes me as shark-like, withmygirl being the chum in the water.
“I am not here alone, no. Nice to meet you, Pierce. We’re excited to have Paige on staff. Our kids will love having a real music class again.”
Frowning at him, I nod. Of course, they will love her. They’re lucky to have her at the school. Valerie was smart to hire her on the spot the way she did. No one should be foolish enough to let someone like Paige go. Me included. No way I am letting her to—not even to a better guy like Mr. Calvin Klein here.
“Yeah, nice meeting you.”
Dismissing him, I grab Paige by the elbow, steering her towards the counter to drop off our skates. To my surprise, she yanks her arm from my grasp, glaring up at me. We change from the skates to our sneakers in silence, Paige pinning me with a death glare.
Because there I went and acted like an idiot again.
Twenty minutes later, we’re halfway home in a tense silence. Paige sits as far from me as she can get, her little body humming with rage. I cannot believe I behaved that way. That I would be so stupid and so damn rude to someone I don’t even know.
Parking, I let out a sigh. I amsuchan idiot. I was right all along. Paige should not be with someone like me. I have always wrecked the good things in my life. That is why I thought I’d never have anything good—because I don’t know how to keep things good.
“Baby, I did not mean to be that way.”
“Yeah, you did,” she whispers as her hands swipe at her face. Looking at her, my stomach roils. I made her cry. “I have to work with him, Pierce. There is a handsome math teacher if you want to be a douche to someone else.”
“Oh, see you thought he was handsome. I thought you did. Course you did. You two would look good together, wouldn’t you?”
“Oh my God, are you being for real?”
