Page 66

WAVERLY

A n hour later, it wasn’t even eight o’clock yet, and Keene and I had thoroughly debauched each other more than once.

As he left the room to dispose of his condom in the bathroom with the promise to bring me back a warm wet cloth, I lounged on his bed, picking up my phone and practicing a little Swedish on Duolingo while I waited.

When he returned, cloth in hand, my phone had just dinged with a right answer, and Keene tipped his head in question, silently asking me what I was doing.

“Just learning a new language,” I answered, my face heating with embarrassment as I tried to put the phone away.

But he plopped down next to me, looking interested. Hitching his chin toward the phone, he said, “Which language?”

Instead of handing the cloth to me, he reached between my legs to press it against me himself. I sucked in a breath from the sheer intimacy of it, my gaze shooting to his as he let the heat from the cloth soothe the sting.

He stared back at me, and my lips parted as my breath heaved. But he was just so freaking beautiful. His eyes were beautiful. His lips. His eyelashes. And the fact that he wanted to attend to me after sex was beautiful too.

“Waverly,” he said, his voice husky. “Which language are you learning?”

Language? How the fuck should I know? He was beautiful, and that’s all that mattered.

His lips quirked with that cocky knowing smirk of his, and he warned, “You should probably stop looking at me like that, or I’m going to have to go down on you again, and I’m already afraid I worked you over too much for one night.”

My head wobbled back and forth before I mumbled, “You could never work me over too much.”

Hissing a curse, he yanked the cloth away and pushed me back down onto the bed. “In that case…”

* * *

“So which language are you learning?” Keene asked fifteen minutes later, after he’d made me come once more, and I could think straight again.

Drawing designs on my bare stomach with his finger, he rested his cheek on his other hand as he propped his arm up on his elbow and lay stretched out on his side. I turned onto my side as well so I could face him.

Tucking one hand under my cheek, I gazed into his amazing, swampy eyes and said, “Swedish.”

His nose wrinkled in confusion because he clearly wasn’t expecting that answer. “Swedish? Really? That’s cool. But why Swedish?”

So I had to go through the whole explanation of fearing that I was going to have to flee the country and become a Swedish goat herder to keep him from finding out I’d been his mystery girl.

And in return, Keene threw back his head and laughed.

I sighed and muttered, “Why did I even tell you? I’m never telling you anything ever again.”

“Oh, yes, you are,” he claimed, rolling toward me and tackling me back onto my spine so he could climb on top of me and pin my hands to either side of my head.

Getting up into my face until our noses were brushing, he grinned and said, “I want to know every little thing there is to know about you. Inside and out. Upside and down.” Cupping my face, his gaze turned soft before he whispered, “Because you are way too fascinating to leave unexplored.”

No one had ever made me feel like I was fascinating before, but Keene did. He made me feel it all, and I was tempted to spill all my deepest, darkest secrets to him; I actually opened my mouth to do just that.

But he kissed my nose, having no idea I’d been about to change everything between us, and he sat up with a refreshed kind of vigor.

“Let’s get out of here,” he announced, hopping off the bed and reaching out a hand to draw me off as well. “I want to drive around and see what’s going on. There’s just something about having really good sex that gets me revved and energized, you know what I mean?”

I’d actually thought curling up with him and taking a nap until it was time for me to head home sounded perfect; but I could also feel the same spark of exuberance he spoke of, so I nodded and smiled, willing to do whatever he wanted.

We dressed quickly and headed up the stairs together.

Leaning toward me, he asked into my ear, “Want to ask the new lovebirds if they’d like to join us, or do you want to head out solo?”

Feeling social for probably the first time ever, I shrugged. “Let’s invite them along.”

“Right on,” he answered and clapped his hands loudly as we entered the living room to interrupt the movie.

“Waverly says she wants to get out of here and do something,” he announced loudly, smacking the back of Alec’s head playfully and making his brown curls bounce. “So let’s get out of here and do something already.”

Xander and Alec glanced back at us, blinking in confusion, and I flushed, embarrassed. “I didn’t actually say that,” I swore.

“Trust us,” Alec assured. “We know.”

Leaning over the couch, past Xander, Keene snagged the remote and turned off the television. “Well, come on, you two lazy asses. Let’s go.”

“Hey!” Xander cried, glaring at him. “We were watching that.”

“Whatever,” Keene argued, tossing the remote back down onto the cushions.

“You two have seen it a dozen times already. The man and woman spend the week together, he pays her, then begs her to stay, but she doesn’t want to be paid anymore, so he climbs the fire escape to keep her for free, and she finally agrees. Now let’s go.”

Alec groaned reluctantly as he rubbed both hands over his face. “Just where do you want to go?” he mumbled, sounding harassed.

“I don’t know.” Keene shrugged. “Around.”

Glancing at Xander for her take, Alec lifted his brows questioningly.

Instead of answering him, though, Xander looked at me.

I looked at Keene, who lifted his eyebrows right back, and suddenly it felt as if all our plans were my decision to make. I mutely shrugged and nodded to Xander.

And just like that, she was in. “Okay,” she said, popping to her feet and bringing the blanket she’d been snuggled under with her.

