Page 48 of Keep Me
Surprisingly, Britt didn’t move out of my hold. Good. That was where she belonged, even if she was refusing to admit it. The cashier tapped the register before working on our order, and when he turned and it was just us, Britt refused to look at me.
“You didn’t have to buy that for me, you know?” Her voice was so meek I almost didn’t hear it over all the other people. She still didn’t move away from me. I wondered if she felt the same need to be close as I did.
“Why wouldn’t I? What’s mine is yours. Always.”
Those words made her flick her gaze in my direction and gave me enough confidence to lean down so our breaths were mingling. We were mere inches away from kissing, but I wouldn’t make the first move no matter how much I wanted to.
She licked her lips as she glanced at mine. She remembered what happened at the wedding; she was just refusing to admit this burning tension between us.
When the cashier dropped a couple of drinks onto the tray, I threw a wad of cash onto the counter without taking my eyes off Britt. How could I? She was breathtaking.
“Here you go.”
“Oh, wow, I need to check the other registers to see if we have change.”
“Keep it.” Again, I hadn’t taken my eyes off Britt. I knew I’d thrown down a one hundred dollar bill since it was all I carried, but getting to the bottom of what was happening between Britt and me was more important. “It’s your tip for getting the order to us quickly.”
“Sure thing,” he said excitedly, and as he got the hot dog, I squeezed Britt’s side, urging her to do what we both wanted.
When the tray was pushed in our direction, Britt broke my gaze and pulled away from me before mumbling out a small “Thank you.” Then she took the drink, wrapped her lips around the extra-large straw, and sipped.
Was the girl trying to kill me?
“It’s delicious,” she murmured.
“It sure is.” I wasn’t referring to the drink, and I was sure she knew it. She said nothing else and kept slurping that slushy, and I couldn’t help but watch her. I had so many questions but knew she’d evade every single one if I tried asking.
This was shit.
The awkward tension. The secrets. This wasn’t who Britt and me were.
“Britt, can w—”
“Excuse me? Are you done? The next period is about to start, and I don’t want to miss a goal because you’re staring at each other like you’ve never seen the opposite sex before.”
Britt turned to the annoyed woman behind us and gave her that beautifully fake smile of hers. “I’m sorry. You’re right. We are done. See you soon, Matty.”
Turning on her heel, Britt started walking away, but she was wrong if she thought she could leave things like this. Grabbing the hot dog and the slushy, I followed behind her.
“Britt!” I called, catching up to her. She slowed, and I walked beside her. My seat was on the other side of the arena, but this conversation was more important than watching a bunch of guys hit a puck with their sticks. “I think it’s important that we talk about everything that happened in Vegas.”
“Vegas?”
“The wedding?” Why on earth was she acting like she couldn’t remember anything? Was she suffering from a mild case of amnesia?
“Oh, yeah. Well, neither one of us were really thinking that night, and I guess we were running on high emotions, so I think we should put it down to the old saying ‘What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas.’ Nothing really counts there. I’m good, if you are?”
“No. I’m not good. Britt, I—”
I couldn’t finish my sentence because the “Imperial March” fromStar Warsblared out of my phone. She didn’t need to ask who was calling, she knew it was Olana, and honestly, I’d had it up to here with my ex’s constant badgering.
Flat-lipped, Britt flicked her gaze to my pocket, then back to me. “If you need to get that, I understand.”
I closed my eyes and breathed deeply. “That’s the thing. You really don’t.”
“No. No. I do. You’re still with Olana. What happened in Vegas was just a fun time. It’s not like it meant anything. You and Olana were having an off day. You’re made for each other. I was just standing in the way, and now, I’m backing off.”
Made for each other? Was she insane? BecauseIcertainly would be if I was to ever go back to Olana.
