Page 54
It would be easy for me to just…jump in bed with him.
Wild-ness.
The world starts to spin, but my face twists into a stupid smile. The investment banker grabs my hand, beginning to pull me away from the exit.
“Absolutely not, bestie.” Yenn’s clear voice pierces through my drunken fog, and I’m ripped from his grip.
For the best, I suppose.
Safely on the top platform, I give one wistful look over the space…and vow off drinking ever again because I’ve gone from intoxication to blatant hallucination.
My brain tries to convince me Storm Sandoval is here, standing in the middle of the dance floor.
I blink, and when the image doesn’t change, I accept that heishere.
Watching me with an angry gaze that sears right through my chest.
Heat pools deep in my core, and it seems like the forces of the Universe have snapped into place like magnets, compelling my feet to move closer to him. Longing like I’ve never known shoves me onto an emotional ledge, and I’m not sure what to do with my body or my thoughts.
Or that stupid organ beating in my chest.
He feels this too. He has to.
I lift my foot, prepared to take another step back toward the dance floor and directly into Storm’s arms when I stop cold in my tracks.
The girl I’ve seen him with around campus hangs off his arm, staring up at him with an expression I recognize clearly.
I understand it because if I were to get close to him, if I were standing where she is, I’d look at him the same way.
Yenn tugs me and I trip a little on the obnoxious heels. We burst onto the sidewalk; the night already cool.
“I’ll get you into bed and—” she stops a few feet from the entrance, frowning at her phone.
“What’s wrong?” I slur, still swaying.
“King?” Yenn’s voice is serious, her answer sharp as a whip. My eyebrows lower. King is Yenn’s older brother, and, if I’m honest, he’sneveraround. I’ve known Yenn almost all my life, and I’ve only seen him three times since he left Illinois to go to college.
Yenn gasps, her eyes going wide.
“When?” she rasps, and the alcohol-induced euphoria quickly starts to dissipate.
“What’s wrong?” I repeat again, stepping closer to her. But she moves away.
“Oh, god. I’ll be there in fifteen minutes,” she says, hanging up the phone. Her heelsclick-clackat a rapid speed as she powers toward the cab stand.
“What’s wrong!” I practically screech, and I run into Yenn’s back when she stops abruptly.
“My dad had a heart attack,” she says. I gasp, willing myself to sober up immediately.
It’s hard.
“Shit, Yenn!” She rushes to the front of the empty cab line and pulls on the back door of one car.
“Let’s go. Which hospital?” I say. Or, I try to say. Why did I get so drunk? And why did this have to happen tonight of all nights?
“No!” Yenn’s sharp declaration stops me as much as her hand on my chest. “I don’t have time to deal with your drunk ass right now, Shae. Go home.”
I’m hurt, but I nod, immediately understanding.
Wild-ness.
The world starts to spin, but my face twists into a stupid smile. The investment banker grabs my hand, beginning to pull me away from the exit.
“Absolutely not, bestie.” Yenn’s clear voice pierces through my drunken fog, and I’m ripped from his grip.
For the best, I suppose.
Safely on the top platform, I give one wistful look over the space…and vow off drinking ever again because I’ve gone from intoxication to blatant hallucination.
My brain tries to convince me Storm Sandoval is here, standing in the middle of the dance floor.
I blink, and when the image doesn’t change, I accept that heishere.
Watching me with an angry gaze that sears right through my chest.
Heat pools deep in my core, and it seems like the forces of the Universe have snapped into place like magnets, compelling my feet to move closer to him. Longing like I’ve never known shoves me onto an emotional ledge, and I’m not sure what to do with my body or my thoughts.
Or that stupid organ beating in my chest.
He feels this too. He has to.
I lift my foot, prepared to take another step back toward the dance floor and directly into Storm’s arms when I stop cold in my tracks.
The girl I’ve seen him with around campus hangs off his arm, staring up at him with an expression I recognize clearly.
I understand it because if I were to get close to him, if I were standing where she is, I’d look at him the same way.
Yenn tugs me and I trip a little on the obnoxious heels. We burst onto the sidewalk; the night already cool.
