Page 10 of Waiting Forever
And, here I’d thought, he finally noticed me at the beach when I was sixteen. The way he checked me out and touched me that day gave me the courage to make a move on him, only he left before I could. So I waited and planned, and my patience paid off at my seventeenth birthday party.
Even if he hadn’t told me I looked stunning in my dress, I could see that he thought so from the way his gaze devoured my body. I didn’t expect him to fall in love with me or date me. I was seventeen and he was nineteen.
I’m also not dumb enough to think Nathan can be tied down. He is and always will be a player. According to my dad, guys who go through women like Nathancan’tbe tied down. They get bored and eventually leave or cheat. He loves Nathan like family, but he also thinks he’s a VD carrier or an unplanned pregnancy waiting to happen—if it hasn’t occurred already.
Dad doesn’t know what he’s talking about. His best friend and business partner is Nathan’s father. Wouldn’t Colton share that information with my dad if it were true?
Even with Dad’s warnings floating in my brain, I still wanted Nathan. I wanted one night with him so he could be my first. When I blew out my candles at the party, I wished for it and thought it was a wasted wish until he showed up, looking amazing in his black suit.
He needed to know how much I wanted him. So I dug deep, found my lady balls, and made a move. That kiss was the kind songs are written about—for me, anyway.
Nathan, not so much. Because I never saw him again.
A grinding noise startles me from my thoughts. I flinch and see the conveyer has started. Big pieces of luggage thrown carelessly on the belt move around a horseshoe-shaped track.
I inch closer, as do others, and watch for my bright-colored flower-patterned suitcase.
Black, blue, and gray pass by. I stand on the opposite side of the spot where they come out, eyeing the square exit in the wall.
Mine pops through. Relief fills me. Mom and I had lost our luggage one summer at Heathrow Airport in London. I never want to experience that again.
This is only part of my stuff, my necessities. Mom shipped three boxes to Nathan’s parents’ house in Winter Park where he lives.
I’ve only ever been to Florida to visit Disney World and Universal. Never ventured farther than those two destinations. I hear Winter Park is beautiful, with brick roads, big oak trees, and historical charm. Ryland, the college where I’m transferring, looks beautiful, too. I searched it online—and a map of the campus—in advance. Ever since the incident, I don’t like surprises of any kind.
My luggage inches near. I walk to the belt, ready to grab it, but a tan, muscular arm swoops down and takes the suitcase instead. The guy’s body is massive, his chest shielding my view. He’s standing way too close to me.
I want to fight the asshole thief for my luggage, but my body reacts with panic. I jump back, my muscles taut, my fingers curled into fists, and raise my arm, ready to throw a punch.
“Whoa.” The guy sets down my bag and holds up his hands in defense. “Kensington. It’s me, Nathan.”
Nathan.He came? I lift my gaze to his face and the warmth of his familiar chocolate-brown eyes.
“Still as fierce as ever for someone so tiny, I see,” he says with a smile so mesmerizing he could charm a venomous snake.
Damn him and his good looks. Damn me for still being attracted to him. “Cousin,” I throw out and scowl because anger seems like an appropriate response for him scaring me. “I wasn’t sure you’d show after the way you blew me off at my birthday.” Am I really bringing that up?Say something else, quick.“And I’m not tiny. Five-five is average height. You just think I’m tiny because you still think I’m a kid.”Ugh.Shut up, Kensi. Seriously.
Grinning, he eyes my fist where it’s still raised by my shoulder. “Were you really going to punch me?”
“You snuck up on me. It’s my natural defense.”
His smile drops and worry fills his eyes. “I’ve snuck up on you plenty in the past. You never greeted me with a near punch.”
I tense, praying he doesn’t know what happened. Mom wouldn’t tell him. She promised, and I trust her to keep that promise, as well as Dad. Nathan’s dad knows, though.
He knows what did anddidn’thappen. He knows it was my idea to leave Dallas. He even helped my mom convince my dad a temporary move to London is beneficial for two reasons: protecting my dad against acting out on his angerandexpanding the business.
Bracing myself for ultimate humiliation, I step back and close my eyes. “What do you know?”
“Kensington,” he murmurs in a tender tone.
Emotions swarm me—sadness and a heavy dose of humiliation. “You must think I’m the most pathetic loser in the world.”
“What?” he snaps and grabs my arm in a soft hold.
I open my eyes as he steers me away from the crowded area, wheeling my luggage with his free hand.
“What are you doing?” I try to break free. “Stop. You’re hurting me.”
