Page 20
The night air was chilly and the streets were void of children. Trick or treat had ended about an hour before and there were pieces of dropped candy every few feet.
Bright light spilled out from the windows, casting a luminous glow along the porch. There were a few people outside, leaning against the railing. Shoving my hands into the pockets of my hoodie, I avoided the garage, where a mean game of beer pong was going down, and through the open front door.
Holy crap…
The house was packed. People were everywhere, crowding a TV, in groups by the couch, on the floor, and in the hallway. Music thumped along with my heart as I scanned the crowd, searching for a sexy angel. There were a lot of angels—naughty angels in red, sexy angels in white, and I guess, very bad angels in black.
Hmm.
I squeezed past a girl dressed like Dorothy from The Wizard of Oz, if Dorothy had been a stripper. She smiled at me and I smiled back. It felt wobbly and weird. Sliding past a group at a card table, I saw Cam’s roommate Ollie at the table. He was too immersed in the game to notice me. I stretched up on the tips of my toes. The inside of the house had a slightly suffocating feel to it with all the people.
There was a nearby high pitched squeal and I turned, having only seconds to prepare myself before I was attacked by an angel in white.
“You’re here!” Brit shrieked, squeezing me. “Holy shit! I didn’t think you’d actually come. I thought you were going to bail. ”
“I’m here. ”
She squeezed me again and then grabbed my hand. “Come. Jacob is out in the garage. So is Cam. ”
My overworked heart did some more cardio as she pulled me around the card table. A few guys looked up, dismissing me and my jeans outright and then settling on the tiny white dress Brit had on. Interest sparked in their eyes. One guy leaned back in his chair, brows knitting as he took her in. I couldn’t blame him. She looked hot.
“Coming through!” Brit announced, free hand in the air. “Beep. Beep. ”
The air was easier to breathe in the garage, the light not so bright, and while there were more people out here, the muscles in the back of my neck relaxed. Brit led me toward a guy who had an old school, black bowler hat on and a purple blazer.
“Jakey-Jake, look who I found!” Brit yelled.
Purple blazer turned, and a genuine smile broke out across my face as I saw the big black rim glasses. “Bruno Mars?” I asked.
“Yes! See, Brit. Some people get my costume!” Jacob shot her a dirty look before turning back to me. He frowned. “What are you dressed as?”
I shrugged. “A lazy college student?”
Jacob laughed as Brit bounced over to the keg. “What do you have on under this God awful sweatshirt?”
“What’s wrong with my hoodie?” I demanded.
He gave me a bland look. “Nothing’s wrong with it if you just rolled out of bed and were going to class, but you’re at a party. ” He went for the zipper on my hoodie and pulled it down. “Take it off or I’m taking it off. ”
“He’s being serious. ” Brit returned with two red plastic cups in her hand. “He once took my shirt off because he wanted to try it on and there I was, standing in a room full of girls, with just my bra. ”
I slipped my keys into my jeans and took my hoodie off, dropping it on the back of a nearby camping chair. “Happy?”
Jacob took in my fitted black turtleneck, lips pursed. “Hmm…” He tugged the hem of my sweater up so that it exposed a slice of my lower stomach. Then roughed his hands through my hair, causing the waves to go in every which way. “Better. You have a tight, little body. Fucking own it, girl. Now you’re dressed like as a sexy, lazy college student. ”
I took the drink Brit shoved in my hand. “Are you done dressing me like I’m your own personal Barbie?”
“Bitch, if you were my Barbie, you’d be half naked. ”
I laughed. “Good thing I’m not. ”
He dropped an arm over my shoulder. “I’m glad you’re here. For real. ”
“Me too. ” And once I said that, I was glad. I was here. I made it. This was huge. I even took a sip of my beer. Look at me. Party animal extraordinaire.
Telling myself I wasn’t looking for anyone in particular, I glanced around the garage. It didn’t take long to find Cam. Being that he was a good head taller than most of the guys around, he was easy to pick out. Seeing that he wasn’t dressed any differently than he normally was brought a smile to my face.
Cam was standing near the beer pong table, arms folded across his chest. His biceps stretched the short-sleeve shirt he wore. I didn’t know what it was with guys dressing like it was warm outside when it was obviously not.
Beside him was Jase, who was as equally tall as Cam, and just as nice to openly gawk at with his slightly longer brown hair. He too was dressed like it was sweltering and a dark tattoo peeked out from underneath his sleeve.
Brit followed my stare and sighed. “I don’t know which one is hotter. ”
Cam, to me, won hands down. “Me neither. ”
“I’d take them both,” Jacob commented.
“At the same time?” Curiosity filled Brit’s tone.
Jacob grinned. “Hell yeah. ”
“A Cam and Jase sandwich. ” Brit shivered. “I wish that was on the Dollar Menu. ”
I laughed. “I think they’d cost more than a dollar. ”
“True,” she murmured and then sighed out a, “I need to get laid. ”
Jase elbowed Cam and said something. A moment later, Cam looked in our direction. A wide smile broke out across his striking face. He put his cup down on the edge of the ping pong table.
