Shameless Kisses: 3:AM Kisses 18 Page 11

  What Harley doesn’t realize is that she doesn’t have to try at all. Simply being in her air space is enough to get me going past the point of no return.

  Last Saturday, when she was filming, I nearly dropped dead when I saw her in those barely-there bikini bottoms, her tits exposed for all to see. I wanted nothing more than to wrap myself around her, if only to keep other prying eyes away.

  It’s all my fault she was there to begin with. I landed her three humiliating gigs in a row just so I wouldn’t have to suffer through seeing her kiss some jackass in Times Square wearing a lot less than that bikini bottom. I’m not sure what the lesser evil was in that situation. One thing is for sure. Once this nightmare with Edison blows over, I’m going to properly introduce Harley to my aunt. And then I’m going to make sure she gets the best bookings available, even if it means making out with some fly-by-night pop star because Harley and I are solid.

  I only want the best for her. I love her.

  The world seems to stop for a moment as I digest the thought.

  What the hell was that?

  Do I really love Harley?

  A fire ignites in the pit of my stomach before roaring out to every cell in my body.

  Holy hell, I do love her.

  I love Harley Shelton. A dull laugh bounces through me. I’ve come to the end of myself, and I found Harley standing there. It feels surreal, too good to be true, a reality meant for someone else. I’m the bad news bear. The one who loses the girl, loses his family right in that order.

  My phone buzzes in my hand, and it’s Edison.

  You’re a great detective.

  I don’t waste a single second. Leave Harley the hell alone. I hesitated a moment before using her real name, but I’m more than certain my brother has all the information on her that he wants. I almost said girlfriend, though.

  For a moment, I think of making the correction, but that would only make Edison laugh all the harder. He’s enjoying this. He has always enjoyed sending me straight to hell—and by proxy the rest of the family, too. I hit send and wait for his response, my blood already boiling good and strong.

  Harley sought me out. Isn’t that something? You can thank the guy that dreamed up that genius app. Give yourself a pat on the back, little bro. You have always been the brains of the family. Isn’t that right?

  He’s screwing with me. Edison very much believes he holds that imaginary honor.

  He texts me again. Did you read my letter?

  I frown hard at my phone before texting back. Nope. I fed it to my fireplace. It loved every flame licking bite.

  And that’s the truth. For whatever reason, I couldn’t get myself to open it. A part of me was afraid he found a way to make me feel sorry for him, and I can’t go there. I’m not ready to show any mercy.

  He doesn’t respond, so I hit him up again. Where are you? Let’s meet up. I think it’s time.

  Time I blew my fist through his face, once and for all. I never did get to pounding his head in the way I wanted way back when, but then those reasons all seem foolish now. Especially now that I have someone like Harley in my life.

  Edison wasn’t worth the energy then, but after terrorizing both Harley and me, he certainly has earned his beating. And I have no problem giving it to him.

  Miss me, sweetheart?

  A silent laugh rolls through me. He wishes.

  I think on it for a second. There have been moments when the pain of losing my family was so visceral, a knife to the gut all over again that, yes, I would have settled just to be near my brother.

  There was a time, long ago, when the five of us felt so normal, the perfect nuclear family.

  Edison and I were the quintessential brothers. Football in the yard, basketball on the driveway, talking about girls, just hanging out and playing video games, doing all the normal things that brothers do, until we imploded.

  Come to think of it, we should have nixed the talking about girls stuff. That would have saved us a hell of a lot of grief.

  No, I don’t miss you. I hit send without giving it too much consideration. I guess there are some people in this life you can truly live without.

  Class wraps up, and Harley and I set out to Hallowed Grounds for our date.

  The first of many and it feels damn good.

  * * *

  Hallowed Grounds is one of Whitney Briggs University’s premier haunts—on campus, that is.

  Inside, the scent of coffee hits us hard, and it’s a little bit of paradise, much like being with Harley.

  Hell, she wasn’t a little piece of paradise—she was paradise from head to toe.

