Page 58 of Heartstruck at Dawn
“So, for how long are you staying here at Lily’s?” I asked Nathan as I looked through the cupboards for a glass.
“Top left,” he said. “Um—about a week or so. I found a flat today, but it’s not ready yet.” I pulled my bottom lip up with disappointment.
“What?” he asked. “Are you going to miss having me around the building?” He took the glass out of my hands and poured some water in it for me.
“Of course not,” I said with a proud face, clearly joking.
“I won’t be too far from here.” He took a few steps in my direction and licked his lower lip. “You know, this is exactly how I met you. Green dress, auburn hair beside your face. I’ll never forget it.” He placed his hands on my shoulders and teased the straps of my dress with his fingertips. “It’s unfair if you ask me. I’d just arrived from the airport. I was shattered.” He grazed my arm, where my bruise was with the back of his fingers.
“Well, if that’s whatshatteredlooks like …”
He bit his lower lip with a smile and grabbed my hand to pull me closer to him. I wet my lips and swallowed.
“Billie, what the heck happened at the party?” Lily asked, walking into the kitchen. “Did Thomas hurt you?” I’m sure Tobias was the one to tell her.
“Thomas showed up. But Nathan, he—took care of it.”
“He was about to rip her arm off,” Nathan tossed in.
“Thomas didwhat?” Lily looked shocked and then some. That probably got her sobered up.
“I’m fine. I swear.”
“The sad-arsed prick got to her when I was in the loo,” Nathan continued.
“And where were Aaron and Caleb and—”
“It’s not their fault. Thomas and Nicholas wore these—masks when they walked into the party. The place was dark and packed. And I’m always asking them to back off. If anything, it’s my fault.”
“It’s not,” Nathan said firmly.
Lily offered a bag of frozen vegetables, and I accepted it. It felt great on my sore skin.
We joined everyone in the living room and chatted for a while, but my eyes felt heavier by the minute. I was exhausted.
Ren and Sophie kept talking and laughing. Cecile had her head reclined on the sofa’s backrest, and Tobias sat sideways, leaning closer to her face. They were whispering and chuckling. Cecile’s glassy eyes gave away her level of drunkenness, which wasn’t of the worrying kind yet. She placed her hand on Tobias’s face, and he got even closer to her. Damn. I looked away.
“I think I’m ready to go,” I said to Nathan, yawning.
“Can I walk you?” he asked. I nodded.
Sophie and Cecile wanted to stay for a while longer. I told them I would send the key back with Nathan.
As we waited for the elevator, two girls stepped out of apartment 11A with big smiles on their faces. One had a fancy dress on. She wore her long, wavy, chocolate-brown hair down. The other one wore jeans and a sweater with her golden hair in a high ponytail. She looked cute with those rosy cheeks and freckles. Ugh.
William came out with messy hair, wearing cotton shorts and a hoodie. And as if it were any more possible, the remnants of tequila flowing through my body made William look even more handsome, alluring, hot—unfaithful.
So, he took the girl in the dress to the gala because Erin’s away and then called up the other for a two-on-one action type of situation?What in the actual fuck is happening?This guy is insane!
“William!” Nathan exclaimed with a grin, shaking his hand with a clap. I took a deep breath and said hello to the two girls with a close-lipped smile.
William introduced the two girls to us. Alice was the brunette, and Luna was the blonde one with the cute freckles. They both shared looks after the introduction.
William placed his hands on Luna’s shoulders. “How was your evening? Did you enjoy yourselves?” he asked, trying to seem casual with the small talk.
“We did,” Nathan replied, throwing his arm around me.
William looked at me and redirected his gaze toward my bruised arm which at this point was already gaining a little color.
