Authors: Jillian Dodd
“Well, if he saw the kiss, he probably won’t want to take me anymore.”
“Oh, no. I think he will. Dawson told him that he heard you two hadn’t really done anything and that if Riley didn’t make a move then he was going to, tonight. So just know, Dawson is interested. And be careful.”
“I’m not interested in Dawson. He’s got it bad for Whitney. And messing with Dawson would probably not be a good thing, even if they are broken up.”
“Yeah, they used to date. Like all sophomore year and most of last year. She broke up with him when Peyton started dating a college guy. She sounds like one of those girls that has to have the best of everything. I heard she dumped him because she had to one-up Peyton. Riley hates her. Says it devastated Dawson but, of course, Dawson wants her back. I did hear, though, that Dawson’s been playing pretty heavily. Riley says they had a wild summer.”
“Damn, Dallas. You’re good for all the gossip.”
“He’s not the only one that’s got this place wired,” Dallas says with an easy grin.
“So, what do you know about Peyton? She seems nice when she’s not with Whitney but, then, when she’s with her she acts like she doesn’t even know me.”
“I’m not sure. I get the impression that people are kinda scared of Whitney.”
“There’s a girl like that at every school. So, do you think I can take off this stupid feather crown?”
“You better not. Here comes Tyrese.”
Tyrese sits down with us and rests his muscular arms on the table. “So, congrats. Dance team is cool. You getta come out and shake that ass for the football team.”
I scrunch my nose up, cuz shaking my ass for the football team wasn’t exactly why I tried out. Actually, I’m still not sure why I tried out. But I do know that I loved being up there dancing. It was really fun.
He lowers his voice. “So the party tonight, moved to plan B. You understand?”
“Yeah.”
“You know how to get in and out of the dorm without getting caught?”
“Uh, no.” Shit, the party must be after curfew.
“What floor you on?”
“First. 6B.”
“Well, aren’t you just the lucky girl?” Okay, so all the outside doors have alarms on them, and I’m sure they told you the whole place is wired, right?”
“Yeah, they did tell us that. They also told us about all the trouble we’d get into if we got caught outside the dorm after curfew.”
“You won’t get caught if you do it right, okay?”
“Okay.”
“The biggest problem will probably be your roommate. I heard you have some girl that goes to bed at 9:30. Would she tell on you?”
“She would have, yes, but I have a new roommate. We switched. I’m roommates with Katie. She just made dance team. She’s the really cute petite one.”
“With the huge boobs?”
“Um, yes.”
“Dayuuum, you can just bring her along. Introduce her to Tyrese.”
“Okay. She seems fun, so I’m sure I can talk her into it.”
“Solid. Okay, so what they didn’t tell you is that the doors are wired, but the windows aren’t. All you have to do is report for curfew, then, about an hour after that, sneak out your window. Check your window, make sure you can get in and out of it. Wait, did you say 6B? Damn girl, that window has got WD40 all up and down the sides of it. It glides like a dream. Effortlessly and quietly. Little honey of mine, graduated last year, that was her room.”
Dallas and I laugh.
“So, curfew is at twelve tonight. Be there at one.”
“Wait. How do we get in?”
“Oh, shit. I almost forgot. Your dorm faces the woods. Walk that way, so no one sees you. The second window will be open. Just climb in and take the stairs up to the party. If you have any trouble, text me. Here, give me your phone.”
He grabs my phone, puts in Tyresebaby and his number, winks at me, and leaves.
“You gotta take me to one of these parties,” Dallas tells me.
“Let’s wait until I’m actually invited myself, and then you’re in. And before the others get back,” I say as I see them walking toward us. “Anytime you wanna go back to the cave, you text me.”
He’s kissing my soul.
1:15 am
Katie is excited to go to the party. She’s been chattering nervously about it for the last hour while we unpacked all of our clothes and put them away. She’s also a junior, who has apparently been on the waiting list since freshman year. They told her they had a last minute opening a couple weeks ago, and she decided to come even though her friends and boyfriend thought she was nuts.
