Page 82 of Brand
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
Cami
I couldn’t even try to hide it. This sucked. I did my best to put a smile on my face and face the day with an enthusiasm like I’d never had, but by the end of the day, I was pretty sure I’d failed.
The only good thing was that I worked at the shop and I had Sketch and Blade to keep me distracted. Oh, and little Biscuit to cuddle with when I was suddenly hit with a wave of panic, and maybe a bit of sadness.
I realized it was silly. This run thing sounded like something they did all the time and Brand assured me it wasn’t dangerous. But the not knowing had my mind reeling. And I realized that was all by my choice but it didn’t mean that I wasn’t freaking out a bit.
It may not have helped that we’d been attached at the hip sincethatkiss. I mean, there were those few days we had spent apart because life had gotten real stupid there for a moment, but I was trying my best to forget about all the drama that happened then.
Thinking of that night sent warm sparks through my body. That was the kiss that started it all. The one that forever changed the way I saw the world.
I was pretty sure that was the moment he imprinted himself on me. Ruined me for anyone else. And I was one hundred percent alright with that.
Lucky for me, Chris was waiting at the compound after the shop had closed and I was headed for an empty room. He told me to grab a change of clothes then he said we were going to pick up Laurel. After much protesting, Laurel finally agreed to come along. I think we both needed whatever Chris had in store for us, and by the request for extra clothes, I would bet that neither of us would make it home tonight.
“Please tell me more,” Chris said as we all sat around his living room later that night.
The windows were open, the cool air flowing in carrying the soothing sounds of the crashing waves in the distance. I was pretty sure we were all really drunk at this point, the rice and tofu dish that Chris had made us not doing much to soak up any of the alcohol we’d consumed.
Oh, holy cow could that guy cook, by the way. I was surprised at the first bite I took and I think I ended up eating more than my fair share.
“No, I really shouldn’t,” Laurel said, waving her hand in front of her face trying to brush off her embarrassment that she’d let something slip that she clearly hadn’t meant to.
“Come on, it’s just us,” I said grabbing her knee and giving it a good shake.
“It was so bad. Like I just didn’t understand. I thoughtIwas doing something wrong,” she admitted with wide, glassy eyes. “I usually ended up going into the bathroom and taking care of myself after. Oh, God, I can’t believe I just admitted that out loud.”
She was spilling her guts on how sex had been with Brice. I had no idea that it was that bad, but now that she had a few glasses of wine in her, she was letting it all out.
We laughed and it was great. Though, I did feel kind of bad for her. I wished I hadn’t been so in my head before, that I could have been there for her. But it wasn’t the time to dwell on things that couldn’t be changed. I silently vowed that I’d never do that again. Laurel was my beautiful, amazing sister and I was going to be right there by her side as she figured her way back to the top again. And I didn’t doubt for a second that she would do just that.
“Kissing him was like what I imagine kissing a fish would be like. His lips were so dry but somehow slimy. I never understood how that was possible. And his tongue, oh, it was all over the place.” She then demonstrated the tongue thing. It was not a pretty sight but it was hilarious.
I had to admit, seeing Laurel like this was strange but I couldn’t say it didn’t make me happy. She was free and relaxed. She wasn’t fidgeting with her clothes trying to make sure they were sitting just right. She wasn’t stiff as a board and watching what came out of her mouth. She was having a good time and it was beautiful. I could say with certainty, that this Laurel was amazing and I prayed that she stuck around.
“I just want to be with that person that kisses you and it makes your toes curl. I want that for the rest of my life. I mean, I know we don’t all get a happily ever after or whatever, and maybe we are lucky to have gotten it even once.”
She talked like she knew that exact kiss and I studied her trying to figure out what was going on.
“I know Cami gets that all the time and I’m not jealous, but I do envy you,” she said as she turned to me and gave me a playful, drunken wink that lasted a little too long to be cute. “What about you Chris?”
“Um,” he said and looked up like he was having to think about it. I would bet if he had to think about it that hard then the answer was probably going to be negative. “I have had good kisses. Ones that I didn’t mind repeating. A lot of bad ones though, too. But never that one that really made me think about it over and over again or did the toe curl thing.”
“Aw, that’s sad,” Laurel said and her lips tipped down in a frown.
“So what? You decide to go on an adventure to find love and now you think everyone needs to ride that train?” I asked as a joke.
“No, brat,” she said then poked me with her toe before turning her attention back to Chris. “What about a longterm relationship? I’m sorry, don’t answer that, I didn’t mean to pry.”
Chris laughed and waved her off.
“I don’t mind,” he said with ease and that was just what I would have expected from him. “I’ve had a few relationships here and there but they never really stuck. I’d say my longest one was four months. And I did have this amazing and very intensethingwith someone but we weren’t exclusive, um, it’s kinda hard to explain. I guess we were fuck buddies, but it was a little more than that when we were…uh, fucking.”
“Oh, well that stupid bitch didn’t know what she was missing out on,” Laurel said acting like she knew Chris well.
I mean, I guess I could see how being around him a few times you did feel like you were instantly close. He was that type of person that didn’t judge and was laid-back. He had a warm smile and a huge heart.
