Page 27 of Loving Bad

"Tell me a bit about you," Caleb said as he walked me to his car while holding my hand.

"I'm not that interesting," I said with a shrug.

"Well, what about your family?"

"My parents are dead and my older brother, Connor, raised me," I answered vaguely, leaving out any finer details. It always came up at some point in conversations, so I decided to get it over and done with quickly.

"I'm sorry," he said softly. I looked at him.

"It's okay. They've been gone for a long time," I replied. It had only been ten years, but they'd been gone for more than half of my life.

"What happened to them?" he asked.

I pressed my lips together. I didn't answer questions about my parents. There was no way I was going to tell him the truth so instead I decided to lie.

"It was an accident," I said with a shrug.

"I'm sorry," he said softly, pulling me to a stop with a gentle tug of my hand.

"It's fine, really," I said and I gave him a reassuring smile as I looked up at him.

"I had a nice time tonight," he said.

"Me too."

Caleb wasn't Sin; he didn't make me feel alive or make me hold on tight as my world spun out of control. But that excitement came with the cost of heartbreak. Caleb was the safer option. He was talkative and interesting. He was attractive, and it had been nice when he'd put his arm around me while we'd watched the movie.

He took me home, and outside the dorm building he stood in front of me. He reached for my hand and tugged me closer. I looked up at him as I took a step closer, and he leaned forward. He was going to kiss me, and I felt a flutter of excitement. His lips touched mine gently, and he pulled away. Caleb's kisses were nice.

"Did you have fun tonight?" he asked and I nodded my head at him.

"I'll meet you here on Saturday and then we can go to the party," he suggested. I'd forgotten about Slater's invitation to his party.

"That sounds good," I replied.

This time when he pressed his lips to mine he threaded his fingers through my hair and kissed me harder. I felt the tentative touch of his tongue on my lips, and I opened my mouth for him. His tongue tangled with mine, and I followed his lead as I held onto his arms. Before the kiss got too intense, he pulled away from me, a little breathless, and he smiled. I smiled back at him. He walked me to the door of the dorm and only turned to leave once I'd entered the building.

I looked at the elevator, hating the fact that it still didn't work. After the other day when I'd got a little spooked when I'd heard the strange footsteps, I felt a shiver of apprehension every time I entered the stairwell. I climbed the stairs two by two as quickly as I could and only felt safe when I reached my dorm room. Jordan was up and waiting for details about the date.

"So, how was it?" she asked eagerly.

"It was nice," I replied as I sat down on my bed and took off my shoes.

"Just nice?" she questioned.

"What's wrong with nice?" I asked.

"Did he at least kiss you?" was her next question.

"Yes," I replied. It had been a nice kiss.

"Did the earth move and did your knees go weak?" she asked expectantly. No, was the answer. I shook my head.

"That's disappointing," she murmured.

"It doesn't always have to feel that way, does it?" I asked her. I liked Caleb, and I wanted to see him again. It wasn't like we were dating or exclusive. I liked the fact that he didn't have heartbreak stamped all over him.

"We bumped into Sin and Slater on the way to the movies," I revealed to her as I began to change into my pajamas.