  Harley perks up and waves at a couple near the back, and I crane my neck to see it’s Serena and Shep Collins, the quasi-professor whose class I was a TA in last summer. Shep’s tour of scholastic duty is all done here now. He’s back at his father’s law firm and with Serena. They make a nice couple. Heck, I knew it before either of them did.

  Harley and I get our coffee and head back to take a seat with them.

  “You mind?” I nod to Serena and Shep.

  “Sit your butts down,” Serena orders, and we do.

  Shep’s donned a suit, his go-to attire to put criminals away, and he looks like an older far more dapper version of myself.

  “So what’s going on?” His smile broadens as he takes us in. “Serena tells me the two of you are seeing each other. That’s great.”

  Serena elbows him, and he winces.

  She glances to the ceiling. “I may have forgotten to tell him that was for his ears only. So are my rumors true? Are the two of you official?”

  Harley looks to me, unsure of where to take this, so I answer for her.

  “Yes,” I say, looking right into Harley’s beautiful eyes. “We are most certainly official.”

  Her eyes widen and water on cue as she sheds a brilliant smile of her own. “Thank you,” she mouths.

  Serena gasps, “I knew it! I called it. You guys have been on a collision course way before New York happened. Speaking of which, tell me about these commercials you’ve been filming. We’ve been hit-and-miss for the entire last month. I can’t believe my roommate is going to be famous, and I’ll get to say I knew her when.”

  Harley drops her head in her hands. “Trust me when I say you will deny the fact you ever knew me.” She looks up. “I’m the official spokesperson for all things constipation, vaginal, and armpit related.”

  Shep squirms in his seat, but it’s Harley I’m feeling for. My gut wrenches just hearing her have to own up to all that. The worst part is, I’m the one that put her through it.

  Harley regales us with tales from the embarrassing side of the entertainment industry and has both Serena and Shep rolling in the aisles.

  “Oh my goodness!” Serena dabs the tip of her pinkies into the corner of her eyes just to keep the tears at bay. “So what’s the news with that Shark dude? I guess now that you and Eli are together you shut him down for good. No more four hour talks until the wee hours of the morning.” She looks my way. “That honor now goes to you, my friend.”

  Harley and I exchange a quick glance. It’s clear she hasn’t filled Serena in on the latest, not-so-greatest news in the stalker department.

  My brother the stalker. Now there’s an unexpected development in my life.

  “Oh no!” Serena clasps her hands over her mouth. She looks my way for a moment. “You didn’t know about Shark Boy. I’m so sorry, Harley. In no way am I trying to cause waves between you two. I swear on all the good things that I’m your biggest cheerleader. I want nothing more than the two of you to stay together forever.”

  “It’s fine.” Harley waves it off. “Eli knows everything.” She cuts her gaze my way, and I feel like an ass because I know far more than I’m letting on.

  “And I’m fine with it,” I say. “He’s in the past. And Harley and I are all about spending the future together.”

  “Good.” Serena takes a cleansing breath. “What about Harper? Is she oka
y with this?” She wrinkles her nose because I suspect she doubts Harper is good with any part of this.

  “You’re the first to know,” I assure them. “And even if Harper doesn’t like the news, I’m sure she’ll come around.”

  Harley takes a breath as if she’s not sure. “It doesn’t matter what my sister thinks. I’m going to tell her the next time I see her.”

  Serena shakes her head. “Are you still doing one thing each day that scares you?”

  “I am,” Harley is quick to answer. “But it just so happens that Harper doesn’t scare me anymore.”

  An hour evaporates, and soon both Harley and Serena rush off to their next classes, but Shep and I hang out for a bit.

  He leans in, narrowing in on me with those defense attorney peepers. “Something’s got you. Don’t tell me you’re not feeling it for Harley. If that’s the case, cut the poor girl loose now.”

  “It’s about as far from that as one can get.”

  “Spill it.”

  And I do.

  And it feels damn good to get the truth off my chest for once.

