Page 4 of Made for Cyn
Taken aback, I give her a chilly stare and rise to my feet. “Good thing I’m not interested,” I say, my voice ice cold. “And Iris is amazing.”
Ignoring their vicious stares, I walk away in a huff, slightly dizzy and nauseous from the beer swishing around in my gut. It’s getting cold, but the air feels good against my heated cheeks as I wander down the sand.
Iris said the girls were bitches, and I guess she wasn’t lying, but why attend a party with a bunch of girls who don’t like you?
Of course, Iris took off with her beau, so she hardly cares, and while I’m annoyed she ditched me, I’m also envious of her ability to be so free. I’m pretty sure she’s having sex because she told me unashamedly that she lost her virginity at fifteen to some kid with bad breath and no game—and I’ve never been kissed!
I’d like to say it’s pathetic, but it’s hardly my fault that the pool of eligible guys was precisely two, and both of them were like brothers to me. Yeah, definitely no chemistry there.
Maybe I will follow her advice, though, and live a little if the right person comes along. But after the free love my parents have been practicing, I’m quite sure what I’m not looking for, and it includes multiple partners and an appalling lack of sensitivity to your lover.
These thoughts lead me back to the guy with the striking emerald eyes. He’s gorgeous but not in a straightforward way. No, it’s in the lines of his body, firm and harsh, and the cool look in his eyes, warning others to stay back even as his unleashed power draws you in.
He’s magnetic, and for the first time in my life, my body reacted in the presence of a guy. He created a bewildering surge of tingles that sailed along my skin and ended in my core—and I stared at him like a moron while he barely spared me a glance.
He’s probably with the girl he wandered off with and I haven’t seen him emerge since.
I force my thoughts away with a sigh because to like someone like him would surely leave me burned. I may be sheltered, but I’m not stupid. Guys like him attract danger, and I have no use for the drama.
Besides, what would he see in me when a bevy of half-naked beauties surrounds him?
“What are you doing out here?” Rand asks, stepping out of the darkness.
With a lackluster smile, I look toward the waves, although with the clouds covering the moon, I can’t see them, and say with a shrug, “Just walking.”
Unfortunately, Rand lost his appeal when a green-eyed boy came into view. There’s nothing I can do about it. And if my suspicions are correct, now I’m left in the awkward position of turning him down, which is not something I even know how to approach. I guess I wanted everyday teenage drama, and here it is.
“C’mon, let’s walk this way,” he says, grabbing my hand.
Reluctantly, I follow, glaring at his fingers covering mine. Rand is turning out to be a little too intense for me, and I don’t exactly appreciate the liberties he’s taking.
The roar of the waves grows stronger as we approach the water, and when we get too close for comfort, I pull away. I may admire the beauty before me, but I’m uneasy in the face of it because I know that it can be deadly.
Rand turns to me and brushes my hair behind my ear. I shiver under his touch, and I think he takes it as desire because before I can protest, his mouth is on mine.
His lips are cold and clammy. With a gasp, I shove against his chest as the taste of sour beer coats my mouth, but he ignores my struggle, swiping his slimy tongue inside.
I pull away roughly, wiping my mouth with a moue of disgust. Thankfully, he can’t see much because I wouldn’t be able to hide my sour expression or my eye roll when he chuckles.
“Sorry, I couldn’t resist those pretty lips.”
Seriously? Jerk.
“We should head back,” I mutter, wrapping my arms around my middle to keep myself from punching him where it counts. I may come from a community of supposed free-loving, peaceful people, but I know how to defend myself. My dad made sure of that.
“Sure,” he says. I sidestep away when he tries to put his arm around my shoulder and stalk back to the fire with a frown.
“There you are,” Iris exclaims, and I give her a dirty look. I’m not the one who’s been missing for an hour.
She just beams at me until she spies Rand coming up behind me and her pretty smile fades. Rand smirks and raises a brow, but before I can analyze further, Iris grabs my hand. “C’mon, we’re going down the beach.”
“Where?”
“With Bastion and Cyn.”
“Who?” I ask, bewildered, although I assume the guy waiting for us and whom she disappeared with not too long ago is one of the two.
“Bastion, this is Rain,” Iris says with a giggle.