We checked our window and, as expected, it glided effortlessly open. She wanted to leave at 12:55, so we would be there right at one, when the party supposedly starts. But no way was I going to look like an overeager B-list actor trying to get into an A-list party. I told her we weren’t leaving until 1:15.
At least.
At 1:15, she can’t wait any longer. She’s had two Red Bulls and is bursting at the seams.
Katie climbs out the window quite gracefully. I pretty much fall out of it and into the bushes. I’ve never had to sneak out before.
“How did you do that?” I ask her as I’m picking leaves off my shorts. We had a big dilemma about what to wear tonight. She wanted to be all decked out. I thought maybe we should look more casual. Pajama party casual. We discussed it for about an hour. Killed some time at least.
“Get out of the window without falling?” she whispers. “I snuck out my window at home all summer to see my boyfriend.”
“And what exactly were you doing with your boyfriend in the middle of the night?”
She smiles and blushes. “Well, you know. Mostly, we just made out, but toward the end of the summer we started having sex. Well, we did it a few times anyway. It was so awkward. But we were both virgins, so I wasn’t really expecting much.”
“Well, when you do it again, hopefully it will be with someone more experienced. I liked it. A lot.”
“Like tonight? Do you think that stuff goes on at this party? I really have no idea what to expect.”
“I would guess it’s like any party. Drugs. Alcohol. Hooking up.”
“I can’t get drunk. I’m not much of a drinker, and I’ve never smoked or done any drugs before.”
“Only have two drinks, then. If you get all drunk, stupid, and loud, you won’t get invited back.”
“We want invited back. They’re hot!”
“Shhh! Exactly. And we need to be quiet.”
We sneak over to the Hawthorne dorm and find window number two open as planned. We slide in and go up to the plan B room.
Isn’t Plan B like the morning after pill?
Yikes. Hope that isn’t indicative of how the night will go.
The door to 38B is wide open, and there are about twenty people crammed into the room. Well, twenty-two now.
Tyrese is standing by the door. He says, “Keatyn, baby, who’s your friend?”
I introduce him to Katie, and leave them to talk. If I have learned one thing from my mom, it’s how to work a party. Never stay up front. The good stuff is always in the back. And always make a full sweep of the room before you stop to chat.
I’m specifically looking for something to drink and for Riley. Instead, I get to the back of the room and find an entire keg of beer, with Dawson pumping it.
He sees me and says, “Damn. I didn’t know this was a pajama party. I like seeing what you wear to bed. Want me to take my clothes off and show you what I wear?”
I’m wearing a pair of fuchsia and black striped Juicy Couture sleep shorts, a little white tank top, and black Koolaburra boots.
And I’m kinda bad, but I’m still wearing my leopard-print bra underneath.
And I was wrong. Very wrong. No one else is in pajamas. They are still all decked out. Whitney especially.
Nothing like being a fashion disaster at my first party. I should have called Kym for advice on what to wear. I look like a middle-schooler going to her first pajama party. I’m such an idiot. I should know better than this. L.A. is the capital of dressed-up casual.
But screw it. The way Dawson is staring at my tank top, I don’t think he cares what I have on. And for some reason, having this gorgeous guy stare at my chest when I look ridiculous makes me feel bold.
I take a step closer to him, grab the beer out of his hand, and take a big drink. “I never said this is what I wear to bed.”
“You really shouldn’t flirt with me. I told my brother that if he didn’t get busy with you, I would.”
“I’m not flirting with you, and I don’t wanna get busy with you.”
“Oh, yeah, you do. You just won’t admit it yet.”
“Where is your brother anyway?”
“Hasn’t shown up. Loser probably fell asleep and is busy having some little boy wet dream about you.” He grabs my waist, much like his brother did earlier, and pulls me toward him. “How about I show you?”
I take a long, slow drink of his beer. Trying to cool him down. But it doesn’t work, because he’s peeking down my tank top, eyeing my bra, then putting his hand up to touch it.
And, yeah, you know who chooses this exact moment to wander up to the keg.
The Hottie.
In the flesh.
“Stop that!” I tell Dawson, smacking his hand away.
He releases me from his grip and says, “S’up, Aiden?”
Aiden scowls at him. “You’re never gonna get Whitney back doing shit like that. She’s giving you the death stare.”