  Show Time

  Harley

  October skies have always felt the most romantic to me with their burnt orange striations and their pink highlights. It’s a magical time of year. A magical time to be in love. And that’s exactly what I am with Eli—in love.

  Eli’s at practice, so I meet up with Teagan and Colby at the Black Bear for dinner.

  I step into the surly establishment. It’s warm inside, and the scent of curly fries lights up my senses. The Black Bear might be famous for their nacho platters that are a hit with pretty much everyone at WB, but I’ve never grown out of the French fry stage of my life. And judging by how hard my stomach is growling to have them, I don’t think I ever will.

  Teagan waves me over to them, and I stride in their direction with a bounce to my step.

  Colby’s big blue eyes widen. “Wow, someone is glowing. Is that shorthand for you slept with Eli?”

  My mouth opens as I slide into the seat across from them, but not a word comes out.

  Teagan’s jaw drops. “Oh my God, you did not!”

  “I did. We did. And it was better than I could have imagined.”

  Teagan crumples up a napkin and tosses it at me. “You promised you would never be with another guy after Tyler until you found the one.”

  “And I kept my promise.”

  Baya, the owner’s wife, comes over and takes our orders. She’s a cute bubbly girl who makes everyone feel right at home here. I wait until she takes off before leaning in.

  “Eli Gates is the one for me. And before either of you turns into a naysayer, we’re officially together. He said so himself this afternoon.”

  The two of them break out in congratulatory cheers.

  Colby bounces in her seat. “Please tell me all of the rumors are true. Eli Gates not only rules the playing field of just about every sport WB has to offer, but he has a mean forward thrust that puts every battery-operated boyfriend on the planet to shame.”

  “Indeed,” I say as I reflect back on the delicious forward thrust memory. “Let’s just say there was a fair share of acrobatics involved. I’ve already decided that before I jump back into bed with him, I’m going to up my yoga game. There are some positions that boy had me in that made me whirl, twirl, and swirl all at the same time. I’m pretty sure a few of those positions were neither kosher nor legal.”

  Teagan winces. “It sounds painful.”

  Colby slaps her on the hand. “It sounds pleasurable.” She grimaces. “You did get some pleasure out of the deal, right? If not, I can hook you up with that battery-operated boyfriend I mentioned.”

  “I’m good—but only because he’s good. Trust me when I say Eli Gates knows his way around the female anatomy. Those hands of his were not only strong, but they knew when to be delicate, too. And his mouth? I’m thinking of gifting it a trophy for Christmas this year. It put in a standout performance that was worthy of its singular recognition. But don’t get me wrong, Eli poured his entire body into the endeavor. He loved every last inch of me. And if I didn’t know better, I’d swear that boy was lost in worship. That was no one-night stand, no perfunctory mechanics just for the sake of hitting the end game. It was all-out war with our bodies. Eli Gates put his best effort into making it memorable.”

  The two of them sigh in unison.

  Teagan blinks back tears as if I just moved her. “I can’t wait for someone to love me like that.”

  Colby clicks her tongue. “That’s because you’re waiting for Ames.”

  “Who’s Ames?” I suddenly not only feel way out of the loop, but I feel horrible for hogging the conversation. Clearly, I’ve missed something, or someone.

  Teagan averts her eyes to the ceiling. “He’s no one. He was my best friend growing up. He’s at Lambert.” She makes a face at the mention of our rival.

  Colby shrugs over at her bestie. “She misses him even if she won’t admit it.”

  “How about you, Colby?” I ask as Baya drops off our food.

  “Yeah, Colby”—Teagan teases—“who’s haunting your dreams?”

  “Pft.” Colby laughs it off. “Honey, I’m not waiting for any man to make my dreams come true. I have everything I want. All the money I’ve ever dreamed of is at my fingertips. All I need now is to have a good time. I don’t need a man to complete me.”

  “I don’t either”—I’m quick to defend my seemingly anti-feminist ways—“it’s just that Eli is different. I need him in my life. I love him.”

