The look of uncertainty on her face made me turn away, needing to see something other than those hypnotic eyes for a moment. They had the power to draw a dragon in and make him lay down to turn all his fire in to water. Instead, I leaned back on my hands and watched the other people around the pool enjoying their midday cocktails or getting lost in reading a bookor their e-reader things while I let the sun beat down on my chest. I tried to focus on all my senses to distract me from the one thing that wanted to suffocate me more than anything.
Her.
Remembering the grounding technique my shitty therapist had given me after my parents had died did nothing to help me either, no matter how hard I tried to focus.
Five things I could see: The pool. The ocean. The guys. The other guests. Her.
Four things within reach to touch: My hair. My arm. My chest. Her.
Three things I could hear: The girls’ laughter. The water. Her.
Two things I could smell: Her.Her, goddammit
One thing I could taste:
I fucking hated this game.
“I—”
“You—”
We spoke at the same time, cutting each other off before we’d even begun, and I forced myself to look at her again, wondering what she’d been about to say with that one word she’d spoken: You.
This time, a small smile curved her mouth upwards, and a hint of a blush broke out on the apples of her cheeks. “Sorry, you go,” she said, gesturing to me with a feeble wave of her hand.
“It wasn’t anything important.”
“Oh. Okay.”
“What about what you had to say?”
“Nope. Not important.”
Phoebe glanced over her shoulder, and I followed her gaze to find Andy, Jace, Rhea, and Bailey staring at us as though we each had horns growing out of our heads. The knowing look on Jace’s cocky face made the tension return to my shoulders, and I scowled at him before turning away. I didn’t need him causingany more problems between Andy and me than there already were on this trip.
“Dickhead,” I muttered without thought.
“Which one?” Phoebe asked. “Jace?”
“How did you guess?”
“I thought the same thing when I saw him looking at us that way. Why did he just wink at me?”
“Probably because you’re talking to me.”
“Huh?”
“He thrives on causing awkward atmospheres. Don’t worry about it.”
“As long as he knows nothing is going on here.”
I turned to look at her too quickly, almost pulling a muscle in my neck. “Going on?”
“You know.” Her cheeks definitely turned redder then. “This is just a conversation. I’m not looking to partner up on this trip like Andy and Jace are trying to do with Bails and Rhea.”
Her rejection shouldn’t have stung as much as it did—I wasn’t looking to partner up with anyone, either. Still, my pride took a hit, and my internal walls of defence rose taller and mightier than ever before.
I huffed out a sarcastic, barely-there laugh. “You think I’m trying to hook up with you?”
