Page 4 of Stay
And damn if that isn’t my very own personal kryptonite.
This guy is way too gorgeous for his own good.
Mine too.
It takes effort to shake myself out of the stupor that has fallen over me, because I’m definitely not in the market for a boyfriend or a random hookup or even a friends-with-benefits situation.
I want nothing to do with guys, period.
End of story.
Then he goes and smiles this smooth, slow grin that spills its way dangerously across his strikingly handsome face.
Aw, crap.
The kicker is a pair of perfectly placed dimples that wink at me.
No doubt about it—definitelykryptonite material.
It’s almost laughable the way my heart slams against my breast as I stare. I’m not the kind of girl who is susceptible to male eye candy. No matter how beautifully packaged it is.
So…whatever he wants, I’ll be passing on. Now, if there happens to be a tiny pang of regret sliding its way through me at the notion of walking away, I shut it down before I can make any more disastrous decisions in my life. Because, trust me, I’ve already made more than my fair share of them.
“Nope, sorry.” After the calamity that was last year, I’m only beginning to find my bearings. Self-preservation is now the name of the game. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
Unfortunately, he isn’t so easily deterred. I almost sigh. The good-looking ones never are. “So, what did Alex do to deserve being chewed out by a pack of angry women?”
Without bothering to answer, because that’s exactly how one gets sucked into these kinds of conversations, I swing away. The sudden need to escape surges its way through me. I push and shove with more impatience, searching for Brooklyn’s blonde head in the crowd.
Even though I’m desperate to leave, I refuse to abandon Brooklyn.We agreed early on to always use the buddy system when out at night which is partly how I got wrangled into this mess in the first place. If I’m not being forced to join her for a night of heavy drinking and possible hookups, I usually make sure she’s with someone who won’t flake out at two in the morning and leave her stranded at some off campus fraternity party.
Bad things happen to girls who think there is safety in a party of one.
I’m hoping if I ignore Mr. Beautiful long enough, he’ll give up and go away. That’s usually my go-to weapon of defense. And most of the time, it’s effective.
“Hey, are you going to answer me?”
Again, his voice is distractingly at my ear. I can practically feel his warm breath ghosting over my flesh. Little shivers of pleasure laced with fear skitter their way down my spine. I grit my teeth in response, attempting to ignore him.
Good-looking or not, this is just annoying. Although, most of my irritation is directed at myself for the reaction he’s able to pull so effortlessly from me. It’s taken the better part of nine months to emotionally deaden myself. Somehow this guy has shot all my hard work to hell with two adorable dimples and a pair of gorgeous whiskey-colored eyes. Not to mention the rest of the package.
Yeah, it’s bestnotto think about that right now.
Without a word of warning, I spin toward him again. I’m hoping the element of surprise will have him backing off. Except he’s much closer than anticipated. With the shitty luck I’m having this evening, I crash into his muscular chest.
Did I happen to mention how hard all that chiseled strength is beneath my fingertips?
Or that I might actually enjoy running my hands over what I imagine to be amazing pecs?
This isn’t good.
With lightning quick reflexes, he reaches out to steady me as my gaze clashes with his.
“No.” Usually, if ignoring doesn’t work, bitch-mode will get thejob done rather nicely. That’s my second go-to line of defense. And since I’m not naturally a bitch (I’m really not), it’s not something I enjoy doing.
Once in a while, I’ll actually get called a lesbian for not being interested. Why is it that the most persistent guys are always the ones who take rejection the hardest? And they certainly like to go right for the jugular when it becomes clear—to them anyway—that they won’t be tapping anything of mine with anything of theirs.
Totally annoying.