Which convinced Alec to agree to go as well. Grabbing his bag of Twix bars, he stood, claiming, “Why not?”

Keene whooped and grabbed my hand. “Alright! Let’s go.”

As we passed through the kitchen, Alec said, “Oh, hey. Should we take some refreshments along?” He detoured toward a far cabinet door and swung it open, pointing up toward a menagerie of alcohol on the top shelf. Spreading his hand over the display, he asked, “Anyone? Anyone?”

Xander made a face and touched her stomach. “I’m still holding off for another two months until I get the all-clear from my transplant doctor.”

“Oh shit. Right. Forgot about that.” Alec shut the cabinet door immediately. “I’ll stay sober with you, in solidarity.” And he opened the refrigerator to grab a handful of water bottles from inside.

Keene glanced at me, however. “What about you? You want anything?”

I opened my mouth, not sure how to answer. I wouldn’t even know what to request if I said yes. It was on the tip of my tongue to just decline when his eyes flared.

“Holy shit. You have had alcohol before, right?”

I winced, feeling inept and inexperienced.

“Seriously?” Xander cut in, gaping at me now as well. “How is that even possible?”

The total lack of a social life , I wanted to answer but knew that would only make me look twice as bad, so I just shrugged and mumbled, “I don’t know.”

“That’s it,” Keene announced. “We’re getting Waverly drunk tonight. What do you think, Girl Union?” he asked Xander as he brushed past Alec to reopen the cabinet. “Wine? Moscato maybe? Or should we mix something girly up in a to-go cup for her?”

“Ooh, moscato all the way,” Xander nodded before glancing at me and whispering, “Trust me. You’ll like it.”

All the while, Alec gaped at me. “Have you really never drank before?” When I shook my head, he groaned and slapped both hands to the top of his head. “Oh God. I feel like such a bad influence right now.”

“Dude, whatever.” Keene rolled his eyes and ignored his best friend as he pulled what looked like a wine bottle down and turned to me, grinning big. “This’ll be fun.”

But seeing it made me gulp in doom. “Actually, I’m fine without drinking.”

“Nonsense.” Keene waved a hand as if it were nothing. “This is perfect. Alec and Xander are already going to be sober, and I’m driving, so I can’t drink either, meaning you’ll have all three of us to watch over you and make sure nothing bad happens.”

“Oh, you’re driving, huh?” Alec asked. “Since when did we agree to that?”

“I’m sorry,” Keene drew out sarcastically, turning to him with arched eyebrows. “Did you want to drive?” He snorted. “Think all four of us can fit on the back of your bicycle?”

“Hey, suck it, motherfucker.” Alec shot him a dirty look as he flipped Keene off, while Xander spoke up.

“I could drive.”

Only for Keene to yell above everyone else.

“ I’m driving, dammit.” Turning back to me, he huffed out an annoyed breath only to calm down again as soon as he looked at me.

“As I was saying, you’ll be in a safe environment, so you don’t have to worry about anything happening to you while you’re impaired.

Plus, I promise we’ll cut you off by eleven so you’ll have two hours to sober up again before you go home.

So…” He lifted his hands, still holding the moscato by the neck.

“This is honestly as good a time as any for you to dip your toe into adult beverages.”

Nodding, Xander sent me a look. “Hate to admit it, but he’s kind of right.”

“Holy shit. What was that?” Keene cupped a hand to his ear and gaped at her. “Did Girl Union just say I was…right?”

Glaring back dryly, she narrowed her eyes and deadpanned, “Don’t worry. It’ll never happen again.”

Laughing, he swung an arm over my shoulders and hauled me close, claiming, “Never say never.”

Kissing my temple, he pulled us out the back door.

It felt so normal. So natural. Just four friends hanging out on a Friday night. And I was being included.

Glancing back at Xander as she followed directly behind us, she merely rolled her eyes before casting me a grin to let me know she was enjoying herself too.

At the Jeep, Keene loudly proclaimed that I was getting shotgun, so Alec and Xander had to pile into the cramped back seats, and then we were off.

“So where to?” Keene asked as he backed us onto the street and changed the song on the radio to something he liked.

While Imagine Dragons crooned in the background, Alec lifted the moscato, still holding it after Keene had thrust it at him. “We probably shouldn’t drive around with an open container. Let’s find somewhere to park before cracking this bad boy open.”

“So…the beach?” Keene guessed.

“Wouldn’t they all be closed at this time of night?” I asked uneasily, hoping they weren’t planning on trespassing.

“All the public ones, yeah,” Alec answered. “But Ohrley just bought a private one so he could build a beach house for my sister. We could go there.”

Blinking at him in confusion, Xander asked, “And he won’t mind if we just…crash for a few hours on his property?”

Keene snorted. “Why the hell would he mind?”

No one had an answer for that, so Xander shrugged. “Okay, I’m convinced.” She tapped my arm. “Frankie?”

I looked to Keene, who lifted his eyebrows in question, totally letting me make the call. Again. Feeling the thrill of the adventure and from everyone looking to me for input, I answered, “I just have to be home by one.”

“Yes!” they cheered as if they approved of my verdict.