  “Oh no,” a decidedly familiar voice strums from my left, and we turn to find Harper standing there holding her backpack, looking as if she were about to vomit on her shoes—more like my shoes to be exact. She falls into the seat beside me without waiting for an invite. “Tell me that’s not what I heard.”

  A breath catches in my throat. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I can distinctly hear myself saying that it would not scare me to confront my sister about my relationship with Eli.

  “You heard right.” My heart thumps wildly in my chest. “Eli and I are together.” My eyes widen as I brace myself for her response.

  Harper takes a seemingly never-ending breath. “I knew it. And I bet I know what’s going on with the two of you in New York!”

  A crooked smile takes over my face, but I can’t help it. Harper is being ridiculous. She has to know this.

  “Oh my God!” She groans as if I shot her. “Harley, Eli Gates is a notorious player. He sleeps with everything that moves. He’s using you for your body! You can’t honestly be in love with the guy. He doesn’t even believe in commitment.”

  “He does with me.” My voice takes an upswing, and I hate how whiny it sounds.

  “He doesn’t with you,” she riots as she slides her seat back, and it sounds like nails on a chalkboard. “You’re only setting yourself up for another heartbreak. You have to end it with this guy right now.”

  “I’m not ending anything with him. You’re just going to have to get used to the fact we’re together.”

  “You are not together! This is a fake relationship. Get it through your head. Eli is lying to you so long as he gets what he wants. It just so happens that what he wants is right between your legs.” She jumps out of her seat and secures her backpack over her shoulders. “You’re not going to New York with him anymore.”

  “The hell I’m not.”

  Harper leans in, her eyes lit with fury. “If you were smart, you’d listen to me. This is going to explode right in your face, and when it does—don’t forget that I told you so.” She takes off like a hurricane, and I can hardly catch my breath.

  “Geez”—Colby shudders—“with a sister like that, who needs enemies?”

  Teagan cocks her head my way, the look of concern ripe on her face. “Do the two of you fight like that a lot?”

  “Never.”

  And Harper has never been wrong before either.

  Eleanor Roosevelt sa
ys do one thing each day that scares you, and now I’m wondering if the one thing that scares me most is telling Eli that I love him.

  * * *

  Thursday night, Eli and I are about to head out to a fancy sushi restaurant in Jepson after practice. I’m back at my dorm getting ready while he showers and does a quick change in the locker room. My phone bleats in my purse, and I groan pulling it out. I’ve restored my alerts since I haven’t heard back from my stalker in about a week. Speaking of people who are toxic to me, I’ve yet to talk to Harper again, or thankfully see her, but she’s texted several lame apologies, each time tacking on a reminder of the fact she is right. But it’s not Harper texting me this time. It’s the man with a plan to ruin my night. The Shark himself.

  At Hallowed Grounds. Come on over, sweetheart. Bring that boyfriend of yours, too. I think it’s time to say hello in person.

  “What?” I whisper as I read it again.

  A thousand thoughts run through my mind. I should call the police. I should call Harper, my usual go-to person when I’m in trouble, but not only am I not currently speaking to Harper, but I haven’t exactly apprised her of the situation either. She wasn’t a proponent of that dating app from the beginning. I’d hate to give her a reason to be right about something else. Serena is already out with Shep. I quickly text both Teagan and Colby to see where they are, and they shoot back a picture of themselves seated in a movie theater.

  I pull on my coat and pick up my purse, texting Eli as I hit the elevator.

  The Shark is here! He’s at Hallowed Grounds. He says he wants to meet my boyfriend and me. I hit send just as the elevator drops me off at the ground floor.

  Eli texts right back. No!

  Why not? I ask as I pick up my pace. It’s dark out, but there are plenty of people around and I decide it’s probably best that I stick near the crowd in case this lunatic spots me first. Hell, I wouldn’t even know who to look for if I spotted him back.

  My phone buzzes, and it’s Eli again. Where are you? Stay put. Do not move.