Page 47 of All That Glitters
He intrigued us all, especially me.
I cared for him then and I cared for him now and I wasn’t sure what was going to happen if we went through with what he wanted from me.
Sex. He hadn’t said it out loud, but he didn’t have to. I could read between the not-so-subtle lines.
Could I be casual? Could I be cold? Could I walk in, walk out, and it not tear me to shreds?
He also wanted my help.
Could I give him one without the other?
Could I give him both?
And if I didn’t give in willingly, would he take it from me?
Would he force me?
I knew the answer.
Ashton Glitterati would only need to say boo and I’d jump in his arms.
Staring at myself in the bathroom mirror, face washed, hair up, and pajamas on, I wondered who I would be on the other side of it all.
I couldn’t pretend that I wasn’t nervous, maybe even a little bit anxious about being with Ashton.
What my fantasies made me feel were nothing compared to what I felt when we were standing on the terrace earlier after he’d walked me outside. His voice had been low and rough and I’d wanted more. Too much longer with him and I’d have done anything, followed him anywhere just to stay close, just to keep hearing him talk like he couldn’t wait to have me, to be with me.
I should care more that he was using me to get under Hale’s skin. I should’ve said no. I should’ve walked away, left him on his own to deal with himself, but I didn’t. I couldn’t. Somewhere inside him was the Ashton that I knew, the Ashton we all knew. Maybe I could reach that part of him, and maybe I couldn’t.
I hadn’t said no and I hadn’t walked away.
He said he wanted me, and I said yes.
That’s what mattered.
My phone buzzed with an incoming text as I crawled into bed. I started to ignore it, thinking it was Hale trying once again to get me to tell him why I’d been with Ashton tonight, but I was wrong. It was Ashton.
What are you doing?
Going to bed.
Naked?
What do you want, Ashton?
For you to come back.
I’ll see you tomorrow.
Did Hale ask about tonight?
I didn’t want to talk to Ashton about Hale any more than I wanted to talk to Hale about Ashton.
Yes.
What did you tell him?
Nothing.
