Total pages in book: 96
Estimated words: 94012 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 470(@200wpm)___ 376(@250wpm)___ 313(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 94012 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 470(@200wpm)___ 376(@250wpm)___ 313(@300wpm)
More like territorial.
My handling of this situation was precisely why I could never be Archie’s girlfriend. My jealousy over other women throwing themselves at him would kill me.
Ashley and I mostly chatted with James. In fact, Ashley and James seemed to be getting along especially well. They were both pre-med and enjoyed the same kind of alternative music. Archie came over and chimed in on our conversation a couple of times, but I couldn’t read him tonight. This entire week, I’d had no idea what he was thinking because I’d barely spoken to him.
Then all hell broke loose—at least in my head.
Bree whispered something in Archie’s ear, and he followed her down the beach. They were headed toward the rocks, where I now knew people went to make out—or worse.
Ashley saw me looking at them. She flashed me a sympathetic look but didn’t say anything about it since James was right there.
My blood boiled for several minutes until jealousy finally broke me. I had to know. “Ash, I need to leave for a few. Wait for me here?”
She likely knew exactly why I was leaving, so she didn’t question it—not that I stuck around long enough for her to say anything before I took off. All I could think as I trudged through the sand was whether the sexual stuff Archie and I had done was just foreplay for his time with Bree tonight. He didn’t want to have actual sex with me, but he’d had it multiple times with her. I hated the horrible, burning jealousy running through me.
I had no right to claim Archie, but he’d requested that I not be with anyone else while we were trying things. I certainly expected the same of him, even if I hadn’t specifically said it.
To my surprise, before I got to the rocks, I spotted Archie and Bree walking back toward me.
“Where are you going, Noelle?” he asked as they approached.
I placed my hands on my hips. “I went to…to look for you.”
“Why?”
Bree shook her head, seeming pissed, and took off, leaving Archie and me alone.
I turned to watch her walk away before facing him again. “What’s wrong with her?”
“Why were you looking for me?” he repeated. “You thought I took Bree to the rocks, didn’t you?”
I blew out a long breath as my blood pressure began to return to normal. “Yes.”
“I told you I wouldn’t be messing around with anyone but you.”
“Actually, you didn’t. You told me not to mess around with James, if I recall. But you promised me nothing.”
“Well, that should’ve been understood.” He narrowed his eyes. “You don’t trust me.”
“Why should I? You’re not my boyfriend.”
“No, but I’m your friend, and I wouldn’t do anything to hurt you.” He looked out toward the water. “Bree wanted to know why I’d been avoiding her. I hadn’t formally talked to her about not seeing each other. I finally told her straight out that I wouldn’t be hooking up with her anymore.”
“Oh.” I swallowed. “Well…it makes sense now why she didn’t seem happy.”
He ran a hand through his hair. “She was more upset than I expected. Maybe she was hanging on to some feelings I didn’t know about. Anyway, it’s done.” He reached out and cupped my cheek. “I didn’t mean to upset you. It’s kind of cute that you were jealous, though.”
“Between not running together and Ashley being here, I feel like I haven’t seen you this week. Then that happened. So I got a little rattled.”
“You can always come see me. I’m not hiding from you. I was just trying to give you some space to hang with your friend.” He leaned in. “I’ve missed the fuck out of you, actually.”
Goose bumps peppered my skin. I wanted him to kiss me.
He looked past my shoulder. “Where is your friend right now?”
“I told her I’d be back. I left her with the group.”
“Text her and see if she’s okay with you being gone for half an hour.”
I nodded and texted Ashley, letting her know all was well and I would be gone for a bit. She sent me a winky face, which told me she’d figured out who I was with. I asked if she was okay without me, and she responded that James was keeping her company. I wondered if she liked him and hoped something might develop between them, especially since all hope was gone for James and me.
Archie took my hand and led me down the beach and over to the rocks. He situated us in the perfect hiding place and ran his finger gently along my arm. “I loved how open you were about what you wanted in that note.”
“You certainly delivered on my request.”
“Believe me, you were the one who delivered. That was the best damn blowjob I’ve ever had. I don’t know if it’s because I knew it was your first time or if you were just so damn good at it, but I can’t stop thinking about it.” He narrowed his eyes. “Are you sure you’d never done it before?” He shook his head before I could answer. “Forget it. I don’t want to know.”