“I’ll get you into bed and—” she stops a few feet from the entrance, frowning at her phone.
“What’s wrong?” I slur, still swaying.
“King?” Yenn’s voice is serious, her answer sharp as a whip. My eyebrows lower. King is Yenn’s older brother, and, if I’m honest, he’sneveraround. I’ve known Yenn almost all my life, and I’ve only seen him three times since he left Illinois to go to college.
Yenn gasps, her eyes going wide.
“When?” she rasps, and the alcohol-induced euphoria quickly starts to dissipate.
“What’s wrong?” I repeat again, stepping closer to her. But she moves away.
“Oh, god. I’ll be there in fifteen minutes,” she says, hanging up the phone. Her heelsclick-clackat a rapid speed as she powers toward the cab stand.
“What’s wrong!” I practically screech, and I run into Yenn’s back when she stops abruptly.
“My dad had a heart attack,” she says. I gasp, willing myself to sober up immediately.
It’s hard.
“Shit, Yenn!” She rushes to the front of the empty cab line and pulls on the back door of one car.
“Let’s go. Which hospital?” I say. Or, I try to say. Why did I get so drunk? And why did this have to happen tonight of all nights?
“No!” Yenn’s sharp declaration stops me as much as her hand on my chest. “I don’t have time to deal with your drunk ass right now, Shae. Go home.”
I’m hurt, but I nod, immediately understanding.
Table of Contents
- Page 1
- Page 2
- Page 3
- Page 4
- Page 5
- Page 6
- Page 7
- Page 8
- Page 9
- Page 10
- Page 11
- Page 12
- Page 13
- Page 14
- Page 15
- Page 16
- Page 17
- Page 18
- Page 19
- Page 20
- Page 21
- Page 22
- Page 23
- Page 24
- Page 25
- Page 26
- Page 27
- Page 28
- Page 29
- Page 30
- Page 31
- Page 32
- Page 33
- Page 34
- Page 35
- Page 36
- Page 37
- Page 38
- Page 39
- Page 40
- Page 41
- Page 42
- Page 43
- Page 44
- Page 45
- Page 46
- Page 47
- Page 48
- Page 49
- Page 50
- Page 51
- Page 52
- Page 53
- Page 54
- Page 55
- Page 56
- Page 57
- Page 58
- Page 59
- Page 60
- Page 61
- Page 62
- Page 63
- Page 64
- Page 65
- Page 66
- Page 67
- Page 68
- Page 69
- Page 70
- Page 71
- Page 72
- Page 73
- Page 74
- Page 75
- Page 76
- Page 77
- Page 78
- Page 79
- Page 80
- Page 81
- Page 82
- Page 83
- Page 84
- Page 85
- Page 86
- Page 87
- Page 88
- Page 89
- Page 90
- Page 91
- Page 92
- Page 93
- Page 94
- Page 95
- Page 96
- Page 97
- Page 98
- Page 99
- Page 100
- Page 101
- Page 102
- Page 103
- Page 104
- Page 105
- Page 106
- Page 107
- Page 108
- Page 109
- Page 110
- Page 111
- Page 112
- Page 113
- Page 114
- Page 115
- Page 116
- Page 117
- Page 118
- Page 119
- Page 120
- Page 121
- Page 122
- Page 123
- Page 124
- Page 125
- Page 126
- Page 127
- Page 128
- Page 129
- Page 130
- Page 131
- Page 132
- Page 133
- Page 134
- Page 135
- Page 136
- Page 137
- Page 138
- Page 139
- Page 140
- Page 141
- Page 142
- Page 143
- Page 144
- Page 145
- Page 146
- Page 147
- Page 148
- Page 149
- Page 150
- Page 151
- Page 152
- Page 153
- Page 154
- Page 155
- Page 156
- Page 157
- Page 158
- Page 159
- Page 160
- Page 161
- Page 162
- Page 163
- Page 164
- Page 165
- Page 166
- Page 167
- Page 168
- Page 169
- Page 170
- Page 171
- Page 172
- Page 173
- Page 174
- Page 175
- Page 176
- Page 177
- Page 178
- Page 179
- Page 180
- Page 181