“And here comes one of them,” Jacob said, looking at my slyly. “It’s about to become a Cam and Avery sandwich. ”
“Shut up,” I said, flushing.
People got out of the way for Cam. He was like a hot Moses, parting a sea of drunk college students. I took a step back, suddenly nervous.
Cam didn’t hesitate. There was a confident ease in everything he did. His arms were around my waist in under a second, lifting me off my feet in a bear hug. Brit wisely grabbed the cup from my hand before Cam spun around. I clutched his shoulders as the walls of the garage whirled.
“Holy shit, I can’t believe you’re actually here. ”
It seemed that no one really thought I’d show. It made me warm and fuzzy to know that I did. “I told you I was coming. ”
He sat me on my feet but didn’t let go. “When did you get here?”
I shrugged. “I don’t know. Not that long ago. ”
“Why didn’t you come say hi?” The dimple was there, and I found myself staring at it.
“You were busy and I didn’t want to bother you,” I admitted, noticing that quite a few people were staring at us.
Cam lowered his head and his lips brushed my ear as he spoke, sending a burst of shivers along my spine. “You are never a bother to me. ”
My heart skipped in my chest like I was poised atop a roller coaster ride. I turned my head slightly, and our eyes locked. Thoughts scattered, and when Cam’s hands tightened on my arms, I was flying down that roller coaster. For a moment, the sounds of the party were drowned out. The pupils of his eyes were so large, a startling contrast against the bright blue.
“Yo, Cam!” Jase yelled. “You’re up. ”
The moment was shattered, and I let out the breath I hadn’t realized I was holding. His lips tipped up on the corners. “Don’t go too far. ”
I nodded. “Okay. ”
Cam returned to Jase’s side and picked up a ping pong ball.
“Whoa,” Brit breathed, handing my drink back to me. “That was…”
“Really hot,” Jacob finished. “I thought you two were going to rip off each other’s clothes and start making babies right here on the dirty, beer covered floor. Like I was going to have to start charging admission for what was about to go down. ”
I shot him look. “I think that’s a tad bit on the over exaggeration side. ”
“Not from where we were standing,” Brit said, fanning herself. “How long are you going to string that boy along?”
A frown pulled at my lips. “I’m not stringing him along. ”
Her brows rose, but she didn’t say anything. Luckily the conversation moved away from me when Jimmie appeared and started messing with Brit’s wings. Our threesome turned into a foursome and before I knew it, we had our own little party off to the side. I was totally out of my element, but I kept up with the conversation. I knew as I sipped my beer, I was being labeled as the quiet chick at the party, but that was better than the last party label I ended up with.
The group had grown outside, the music was slightly louder, and clusters of people started to dance. Somehow, among all the noise, a deep, husky laugh drew my attention, and I turned halfway.
Coming through the garage entrance were two girls who looked like they belonged on a Victoria’s Secrets’ runway. One was dressed as a devil, which was really just a red teddy, a pointy tail, and horns. Boobs were everywhere. The other was a very sexy version of Little Red Riding Hood. Several things immediately happened as they prowled in on mile high heels.
A lot of guys literally stopped what they were doing and looked, like mid conversation. Jimmie’s mouth hit the floor. Even Jacob was staring like he was about to change sexual preferences. My stomach sort of twisted as I eyed the Riding Hood costume and I tried not to even think about the fact that I had worn a costume just like that to the Halloween party years before. Besides, right now, that didn’t seem like the biggest deal to contend with, which spoke volumes for a lot of things.
Little Red Riding Hood was also known as Stephanie Keith, a. k. a Steph.
The girl was gorgeous in a way that made any girl feel under dressed and on the wrong side of ugly. The hem of her sparkly red dress ended just below the ass, and her legs were stunning. Her outfit was complete with red lips, smoky eyes, and two pigtails.
She was hot.
And she was going straight for Cam.
Steph threw her arms around him, which caused her dress to hike up, revealing ruffled black panties that read SPANK ME across her ass cheeks. Cam didn’t run from her, but turned, giving her that damn lopsided smile of his. She took the ball from him, backing up and giggling as her friend was all up on Jase.
Something ugly unfurled in the pit of my stomach like a noxious weed. Why wasn’t Cam running away from her instead of following her around the table?
That was a stupid question.
What guy would be running from Steph?
Someone bumped into me from the side, an apology was muttered, but I was focused on Steph. She was holding the ball close to her breasts, grinning wickedly as Cam stalked her.
Brit took the cup from me and grabbed my hand. “Let’s dance. ”
I dug my feet in, blinking at her. “I don’t dance. ”
“No. We are going to dance. ” She cast a look over her shoulder. Cam had somehow gotten the ball from Steph. “Because if we don’t, you’re just going to stand there and glare at them like the pissed off girlfriend. ”