We all turn and look at Whitney at the same time, but it’s clear she isn’t giving Dawson the death stare. She’s giving it to me.
Shit.
Dawson looks like a little boy who got caught with his hand in the cookie jar. I almost feel sorry for him.
Aiden turns to me and demands, “Come with me.”
He pulls me down on a futon next to him. On the other end of it is a couple furiously making out.
“What are you doing at this party?”
Just who does he think he is? “I was invited. Dawson invited Riley and me, and then Tyrese told me to bring my roommate.”
“I don’t think Riley is even here.”
“I know. I haven’t seen him yet.”
“So, you like beer?”
“Yeah, it’s fine. I’d rather have a bottle, like a Corona or something, but it’s whatever.”
“I’ll see I have it next time.”
“You’ll have it? You act like this is your party.”
“Well, that’s because it is. My room. My party.”
“Well big shot, if that’s the case, what do you have besides beer?”
“You do drugs?”
“No! Do you?”
“No, I’m not into that shit, but plenty of people here are.” He nods his head toward Whitney, who snorts cocaine out of her fingernail and then starts making out with Jake. “I just smoke some.”
“Yeah, me too.”
He flashes me a grin. “Tell you what. Come across the hall to Bryce’s room. That’s where we keep the good stuff. I’ll make you a drink.”
He leads me out of the party and across the hall, opens the door to an empty dorm room, turns on a lamp, then gently pushes me up against the door and kisses me.
Again, it’s a slow, soft, amazing kiss. The kind of kiss that makes me feel like he’s kissing my soul.
Oh my gosh. What the heck does that even mean? Kissing my soul? I’m seriously losing it here.
It’s official. Almost getting kidnapped has affected me. I definitely have some sort of post-traumatic stress thing, and the symptoms must include having irrational thoughts about Hottie Gods.
Aiden’s hands are very appropriately placed around my waist and are not moving.
Damn it, man.
Move your hands.
Kiss me with your tongue.
Take my shirt off.
Attack me already. Please! I can’t take it anymore.
But I don’t say any of that. I just savor each and every slow, amazing, and tongue-free kiss.
Maybe he was born without a tongue, I think for a brief second, but then I realize that I am dumb because he wouldn’t be able to talk if he had been, now would he?
He stops kissing me and looks deep into my eyes. I seriously should have guzzled a few shots the second I got here.
But I had no idea he would be here!
The way he’s looking at me is sorta unnerving but, at the same time, like the kiss, it electrifies me. His face is close to mine, but not so much that he is, like, blurry to look at. I figure if he can stare at me, then I can stare back.
And I take in every curve and angle of his face.
The way his jawline is flexing slightly. How his eyelashes are a dark, dark brown and curl upward. How he has a sexy teeny freckle just to the side of his left cheek. How his textbook lips are the exact color of the pale pink roses Tommy gave Mom for their anniversary, and how the sides of his mouth are turning up, starting to smile at me. He blinks slowly. When his eyes open, I study the emerald green of his irises, how they have little flecks of blue in them and maybe even a little gold around the edges. I feel like time is standing still again.
He slides his hands up into my hair and leans in to kiss me again. My body is trying to be good, but I can’t stop it from leaning into him. Melding to his body. I could stay this way forever.
He stops kissing me, looks deeply into my eyes again, and tells me he loves me.
Oh, wait.
He didn’t say that.
I just thought that.
Well, I thought his eyes told me that.
Shut up! It’s what it felt like.
And what the hell is with the going so slow? Does he not want to make out with me? Is he gay?
Finally he says, “You should probably go back and check on your friend. Those guys will get her drunk and take advantage of her.”
“We didn’t drink before we came. She can’t be drunk yet, and you promised me a drink.”
“Also, I don’t want people to notice we’ve been gone very long. They’ll think we’re having sex. We don’t want to ruin your reputation on your second day.”
“I think maybe you just don’t want to be alone with me. I don’t understand. You act like you’re all into me, but then we barely kiss.”
I get irritated and frustrated by this, but no way am I going to be the one to move things along.
And I thought he was a player.
So why isn’t he trying to play me? To use me? To take advantage of me?